BASS DRUM TUNING

Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

the blanket isn't needed cause of your emad
 
Re: What can i do?

drumbig said:
Thry this, take the blanket out tune the reso head up to med-hi tention and the batter to a med- lo tention.This is not absolute you will have to find the tention combo that works best for your drum and heads but it should get you close. You definately don't need a blanket with an emad but the emad reso might help. Let me knpw if this helps.

i did it, i didnt get a good feeling at all, it rang like a soab. it was louder, but i got a bad sound off it, i put the blanket in, got a real good sound, but not loud enough.

the tuning u told me sound great with blanket tho.+
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

O.k try this then. Take the muffle ring your not using on your emad( they come w/2) and attach it to the inside of your reso head with pieces of duct tape. Mabe then you won't need the blanket:) IMO the least amount of muffling you can use to obtain a good sound is desireable. I have absolutely no muffling on any of my drums and my bass drum is completely emty and they sound great.
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Yes, I agree with the "no blanket" theory!
I have been experimenting with my Delite 20" kick, and have come up with the following:
I use an Aquarian Superkick 2 as the batter head, tuned medium-low.
I use a Remo Fiberskyn FA as the reso (for that vintage look), but any regular reso head will do.
I tune the reso head a little higher than the batter, but at the bottom of both heads, I have a rolled up towel taped to the shell, just so it touches each head. I used peel-and-stick weatherstripping to secure the towels, as duct tape leaves a nasty residue, and I didn't want that gooey mess on the inside of the shell.
This little 20" kick now sounds like a cannon, but still has that "thump" due to the slightly dampening towels. This method will work just as well with the EMAD.
This was the sound I was after.
Cheers
Phil
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

idk, when i had the blanket out, no matter how i tuned either head, their was still the son of a bitch ring.
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

if you have a powerstroke 3 on there you should be able to get away with very little muffling. i suppose it depends on the sound you're looking for. I would reccomend getting something small to muffle with. a small strip of foam works really well for me, and i play with a evans g1 skin. The tighter your batter skin is, the more ring you're going to get so you might want to try loosening that too. With proper tuning and skins you can usually attain a very natural sound for whatever you're looking for with very minimal muffling. good luck!
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Try a pillow that barely touches both heads. If that is too dampening, then try two evans pillows, one on each head ($60 though, for something that can be done for free with pillows around the house).

I personally like the feel of a pillow stuff inside, but like the sound of an open bass drum, so there is no happy medium for me. I constantly go back and forth. Right now, I'm settling on a medium sized pillow touching both heads (Evans Emad and Evans Eq3 w/port). It has a good feel, but the bottom is lacking. It would sound killer mic'd up though.
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

I've recently tried an Evans EQ3 coated batter head. Notice I didn't say 'white coated', it's actually a clear head with a coating (which creates a kind of 'frosting' affect so you can't see inside the drum!). I'd never seen anything like it until recently, so I thought I'd give it a bash. Verdict - Exceptional depth and warmth.

The resonant is a white coated EQ3 with 5" port hole.

It all adds up to a nice warm sounding drum with plenty of low-end depth.

Also, I assume you are a DW player? Didn't you get a pillow in the BD? If so, use it!!!
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Rhythmic Disciple said:
I've recently tried an Evans EQ3 coated batter head. Notice I didn't say 'white coated', it's actually a clear head with a coating (which creates a kind of 'frosting' affect so you can't see inside the drum!). I'd never seen anything like it until recently, so I thought I'd give it a bash. Verdict - Exceptional depth and warmth.

The resonant is a white coated EQ3 with 5" port hole.

It all adds up to a nice warm sounding drum with plenty of low-end depth.

Also, I assume you are a DW player? Didn't you get a pillow in the BD? If so, use it!!!

nah dude, i just really like dw, i couldnt afford any-a-that. Im prolly gonna order a custom kit from conaway, which will cost me 2500, either that or from truth. itll cost around the same.
 
