Amb on a bass drum?

[toddbishop]

I used an unmuffled Ambassador on my 20" Gretsch on every gig I played for about 10 years.

 

[michaelg]

For rock and pop styles I've found a PS3 type head is much easier to deal with and often warmer sounding.

 

[KCJazz]

At the moment I am using the Simon Phillips batter combo of clear Amby and rolled-up towel. All the low end I would want, plus good response and a more complex attack to my ear, compared to a ring-muffled head.
Only other batter head I have a lot of experience with is the PS3, which uses exactly the same thickness of film. I think I prefer the Amby plus towel muffling because it can be adjusted. Half of the perimeter is completely free to vibrate, plus the bearing edge is in contact with the actual head, not the underlay.

Great points made in your last sentence!

 

[Steech]

Yes, works great and sounds awesome.
Just make sure you have a few spares lying around if you have a heavy foot.

 

[Rock Salad]

I love the clear (hazy) and a pillow

 

[Cauldronics]

I love the clear (hazy) and a pillow

Remo make a hazy bass drum head? I thought hazy were amb snare side only.

 

[michaelg]

Is there any sonic advantage to using an Amb batter for pop/rock type gigs ?

 

[dsop]

Is there any sonic advantage to using an Amb batter for pop/rock type gigs ?

It's a bit easier to hear from where you're sitting.

 

[Rock Salad]

Remo make a hazy bass drum head? I thought hazy were amb snare side only.

They are called clear but have a haze to them lately. I like that film better than the super clear stuff. I wonder why some are clear clear and some milky

 

[Whitten]

Is there any sonic advantage to using an Amb batter for pop/rock type gigs ?

Not IMO.
Use what sounds good to you (and if you use out front sound, what the sound person likes).
If a coated ambassador sounds good to you on kick - use it.

 

[Seb77]

If you have muffled batter head and a ported front head, give the Amb a try. If you don't like it as batter head, you can still use it as unported reso.

After replacing my original 80s Export batter with a PS3, the shop assistant told me not to discard the old batter, but to replace the origonal center-port reso with it. Huge difference, just by buying one new head, here it was a pre-muffled one.

 

[GretschMan61]

Like many of us I started my drumming career using coated Ambassadors on the batter side of my bass drums . I still like a coated Ambassadors on 18” bass drums with a felt strip .

Currently I prefer a coated PS3 or FeltTone on my bass drum batters . I still use a felt strip with the PS3 .

I also like coated Ambassadors for the resonant side of the bass drum of given a choice . A felt strip on batter side and resonant side and I am a happy camper.

 

[Drdrumdude3009]

I like the more open sound of Ambassadors on a bass drum.

 

[michaelg]

Really like a PS3 Renaissance on my Yamaha 8000 20x14 kick.
Warmest sounding head I've yet tried on that drum.
Amb reso smooth white (with a 4" port) and gaffa tape around the entire circumference inside edge which gives more of a PS3 kind of sound.
Evans EQ pad, small side touching batter only (and t-shirt inside if extra muffling required on reso).

I do like the sound of an Amb unported on both sides with felt strip but too much work for me in live use and im not keith carlock or john bonham, I like an easy life.