DW Classic 22 in Coated White Bass Drum Resonant Head

• 22 in diameter, the most common bass drum size
• Single-ply 10 mil film, made by Remo in the United States
• White textured coating rather than a clear film
• Supplied unported, with no factory port hole
• Darker, warmer tone than a clear head
• Large DW logo on the white surface

A clear film returns the attack almost unchanged: the beater's click stays bright and the high overtones ring for a long time. The textured coating adds a tiny amount of mass, but spread across the whole surface, and that mass absorbs the highest overtones first.

The result fits in one word: darker. The note keeps its weight in the low end, loses a little brightness up top, and stops sooner. It is the colour jazz and studio drummers look for, along with anyone who needs a bass drum that sets the tempo without underlining it.

This head is supplied without a port hole. Unported, it lets the drum breathe: the note sustains, air moves between the two heads, and the sound gains roundness at the expense of control. With a port, it releases some of the pressure, shortens the sustain and makes it easier to place a microphone inside.

You only make this choice once: a hole cannot be filled back in. On stage, where the microphone matters, the port often wins. In the rehearsal room or for room-mic recording, an unported head is still the way to keep the resonance.

A mil is a thousandth of an inch: ten mils make a quarter of a millimetre. It is the usual thickness for a resonant head, and it is no compromise — a thicker film would stand up to hits better, but a front head is never hit. Its only job is to vibrate in response to the batter head, and a single ply of 10 mil film vibrates more freely than a two-ply head.

The head is made by Remo, in the United States, which produces DW drumheads. That explains why a DW head behaves under tension like the heads most drummers are used to: the mechanics are the same, while the film and coating are specific to the line.

• Front head for a 22 in bass drum
• Jazz bass drum where the resonance should stay warm
• Replacing a worn or torn front head
• Studio kit miked from inside the bass drum
• Pit orchestra and theatre bass drum

Bass drum front heads from other drumhead makers:

Is this a batter head or a resonant head?

It is the resonant (front) head, the one that carries the logo and faces the audience. The batter head is the one the beater strikes, at the other end of the shell.

Does it come with a port hole?

No, it comes unported. Cutting a port shortens the sustain and makes it easier to place a microphone inside; leaving the head unported keeps a longer, rounder note. Since the hole is permanent, make the choice before you put the head on.

Will it fit a bass drum from another brand?

Yes. 22 in is a standard diameter: the head fits any 22 in bass drum, whatever the brand.

Why a coated head rather than a clear one?

For a darker tone and shorter sustain. The white surface also has a visual advantage: it shows off a logo and takes stage lighting better.