My recommendation would be to replace the heads. If you get an idea as to how you want the drum to sound you can isolate what type of heads you need. Here are a few things that I believe should help if you don’t already know.
The batter side head is what provides you the feel,
attack, and tone in a projected burst. Anything you put here will aid in changing the sound of the drum’s
attack.
The resonant head is VERY important to making your drum sound good. Yes there are concert toms, but unless you are looking for that specific sound, resonant heads impact tone, pitch, sustain, overtones. Remember the resonant head vibrates and projects from sticks/beaters hitting the batter head. In most cases 1 ply heads are used on the resonate head, but if you feel like trying 2 ply here go right
ahead. Two ply heads mute overtones and that kind of takes away from the purpose of the resonant head. Just like Bambam stated… once that air hole gets too big you might as well scrap that resonant head. I have seen musicians who feel they need more air to escape the bass drum have two smaller holes cut in the resonant bass head instead of one large one.
Drum diameter gives you pitch
Drum depth gives you sustain and resonance
Thick shells give you more qualities of the batter head
Thin shells give you more of the resonant head qualities
So… take a moment and get to know your drum as far as what you can expect out of it. Then select your heads based on what kind of qualities the drum will bring you.
Linear Mode
