Reso for Bass Drum

aboylikedave

Senior Member
I've got ambassadors on my kit and like them but when it comes to bass drums I like a nice fat 'soft' bassy sound with little top end. What would be a suitable reso to go with my PS3 batter?
 
I've got ambassadors on my kit and like them but when it comes to bass drums I like a nice fat 'soft' bassy sound with little top end. What would be a suitable reso to go with my PS3 batter?
Maybe a heavier coated head to calm it down a bit, maybe even a two ply to take away the pingy stuff.

An old style fuzzy lambswool beater would round it out too.
Like this one:
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vater-Vintage-Bomber-Bass-Drum-Beater-103021531-i1165887.gc
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Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.
 
Are PS3s known as a bit pingy or needing calming down? (I'm findy it very wet and slappy even with various head tensions.)
No, I'm talking about the reso head, are you using a PS3 for a reso? That should deaden the be-geezus out of it. But it might also take the low end BOOM away. It might make the slap of the drum more prominent as there won't be much resonance of the front head.

Depends on the drum, but I think you might want a calmer, less bright resonant head, not a dead reso head like a PS3.
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Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.
 
No, a PS3 as a reso will certainly not "deaden the be-geezus out of it." The PS3 is a very open-sounding head when tuned right. It is merely a single-ply head with a control ring--none of the extreme muffling of some other heads. I have PS3s front and rear and I get gobs of sustain and boom, which is what I need.

In my experience PS3s do not sound their best at the "just above wrinkle" stage of tuning favored by many. They can indeed sound a bit "slappy" at this tuning. Try this: from "just above wrinkle," very gradually take the reso a little bit higher, just to the point where it begins to make a real tone with some bottom and sustain--then stop. Then tune the batter the same way but just a smidge higher. Adding more tension to the batter increases the attack and reduces the sustain--you can dial it in wherever you like.
 
No, a PS3 as a reso will certainly not "deaden the be-geezus out of it." The PS3 is a very open-sounding head when tuned right.
I guess I'll just have to take your word for it, as I've tried 'em, and they're FAR too dead for me to use as a reso head.

_______________I guess I'm just not tuning it right.

Or it could be I'm looking for a sound that's got even MORE of what you get when you don't muffle the reso head with control rings. Just a thought.

I'll preclude my further any further tips with
"In My Experience." Sorry for the misunderstanding.
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__________________
Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.
 
I guess I'll just have to take your word for it, as I've tried 'em, and they're FAR too dead for me to use as a reso head.

_______________I guess I'm just not tuning it right.

Or it could be I'm looking for a sound that's got even MORE of what you get when you don't muffle the reso head with control rings. Just a thought.

I'll preclude my further any further tips with
"In My Experience." Sorry for the misunderstanding.
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__________________
Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.

Well, over the course of several decades I've tried most of 'em. Considering you have several degrees of muffling available these days, the PS3 is pretty much at the open end of the scale. I think I interpreted your characterization as meaning it would sound severely muffled; since there are many far more muffled heads out there I couldn't agree with it.

To my ear the PS3 type sounds quite open. The ring takes away the boing (higher overtones), but does not restrict the boom. As I mentioned before, it does not sound its best at the just-above-wrinkle stage, where many drummers tune their resos--it wants to be very slightly higher. Perhaps you've only heard it at JAW, where it might well sound muffled because it hasn't reached the stage where it opens up.

If a well-tuned PS3 sounds muffled to you, then nothing other than an unmuffled single ply will do. Lots of good ones out there. Truth is, though, that back when we all used unmuffled single-ply resos (because that's all there was!), most of us used a felt strip to take a bit of boing away, just as the PS3 does today.
 
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If a well-tuned PS3 sounds muffled to you, then nothing other than an unmuffled single ply will do. Lots of good ones out there. Truth is, though, that back when we all used unmuffled single-ply resos (because that's all there was!), most of us used a felt strip to take a bit of boing away, just as the PS3 does today.
Yeah, that's the way I go. I don't and haven't ever used a felt strip or any other type of "add on" muffling to a kick's reso. I have tried heads with differing thicknesses and higher degrees of coatings. I like heavy, sluggish heads for the reso side. I find if you mess with it it'll sound awesome and give you the most you'll ever get out of the drum.

I used to like the Remo Legacy, until they no longer made them. Ludwig's Heavy Coated is awesome too, and sometimes you can get away with the Heavy Smooth White. Remo's Black (Ebony??) single ply heads sound good too, whatever coating they use to get the black on the inside seems to slow the head down too.
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__________________
Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.
 
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