Silent hi-hats too loud!!!

jotadrums

Member
I would need to dampen this hi-hat set even more....Turns out the silent hi-hat sets in general tend to sound too crisp and render strong high-frequencies overall.

Any idea on how to accomplish? Or how about going felt drumsticks?

Any opinion truly acknowledged....:):):):)
Regards....
 
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Do you have decibel readings? From videos I've heard those silent cymbals, they sound so horrible and high pitched, that I wouldn't play them at all.

You still have two 14" metal objects that you're hitting with a wooden stick, of course its still gonna make noise.
 
I would need to dampen this hi-hat set even more....Turns out the silent hi-hat sets in general tend to sound too crisp and render strong high-frequencies overall.

Any idea on how to accomplish? Or how about going felt drumsticks?

Any opinion truly acknowledged....:):):):)
Regards....

Hi. We really need to know what you're using these hi hats for. Is this a practice set and you live in an apartment with thin walls? Or maybe you're at a super small venue getting in the way of the vocalist or . . . ?

The answer will be different depending on what you're doing with them.

Pete
 
Take a piece of fabric (cotton works, felt works better) and cut it into a circle that is slightly smaller then the diameter of your hats, poke a hole on the middle, and put it in between the two cymbals with the rod going through the hole. The rod keeps it in place, having it in between your hi hats allows you to keep the look and feel of regular cymbals, and it dramatically cuts the volume down.
 
I’ve played around with a large piece of gaffers tape, moving into different places and found most of the annoying tone comes from the bell and just outside of it. I adhered the tape lightly across the hat covering the area and the hats sound much lower and quieter. I’m not trying to cover the full bell, but just laying the 6 to 8” piece of tape across the area. If you push it down too hard, it’ll kill the tone totally and there won’t be any slosh or swish sound. Lightly and the annoying pitch goes down. The fabric idea may be cool too. Haven’t tried that.
 
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I have the Sabian Quiet Tone's and as they're stainless & not the usual cymbal alloy, they're louder. You can wrap the edge in a thin strip of gaff tape and that will kill the overtone.
 
Hi. We really need to know what you're using these hi hats for. Is this a practice set and you live in an apartment with thin walls? Or maybe you're at a super small venue getting in the way of the vocalist or . . . ?

The answer will be different depending on what you're doing with them.

Pete
Trying to practice in a small room of a flat. I realise that mesh heads also throw out too much volume....Mmmmm I'm having volume issues all over the place...:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
Silent hi-hats too loud!!! How can "silent" hats be too loud?

They can be if the limit for volume is very strict, as in the bedroom of a flat with neighbours.
 
I have the Sabian Quiet Tone's and as they're stainless & not the usual cymbal alloy, they're louder. You can wrap the edge in a thin strip of gaff tape and that will kill the overtone.
--These are the Millenium Still series. They sound good in my opinion, but slightly loud as well. I think the gaffer tape may be an option. I'll give it a try....
 
Take a piece of fabric (cotton works, felt works better) and cut it into a circle that is slightly smaller then the diameter of your hats, poke a hole on the middle, and put it in between the two cymbals with the rod going through the hole. The rod keeps it in place, having it in between your hi hats allows you to keep the look and feel of regular cymbals, and it dramatically cuts the volume down.
---Seems interesting....thanks for your reply!!!
 
Those look like copies or knockoffs of the Zildjian Low Volume cymbals. I own the Zildjians and they are very quiet but if I'm in a dead quiet environment, they do sound load. Even a practice pad can sound too loud, but I found that the neighbors actually can't hear it.

Are your neighbors complaining or, like me, are you just feeling nervous about the noise that you hear? The hi-hats are going to sound much louder at the source and high frequencies don't travel through walls as much as low frequencies do.
 
I own the L80's too and they work and sound great. To play really quietly when people are sleeping I dampen them down evenmore using ronCadillacs trick between cymbals as well as laying a loose dishtowel on top hat
 
I would need to dampen this hi-hat set even more....Turns out the silent hi-hat sets in general tend to sound too crisp and render strong high-frequencies overall.
So .... these are low volume cymbals. They're not silent. Just not as loud as regular cymbals. This guy here reviews your cymbals against the Zildjians and the Sabians. And guess what? He complains about the Millennium hi-hat as having too much high frequency also.

