Gretsch New Classic 16" Floor Tom / 1 or 2 ply head?

PeteN

Silver Member
Just got my 16" Gretsch New Classic Floor Tom, took it out of the box tuned it immediately.
I recorded a video clip testing this floor tom along with my pearl mcx 14" floor tom, the gretsch has a coated g1 for batter and I have an aquarian super2 on the pearl floor tom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AF-eQbHer-M

I'm used to two ply heads on floor toms and might just leave this G1 on here for now but kind of unsure lol, your opinion on how it sounds with the stock evans G1 head would be greatly appreciated.

If i do go two ply it would be the Aquarian Super 2
 
I like the pearl one, it has more tone and sounds pretty low for a 14", almost like your 16" gretsch
 
Enrico,

I agree and this is why I was thinking going to a two ply head for the 16 floor tom might be a good move. But...I'm not going to give up on this head just yet, I'll try and tune it a hair lower but i'm so close right now to it sounding flabby/papery so we'll see.

If I get it lower without it sounding flabby which is not the result I want then I'll post another vid.

Thanks for your reply.
 
If you're talking about the floor tom on the right, it still has tone and doesn't sound flabby to me. Do you have both heads on that tom tuned to the same pitch? If you have it as low as you feel it can go, you probably do.

Dennis
 
If you're talking about the floor tom on the right, it still has tone and doesn't sound flabby to me. Do you have both heads on that tom tuned to the same pitch? If you have it as low as you feel it can go, you probably do.

Dennis

Yeah the one on the right is a 16" gretsch new classic and I agree it does not sound flabby but if I go any lower it will for sure, do you think I should go with a 2 ply head on this particular floor tom or leave the stock evans G1 as is came with from the factory?

I'm not sure if you watched both vids that i uploaded but the first one I had tuned a lil too high and then retuned it a few days ago and the link for that is third post down in this topic.

Maybe you can give me your opinion which sounds better?

Thanks Dennis!
 
I prefer the way your floor toms sound in post #4. In your first post they do sound just a bit high to me and I also hear a bit too much pitch shifting and harmonics that take away from quality of the drums resonance and sustain. They could be dialed in a little better if you prefer the higher pitch though. I use different head combinations for some of my kits. A couple of my kits sound great with a single ply head over a single ply resonant head. I have a couple of kits that I use a double ply over a single ply. It's really what you like better and what better conforms to the style of music you play. I'm aware that your toms might sound a bit different over YouTube than what they sound like in person.

BTW, it's great to hear someone totally enthused about trying to achieve sonic excellence in his drums.

Dennis
 
Thanks Dennis, I used to avoid tuning like the plague lol and now I'm having fun experimenting. I need to get this whole kit setup and tuned and post another vid. I think I'll stick with stock g1 heads for now and see how it goes.
 
I have a 14 inch Gretsch Renown and a 16 inch Gretsch Catalina floor tom and they are tuned to the exact pitches you have in post #4. So we must be perfect. LOL
 
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