Increase attack without losing low end

[severed lips]

I have a 24/13/16/18 Gretsch kit. I use Remo vintage emperors on the toms.

I’m wondering how to get more attack off the heads so I can play a little faster but I don’t want to compromise my low end (rock sound). Do I need to switch to a black dot head? Or am I overthinking this?

 

[RIDDIM]

Tighten the heads?

Record on a gig and see how they sound. Adjust as needed.

Alternately, practice on pillows or with brushes, so you can pay sans rebound.

 

[bpaluzzi]

Are you currently using coated or clear?

Black dots will give you a bit more "slap" on the attack.
You can also increase articulation via muffling.

 

[paul]

Tune your resonant heads lower than the batters, and then get someone to hit your toms while you stand 20-30 feet away. You may be surprised.

 

[Tubwompus]

“Attack” doesn’t effect speed, just accentuates the volume of the impact of the stick on the head. Rebound, however, can increase speed compared to the response of a low-tuned head. That’s achieved by increased head tension which, of course, raises the pitch of the head. If you want to increase tension but keep the same pitch, you’ll need to use a bigger drum than what was present and pitching it up to what was there previously.

 

[severed lips]

Are you currently using coated or clear?

Black dots will give you a bit more "slap" on the attack.
You can also increase articulation via muffling.

Using coated emperors

 

[severed lips]

“Attack” doesn’t affect speed, just accentuates the volume of the impact of the stick on the head. Rebound, however, can increase speed compared to the response of a low-tuned head. That’s achieved by increased head tension which, of course, raises the pitch of the head. If you want to increase tension but keep the same pitch, you’ll need to use a bigger drum than what was present and pitching it up to what was there previously.

Ok. I guess I thought “attack” was synonymous with rebound

 

[bpaluzzi]

Using coated emperors

Clear will increase the attack a little bit, without significantly changing the feel of the head. CS are single ply heads, which can feel a bit different under your hands.

 

[foxy_shazamtastic]

Ditch the vintage emperors and go for regular emperors, they have more attack. Go to clear emperors for even more. Or black dots will work too. You should still get plenty of low end with any option and good tuning.

 

[foxy_shazamtastic]

Ok. I guess I thought “attack” was synonymous with rebound

A stick hitting a steak will be all wet, slappy attack and no rebound lol

 

[Hemant]

Yes - second @foxy_shazamtastic - ditch the vintage Emperors. That head is way too thick for those Gretsch shells (I tried them). To my hands and ear they approached Evans hydraulics in terms of feel and tone.
You will get more "snap" out of regular coated or clear emperors, but if you are going to tune them a bit higher - I really like the Ambassador X which has a bit softer feel and a super charged low end compared to a regular Ambassador.

 

[Heartbeat]

Smooth White Emperors. You'll keep the warmth/darkness of the coated Emp sound, but increase attack. I absolutely love them on my 13/16/18 Classic Maple toms.

 

[EyeByTwoMuchGeer]

Any sort of clear two-ply head should really be about as attack-y as you can get. I’d think the vintage emperor would be even more attack-y than the regular emperor.

Other than that, change your sticks?? Maybe go with nylon tips? Or at least a different tip shape?

As others have mentioned, attack and speed aren’t exactly related. If you’re looking for more response back at you once you hit the drum, tighten the bottom head. The pitch may seem to go up a bit from the drivers seat, but with drums that big, you’ll never lose the bottom end, and if you’re judging the low end from the drivers seat, you’re missing out. Drums that big don’t really bloom until at least a few feet away (and especially so with both the attack and the low end). Big drums typically sound overly boomy and ringy without the fullness from the drivers seat.

 

[WesChilton]

Clear, single ply heads.

 

[MillerMav]

I think it comes down to head selection, tuning and mic'ing. I play an 18"x16" INDe bass drum with a fantastic attack and low end. I have an Aquarian SKII for a batter with a Aquarian Resonator on front and a small pillow inside. Then I have an internally mounted D6. I tune the front head quite tight with a noticeable tone and the batter head 1 key turn past finger tight. That loose batter head with a tonal resonant head has always given me a great attack with great tone.

 

[Whitten]

Yes, as someone mentioned earlier there is a confusion going on hear between sound (bright attack) and rebound or head response. There are many ways to achieve more attack in the sound.
The only two ways I can think to achieve more speed is 1) more practice and/or lower the bottom head and tighten the top head (as mentioned above).

 

[mgdrummer]

Another vote for clear emps. Something I was doing on my main gigging kit for a number of years was to use ambassadors on the mounted toms and emperors on the floor toms. This seemed to balance the attack across the drums as sometimes two ply heads can sound rounder/warmer on smaller drums than on larger drums.

 

[goodcat1337]

If you want to keep the coated heads, maybe try Vintage Ambassadors. I've been using them for a bit and like them a lot.

 

[Whitten]

so I can play a little faster

Was the question.
I don't think any clear or coated head of any brand makes it harder or easier to play faster.
It's either a practice thing or a tuning thing. I like a fat thuddy rock sound, so I've practiced my rolls so I can achieve what I want with that kind of set up.

 

[WesChilton]

If you want to keep the coated heads, maybe try Vintage Ambassadors. I've been using them for a bit and like them a lot.

I've been using Evans coated UV1s on my toms and I would say that they have plenty of attack as well.