House of Drumming.com

Guys, I need your advice please!

I have a chance of buying a Sonor Prolite kit at a very good price. The toms are 10x8, 12x9, 16x16 and 22x17,5 bass. However it has a 14x11 rack tom. Does anyone has experience with such shallow 14" toms? Do they really sound so different?

Haven't heard the kit play but reading that a shallower drum will have a slightly higher fundamental pitch and will be more responsive I'm... very much OK with that! It does have a 16x16 should I need more bottom, and the remaining toms will sing nicely for me. Any thoughts?

Many thanks!
Shem

Nothing wrong with a 14" x 11" rack tom. Tony Williams used 13" x 9" and 14" x 10" mounted toms (tensioned VERY tightly). You could even use that tom as a floor tom (mounted off a stand). 11" is not what I would call "shallow" at all.

Paul Marangoni wrote:11" is not what I would call "shallow" at all.

Thanks Paul! I was just calling it "shallow" in relation to the "traditionally" sized 14x14 toms which come with off-the-peg kits. But yeah, I never really got the need for two floor toms of similar proportions, not so far away from each other tone-wise. I prefer to have three nicely-singing racks + a floor one should I need more "oomph".

So I'm getting the kit

I would think of that as more of a mounted floor tom anyways...

True, but one that nicely ends a fill started on rack toms, OR one that provides a nice transition from racks to the floor. Methinks...

I have a 14x12 Recording Custom that sounds as great as all 14x14 I heard before ...

Two of my kits have "shallow" "floor" toms. I have a Gretsch Catalina series with a 13x11 that has a ridiculously wide tuning range. Tuned very low it has almost as much beef as a 16. My Yammie Oak Custom has a 14x12 that actually is richer in quality than my Gretsch maple 14x14. My recommendation though is to find the sweet spot of the tuning range and stick close to that for any drum. That's where it will speak the best.

Rhythmatist wrote:My recommendation though is to find the sweet spot of the tuning range and stick close to that for any drum. That's where it will speak the best.

Fully agree!