Why Are Some Drummers Behind Glass
Posted by Mike Schumacher
Have you ever seen a drummer play behind glass? They do this to make the acoustics sound better.
This article will talk about some things that sound engineers do to make acoustics sound better for live music.
It’s important to know about these techniques so we can play with this new material.
Piston
To make a drum sound good, sound engineers use air compressors.
These air compressors produce a low sound like a ticking clock.
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Loudspeaker
To make a drum sound good, you need the appropriate speaker system.
But what makes a drum sound good? Well, a key to improving the sound quality of a drum is the size of the speaker.
We’ll learn about different kinds of speakers, how they sound, and ways we can modify them so they sound good.
We’ll also learn how we can re-do our home-made drums. You don’t have to buy any fancy technology equipment.
Chorus
To make a drum sound good, you need a good chorus, a small speaker that can vibrate. A good chorus will amplify the sound but have a good tone.
To make a drum sound good, we have a good chorus and the right volume.
When I use this scale, it sounds great. But you may want to make a change to your scale, for example, 2/4.
2/4 is one octave lower than 3/4. However, 2/4 is not a whole tone lower than 3/4.
How can you make a higher-sounding bass drum with the same drum?
First, you have to look at the pitch of the drum. Each note has a pitch that’s equal to 1/8 of a semitone.
So you can tell the pitch of the drum by listening to the snare. Does the snare sound low or high? Low or high?
Each kind of drum has a specific pitch and sound. For example, the snare of the bass drum is high. But in 2/4, the bass drum has a higher pitch than the snare.
The snare has a pitch of 440Hz, while the bass drum has a pitch of 448Hz. In this case, the snare sounds high in 2/4 because it’s a whole tone higher.
Another way of making a bass drum sound better is by increasing the volume of the bass drum. How loud can you make it?
Let’s say your bass drum has a volume of 40-45dB. You want to find out how loud that bass drum should sound, or how loud it should sound if the volume is increased.
Well, you can use a meter to check the volume of the bass drum. There are several meter variations.
However, I like the bass drum gauge. You plug in a speaker, and the volume comes out on a tape.
The volume of the bass drum is compared to the rest of the band. The bass drum gauge shows you how loud the bass drum should sound in your band.
Notice the bass drum gauge said 40-45dB. So you can adjust the volume of the bass drum.
Try making a bass drum with a lower volume. It may sound OK, but not as great as with a higher volume.
The measurement device in this example is called a sound meter. It helps you find out how loud your bass drum should sound.
Concert bass drum
The bass drum sound can be better. Do you have a bass drum in your band?
Well, make it a little more impressive.
Place a percussive object on your bass drum. The percussive object should not damage the bass drum.
For example, my friend has a foam helmet on his bass drum.
It sounds great! Just don’t try hitting the bass drum with a chair!
Water bottle
A cool bass drum accessory is to make a water bottle. Cut the bottom of the water bottle to expose the air hole, and put a few drops of water inside.
Be careful with this. Don’t just add water, and put the bottle under the bass drum.
Check for leaks.
The water is high in air pressure. Therefore, you should be careful.
If you bump the bass drum too much with the water bottle, it could break. The water is likely to spill out of the bottle, hit the drum, and hit the head.
Another way to make the water bottle on the bass drum is to use a grommet. I don’t know how you can get it off the water bottle, but you can use a round grommet.
Be careful! You can only remove the grommet from the water bottle once. You can also put your percussive objects, such as a stick or your fingers, inside the water bottle.
Some people put the stick inside the bottle, and bounce it on the drum, to make a cool sound.
I tried this one time. It wasn’t very good.
You get more bang out of a stick on the floor.

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