Crash Course: Drumheads
Like most musical gear, there is more that meets the eye. Let’s dive into drum heads…
Historically speaking, drumheads started out as animal hide that is dried and stretched over the drum shell. It’s 2018, that doesn’t exactly happen all that much, thanks to new technology. So how did the tech change?
The Rise of Mylar
In the 1950s, the DuPont company trademarked a new product called Mylar — which is a polyester film. Ever since the invention of Mylar, the drumhead as we know it, changed. Shortly after Mylar hit the market, Remo opened their doors, producing drumheads from Mylar.
In addition to Mylar, modern drumheads are made out of many different materials including plastic, Kevlar, or synthetic animal skin.
Single Ply / Double Ply
The most popular and commonly found drum heads are single ply and double ply Mylar heads. Single ply heads usually come in various thicknesses such as 7, 7.5, 10, and 12 mil. A mil is 1/1000th of an inch, so it is quite thin.
Double ply are just as the name insists — two layers of (usually 7 mil) Mylar. There are many different double ply options that will match a 7 mil ply with a 5 or 3 mil ply.
Single ply heads are very sensitive and provide high rings and overtones. They are most often used in lighter striking genres like jazz, worship, or light rock sounds. The downside is that single ply drumheads are not as durable as double ply or other materials, meaning you’ll have to change them out more often.
Double ply heads are the choice for harder hitting genres that require more sustain and a stronger attack from the drummer. You often hear double ply used in genres like R&B, hip-hop, metal, and hard rock. In contrast to the single ply, double ply heads are more durable and can often last longer.
Coated and Muffled Options
Outside of the standard single/double ply Mylar drumheads, there are a few more options that cater to specific genres or playing styles.
Coated drumheads are coated with a myriad of materials to deliver different sounds. Coatings on toms can make them sound warmer, while heavy coatings on snare drums can muffle the sound or deliver some interesting sounds if you play with brushes.
Taking it a step further, are pre-muffled drumheads that use extra coatings of Mylar or plastic to the top or underside of the outer edge of the drumhead. Pre-muffeled heads take out the high over tones and focus on the overall tone of the drum. You’ll most often see these used on bass drums.
Specialty and Resonant Drumheads
So far we’ve covered the basics be there are tons of specialty drumheads ranging greatly from materials, colors, and tone. As musical styles evolve, drumhead manufactures are coming up with new technology to archive new sounds.
Resonant heads are on the other side of the drum shell and are engaged when the air column inside the drum moves from being struck. Like regular drum heads, resonate heads differ in thickness and can provide more sustain and deeper tones the thicker they are.
So there you have it, a quick crash course on drumheads — could you add anything to our breakdown? What type of drumheads to do prefer? Let us know in the comments!