Re: how do i get a tight bass drum sound?? Help..

if u wanna muffle the sound u can put a pillow a rag t-shirt blanket pretty much anything and it will be a tighter sound. you can also put duct tape possibly... i never tried that but it cud help :D

Keep drummin.
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Get a friend to play the drum while you stand ten feet in front of it, that no pillow ring will make all the difference!

It takes time to get used to but I have always got a better recorded, and live sound without damping.
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Rhythmic Disciple said:
I've recently tried an Evans EQ3 coated batter head. Notice I didn't say 'white coated', it's actually a clear head with a coating (which creates a kind of 'frosting' affect so you can't see inside the drum!).

Oops. I accidentally ordered one of those yesterday. They call it "frosted".
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

Has anyone else tried a metal patch? I put one on my crappy stock head and it had a nice effect. Still not where I want it but much better than just a hole and towels. Towels muffle the ring but the metal beater patch makes up for any loss. Next item for me is an aquarian sk-II. Might want to try that think it cost me about $6
 
Re: What can i do? a bass drum tuning dilema

you can try a rolled towel gaffa'ed tight! Then place it in a low smile shape against the batter head inside the drum. This minimal dampening can be really effective!
 
Re: bass drum tuning

I think his bass sounded great, I would be interested in the responses as well.
Ryan
 
Re: how do i get a tight bass drum sound?? Help..

Stu_Strib said:
If you want a slappy sound, then tune the head as low as it goes, but still has a slight tone. You'll probably see a couple wrinkles in the head, but don't overdo it.

Tune the front head low too, but then up a little bit more than the batter side. I like it to it to have a nice tone.

Then for muffling, depending on the size of your bass drum, I would use one pillow that bareley touches both heads. If you can't find one that barely touches, try having it barely touch the batter head, and most of it touching the front head.

I use EQ2 clear heads with a ported EQ3 head on front. Right now I'm using an Emad, and no muffling on that side, then the evans pillow on the front head.

Hope this helps.
Yes Stu, ( I always look for your tips and use them quite often, I'm not ashamed of stealing good ideas....lol) Something else you might want to try! tune per the information above, take the pillow out and roll up a small towel and stuff it between your bass drum pedal and your batter head. For me this works very well for a tight sounding but somewhat singing bass drum...Buddy
 
Re: how do i get a tight bass drum sound?? Help..

Superlow said:
I find I don't have to use pillows for a nice punchy sound. I also don't use the ported kick drum head. I find that the hole really effects the sound of the kick drum. If you use a Powerstroke 3 for a batter head and Aquarian force 2 on the front. You can have a louder punch sound. I think the pillow makes your drum sound smaller.
I'm with Superlow on tryin' to keep pillows and laundry out of the kick. I run a clear Powerstroke3 batter and an ebony Powerstroke3 reso. on my 20x14 and I get a real tight and punchy sound out of that drum.
 
Bass Drum Head Tuning - A Serious Predicament

Hey...i would like to share with you something that has been playing on my mind for a long time.

For the record i own a Sonor 20x17.5 Birch Bass Drum.

I have been checking the forum for bass drum tuning threads and i have found that a lot of people really dig the batter side tuned really low just until the wrinkles go.

On my kit which i just got...i have tuned both the batter and reso head extremely tight...as tight as i could...I found that this gives the bass drum a really REALLY good BOOM! No pillow and no hole in the front. I have never recorded this kind of setup though and i am wondering if it would sound like crap.

I am thinking of detuning the batter head completely just so the wrinkles go...and leaving the reso extremely tight the way i have it now, and adding a pillow inside the bass drum so the edges touch both heads. Do you think this would be a good idea? I keep thinking i must be missing something since everyone detunes their batter head so much.

Also...do you have any other ideas how i could create a good BOOM sound suitable for funk, r&b, really tight pocket kind of stuff? Keep in mind i have no hole in my reso.

Thanks.
 
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