Bass Drum Head Prices

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vyacheslav

Senior Member
Greetings,

We all know the prices of heads these days. The "$1 an inch" standard that had held true for years is long gone. Now it's at least $2 an inch or even more, particularly on bass drum heads that are the "self muffled" variety.

I was browsing Remo Coated Powerstroke 3 Bass Drum Heads (my usual go to) on Sweetwater, and as of today (11/21/2023) the prices are as follows:

16" - $55.99
18" - $40.99
20" - $32.99
22" - $52.95
24" - $48.99
26" - $55.89

Um, is it just me or does that seem a little out of whack? A 16" is more expensive than a 26"?

Those prices are all over the place and seem random. One would think that the smaller the head, the lower the price. Odd. The 20" looks to be a pretty good deal-too bad I don't need any! I also find it odd that a 22" is more than a 24" and is significantly more than a 20". Is it because that is the most popular bass drum size?

Anyway, it's another good reason to switch to Attack heads. Their No Overtone series bass drum heads are every bit as good as the Remo Powerstroke 3. The prices for the Attack No Overtone are significantly less than the other big brands, and they are just a bit more than $1 an inch. If you need bass drum heads, try those.

By the way, I don't care for Aquarian and Evans heads in general. Just my preference, so that's why I didn't mention either of them.
 
vyacheslav said:
A 16" is more expensive than a 26"?
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I'd have to see a dealers Remo Price list; privy of course.

the 20" seems very reasonable -if in stock etc
 
I'm not sure, but I'd assume that demand and manufacturing costs are just a few factors that would determine these price discrepancies?
 
The amount of plastic is the diameter squared. A 24" head is actually 4 times as large as a 12" in terms of plastic use. As the sizes grow (say 22 vs 24), each inch of increase means more increase of plastic used than the smaller sizes (say 10 vs 12), hence the increasing difference in cost. It's not hard to calculate.
 
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Iristone said:
The amount of plastic is the diameter squared. A 24" head is actually 4 times as large as a 12" in terms of plastic use. As the sizes grow (say 22 vs 24), each inch of increase means more increase of plastic used than the smaller sizes (say 10 vs 12), hence the increasing difference in cost. It's not hard to calculate.
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Not trying to be snarky, but how does that explain a 16" head being more expensive than a 26"?
 
Drumheads are becoming really expensive, I thought it was more a european thing but, it appears it's also the case in the US.
Evans and Remo are, in France around 70€ (75$) for a 22 skin : which is crazy.

Thankfully, the british newcomer Code is less expensive and as far as I know, equally good, just much less choice in the range.
Evans EQ4 22 : 72 € - Code Blast 22 : 52€
Same for a full kit : 10 12 16 Evans G2 : 66€ (70$) ; Code Generator 69€ (73$) but you get a "bonus" snare head.
Aquarian is keeping prices low, but Evans definitely went sky high.
 
vyacheslav said:
Not trying to be snarky, but how does that explain a 16" head being more expensive than a 26"?
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Iristone said:
Could be the 16" kick-sized flesh hoops being of special order. I think that's the difference between a 16" tom head and kick head
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Or maybe that the 16"s aren't as commonly used so they price them a little higher?
 
Smaller quantity lot sizes are more costly to build, in spite of the raw material costs (labor's expensive). I would bet those prices directly reflect the popularity of each size head, sale prices excluded.
 
Tamaefx said:
Drumheads are becoming really expensive, I thought it was more a european thing but, it appears it's also the case in the US.
Evans and Remo are, in France around 70€ (75$) for a 22 skin : which is crazy.

Thankfully, the british newcomer Code is less expensive and as far as I know, equally good, just much less choice in the range.
Evans EQ4 22 : 72 € - Code Blast 22 : 52€
Same for a full kit : 10 12 16 Evans G2 : 66€ (70$) ; Code Generator 69€ (73$) but you get a "bonus" snare head.
Aquarian is keeping prices low, but Evans definitely went sky high.
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I heard bad things about Code’s quality too.

Im glad you don’t have to change bd heads often.

I would be screwed 😂

IMG_8760.jpeg

The two chrome heads alone had cost me €146,90 (160 bucks) inc shipping.
 
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I guess I should consider my lucky to live in California. Where head prices, although a bit higher, are at least somewhat standardized. And no, 16” bd heads do not cost more than bigger bd heads.

This could be a great thread to promote the use of only small 4-piece kits!
 
Yes, heads have gotten very expensive. I have started using DFD's budget clear heads for reso purposes, and they are very reasonable. A 13" head is $7.99, for instance. I wouldn't use them as batter heads though, but as a reso, they do the job. I'm thankful for my artist discount at Evans. It allows me to experiment if I want to, which I couldn't do otherwise.
 
TheDrummerFromAmsterdam said:
I heard bad things about Code’s quality too.

Im glad you don’t have to change bd heads often.

I would be screwed 😂

View attachment 141157

The two chrome heads alone had cost me €146,90 (160 bucks) inc shipping.
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I own a 10 piece kit, head change is a burden :). About Code, so far so good, I’m using the Zero on my snare, it’s great (coating, sound, durability). The Generator clear on my toms are a bit too dark to my taste but no quality issue so far. 🤞🏻

I often check the second hand market and you Can get drumheads cheaper that way.
 
Sometimes crappy used drums are sold locally but they come with new heads (seller trying to beautify their drums).
In this case, the used drums are actually a good investment, just for the new heads on them.
 
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