Floor Tom as Bass Drum

[nkf31]

Hey, has anyone tried this? Is the feel similar to a normal bass drum? Anyone know where to get the mounting?

 

[Akira-Portnoy]

hmm..? the sound will be like crap i guess?

 

[myner]

not really, depends on the size of your floor tom.
imagine a 18x16 floor tom converted to a bass drum, the sound would be fast but fat, because by nature of its size and dimension.
it'll be like a TAMA stagestar bass drum, but if i'm not wrong thats 18x14.
i'm not to sure about a 16x16 though or any smaller, well... think of it this way.
the diameter affects the reactivity of the skin, fast, slow. the depth affects the tone, like say, from fat to controlled. so... feel free to play around

 

[weckl-x]

I've tried it once so far. Converted a 16"x14" FT with a Pearl JG16 Jungle Jig. I've seen it sold in Swee Lee.

If you tune & muffle it the way you want it, you'll be surprised at how well it can work for acoustic gigs in smaller venues.
It'll take some experimentation to finally get it to sound and feel right to ya.

 

[shaneypants]

16x14's a little small, ain't it? Maybe an 18x16 would do the trick.

 

[tim098]

that drum kit looks so damn cute!

 

[weckl-x]

Shaneypants: Small? It really depends on what music you're using it for, and where. You'll be shocked to hear this: I've read of drummers who use a 15", even 13" as a kick drum

tim098: Thanks! I thought so too... heh. On usual days, it's a Yamaha Stage Custom floor tom.

This is one of those things where the "Don't knock it till you try it" approach applies.

 

[Quattro]

Hey, has anyone tried this? Is the feel similar to a normal bass drum? Anyone know where to get the mounting?

It is definitely possible, but the feel and sound will be very different from a 20 or 22. For smaller kick drum, you might have to mic both front and batter heads to get the best sound. If you have only 1 mic, i will recommend you mic the batter side.

Please also try to play around with different skins and tuning, it does make big difference.

 

[nkf31]

Haha wow ok.
actually i was trying to explore my options of a small acoustic kit for home practice (not mesh heads kinda thing), something that would give a reasonably pleasant sound but not be so loud till the echo kills me and my neighbours lol. don't really like the depth of the RT bass drum although that would probably be the most space saving. anyone tried the RT bass drum and got it sounding reasonably nice?

 

[plainsman]

hmmm... i bought the floor tom mount from bani !!! its the pearl iss mount... u need 2 bags o' items... the mount which allow u to slot in pedal, and another one which got 2 legs for you to put on the other side.

i haven't went to find a floor tom to convert though =/

stagestar 18x14 sounds surprisingly good for its size, a typical floor tom will sound different, but it might actually work pretty well for jungle and practice applications

ask mark, he's trying to get a set of the mount n legs too


cheers!

 

[zhong]

anyone tried the RT bass drum and got it sounding reasonably nice?

what i did for my RT is stuff a pillow into the kick,
it should fill up almost the entire thing.
I fold the pillow in a manner that half of it is leaning on the batter side covering almost 50% of it
I'm currently using evans G2 and I dun use a drum key to tune it, what i did was just finger tighten all the tension rods (if necessary, i will just give ever a slight nudge twist with my drum key for each lug)
For resonant, I cut a hole off centre to allow the air to escape, it gives the RT's batter abit more give
(Just fyi, I use a EQ4 in my church's kick, batter just tuned above wrinkle point, resonant with holz slightly tighter, and with a small pillow lightly against 10% of the batter skin, I like my kick slightly fat with a good attack yet resonant - thus the minimal muffling)

I find that this trick gives me the fat thud I like for my kick, yet at a low volume
As a result, the response on my pedal is not too bouncy too, due to the loose batter head, yet the pillow gives it the support to prevent me from putting a hole through my batter

As for my snares, I tuned it nice and poppish the way I like it, but I cut the center strands of my snares and leave it with only 4 strands!
Yes 4 strands!
It still gives the snare crack (though not as prominent), but not over CRACKING, mind you, in our small HDB rooms, no joke!

