Vistalite Bass Drum tuning

Tedg65

Junior Member
So I have fun futzing with my new 26" amber vista bass and I can't get no satisfaction....too much overtone.....I installed felt mufflers on front and rear heads which improved things somewhat but still not completely happy..
Do I tune the heads up tighter?....I drumdialed them to 78 (batter) and 75 (resonant) which seemed to be factory set...should they be higher?....I have a Remo clear double head on the batter and a single on the front...should I replace the batter with an Aquarian II?
I don't want to install a blanket as it ruins the look but I am out of ideas...

Anyone?
 
Be sure you are listening to the sound as it would be to an audience. Sitting behind the kit and playing without other instruments is entirely different from with a band and from 20 feet in front of the kit or with the kit miced. I had vistalites in the 70's and they were rather ringy by today's standards.
 
I'd say crank the reso high and keep it even. The even part can be tricky with wood hoops that flex all over the place. A big drum like that makes sub sonic frequencies, and tuning it higher brings a lot of those up to the point where they start to register with your ears. You're getting more usable drum tone when you tune your reso so it goes boing! with a big drum like that. Tune it pretty high, so it resembles a timpani-like tone. Try that and see if you like it better.
 
Certainly you could try the Aquarian II, but that's very similar to a Remo Pinstripe (which you shot down in an earlier post). Didn't you have a Powerstroke 3 on your batter? Maybe try that as a reso, with the two ply (Emperor) as a batter. Then add a felt strip to the batter, if that combo is still to open.​
 
Be sure you are listening to the sound as it would be to an audience. Sitting behind the kit and playing without other instruments is entirely different from with a band and from 20 feet in front of the kit or with the kit miced. I had vistalites in the 70's and they were rather ringy by today's standards.

VERY good advice here. Have somebody play your drums and listen from far across the room. You will probably be surprised at what you hear.

GeeDeeEmm
 
Thanks all, great advice that I will heed......don't know if I can let anyone else play as NOONE IS ALLOWED TO TOUCH MY VISTAS, haha!
 
I vote hydraulic batter and something like a powerstroke reso. I know most people hate them and putting one on any nice drum would be anathema, but I predict bass for days out of a big nasty drum like that; loss of "volume" possibly negligible. Plus they come in clear. SKII or an EMAD for a less-extremist but weirder-looking alternative. And a felt strip on the reso is always worth a try.
 
It's not what you would call a "near field" set of drums. Big drums sound better far away than from the drivers seat. Make them sound good from the throne, and you killed the legs of the tone, which for a small room is probably best. A 26 just screams stadium to me.
 
http://drummerworld.com/Videos/johnbonhamocheltree2.html

Remo CS dot batter head as well.

You really have to crank the front head up, I don't use dials never really seen the point as I have a good ear. You crank the reso head up to get rid of the air in the drum quicker especially with a 14" deep bass drum as there's a lot of interaction with the batter and reso head but it really works when you get it right!

Check the other video on Bonhams kit as it tells you how to get the sound on his green sparkle kit which was exactly the same fot the Vistalite kit but with different heads.
 
I vote hydraulic batter and something like a powerstroke reso. I know most people hate them and putting one on any nice drum would be anathema, but I predict bass for days out of a big nasty drum like that; loss of "volume" possibly negligible. Plus they come in clear. SKII or an EMAD for a less-extremist but weirder-looking alternative. And a felt strip on the reso is always worth a try.


This might be a good direction, too, and one I hadn't thought about, as I've always disliked hydraulic heads. But a clear hydraulic on the batter with a clear single ply on the resonant might work. I know we keep stressing how important it is to set the kit up from the audience perspective, but this is soooooo important. But, do you play the kit only at home, or do you gig with it? If you play only at home, then setting up and tuning from the driver's perspective might make more sense. If you gig this kit, though, we are back to tuning from the audience perspective. Let us know - home only or gigging, too, and we can get much more specific.

GeeDeeEmm
 
This is only for home use, would never take this beauty out to a smelly club...

Currently I have a two ply Remo PS3 black dot head on the batter side and a single ply on the front with two felt strips mounted vertically on both heads....still getting ring and it definitely does not sound punchy like in the Ocheltree tuning video...
maybe I DO need to tighten up the res head....
 
One thing this guy mentions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOjhMyYqEO0 is that these (Bonham Vistalite reissue) drums sound open and ringy ..... and much different mic'd. So you do have to factor in all video's are mic'd, and to some degree EQ'd.​
If you have an old bass drum head laying around, you can make your own richie ring. Before the Remo Powerstroke heads came out, that's what drummers did. That would let you try the equivalent of a P3 head, batter and reso, without having to buy a second P3.​
 
Actually the front has a "richie ring" under the Ludwig logo head...see pic:
 

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Currently I have a two ply Remo PS3 black dot head on the batter side and a single ply on the front with two felt strips mounted vertically on both heads....
OK ..... now the PS3 head is a single ply head. Built like an Ambassador head with a richie ring. A PS4 would be a two ply. Built like an Emperor head with a richie ring.​
Now, you've essentially got PS3's batter and reso (I have one of those Ludwig reso heads on my 24" Vistalite kick) .... and you have felt .... and you're still getting too much ring. If you want to stick with Remo, then the PS4 would be the next step darker, followed by the Pinstripe.​
 
The clear Aquarian Force 1. It's a single ply head, yes, but add a thin clear kick patch for durability.

The Force 1 is better than the PS3 because of the vent holes on the inner ring that muffles the head. The holes allow the muffling ring to settle back onto the head on a smooth way, and control overtones more evenly.

Thicker heads, like a hydraulic, on a bass drum with a shallow depth (relative to diameter), are going to sound awful. Those heads usually say things like "more attack" or "focus" but it's just not true on a drum whose depth is so much less than the diameter. It's going to have even less "punch" that the head you have now. Hydraulics, Powersonics, and Superkick II, sound best on deeper drums: 22X16 or 22X18, 24X18.

Leave the reso head the same.
 
I'm beginning to assume that what you are looking for is the traditional solid "thump" on the bass drum. If that's the case, I've never been able to achieve that sound without any ringing at all is to use a small pillow long enough to just touch the front and rear heads. I've moved away from that sound and like my bass drum just slightly muffled and ringing a bit.

One other thing to consider, placing a drum set in a corner causes all kinds of phase cancellation. So the first thing I would do is to try another location in that room. Move it away from the walls - front, back, and sides - as far as possible. I think you will be surprised how much better it sounds.

GeeDeeEmm
 
Cut a hole in that reso head !!!!

Don't, just don't if you want a proper tuned bass drum sound keep it whole!

The only reason you have a ported bass drum head is to get a microphone closer to the batter head.
 
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