DW Tom head advice needed

[chris Hendrich]

Hey guys,
for a while now I have not been happy with my tom sound and would like to know what head combination other DW owners are using?
I tried a various heads but I never found a fat tom sound , maybe also because I suck at tuning. Right now I have coated ambassador X on top and clear ambassador on bottom, but the drums sound more like cardboard boxes. I don't like the jazz sound, more a pop rock sound for toms.
any advice? I also only tighten the heads by maybe half a turn more from finger tight, because I like them deep. Can it be that the toms are actually sounding bigger and deeper when I tighten them a bit more? Is it maybe the relationship between top and bottom that is way off so they don't have a tone?
Thanks in advance!

[YamahaPlayer]

maybe also because I suck at tuning. Right now I have coated ambassador X on top and clear ambassador on bottom, but the drums sound more like cardboard boxes.

Lack of tuning skills is the problem. Using a super thick head like that is problem number two.

And the great Mr. Weckl can take it from here -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pH_RoUQyv5A

[chris Hendrich]

hm, the head sounds great on a yamaha oak 500$ set.

[YamahaPlayer]

hm, the head sounds great on a yamaha oak 500$ set.

Then it's a user problem. That is the thickest single ply head on the market.

Oak is very different from Maple, and DW drums are known for being big and boomy. If you want the punch of Oak, play oak drums.

If you don't learn how to tune the instrument, it really won't matter anyway. So go study that video and spend a few hours with your drums learning how to tune. It's really not that hard.

[chris perra]

Alot of it has to do with the bearing edges.. moreso than the wood type.. Some bearing edges require more tension for some tone..
Perhaps your oak drums have a different bearing edge that allow for lower tuning..

Looking on the DW site on tuning they suggest tuning both heads the same with ambassadors.... That would suggest tuning them up fairy high to get sustain.. So you'd want larger drum sizes to get a fatter tone..

For me I use a Emperor on top, an an ambassador on the bottom and tune the bottom a bit higher than the top.. The bottom skin is really about the pitch of the drum, The top is about the feel. If u tune the bottom a bit higher than the top you'll get a cool slight pitch bend that goes down in pitch.. Don't tune them 1/2 step or minor 3rd apart or any other dissonant pitches and you should be ok..

If you tune both heads the same pitch you'll get an even open note with max sustain but not necessarily a fat sound..
If you tune the top head higher than the bottom you'll get a boxy crappy sound like a basketball on a concrete floor sound...

Each lug should be in tune with itself,.. don't tune each lug with too many turns,, I usually do no more than a 1/4 turn each time then check the tone ect before continuing.. Also do you know the pitches of your drums?.. Start with tuning the pitch of your bottom skin to that pitch,.. then the top to whatever feel you like.. If you want a fat deep tone tune the top head a bit lower than the pitch of the bottom..

Good luck

[drum6282]

I have the DW jazz series drums - I do not tune up them up high - which is typical for jazz. I tune them more for rock - using coated ambassadors on top - clear ambassadors on the bottom. I like to tune them to just when they start to resonate - they are warm and sing. The bearing edge is called a "butter edge" - which is rounded - the combination of gum/maple also allows for more resonance and higher tuning range. I've tried thicker single plys - like the coated vintage ambassador on top and coated ambassadors on the bottom and it was too much. The best combo was the coated amb. top/clear ambassador bottom. The same combo was used on my yamaha maple custom absolutes. 45 degree bearing edge, a thinner shell and all maple - still very warm presence - just more attack - due to the bearing edge.

I've tried a couple of other heads - black suedes - suck - emperors - worked well on the yamahas, but not so well on my DWs.

Being able to tune has a lot to do with it too.

Most people are going to say that DWs suck on this forum - but, I disagree.

[gretsch-o-rama]

I've got a DW kit and I've currently got coated ambassador heads on them but I'm likely gonna put some G2's on them. Maybe they would sound like Pridgen's drums then. I like his sound in some of his videos and I think he was using pinstripes.

[Mark P]

I am such a geek with tuning, heads and gear in general. I have shed blood, tears and gold in my quest to get a consistently great sound. I think it's pointless to spend all hours of the day practising licks/chops/whatever, just for them to sound awful when you play them on the kit...

I have three DW sets, one of them a Keller Shelled kit, and all of them sound fantastic. Honestly, there isn't a single set of heads I have tried that haven't excelled given the right tuning and attention. My preference is Smooth White Emperors on tops and clear Ambassadors on bottoms.

That said, one the sets at the moment has Ambassador X heads on and it sounds FANTASTIC! Although it's only 2mil, (so not exactly 'super thick') In fact, I'd go so far as to say I'd prefer them to regular Ambassadors. The extra weight in the single ply gives more attack and stick definition, and they can take more of a beating without pitting. They also have a little less in the way of high-end overtones and have a smoother decay.

Anyone at that HOD shed last year will vouch for my anal-tuning.

GET ON IT MAN!!

MP

[YamahaPlayer]

Also do you know the pitches of your drums?.. Start with tuning the pitch of your bottom skin to that pitch,.. then the top to whatever feel you like.. If you want a fat deep tone tune the top head a bit lower than the pitch of the bottom..

Good luck

I've never understood that about DW. There's so many flaws in the "pitch of the drum". Starting with, they check the "pitch" of the shell before it's drilled and has hardware on it. It doesn't take much of a dummy to see that adding 3-6lbs of hardware will dramatically change the pitch of the drum.

Secondly, it's impossible to tune a 2 headed drum to a definitive note. So why they stamp it on the inside is beyond me and tell people to tune it to the note.
This is why you can never have a tonal clash playing drums with other instruments, drums don't produce notes. Same with cymbals.

Though the progressive edging was a smart idea.

I think DW gets poo'd on because the price to what you get ratio is pretty harsh. For the money, there's better kits out there.

[chris perra]

Hardware won't change the resonant pitch of a drum,.. Just reduce it.. Or create a slightly different overtone series, but the resonant pitch will be the same
If you want to go for a specific note,,.. tune your bottom head to it..
The top one will shape that pitch a bit here or there more the character of the note than the pitch..
And drums can have a pure note if you can tune well enough for a little while anyway
There are plenty of guys that tune drums to specific pitches for whatever reason, IE: tuning a kick to the root pitch of a given song
And if you have a song that uses toms as the main rhythm and a tom or 2 are a half step out of the root note or a common note in the song, you'll hear it...