For toms (Evans G2 as well), I tune it just above wrinkle point, with just half a moon gel on each tom to damper the overtones (no duck tapes or whatsoever, they kill the feel!! )
For the "floor tom", again just finger tight to give it abit more "growl", which is hard to emulate due to the depth of the shells
in a manner, it's sort of a "cheating" way to get a growl out of it

So overall, the balance of the kit turns out pretty nice

I used the stock cymbals as brass is more mellow compared to bronze
I leave my good cymbals in church, no point using it in the small room
a small splash will sound like a 18" monster in an untreated HDB room!
I also took the 16" crash, taped a folded tissue underneath and use it as a ride
not the most fantastic sound, but yet it gives a nice mellow ping that is not too overpowering in my room

hope some of these tips help for RT owners

 

[plainsman]

yeah nice tips zhong... esp the pillow bit for the bass drum

frankly, RT isn't all that bad.

When we accept the limitations and explore the sound possibilities, its actually a pretty nifty little thing.

I've seen some pretty nicee applications on youtube.


Luna Sea - Breathe (One Night Dejavu concert Dec'07)
YouTube - LUNA SEA BREATHE GOD BLESS YOU〜OneNightDejavu

venue was tokyo dome (capacity 50,000) but obviously the PA and setup is first rate.




Some Jap Guy doing half-time shuffle outdoor
YouTube - 野外ドラム　ハーフタイムシャッフル(Half time shuffle)


This guy looks like he into some 'outdoor drum society' thing ... hence the 野外 in the description?! :mrgreen:



Have fun!

 

[shaneypants]

Wow. That jap guy's Traveller sounds ace. Especially the bass drum.

 

[weckl-x]

I've seen some pretty nicee applications on youtube.

Nice, thanks for sharing!

Makes me miss my RT a little

Do note that the RT in both videos are different from the ones we know in the SG market.

Those in the videos look like the Rhythm Traveler 'Gig' RTG665. it has a 16"x14" kick drum, instead of a 20"x8".

More info here: Pearl Drums - Products

 

[plainsman]

interesting !! (wah ... i really not pearl fellow... i dun really know the product line well )

soo... no wonder.. its a different sized bass drum variation :mrgreen:

 

[Akira-Portnoy]

wah see all those pics and a word from you guys can really influence me getting those floor toms as my kick. hahhh

 

[jeepers]

i've been seeing this 16" BDs quite a bit on cymbalholic, where quite a fair bit of them use 16" for softer jazz and bop gigs. yet to find videos or soundfiles where a 16" BD has been used. but it certainly is interesting!

and it helps that i've got a 16" tom that i aint use at the moment. 16" x 14" though. alfe, how much does the tom-to-BD conversion set cost me?

beauty!
16 x 8 Phattie Bass Drum Keller shell mini / porto gig - eBay (item 290212909574 end time Mar-10-08 14:05:40 PDT)

 

[Frummer]

Yeap the stagestar bass drum is 18x14 and like alfe said...it sounds surprisingly good...

Almost like zhong, i only rolled up a towel and muffled the lower portion of the batter head...

very strong attack ( mind you, i'm using a tama wood beater... ) ...but it really sounds diffferent ( and more oommph ) from the front ( had my friend play it 1 day )...

I might be using my set for a gig in Far East next month...those interested can come down and hear haha!

 

[weckl-x]

yet to find videos or soundfiles where a 16" BD has been used.

The videos that alfe posted above are of an RT with a 16x14 BD.

Btw, not all jazz gigs are soft

Here's another vid of a 16" in action
MySpaceTV Videos: Bugalu meets Greg Glassman in time 3 by Marvin bugalu Smith

Not forgetting the glorious Brian Blade, he's a fan of 16" BDs too.

Solo on "Jazz Crime" : YouTube - Brian Blade - Solo
Full song: YouTube - Joshua Redman - Jazz Crimes (Live)

"Molten Soul": YouTube - Joshua Redman - Molten Soul (Live)

"Headin' Home":
YouTube - Joshua Redman Quartet - Headin' Home (Live)

 

[plainsman]

and it helps that i've got a 16" tom that i aint use at the moment. 16" x 14" though. alfe, how much does the tom-to-BD conversion set cost me?

beauty!
16 x 8 Phattie Bass Drum Keller shell mini / porto gig - eBay (item 290212909574 end time Mar-10-08 14:05:40 PDT)

i bought the 2 bags from bani 80 bucks, brand new. should cost about the same plus minus 10 at swee lee... do revert if price v different!

alamak the auction just ended wif buy it now!! :shock:


wah stim... more clips to get addict to RT BD sound....