a big booming 'rock' sound...

...for my 17"x22" birch kick drum, i want a sound big enough to knock pictures off the wall

i'm all set up with Evans all around and would like to stick with 'em, i was thinking the clear EQ4 batter and coated EQ1 reso, good idea?

any testimonials or opinions are welcome, thanks!

Ainulindale said:

...for my 17"x22" birch kick drum, i want a sound big enough to knock pictures off the wall any testimonials or opinions are welcome, thanks!

Click to expand...

Take a "Run Up." ;^)
Failing that, get a larger Bass Drum.

I know you like Evans, but I'm gettting a serious rounded, gorgeous boom from a 22"x16" birch kick, the best I've gotten this particular kick drum to sound in 20 years...

I use a coated ambassador batter tuned medium tension with a felt strip that when stretched in place against the head is about 1 & 1/2" wide. I currently have a black Falam pad where the beater strikes to give the head some longevity. The reso is a smooth white amb. with a 3 & 3/8" hole, no muffling and tuned significantly higher than the batter. The BD beater is felt and seems to be softer than most of the newer felt beaters.

I also got a more focused, but still good and somewhat boomish sound from this kick with a coated PS3 batter, without the Falam pad and using the same reso head.

for the biggest boom i would recommend as little muffling as possible and an un-ported resonant head. when you're tuning, think of tuning the shell, not the head. i would tune the resonant head first until you get a nice even sound with a long, even decay. you may find yourself tuning to a higher pitch then you expected. then tune the batter until the drum sings...

one thing to remember is you are often tuning 'to the room'. meaning, drums may sound completely different room to room. so what booms in one place, may not boom so much in another.

p.s. i am using a 20x17 Yamaha Stage Custom Adavantage BD with a Clear PS3 on the batter with a patch, and a Coated Amassador on the reso side, no port, and there is a very small blanket inside. this combo sounds great on my kit. very deep, resonant and articulate.

very true! I remember the first time I played out on a wooden stage, with a wooden riser. My old poplar Pearl Export 22x16 which never did sound that good to me all the sudden came alive!

that said, I am running an Evans Emad1 and my factory Remo reso that came with my kit. Just a real small pillow on the reso to kill some overtones. Its almost not even touching it, and when I have some spare cash I am gonna grab an Evans EQ pad for this purpose...

Now to tuning. I gave this a watch a while back and its really helped me dial in a huge kick sound. (not that having a 24x20 maple kick would do anything to help that... hehehe)

great video, and a good starting point at the very least. totally worth the nine and a half minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjDXbwvKR-4&feature=related

Whatever you do decide to get, I would seriously recommend going coated on the batter and something in the realm of ebony ambassador on the front, unported, no muffling. It'll sound real boomy to you but once its the audience.... well.... they'll love it.

Big and boomy? Here's one more vote for unmuffled and unported. Really, after that it's about what "kind" of boom you want. More focused? Go for a PowerStroke 3 or an EMAD. More open? Get a head without any muffling built in/on. If you want to enhance the articulation a little, and help your head last a tad longer, get one of those kevlar patches...

I don't think you can get a deeper tone than Remo PowerStroke 3. My favorite combo is a clear PS3 batter w/ a Smooth White PS3 reso. I cut (no bigger than) a 4" hole and use a "Bass Drum O". I use a small DW-style pillow that lightly touches both heads.

I get lots of punch *and* boom on my 22x18". Without the pillow it's just ridiculous, the punch is completely wiped out by the boom and there's no articulation.

thereactionsite said:

Whatever you do decide to get, I would seriously recommend going coated on the batter and something in the realm of ebony ambassador on the front, unported, no muffling. It'll sound real boomy to you but once its the audience.... well.... they'll love it.

Click to expand...

It all changes once you put a mic in front of it though...Its a pain in the ass to have to move back and forth between the two setups.

wow, thanks for the great response guys! now where to start?...

where i should have i guess, my current 'stock' head is a 1ply with an internal ring, no pillows or blankets or anything like that - i'm fairly happy with the sound, just looking to cheat a little more ooomph out of it ( that and it's just about ready to cave...)

hungrypro - your sound is just what i'm looking for i think, the PS3 is a 2ply head with an internal ring, yes? so similar to the Evans EQ3?

rokzz - thanks for video, i really crank the bass drum tight myself...

thereactionsite - no audience sadly, but coated huh? several guys have said it does make a difference...

caddy! unported and unmuffled, check.

zambizzi - believe it or not, i'm looking at just tiptoeing in the edge of 'ridiculous' ;-)

TheArcitect - no mic's to worry about...

so. maybe a coated EQ3 with an unported reso and little or nothing in the kick itself?

thanks again guys, really appreciate the feedback!

( keep more of it coming if you got it - purchase probably a week away...)

PS3 is a one-ply w/ a muffling ring. If ridiculous is what you're after, do PS3s on both sides, no hole, wide-open...

BOOOOOM.....

I went through the same dilema on a 22x18 birch kick. Don't make the same mistake i did and be stuck with $200 worth of kickdrum heads sitting in the garage that were used no longer than three days. Powerstroke 3 front and back with a 4" hole, falam pad and plastic beaters. I managed to crack the glass on the wifes china cabinet.

zambizzi said:

PS3 is a one-ply w/ a muffling ring. If ridiculous is what you're after, do PS3s on both sides, no hole, wide-open...

BOOOOOM.....

Click to expand...

shoot, just when i thought it figured out so i'm on the right track with the EQ4 then, hmmm...