Coated Ambassador drum head

wbb25

Junior Member
Would this be a sufficient drum head for switching from Jazz to Rock, and vise versa, if tuned properly?
 
Would this be a sufficient drum head for switching from Jazz to Rock, and vise versa, if tuned properly?

The Remo coated Ambassador is one of the most recorded heads of all time.

The industry standard for single ply mylar heads.

Can't go wrong.
 
Would this be a sufficient drum head for switching from Jazz to Rock, and vise versa, if tuned properly?

I agree with the posts here. It is the most recorded head of all time. Well, it is also the oldest head of all time. If you wish to dish out some punishing back beats with this head it will be great for a little while then the coating will start to come off rather quickly. Other than the coating being short lived, they sound great. A little too open for my taste.
 
I agree with the posts here. It is the most recorded head of all time. Well, it is also the oldest head of all time. If you wish to dish out some punishing back beats with this head it will be great for a little while then the coating will start to come off rather quickly. Other than the coating being short lived, they sound great. A little too open for my taste.

I agree with the other posts as well.
 
the Ambassador Coated can really hold any tone on a snare - a good choice... of course nothing wrong with Evans Genera Coated either... or Aquarian Focus X...
good hunting ;-)
 
I love the coated Ambs... I have them on every single drum except my brass snare (too ringy) and my kick, of course. Every other snare I own has a Remo Amb on it. I also like Evans Genera Dry on snares, but I often get the Remo Ambs in the pre-packs for a little cheaper, so the price makes my decision between equally good heads. I should note that I've never had any problem with the coating coming off... ever. I did, however, try an Aquarian single ply coated head once, and that bad boy started flaking in about three days.

As far as retuning, well, I don't even retune my toms between jazz and rock- higher toms sing out better anyway.

I auditioned for a band a few months ago and they had 10, 12, 14" toms... tuned just past wrinkles. Yuck; I had to pound the snot out of them to cut through. My 10, 12, 16 toms, however? They can cut if I tap 'em, and roar when I hit a little harder.
 
Would this be a sufficient drum head for switching from Jazz to Rock, and vise versa, if tuned properly?

IMO/E, Yes, they are great heads, with a very wide tuning range. High, low, & everything in between.
For a single ply, they can get surprisingly deep tones too if you want that sound.

Coated Ambassadors are my favorite head for every drum batter (even the bass drum)--Coated Emp, or Coated Emp top dot for more durability on the snare for Rock or heavier playing, but the Ambassador sounds great on the snare if you don't need to worry about durability, or having to change it out more frequently.
 
To avoid restating anything previously said:

Yes. Just yes.
 
Why, don't you like switching out your heads? I do. I get this huge rush from getting new sounds from the same drums.

I typically use coated ambs for jazz and coated emps for rock. Clear versions for studio sessions (engineers seem to love articulation for some reason...???). Oh, and when it comes to "Ambassador vs. G1" and "Emperor vs. G2", I don't hear that much of a difference. Just in case THAT silly argument comes up...
 
I played Coated Ambassador's for about twenty years. I still use them from time to time. You can play any type of music with them.
 
I played Coated Ambassador's for about twenty years. I still use them from time to time. You can play any type of music with them.

I'm just curious (not trying to be confrontational or anything)...can you, or anyone, give an example of a commonly-found drumhead and a style of music that simply aren't compatible?

I hear people say, "it's so versatile" and "can be used with any style" so often, I'm wondering if I'm missing something. Can somebody PLEASE fill in this equation for me...???...

(A) heads can NOT be used in (B) style of music. Solve for A and B. Go.
 
I'm just curious (not trying to be confrontational or anything)...can you, or anyone, give an example of a commonly-found drumhead and a style of music that simply aren't compatible?

I hear people say, "it's so versatile" and "can be used with any style" so often, I'm wondering if I'm missing something. Can somebody PLEASE fill in this equation for me...???...

(A) heads can NOT be used in (B) style of music. Solve for A and B. Go.

Hydraulics or even Pinstripes (at times) for jazz. Too dead for my ear. Fiberskyn for rock.

Quite honestly, you can tune ALMOST any head to get almost any style. A Renaissance head can be treated with moongel to work for rock studio gigs (if you want), but it's easier to use heads tailored more closely for specific sounds rather than trying to force a head out of its specific design.
 
Hydraulics or even Pinstripes (at times) for jazz. Too dead for my ear. Fiberskyn for rock.

