tuning that big drum for kick & tom...

[matthew medeiros]

Matthew
Some others here have talked about the virtues of a larger soft (lambswool) beater especially for the round sound it provides for swing and dance applications. My first drumset as a kit was a spectacular hand-me-down vintage (even then in 1970) 1930s RadioKing with calf heads. The drums have all since perished, but I do remember that cushy lambswool beater! Any ideas on where to find one today?
Also describe, if you will, the type of clamp-on muffler you're using.
Thanks

Hey Multiperc, check out item #7407699250 on ebay percussion vintage it's an old foot pedal for sale & has a lambs wool beater, not a bad pic. currently $24. or $25 bucks. Matthew

[multiperc]

Very cool! Thanks very much Matthew - I'll post if I get it.
To note, I learned that Danmar makes soft beaters 'reminiscent' of the ol lambs wool ones. Anyone try these and if so, do they sound good?

[Randy Rudolph]

I've never seen a Danmar one, but Vater makes one called the "Vintage Bomber". It's synthetic fleece over cork. They go for about $20.00.

[matthew medeiros]

Hey Multiperc, Hopefully you'll be able to see pics of Rogers style clamp on mufflers. The pics should show what they can do. You can swing them out or in towards hoop, and dial them on or off drum head surface. When I use on bottom head I like to dial them off a little more. I think one of the pics show this. Hopefully our ever vigilant members know where to get these style mufflers.........Matthew

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g111/ ... rpads1.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g111/ ... rpads2.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g111/ ... rpads3.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g111/ ... rpads4.jpg

[multiperc]

Hey Matthew
Thanks for the pics - I'd never seen these vintage Rogers mufflers, but I do have something similar from the 80s(?) maybe made by Danmar. Difference is the clamp to hoop which is a bit more evolved than the 'snap on' style and the muffler itself is rectangular, not circular. I like these though.
I've used mine on the top head of the big drum and on my snare, but have since retired it - I'll give it a try on the bottom head

[multiperc]

.....and, dude, what a gorgeous kit! You should snap some longer shots and include some details about your kit - others would dig it I'm sure!

[matthew medeiros]

.....and, dude, what a gorgeous kit! You should snap some longer shots and include some details about your kit - others would dig it I'm sure!

Will post some shots of the kit in e few days. It's not really a kit! but I'll post some pics/ Hey multiperc, did you see in a couple of the shots of the clamps the little flat piece of felt? I use that on the top head when I feel the mufflers are too much. I've got little spots of velcro sewed to the felt, and also glued to the hoop. You can flip the felt on or off the head with your sticks as you're playing, and you can really vary the size & shape to suit your tastes. I picked the felt up at a fabric store...Matthew

[mangorockfish]

Vater makes a "lambswool beater", called The Bomber, or The Vintage Bomber.

[tikifreak]

My kick drum / floor tom is a 16" x 16" Yamaha Maple Custom Absolute Nouveau (what a mouthful !). I use a Remo Pinstripe on the bottom with a Falam Slam pad. Under the head is a strip of thin (cotton?) cloth about 1.5" wide, positioned off center. Being on top of the bottom head and not drawn very tight, it just kind of lays on there to dampen overtones / sustain. The kick head is tuned as low as possible without being too loose (dead), and the beater hits it right in the center, which I think is important for a deep bass sound. My pedal is a DW5000 series with the two-sided beater that comes on the new pedals. I use the felt side of the beater.

In case you're wondering, this is a sit-down cocktail kit. My "life-long skateboarder" knees are not about to stand up for the duration of a gig / set.

The top head is a Remo Coated Pinstripe, tuned higher than normal for a 16" tom, more like a 14" would sound. There is no muffling on this head at all, and it has a nice amount of sustain (but not too much, as I don't like a drum to ring on forever). I tried a Fyberskyn 3 on the top, but did not like it much. It seemed much more dead than the Pinstripe.

The drum has three small ports around the shell, and all are open.

