How to cut a port hole?

Hey guys. I had a few threads about my bass drum. I have decided to cut one port hole in it, fairly small in size (3.75")... how do I go about doing this?

I have seen a few guys doing this at gigs and what not, but i have never investigated in what exactly the steps and precautions were that they were taking. Any help would be greatly appreciated, as always.

How does one go about cutting a port hole in one's bass drum?

Some people heat up a can and melt it. I simply use something for the pattern and draw it on the back of the head. Then I use a pair of scissors and go slowly. I will then use a piece of Sand paper to clean up. it is important to hold the sand paper at a 45 to the head so it won't scratch the head up.

I have been doing it the same way for 30 years. The only think that has changed is that the hole has gotten smaller ;-)

I use Holz. They can be a pain in the ass to put on, but once you get them in, thats all you need.

Remo and Aquarian make these stick-on templets that you stick to the back of the head and just use a razorblade to cut the hole out.

In the past I aslo used a spash cymbal as a tempate and cut around it with a blade.

I honestly used a coffee tin, heated it and was done within 2 minutes. There's no need for razor blades or tracing. Just keep even pressure and you're good to go!

I used to use an exacto knife. Anymore, I just buy a new ported reso head.

Just make sure you take the head off of the drum first. You can tear the head pretty easily by cutting it when you leave the head on.

My drum shop cuts them for free if you got the head from them. (or buy anything from them when you ask them to cut it )

I've been using the same 4" saucer for years with a craft knife and never had problems.

Take the skin off lay it on an old peice of carpet or flat surface you can cut on and do it from the back of the skin slowly. Presto.

So that really works huh?

Can you/Do you do it while the head is on and tight?

I need to port the head on a kick at work and don't want to remove the head.

I've always wondered if that was real or BS.

In the past I've just traced and cut.

I always use Bass Drum O's, they provide a nice template to cut the hole with (I use a sharp utility knife), and then glue and snap on both sides of the head. This makes for a nice sturdy opening that won't rip or tear when clumsy sound guys jam a mic in there, I started doing this after a couple of my heads got ripped by sound guys. Here's a link to the Bass Drum O's:

http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Bass-Drum-Os-Bass-Drum-Port?sku=445410

Don't do it. You will lose bass response and resonance.

Take all of the muffling out and let that drum sing.

You might actually have to tune it though.

It's just so much easier to mic , and we can't run the sound board and play the drums at the same time.

Besides , I never notice that much of a difference in feel w/ a reasonable sized port.

By accident, I just came across this:

[YOUTUBE]wStcDiAZnyM[/YOUTUBE]

The method starts around the 2 min mark onwards (if you want to avoid the preamble).

Cutting OR burning a hole with a head under tension is asking for problems. I cut using a CD (full or half size) as a template (all those free progam CDs you get in the mail have SOME use ;>). I used Holz when they first came out, don't care for them. I like the self stick rings from Remo & Aquarian, you can get them in black OR white. The melt method works great, done that a couple times. The melted edges reinforce themselves a little. I actually saved a few favorite sized cans for doing this ;>)

Boomerweps

A. How is it easier to mic? Because you have a place to aim the microphone? If you don't have a hole, pick a spot on the bass head and point the mic.

B. If you aren't running with pillows in your drum, it will be loud. In fact, loud enough for a microphone the get a strong signal.

C. WTF does running a sound board at the same time have to do with everyone? You can't do that with or without a hole.

D. Sound guys are generally not the friendliest people, when you first meet them. A good 80% of them gave me grief about not having a porthole. After every one of those shows, I asked the sound man if he had any trouble getting signal from my bass drum. Not one of them answered yes.

A muffled bass drum with a hole is not as loud a non-muffled bass drum without a hole. I suspect some of you have drums that sound like cardboard. This is why sound guys demand holes. Because they cannot get signal from a drum that sounds like a wall. How many of you have trouble hearing your bass drum at practice, with no bass drum amplification? I don't.

I have no troubles hearing ym bass drum... And I use EMAD II with a blanket.

really? with the yelling?

While playing w/ a ported kick I've had sound men run good and bad BD mixes , but on average they've been better than the mixes I've gotten from non ported heads , where obviously I've been mic'd n' mixed well and poorly too.

Sure there are people who can mic anything , and folk who shouldn't be allowed to touch sound gear.

On average I've had more good and great mixes w/ a ported kick and more weak mixes w/ a non-ported kick. This is on kits that sounded just fine w/o mics. I'd just as soon leave the reso intact but the guy running sound in this situation hasn't been able to make it work.

As to the playing and running a soundboard thing , I'm just saying we can't always be held accountable for the sound man or the quality of their gear , it's one of life's many variables.

Right? and done w/o yelling....:poke:

Yes, we're all douchebags.

I don't, however, give drummers grief about a full reso unless they ask my opinion.

I never have trouble getting signal from an unported reso head. It does, however, sound like {censored} (if you're playing any kind of rock), and requires a lot of EQ to keep the PA from feeding back on me. I can make it work, but my mix is only as good as the source.

That's what I'm talkin' bout!

Have you ever ran sound? It's a hell of a lot easier to mic a ported kick. If your nice to the sound man, then the sound man is nice to you.

2 rules in life:

Don't be a jerk to the man who makes your food, and don't be a jerk to the man who can make a great band sound like {censored}.

well guys, thank you very much for all the help. unfortuantely this thread got hijacked by a "port vs. no port" argument. Last night i decided to go ahead and burn a hole in the head using a large soup can. I burned one 4" hole and the process was as easy as could be... just make sure you heat the can up enough first!!!

In fact, the hole looks so great, i think i might put in another. . . For any people who wonder what a great dual-port kick can look like, visit www.truthdrums.com and look at the kits.... these are things of pure beauty!

I have run sound.

Sounds guys are grumpy people. They give everyone a hard time. Don't even act like it's not true.

The next time you come across a un-ported kick, here's how you mic it:

Put the microphone in front of the drum.

I know it's hard. But, that's what you get payed to do.

Great idea. More ports!

Maybe you should just go for a big port.

The beautiful thing about drums (and all music) is that it's YOUR sound, and there's no right or wrong. There are so many different sound possibilities with a bass drum, and not one of them is the end-all answer. I have gotten good sounds from wide open kicks as well as single headed kicks.

Take what you will from that.

There are some great suggestions here, so I won't add anything about how to port a bassdrum head.

I will, however, echo one prescient thought. It's your sound. Port it or not. Makes no difference to the average listener. Just because I don't do it like you, or you don't do it like me, doesn't make either of us wrong.

Oh, and one more thought, on the socialskills tip. . . . It's best to let people think you're a total tool than to open your mouth and prove them correct.