Quite honestly, you can tune ALMOST any head to get almost any style.

What gig can I show up at and the bandleader is going to not hire me back because of the heads on my kit? For that matter, the cymbals on my kit? For that matter, the brand on my drums? It's mostly personal choice (with some outside influences thrown in to boot). So what if I show up to a jazz gig with hydraulic heads? "This Tony Williams guy showed up and started playing with center-dot heads---he'll never work on my bandstand again!!!"
 
What gig can I show up at and the bandleader is going to not hire me back because of the heads on my kit? For that matter, the cymbals on my kit? For that matter, the brand on my drums? It's mostly personal choice (with some outside influences thrown in to boot). So what if I show up to a jazz gig with hydraulic heads? "This Tony Williams guy showed up and started playing with center-dot heads---he'll never work on my bandstand again!!!"

Ah, but if you show up to that jazz gig with a Bonham-sized kick, wood beater, hydraulic heads tuned down as low as possible, a marching snare with a kevlar head, a couple of electronic trigger pads, and all Z Custom cymbals... I'd say that even the best jazz player in the world wouldn't be able to keep the gig.

You have to go to extreme and specific ends, but there are certainly pieces of gear that are better suited to specific genres. You wouldn't show up to a metal audition with a bop kit, a set of vintage Ks, a Slingerland snare, and a Speedking pedal. You COULD, of course, but it wouldn't exactly sound "right". In this case, "right" really only means "what we're used to," so there's no RULE to say that you have to have a certain type of sound... but that rhetoric won't change the fact that it won't get you the gig.
 
What gig can I show up at and the bandleader is going to not hire me back because of the heads on my kit? For that matter, the cymbals on my kit? For that matter, the brand on my drums? It's mostly personal choice (with some outside influences thrown in to boot). So what if I show up to a jazz gig with hydraulic heads? "This Tony Williams guy showed up and started playing with center-dot heads---he'll never work on my bandstand again!!!"

Further, sometimes it's just a tiebreaker. Sure, you might be just as good of a jazz player on your Tama drums with Ebony heads, brass 14x8 snare, and Metal AAX cymbals... but the equivalent player with a vintage Ludwig and HH pies gets the "expected" sound a bit more easily.

I guess it's similar to the question some of my coworkers would ask when I worked selling shoes on commission. "Why should I have to dress up?" they'd ask. "Our society is so much more casual," they'd complain. I would never answer, but on "jeans day" or "t-shirt day" or whatever, I made FAR more commission wearing suit and tie because people were more comfortable spending money with a professional looking sales person. I could have tried to buck the system, pointing out that people should look at me and the product without pre-judging me by my clothing... or I could be making more money.

Same way, I could go around trying to prove that I can play any genre on gear specifically tailored for another genre (how about jazz on an electric kit) and that it's far more about the musician than about the gear... OR I could actually get the gig instead. Rhetoric or reality.
 
Ah, but if you show up to that jazz gig with a Bonham-sized kick, wood beater, hydraulic heads tuned down as low as possible, a marching snare with a kevlar head, a couple of electronic trigger pads, and all Z Custom cymbals...

That WOULD be an interesting set up for a jazz gig. I'd like to see that!

I'd say that even the best jazz player in the world wouldn't be able to keep the gig.

With this kind of non-forward thinking, how is music ever going to change? If we just do things the same-old same-ol', how is music going to progress? It takes at least somebody to step out of the mold and attempt something completely new for there to be change.

Also, what about the argument for, "it's not the drums, but the player?" I guess that's tossed out the window now, too...
 
That WOULD be an interesting set up for a jazz gig. I'd like to see that!



With this kind of non-forward thinking, how is music ever going to change? If we just do things the same-old same-ol', how is music going to progress? It takes at least somebody to step out of the mold and attempt something completely new for there to be change.

Also, what about the argument for, "it's not the drums, but the player?" I guess that's tossed out the window now, too...

Well, Caddy, I totally agree with you, but the question is this- do you want to change things, or do you want to get work? The simple fact is that most of the people who hire musicians (including other musicians) want to hear what they are used to hearing. They don't want new. That's not to say that you can't do it. It's just to say that it'll be a much harder road.

I like to play. I've been playing long enough to be decent at the stuff people expect to hear, and yet short enough that it's not boring to me yet. So for right now, I'm a realist. I like to play as often as I can, and part of that is making others happy.
 
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