[LMAY500]

Here are some general suggestions:

Hydraulic heads--these heads are 2-ply(have two layers) and have a thin coating of oil between the layers. These first became popular in the 70's and are used as batter heads. They are strong and tune quickly and easily. They have less "ring" and a kind of warm mellow sound. Evans Black Hydraulic Drumhead

Pinstripe heads:PinStripe heads are made from two plies of clear film and bonded at the collar to dampen both high overtones and overall resonance. The result is a very focused, low pitched sound with moderate attack and response characteristics that is ideal for creating a deeper, fatter, controlled drum sound in a variety of studio and live drumming situations. Remo Clear Pinstripe Drumheads

Black Dot heads These heads have a polyester dot laminated to the center of the head for strength and dampening. The outer area of the head's playing surface offers midrange tone and sensitivity while the laminated center "dot" adds durability and tonal focus. Remo Clear Controlled Sound Drumhead (Black Dot)

About Tuning Ratio:

When tuning double headed drums, rest the drum on a folded towel to eliminate the sound of the head you aren't tuning.

Two heads the same pitch

This will produce a warm, round tone with lots of sustain. "Bong." The attack can be sharp (depending on the tension of the batter head), and the decay will be long, with no variation in pitch as the sound dies. Overtones are usually not affected.

The bottom head lower than the top head

The decay and sustain are diminished somewhat, the sound is rounder, and the tone deeper - even if the pitch is the same (remember, when you raise or lower the pitch of one head relative to the other, the pitch of the entire drum - when struck while suspended - will either raise or lower. To keep the pitch the same, you will have to change the opposing head in the other direction). The pitch will remain constant through the decay. Overtones are minimized a bit.


The bottom head higher than the top head

The effect is similar to bottom head lower in terms of sustain and overall tone, but the pitch of the drum will drop somewhat through the decay. This produces an interesting sound!

Hope this helps!

Lynne
Absolutely-Free-Music-Lessons