On drums...

I'm currently spending a little time to clean up my Jazz Bop Set and needed a bit of direction on the drum heads.

The current heads installed (snare not included) are all Remo Coated Ambassadors...both batter and resonant side. The 12" and 14" toms have a focused, bright characteristic but the bass drum has a dead, restrained bump. A few questions/concerns of mine:

1.) What is the difference between using coated heads (on toms, specifically) versus using clear?
2.) If you use a coated head as the batter, is it normal to use one as a resonant head (always seen clear resonant heads for the most part until Lane sent me this kit....)?

Thanks, guys!

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Justin

Designer Maple Light (Bubinga) 8,10,12,14,16, 22 kick
Force Custom (Bee-Bop Jazz) 12,14, 18 kick
Remo Roto Tom (Chrome) 14, 16
Snare HLD 588 Signature

Coated heads will be slightly softer sounding than clear heads, all other things being equal. Think of the coating as a thin mute. If the tone is too bright or too much attack, use a coated head to soften it. If the attack is soft or muted, a clear head will be better.

I suppose it would be called standard for toms, that a clear head is used on resos, with either clear or coated heads on batter. That's a good place to start, but coated resos are normal as well. Cliff often points out that two heads of the same characteristic will give the greatest sustain, since they resonate at the same frequency and do not cancel each other. So, in theory, two coated heads will resonate for a longer time than one coated and one clear.

Dead restrained bump on the bass, if there is no muting, seems curious. No felts strips, blankets, pillows, last week's laundry...?

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Gregory

There is a felt strip across the batter side head.

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Justin

Designer Maple Light (Bubinga) 8,10,12,14,16, 22 kick
Force Custom (Bee-Bop Jazz) 12,14, 18 kick
Remo Roto Tom (Chrome) 14, 16
Snare HLD 588 Signature

Do you like the sound? Obviously, removing the strip will make a huge difference, and you might want to experiment with the positioning and tensioning of the felt, or pull it completely and use a bit of cloth against the head at the pedal to experiment with.

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Gregory

The sound really doesn't go with the brightness of the toms and snare so I guess I'll start by removing the strip all together. If that doesn't work, I'll begin trying different placements of the felt.

Right now, I'm breaking down every drum and chrome-cleaning it all. There's lots of dust and a few spots of oxidation so it may be a few weeks before I'll get to the bass drum.

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Justin

Designer Maple Light (Bubinga) 8,10,12,14,16, 22 kick
Force Custom (Bee-Bop Jazz) 12,14, 18 kick
Remo Roto Tom (Chrome) 14, 16
Snare HLD 588 Signature

I remember you got them from Lane, but can't remember what kit that was...

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Gregory

Justin,

Given the set you are referring to, your Jazz Bop Set, you almost have no real choice but to go coated batter on your toms if you do any significant brush work at all. If you don't, then get those brushes out and get to work. I have found that the batter head doesn't really matter as long as it is a good quality head that both seats and tunes well. The traditionally higher tuning for Bop Sets means you really have to listen closely to truly eliminate any pitch problems because they sound quite acceptable right away. The extra effort is worth it. I have an Evans pillow in my 18" with only the slightest contact on the batter head. I use an Emad and switch out the rings according to how the kick sounds in relation to the other drums per venue.

Roland

Justin, if You like that traditional jazz sound, it's best to go with coated Ambassadors top and bottom. If You like the sizes, but wanna experiment with sound, I suggest coated Emperors over clear Ambassadors. They really do wonders.

An Emperor is a great head, even for a bass drum...


And remember - we're waiting for those pictures!!!

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Goki - short from Goran

Let the good drums roll!!!

I agree with Goki... coated Emperors over clear Ambassadors is a great sound for almost all music, including jazz. Coated Ambassadors can be a little unforgiving, depending on the drum. They have a very quick attack, but can be a little harder to tune and a little less warm IMO.

I love single ply EMAD heads for bass drums. Like Roland says, you can switch out foams or not use them at all for a great variety of sounds. I like no holes in the resonant head, esp. for jazz, and make sure it has a little tension so it provides some sustain but not cranked too tight that it chokes it. That's often where you can get the "boink" sound sometimes IMO.

- David

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Cliff

River City Trio

What if we did all have the same opinions?