At least you didn't spend a ton of cash on these. The Millennium hats, 2 crash, 1 ride is $147. The Sabians are $369.69 for hats, 2 crash, 1 ride. The Zildjians are $299.99 for hats, 1 crash, 1 ride.

For DIY .... like others have suggested, some fabric to try to mute these further. Maybe also some duct/race tape. For pre-bought items, maybe look into cymbal mutes. One company's even called Cymbomute.
 
Those look like copies or knockoffs of the Zildjian Low Volume cymbals. I own the Zildjians and they are very quiet but if I'm in a dead quiet environment, they do sound load. Even a practice pad can sound too loud, but I found that the neighbors actually can't hear it.

---I do completely agree, perhaps the L80 are the way to go. But I was under a budget. I left out the practice pad from the buying list, because I thought that it could bring issues.

Are your neighbors complaining or, like me, are you just feeling nervous about the noise that you hear? The hi-hats are going to sound much louder at the source and high frequencies don't travel through walls as much as low frequencies do.
---They are not complaining...simply because I haven't started the practice sessions at home yet. But the other day, when setting up and checking, my daughter complained from the living room because of the snare...with the tv on.

I live in a flat, in a dead silent neighbourhood. Not the best environment to even think about drum chops practicing. Right now as I am typing, a decibel meter would read less that 10 dB, probably somewhere between 5 and 10, with an odd peak at 20-25. So, I have a problem. Anyway, anything below 35-40 db between mid-morning and mid-afternoon is allowed by law. In the central hours of the day, a meter can read some more, perhaps round 30-35. But early morning this is quieter that a church.

Got mesh heads in the snare, the kick and the toms. Rack and floor tom are ok. But snare got a serious issue, even with mess heads. Kick I suppose I can dampen with clothes, pillows, blankets or the like. It has got an Evans 18" Soundoff Mesh Head for Bass Drum.

So, thru my experience, I have come up that mesh heads and low cymbals per se do not fix much regarding real quiet environments. They may work for a small or poorly crafted rehearsal place, an unplugged gig or a venue with neighbour issues.

Residential in a flat is quite another subject. Any other things or work-arounds may be needed, as is my case.

I will go for a decibel meter to seriously re-check everything. I was also considering Remo Ring Control muffles in addition to the snare and kick mesh heads. Is that possible? Has anyone tested it?

So .... these are low volume cymbals. They're not silent. Just not as loud as regular cymbals. This guy here reviews your cymbals against the Zildjians and the Sabians. And guess what? He complains about the Millennium hi-hat as having too much high frequency also.

----Yeah, I watched the video some months ago. But I was under a budget.

For pre-bought items, maybe look into cymbal mutes. One company's even called Cymbomute.

-----I checked these as well, just in case everything else fails...Chances are they will go beyond 35 dB.
 
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If u can get a used pair of L80 hats....New they are pretty dull but as they are played the finish coat wears on the edge and this gives them a quiet crispiness.....I will never sell mine. I pair them with Gen 16 crashes which are sparkly but still quiet....the whole package is da bomb!

My neighbour who is ten feet away says she can only hear a low thump ( the BD) on a quiet day....so all's good.
 
If u can get a used pair of L80 hats....New they are pretty dull but as they are played the finish coat wears on the edge and this gives them a quiet crispiness.....I will never sell mine. I pair them with Gen 16 crashes which are sparkly but still quiet....the whole package is da bomb!

My neighbour who is ten feet away says she can only hear a low thump ( the BD) on a quiet day....so all's good.
:):)

----Today I have been tinkering a bit with the drumkit (Gretsch Drums Catalina Club Jazz - SWG) and the Protools, just at home!!;). I managed to record some bd/hh/sd thing (just groove) and got it by putting some cloths on top of the hi-hat and below the snare head. Sound is still decent for practising, (as for recording a muted/clothed/low-volumed kit, stereo reverb and eq becomes an art!) and now I am not disturbing anyone, since I was able to lower down the volume a bit overall...Used L80 hi-hats may be one of the best solution.

Tomorrow will give a try at the 16" crash and the 20" ride...perhaps some swing or the like...

Thanks a lot for each and every opinion!!!
 
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