It's All in Your Head, Part One: A Guide to Selecting Drumheads That Are Perfect for Your Needs
In this two part article, I'm going to detail some general guidelines to help you decide on the right drumheads that will match your custom requirements.
Drumheads are one of the most critical elements of your drum. The type of drumhead that you select will determine the overall sound that your drum will produce. By installing a new drumhead, you can bring a drum "back to life" by adding tone and projection that were lost by using a worn, old head. You can also energize the sound of a less expensive drum by replacing its stock head with a new, professional-quality one.
Prior to the mid 1950s, drumheads were made of animal hides, like calfskin. This all changed when the DuPont Company created a polyester film they called Mylar. By using this plastic film instead of an animal skin, drumhead manufacturers such as Remo and Evans made incredible sonic options possible for drummers while adding consistency in quality and tone that wasn't previously attainable. With calfskin heads, drummers had to deal with the frequent need to retune their drums due to weather and temperature fluctuations. Plastic drumheads almost entirely eliminated this hassle.
Today, plastic drumheads are utilized not just on drum sets but also on timpani, marching drums, and timbales, as well as hand drums like congas, bongos, djembes, darbukas, frame drums, surdos, pandeiros, doumbeks, tambourines, and caixas.
# of Plies
The first thing to consider when selecting drumheads for your drum set is head weight. Single-ply heads offer a bright sound with greater resonance and sustain, while 2-ply heads yield a darker, fatter sound with better durability. If you're a heavy hitter and want a deeper, more controlled tone out of your drum, you may want to go with a 2-ply head. If you're a finessed player and want to hear more overtones, you might use a single-ply head.
(NOTE: There are variations to this approach. For example, you might play heavy rock but prefer the sound that a single-ply drumhead produces. I personally use single-ply heads and hit pretty hard - which means that I need to replace my drumheads more frequently than if I was using two-ply heads.)
Other types of drumheads include:
Dot - This head features an additional dot-shaped ply (approx. diameter 5") in the middle. The dot can give you the durability of a two-ply drumhead, but with a sound more like that of a single-ply drumhead because only 1 layer of plastic sits on the drum's bearing edge. Drumhead companies like Remo, Evans, Aquarian, Ludwig, and Attack all create their own versions of a drumhead featuring a reinforcement dot.
Three-ply - Aquarian recently unveiled a three-ply head for players who require the ultimate in durability. Obviously, this head produces an extremely dark and lower fundamental pitch.
Next week in Part Two, I'll go over drumhead muffling, coating, and bottom heads. In the meantime, if you have any questions or want specific tips regarding your drumhead decisions or dilemmas, feel free to reach out. I'm always here to help!
Drumheads are one of the most critical elements of your drum. The type of drumhead that you select will determine the overall sound that your drum will produce. By installing a new drumhead, you can bring a drum "back to life" by adding tone and projection that were lost by using a worn, old head. You can also energize the sound of a less expensive drum by replacing its stock head with a new, professional-quality one.
Prior to the mid 1950s, drumheads were made of animal hides, like calfskin. This all changed when the DuPont Company created a polyester film they called Mylar. By using this plastic film instead of an animal skin, drumhead manufacturers such as Remo and Evans made incredible sonic options possible for drummers while adding consistency in quality and tone that wasn't previously attainable. With calfskin heads, drummers had to deal with the frequent need to retune their drums due to weather and temperature fluctuations. Plastic drumheads almost entirely eliminated this hassle.
Today, plastic drumheads are utilized not just on drum sets but also on timpani, marching drums, and timbales, as well as hand drums like congas, bongos, djembes, darbukas, frame drums, surdos, pandeiros, doumbeks, tambourines, and caixas.
# of Plies
The first thing to consider when selecting drumheads for your drum set is head weight. Single-ply heads offer a bright sound with greater resonance and sustain, while 2-ply heads yield a darker, fatter sound with better durability. If you're a heavy hitter and want a deeper, more controlled tone out of your drum, you may want to go with a 2-ply head. If you're a finessed player and want to hear more overtones, you might use a single-ply head.
(NOTE: There are variations to this approach. For example, you might play heavy rock but prefer the sound that a single-ply drumhead produces. I personally use single-ply heads and hit pretty hard - which means that I need to replace my drumheads more frequently than if I was using two-ply heads.)
Other types of drumheads include:
Dot - This head features an additional dot-shaped ply (approx. diameter 5") in the middle. The dot can give you the durability of a two-ply drumhead, but with a sound more like that of a single-ply drumhead because only 1 layer of plastic sits on the drum's bearing edge. Drumhead companies like Remo, Evans, Aquarian, Ludwig, and Attack all create their own versions of a drumhead featuring a reinforcement dot.
Three-ply - Aquarian recently unveiled a three-ply head for players who require the ultimate in durability. Obviously, this head produces an extremely dark and lower fundamental pitch.
Next week in Part Two, I'll go over drumhead muffling, coating, and bottom heads. In the meantime, if you have any questions or want specific tips regarding your drumhead decisions or dilemmas, feel free to reach out. I'm always here to help!
About the Author:
Vic Salazar is the owner of Vic's Drum Shop, an internationally renowned drum and percussion retailer in Chicago, IL. The vast knowledge of drum gear that he's accumulated over his 40 year career has made Vic a valuable resource for beginning drummers, drumming hobbyists, professional drummers, and many of the world's premier drum superstars.