Modern Drummer (June 1998)
Q&A
Q: I’m a seventeen-year-old drummer from Washington state. You’re my favorite drummer. I really like your music, along with the sound of your Orange County Drums & Percussion drumkit. I have several questions.
1. What heads do you use for studio and live playing?
2. Do Emperor heads sound better than Ambassadors!
3. Do you use the RIMS system for your toms?
4. How do you tune your kit?
5. Who should I talk to about having an OCDP drumkit made?
Mike Duncan
Okanogan, WA
A: Thanks very much for your complimentary words and all your questions. To answer those questions in order:
1. In the studio I use coated Emperors on all the drums; for live playing I use clear Emperors on everything but the snare, which always gets a coated head.
2. “Better” or “worse” are relative terms. Emperors sound thicker and deeper than Ambassadors, and they last longer.
3. Yes, I do use RIMS on my toms, for the extra resonance they provide.
4. In non-technical terms, I always tune the bottom head on step higher than the top head. I’m going for as much tone as possible. I use no tape; I don’t want the drums muffled. On the snare drum I like to get ring as well as crack.
In the past I’ve had sound people tell me that my snare drum rang too much. I told them that they obviously hadn’t listened to too many ska records, and that I prefer the ring. It’s the characteristic sound of the music I’m playing, so please deal with it. Besides, as most people playing in a live situation discover, most of that snare drum ring goes away when the rest of the band comes in.
5. To get information about Orange County drums, call Daniel Jensen at the company’s offices, (714) 589-7308.