Evans Hydraulic Heads

SeanMc

Junior Member
Hi, I want to replace the stock heads on a Tama Swingstar kit I picked up used. Looking for a classic/hard rock sound.
Thinking about Evans hydraulic heads.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Sean
 
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I have had a set of Evans Hydraulic in blue on my toms and bass drum for the past 40 years. The same set. Only recently did I notice that the outer layer of the bass drum head had cracked and separated. Not bad for 40 years. I bought them back in the 80's when I was in college. I knew that they were the thickest heads out there and would last me a long time. But I never thought it would be 4 decades. I really liked how they sounded. A full fat sound that made my Slingerlands sound great. I recently decided it was time for a new set of heads and changed things up slightly but going with Remo Clear Pinstripes. I'm loving them. But I loved my Hydraulics too.
 
A lot will also depend on what head you will put on the resonant side. I had Remo Ambassadors and Diplomats. Gave them some nice tone.
 
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I've used them on my 16 bass drums and they sound pretty good. I sent my beater through the batter head and it was handy-worked out so well I kept it. It gives me a larger tuning range with it. I also have used them on my old Pearl Vision 10/12/14/16 kit with Ambassador reso heads and they do sound great-not as loud too. I put pinstripes on after that and liked them better on the Visions till I tried the Vintage ambassadors batter heads and that was when I gave them to my son-in-law.
 
wayyyy too dead for my liking. but if its what you want, go for it :)

i'd reccomend the aquarian force 10s though, theyre 20mil thick (2x10mil plies) but arent as "dead" IMO :)

From what I could find online the Evans are two 7 mil plys with a layer of oil. Maybe it's the oil that deadens the Evan's sound more than the Aquarians. But the Aquarians are thicker.
 
Hi, I want to replace the stock heads on a Tama Swingstar kit I picked up used. Looking for a classic/hard rock sound.
Thinking about Evans hydraulic heads.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Sean

The Evans EC2s will give you a low powerful sound that still had a lot of tone. Those are some of the best heads you can get for a killer rock sound that has attack, low end power but still decent sustain and an ok tuning range.

Pair it with a G1 on the bottom and you'll absolutely love your tom sound.
 
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Big fan of hydraulics here. I generally follow the Copeland method of tuning (for lack of a better term) in that I tune most of my drums so high that they almost sound thin up close but they cut right through the amps from the audience point of view so with that I've never found hydraulics to be dead. If you are a JAW guy... Any head will sound dead.
 
I put them on the new set I bought a couple months ago because the stock heads would sing and sustain forever in the small room I'm in. They tamed that pretty well. I still have sustain but its about the right amount now. I still have the stock reso's on the kit. I didnt use them on my snare because I really liked the sound as it came from the factory.
 
for the "Classic 70's sound", you also might want to try Remo:
1. Pinstripes batter side; Ambassador clear reso side
2. CS Black or Silver dot batter side; Ambassador clear reso side
3. Emporer Clear batter side; Ambassador clear reso side

don't know if you are tryign to mainly stick with Evans, so I thought I would throw these into the mix; I am a Remo guy, but also have tried all of the Evans heads listed in the posts above...nothign against Evans, I just find that I know Remo heads better
 
Hi SeanMc. I used them on concert toms and base drums back in the 80s and they reduce the ring. I like them on the base especially. They made a nice fat warm sound. ?
 
You can make your own hydraulics by spreading vegetable oil on your drum heads.

You're welcome.

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You can make your own hydraulics by spreading vegetable oil on your drum heads.

You're welcome.

SlYWGeV.png

I like to save the Crisco oil for our hot new lead singer:

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(I wish)
 
There are lots of drum head comparison videos on Youtube. Here is one of them:
They make me confused, I find that I like lots of drum heads. But generally, Remo Pinstripes are a good choice for toms and Ambassadors for snare drums.
 
Hi, I want to replace the stock heads on a Tama Swingstar kit I picked up used. Looking for a classic/hard rock sound.
Well ..... it certainly was ONE of the classic sounds. If fat, deep, short tone is what you're striving for .... they'll do it. A little too muffled for my tastes. Even the Pinstripe (which I think is a tad fuller). The only drums I really used/liked pinstripes on, were acrylic shells (Zickos & Ludwig Vistalites) and Remo Roto Toms. I'm more a fan of Emperors or Powerstroke3's over Ambassadors.
 
From what I could find online the Evans are two 7 mil plys with a layer of oil. Maybe it's the oil that deadens the Evan's sound more than the Aquarians. But the Aquarians are thicker.
yep it is, the laer of oil really kills the overtones, and IMO, the tone of the drum as well.
 
yep it is, the laer of oil really kills the overtones, and IMO, the tone of the drum as well.

that is one of the reasons I went to Remo Emporers years ago...from Pinstripes. Roughly the same feel as Pins, but a bit more versatile to tune
 
These are the flatwound drum heads if you will. I bet they sound great on concert toms, but for normal toms I prefer laying a towel on a normal head for the "dead" tone
 
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