How to get a deep Bass drum sound

[knox06]

My church has a nice drum set that is made by Peavey, and I am looking for a rich bass drum sound. I have tightened the head of the drum and also put some padding inside of the drum. How could I get a more richer bass sound from the drum?

[BigFoot_BigThumb]

First of all you don't want to put too much padding if any at all inside of the drum.  My technique is to only tighten the lugs on the batter and resonant head to the point where there's just a "turnch" of tension on the lugs.  Next, your choice of heads is a huge factor as well.  Knowing your brand of choice would help as they now makes heads such as the Remo Powersonic and the classic Aquarian SuperKick that come out of the box with that deep sound with no padding inside of the drum.  Now if you are mic'ed up I'd go with the first tecnique.  Try it without the padding and adjust it as needed.  If your soundman is on point, he can give you what you're seeking.

[Da_Drumma]

Yeah....you just commited to  no no's. You do not want to tighten the heads to put. I pretty much hand tighten them, and maybe 1/2 turn with a key. I use very little padding I use a 12x12" piece of black egg foam that i keep in place with small squares of velcro. Also make sure the hoop on the backside of the drum isnt touching the floor. Raise off the gound at least 1/2 an inch. Alos like BFBT said....Head choice is very important.

[knox06]

Thanks guys. Yeah I think we have Remo heads on the drumset. Should I look at getting another brand of heads? I know I need to get another skin for the piccolo snare I have. Let me know if I should change the skins. Thanks again!

[BigFoot_BigThumb]

I use Remo, and have been doing so for at least 30 years and they have yet to let me down.  For the kick if you don't go with the Powersonic, I recommend Powerstroke 3's(or 4's) on the batter and resonant(make sure it's an ebony head if you want that black appearance) side.  For the toms I use pinstripes, and Powerstroke 3's on the snare as well.  But you should choose your particular heads according to your needs/wants.  I'd suggest going to the Remo website and taking a look around and the descriptions may help your decision.

www.remo.com


NOW this may get some other cats in here telling you to go with another brand.

[knox06]

Thanks. Yeah, I think it is time to change the heads on those drums. I don't think I have changed the bass drum head since we purchased the set, which has been years ago. I have a regular foot pedal on the bass drum, would that have an effect on the sound too? Just trying to see what all if any, I need to purchase from the music store. Thanks Big Foot_Big Thumb.

[BigFoot_BigThumb]

You're welcome young man.

I have a regular foot pedal on the bass drum, would that have an effect on the sound too?

If the pedal still works fine for you and gives you the speed and dexterity you want, then no need to replace it.  If anything, you may want to put a new beater on it as the options are endless now.

[BEATBOXERZ]

Get yourself one of these: www.kickport.com

[robin of drummin]

peavy still Making drums?

[SabianKnight]

My church has a nice drum set that is made by Peavey, and I am looking for a rich bass drum sound. I have tightened the head of the drum and also put some padding inside of the drum. How could I get a more richer bass sound from the drum?

First, get rid of the stock front head, most of the padding and your current batter head.
Put an Evans EQ1 on the front and and Evans EMAD 2 or GMAD and use the big ring that comes with it.
Tune the kick in the range of a low F. Somewhere around two 2-3 half-turns of the drum key or T-bar.
This head combo is designed to maximize low end rumble/punch with a port hole or internal padding.
Also switch your beater to the old skool large felt.
Mic wise the new Audix Fusion F6 (on the cheap) or the grown folk Audix D6 or an AKG D112 placed 3 inches in front of the drum.

You do not need to cut a hole tio mic the drum!!!!
If you prefer a front head with a port whole you will need to invest in a Kick Port for that whole in order to recapture/focus the low end air the hole releases from the drum.
In this case place the mic maybe 1 inch into the hole.

[knox06]

peavy still Making drums?

I don't think so anymore. The drumset is old, we bought it when we moved in our new church over 10 years ago. But still a good set.