I am very pleased with the kick and tom sounds this drum produces. Of course, it would be nicer to have a deeper kick sound, but my 16" x 16" sounds nearly identical to my friend's Gretsch Catalina set, which has an 18" (I think) kick and 14" tom. The 18" kick / 14" tom sound was what I was shooting for, and the Yamaha did not disappoint.

This is my first-ever brand new drum kit (after 22 years of playing), and definitely the best quality drums I've ever owned or played. I seriously doubt I could set up my 16" x 16" Pearl Export floor tom and get the same beautiful tones out of it. Sometimes, you do get what you pay for.

[magit2002]

Ive found the sound that i have got is punchy and tight wen i listen to the kit off stage but wen i am playing over it sounds totely off i have remo pinstipes both ends 1 coated damp ring on top , thin foam 1 inch high 1/4 inch thick layed round the bottom skin and a hard rubber kick pad 4 the punch + hard felt beater thats warn away flat to the angle of the skin as i dont ply miked up much so its a hard stamp on the foot to project the sound ..........gl all Keith P.S im cocktail converted........ gr8 investment

[tikifreak]

I posted a comment earlier, but I've been experimenting: I changed my kick head to an Aquarian Performance II (with built-in dampening ring) with a smaller Falam Slam pad (2.5" diameter instead of 4" diameter) and removed the cloth strip from between the head and bearing edge.

I was hoping for two things: to get a deeper kick sound, and for the floor tom (coated Pinstripe) to sustain a bit more and not be quite as dampened. Well, the kick drum sound is just marginally better - maybe a tad deeper, but mostly a little more open with a bit more sustain. The floor tom definitely has more sustain - a bit more than I wanted.

Now the dilemma: to dampen the top head or the bottom, and how? I don't want to have Moon Gels or taped-on pads showing on my heads. Maybe just a strip of that thin cloth taped to the inside of the kick head(?) Or the top head(?) Maybe a small ring of foam around the inside of the bottom of the shell that dampens the kick head, like on the Club Jordan(?) Maybe only a partial ring - segmented or not all the way around(?) Something like that will be the next experiment. I'm getting very close to being overjoyed with the BIG sound from the little drum kit.

Any comments or suggestions?
Thanks.

[multiperc]

TikiF.

Looking back at posts in this thread I think you're talking about your big drum being the Yamaha 16x16. I too have used a 16x16 (GMS maple) in this fashion and there are definitely some good things going for it.

I use a clear Evans G2 with an Evans pad on the bottom. It's tuned very low and I stuck a single piece of foam weather stripping 2/3rds around the head. It still has some ring, though little, and is very punchy.

The top head is a Remo FibreSkin3 which is tuned about an octave higher. Because of that differential, I do need to use some additional tonal control for the top. A partial control ring sitting on top (also about 2/3rds diameter) works well.

I can understand why you don't want 'visible' muffling. Sometimes it's worth it to experiment with external muffling in different venues or spaces to see what works. Once you have the best all-around solution, you can 'internalize' that muffling so it's not visible....but I haven't gotten there yet!

On the othe hand, I am closer with my sound on my 14x24 cocktail big drum...a few cotton balls inside have been really cool.

[tikifreak]

multiperc,

Have you ever put any cotton balls in your 16" x 16" ? If so, how many, and how does it sound? I have been thinking of trying that. Will the cotton balls still be effective if I smush them through the vent hole to put them in ? I'd rather not remove a head if I can get away with it.

Tiki

[multiperc]

Hey Tiki

No I haven't needed to use cotton balls inside my 16x16, sorry. I've been able to get a very deep and punchy sound without any internal muffling, though I use some on the heads as I've mentioned.

I've noticed a few other 16x16 players using a felt strip inside the bottom head. Try it.

Also try cotton balls but I'm not certain that would work for you - depends on your tuning and heads and how much dampening you need. Smooshing them through an air vent one by one could probably work just as long as you don't permanently mash each into a tiny ball.

On my 24x14, 5 or 6 medium cotton balls are all I needed to get thump, though that's a very different column of air from a 16x16. Good luck