Users say both drum heads are super durable and can really take a beating. The resonant drum head adds an offset microphone port. This set from Evans gets you a batter bass drum head and a resonant drum head with an externally mounted adjustable damping system (EMAD) that lets you control how your drum sounds and feels by choosing from one of two removable foam damping rings.īoth drum heads are made from a single ply of 10 mm film. “It’s easy to want to be a bashing drummer because it’s loud and drum sets look awesome, but making a song feel good takes talent, hard work and dedication.” In our opinion: a good set of drum heads doesn’t hurt either. “Being a drummer is hard work and calls for endless hours of fine tuning within its art form,” Marsh says. Put a good drummer behind ,” he adds, “and chances are, you can get something out of it.”ĭrum heads are a necessity for drumming, but with the right ones, they can also help improve the sound quality and feeling of a performance. “The truth of the matter is that in most cases it’s about who’s playing it and how their approach is interpreted take a cheap bass drum and put some great heads on it, tune it and treat it to your liking or to what the song or genre calls for. “A good drum is truly a matter of taste and what sound you’re looking for,” says Mike Marsh, drummer for folk rockers, The Avett Brothers. Clearer heads will sound more “open.” At the end of the day though, it’s all a matter of preference - and playing style. Some drum heads come with a thin coating, which may look nice, but tends to muffle the sound a bit. There are also double-ply drum heads, which will be thicker in size and fuller in sound.
The best single-ply drum heads will get you sound that is punchy and bright, and the heads will also react more sensitively to your drum sticks. While they come in different thicknesses, the most common drum head size is “single-ply” (literally a single sheet of plastic). Think of a drum head as the lid of the drum without one, there is nothing for you to strike.
These days though, they’re mostly made from synthetic materials, like plastic.ĭrum heads are made for all the different parts of a drum kit, from the snare drum to the toms to the bass. calf skin) that were stretched over or tied around a drum. Also referred to as a “drum skin,” these were once created from actual animal skins (I.e. the “batter side”) and the other side is the resonant side. WHAT IS A DRUM HEAD?Ī drum head is a piece of material that’s tightened and placed over one or both sides of a drum to create a consistent surface for you to hit. Todd Rundgren’s 1980s hit may have encouraged you to “ Bang the Drum All Day,” but these days, most drummers prefer a little less banging and a little more finesse. Products featured are independently selected by our editorial team and we may earn a commission from purchases made from our links the retailer may also receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.