Members Jay Jay Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 I had a show on Saturday and figured it's time to try some different heads. I had the stock heads on for about 4 months. I only changed batters except for the kick. Kick I changed both. Mapex M-Birch. Stock heads Remo UT batter and reso. (basically a clear ambassador). Coated on the snare and a PS3 equivalent on the kick. 8" 10" 12" 14" toms.... 14"x5.5" snare.... 22"x18" kick. TOMSREMO UT: Good enough that I left the heads on till I knew a different sound I wanted. Toms were easy to tune, low or high. The high overtones were good but there was a lack of low end. Dare I say a lack of warmth. Lots of sustain, top and bottom tuned the same. No muffling. Out front of the kit, the lack of warmth was noticeable. The toms sounded good but not full. AQUARIAN RESPONSE II: The emperor/G2 equivalent. Same sustain. Didn't choke the drum. Didn't kill the tone of the 8" either. Much more low end, both behind and out front of the kit. A bit harder to tune, I guess cause of the lack of the higher tones. Feel is a little different, but I'm used to it after an hour. Projection live may be a bit less unmiced. I'll just hit a little harder. I tuned these to the same pitch as the Remo UT. Top and bottom the same. I am very happy with the sound. Took away what I didn't like from the remo and gave me what I wanted. SNAREREMO UT: Basically a coated ambassador. The snare with this kit sounds good. Not as good as the Ludwig superphonic I played before, but I'm sure most of the audience will never tell the difference. I like my snare tuned tight. Top higher than bottom. I like the ring. I had a sweet spot of about 3" in the center of the drum. Coating still all there.COATED AMBASSADOR: ha ha. coating chipped off in the center in about an hour. I now have a clear patch about 3". Sound is almost the same. Maybe a bit less muffled. So close I would even say it's tuning that changed the sound more than the head. To my surprise and my ears, the cheap version of this head sounds the same as the real version. KICKREMO UT: basically a PS3 style batter and reso. Sounded good, but lacked the deep low end that you could really feel. I like that punch you can feel in your stomach. I don't need or want a soft boom. I like to stand in front of the kick and feel as though someone is beating me in the chest. Attack was good. Just didn't have that punch I wanted. I cut a hole in the reso to mic. No muffling. Made very little difference in sound from out front the kit. If I had purchased a new PS3 setup and this was the sound I got, I would be dissapointed. It didn't sound like the real PS3 on my old kit. AQUARIAN SUPERKICK I: Purchased this cause I had a GC card and they had a sale on the SK1/regulator pack. Got it for about $50. This did it for me. More attack, more punch, more low end, more everything. This is what a kick drum should sound like. I have the batter tuned tighter to get some rebound off the head. The reso is tuned much lower. Everything good I've read about this setup is true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members devinw Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 You try and EMAD 2 on that kick? Just curious as to what made you go with the Superkick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members drumtechdad Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 Thanks for that, Jay Jay. None of those heads (apart from the snare) would have been my choice, but that's part of what makes this whole deal so interesting. Someday someone has to perform some kind of analysis as to why some folks go through Remo's coating in no time while others don't. Because there are those who don't (I've been using coated ambs for snare batters for decades with no problems) I wonder if it relates to style, technique, stick tip shape, chipped tips, scored nylon tips, stick angle, batter tension, or something. It seems logical to me that if it were a matter of QC then folks like me would get bad ones, too. I really don't get it. While it took you an hour () to create a bare spot, check this out--a Remo coated amb in nearly daily use for just about a year now. (Ordinarily I replace snare batters after six months, but I'm getting old so I forget. I've never replaced a batter with a bare spot, only slight chips.) Now, I'm a pretty average hitter and I play some styles that don't require smashing the drums, but my son hits 'em hard, every damn day. It is true that we both keep the snare pretty high, with shallow stick angles. Weird! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sytubs Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 I have found remo UT (Taiwan) to be horrible and inconsistant. Sorry, every one of the 3 dozen of them I have used were terrible. They do not sound like real USA made remo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members devinw Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 While it took you an hour ( ) to create a bare spot, check this out--a Remo coated amb in nearly daily use for just about a year now. (Ordinarily I replace snare batters after six months, but I'm getting old so I forget. I've never replaced a batter with a bare spot, only slight chips.) Now, I'm a pretty average hitter and I play some styles that don't require smashing the drums, but my son hits 'em hard, every damn day. It is true that we both keep the snare pretty high, with shallow stick angles. Weird! I have found that the Coated Remo's last a long time on snares but not toms. Maybe with the higher tension on the snare, the coating is harder to chip off? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Merlin Coryell Posted April 23, 2008 Members Share Posted April 23, 2008 You should write reviews for these and post them in the reviews section too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jay Jay Posted April 24, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 24, 2008 You try and EMAD 2 on that kick? Just curious as to what made you go with the Superkick. I couldn't decide between the EMAD or Superkick. I read good things about both. Guitar center had the Superkick I pack on sale for about $50 and I had a $50 gift card. So the price was right. Drumtechdad - The Remo UT I took off had all the coating just like yours. That head was 4 months old. Maybe the chinese coating is better or maybe I got one of the bad coated Ambassadors that I hear about all over the web. Sytubs - What did you replace all the Remo UT with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mike_cook Posted April 27, 2008 Members Share Posted April 27, 2008 I keep a remo coated ambassador on my snares and remo pinstripes on my toms.I change them when they break which means i change my snare heads maybe once a year my toms have had the same heads for three years and yes they still sound great(that`s what my clients tell me)and my kick a remo powerstroke 3 probably every eight months.Belive it or not.I am a session drummer and play everyday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members theDan Posted May 4, 2008 Members Share Posted May 4, 2008 SNAREREMO UT: Basically a coated ambassador. The snare with this kit sounds good. Not as good as the Ludwig superphonic I played before, but I'm sure most of the audience will never tell the difference. I like my snare tuned tight. Top higher than bottom. I like the ring. I had a sweet spot of about 3" in the center of the drum. Coating still all there.COATED AMBASSADOR: ha ha. coating chipped off in the center in about an hour. I now have a clear patch about 3". Sound is almost the same. Maybe a bit less muffled. So close I would even say it's tuning that changed the sound more than the head. To my surprise and my ears, the cheap version of this head sounds the same as the real version. Sorry to revive an older thread but would you classify yourself as a hard hitter? Or anyone who has had problems with coated remo's for that matter? I'm ordering a bundle pack and I don't want to end up with useless heads and a good $50 thrown out the window. I don't classify myself as a hard hitter but I'm not on the soft side either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 2xBass Posted May 4, 2008 Members Share Posted May 4, 2008 Sorry to revive an older thread but would you classify yourself as a hard hitter? Or anyone who has had problems with coated remo's for that matter? I'm ordering a bundle pack and I don't want to end up with useless heads and a good $50 thrown out the window. I don't classify myself as a hard hitter but I'm not on the soft side either. It's ok, it's a good thread. Not like some pointless discussion that was never going anywhere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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