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Hi Guys,
I have a Pearl MMX Master Custom 22x18" bassdrum and so far haven't reached a real fat bassdrum sound. I bury the beater into the batterhead and I have tried all Powerstrokes, Aquarian combinations etc. with or without pillow (from different brands) but can't find the right combination of a huge fat sounding bassdrum and playing comfort. The combinations without a pillow results in bounce in your pedal and I hate that. Please advise.
Jean-Paul
the Netherlands
I would recommend trying an Evans EMAD head...I use those on both my kits and they're really impressive. They also make a coated version now. You may still have to use some extra muffling depending on the drum - my 22x16 Premier bass drum needed no extra muffling after I put the EMAD on it, but my 20x16 Gretsch needed 2 muffling pillows plus the EMAD to get it where I wanted it (resonant little bitch!) Hope this helps.
i must admit, the best sound i have ever gotten from my 22x14 Yamaha is one of those Evans kits...the batter / resonant (hole pre-cut) & the small "black pillow" thing with the velcro. i have not messed with it for like 1.5 years & it's a great sound in every situation, just point a D112 in there & i am done.
Geoff
This may sound obvious, so I apologise in advance, but I take it you've tried different tuning on both your heads? Your batter head can be quite slack really. I don't know how you play your BD, but don't be afraid to 'dig in' and leave the beater on the head when playing. I personally don't let it rebound, in order to get that phat sound you're after. I have found the coated Remo Powerstroke to be great by the way.
When I'm doing a pop/rock gig rather than jazz (I've got a 20" BD) I slacken off the batter head quite a bit and the front one a little too and gaffer tape a towel or pillow to the floor of the BD, making sure that it doesn't totally choke the inside of the batter head. I do leave it touching, but only slightly.
Happy thumping!
I totally agree with the Evans EMAD system. I've used pretty much everything and every combination, but I'm all done:
Evans EMAD on batter. Remo black with 5" hole front. The "extra" small foam ring taped to the inside of the front head on the inside. No extra padding. UNREAL sound. And that's on a +20 year old Tama 14x22 kick!
Good luck!
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ March 14, 2003 02:03 PM: Message edited by: ladanny ]</font>
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ March 14, 2003 02:03 PM: Message edited by: ladanny ]</font>
I have long sought that fat dark deep bass drum sound, and it's been kind of hard for me to catch. I think a lot of it has to do with how the drum is miked and EQ'd. I used to think that a thick head tuned loose with a big heavy blanket was the way to go, but I've been moving away from that. I'm finding that a thinner head, with enough tension so that it actually has a pitch to it is kind of nice. I just started using the Dave Weckl bass drum mufflers (22" batter and 18" resonant on a 16"x22" BD). The mufflers just barely touch the head, rather than being forced against the heads. I almost think the 22" batter muffler is too much...been considering a 20".
I bought the Evans EQ3 system a while back (still use the front head with a small hole). It had a funky sound, but it kind of sounded "plasticky" or artificial. I find that a clear Ambassador has a much more natural, organic tone.
I've also been working on getting the beater off the head, rather than bury in. Burying the beater gives this annoying upward pitch bend, and kills the deep fundamental pitch.
My whole motivation for experimenting has come from noticing what a nice bass drum sound Simon Phillips gets. He uses clear Ambassadors, minimal muffling, lets the beater come away from the head, and tunes the heads a little tighter than one might expect.
The EMAD system is a great one, i am very happy with it as far as getting a nice fat sound for anything that is pop-ish or on the rock side. I have to say, though, that you may want to work on getting the beater off the head. I used to bury it also and it took me a good couple months of hard practicing to get it feeling right. For those few months i had that "in between" time of when my new technique wasn't quite there and didn't feel right yet but the old technique now felt second rate compared to the new way. Once i really took time to work on getting the beater off the head the difference was amazing as far as control and the sound was 1000% better. I know it sucks to hear but i really would work on not burying the beater, it may be the hard way but i promise it will pay off in better sound and better control.
I think leaving the beater on the head or allowing it to rebound has a lot to do with the way you've tuned and muffled the kick. It may be easier to get a "big" sound from a highly muffled drum by laying the beater into it. And it may be easier to get a huge sound from a lightly muffled kick by letting the beater bounce off the head. I find myself changing approaches based on the drum.
I always bury the shit out of it. Works so far..
yes, that is the other thing...EVERYONE needs to try Simon Phillips' tuning method at least once & see if you like it. start hunting for the perfect beach towel, duct tape & 24" ambassadors. [img]cool.gif[/img]