First, get rid of the stock front head, most of the padding and your current batter head.
Put an Evans EQ1 on the front and and Evans EMAD 2 or GMAD and use the big ring that comes with it.
Tune the kick in the range of a low F. Somewhere around two 2-3 half-turns of the drum key or T-bar.
This head combo is designed to maximize low end rumble/punch with a port hole or internal padding.
Also switch your beater to the old skool large felt.
Mic wise the new Audix Fusion F6 (on the cheap) or the grown folk Audix D6 or an AKG D112 placed 3 inches in front of the drum.

You do not need to cut a hole tio mic the drum!!!!
If you prefer a front head with a port whole you will need to invest in a Kick Port for that whole in order to recapture/focus the low end air the hole releases from the drum.
In this case place the mic maybe 1 inch into the hole.

Thanks. I think the snare drums  have an Evans head but the bass has a remo. I will look into getting some new heads. Thanks again everyone for your advice.

[JFunky]

...its all about knowing how to tune your kick drum and having the right head combo no matter if its Remo or Evans. Do you have a Full resonant (front) head or does it have a hole?

[knox06]

...its all about knowing how to tune your kick drum and having the right head combo no matter if its Remo or Evans. Do you have a Full resonant (front) head or does it have a hole?

It has a hole in the front. The backside head is a Remo. I went today and bought a new bass drum beater. Rhythm Tech RT7100. For some reason, I can't get the weight to move, but hopefully it will give me a better sound than that felt beater that came with the set (plus it's going on at least 10 years old). The drums sound great, we played them last night in church and they sounded good. Just want more of a deeper bass drum sound. Thanks!

[SabianKnight]

It has a hole in the front. The backside head is a Remo. I went today and bought a new bass drum beater. Rhythm Tech RT7100. For some reason, I can't get the weight to move, but hopefully it will give me a better sound than that felt beater that came with the set (plus it's going on at least 10 years old). The drums sound great, we played them last night in church and they sounded good. Just want more of a deeper bass drum sound. Thanks!

Changing your kick heads will make a world of difference because your current heads have been on so long that they have stretched out and lost some resonance.
if you like having a ported head (hole in front) then purchase a kickport as well.
Note: you  actually get mote low tone and rumble when the front head is does not have a port hole but has small air holes such as the EVANS EQ1 or DW/Remo head or no holes at all. With minimal muffling such as a felt strip place across the drum under the head or a towel touching both heads or the EVANS kick pillow or the EMAD/GMAD system.
The Key is to allow the air to move... let the head vibrate at its maximum but disperse the high-end frequencies.

To get the most out of your efforts you need to have a really good kick mic that excells at the low-end such as the Yamaha Sub-kick, Audix D6, AKG D112, Shure Beta 95.

[lockslie1]

Get yourself on of these: www.kickport.com

I was a skeptic at first, but bought it anyway and the kickport is very, very effective. I didn't think anything could make my 22" kick with SKII sound any better than the way I had it. The frequencies you get from the kickport are unreal! Live and Studio. I agree with you 100% big bro.

[BEATBOXERZ]

I was a skeptic at first, but bought it anyway and the kickport is very, very effective. I didn't think anything could make my 22" kick with SKII sound any better than the way I had it. The frequencies you get from the kickport are unreal! Live and Studio. I agree with you 100% big bro.

Yeah lil bro, It does wonders for your kick. Good purchase!

[JFunky]

...there's a very good article on the latest Drumhead Magazine with Michael "Narada" Walden on the Cover dealing with this bass drum issue.  You guys should pick it up and learn from it as I have. 

[SabianKnight]

...there's a very good article on the latest Drumhead Magazine with Michael "Narada" Walden on the Cover dealing with this bass drum issue.  You guys should pick it up and learn from it as I have. 

I wonder where you heard about that?













 

[JFunky]

I wonder where you heard about that?

...me too!  LMBO