The effect of good hoops

[mkennedy]

Last year I swapped out the die cast hoops on my Renowns for 2.3mm triple flanged hoops and I'm VERY glad I did. The drums opened up considerably. More sustain, more overtones and just a richer, more resonant sound. I also recently took an old snare with a very nice shell but flimsy hoops and replaced them with 2.3mm hoops and the drum was like night and day. So today I took my Sonor 3003 kit and swapped out the batter hoops. Again the difference it made to the sound was quite substantial. So after doing this several times I've come to the realization that a lot of people can improve the sound of their drums with a few new hoops. It makes for easier, more consistent tuning as well as better resonance. Has anyone else done similar?

[N2Bluz]

I have a bunch of metal hoops that came off various cheap drum sets. When I fix up an old kit, I hang all the hoops from the ceiling with a thin wire and play each of them like a triangle, LOL. It's amazing how different the tones can be between two hoops of the same diameter that look exactly the same. I then pick the ones with the best sound to install on the drums. Probably doesn't make a nickle's worth of difference, but it makes me feel better....

[drumsetsnide]

Interesting idea but doesn't make much sense (to me). If it is true that 2.3mm hoops allow a drum to "open up" more then why do the majority of high-end drum sets come with die cast?

I'm glad you are having success with flanged hoops but until I experience the same results you did (and I have tried this experiment with no results to the better) I will continue to use and buy cast hoops.

Thanks for sharing. Maybe I will try again.

[Pearl MCX Man]

Die cast is all I use, they came stock on my MCX. I find they are hold the tune longest compared to other hoops I have used in the pas. Also easiest to tune. Not sure about them choking the drums though. They sound good to me.

[slinky]

I'm in favor of cast also. They really do seem to hold tension longer. My (new to me) FF is putting out sound that I'm drooling over right now

[mkennedy]

To be clear, this wasn't about die cast versus flanged. It was about cheapie hoops versus stronger, more resilient hoops. I simply told the story about the Gretschs as that's what led me down this path. I also like die cast for their precise tuning and focus. Not saying they 'choke' a drum, the triple flanged just have a more vintage sound that I like.
As for high end drums being fitted with die cast...DW, Ludwig, Sonor and Mapex use flanged on their high end kits.

[Ricardo]

To be clear, this wasn't about die cast versus flanged. It was about cheapie hoops versus stronger, more resilient hoops. I simply told the story about the Gretschs as that's what led me down this path. I also like die cast for their precise tuning and focus. Not saying they 'choke' a drum, the triple flanged just have a more vintage sound that I like.
As for high end drums being fitted with die cast...DW, Ludwig, Sonor and Mapex use flanged on their high end kits.

The original purpose of cast hoops was the old (pre-1960) three-ply Gretsch shells -- they wanted to keep the shells thin but they were not strong enough.
Rather than go with re-rings, they tried using very high-quality cast hoops, screws, & lugs in order to make a thin shell into a very strong drum.
The origin behind today's Gretsch USA was then born.............

I have compared the USA cast hoops with "other" cast hoops and you can immediately realize the different weights.............I then assume not all cast hoops are of the same standard.

It thus makes good sense to me if you replaced cheapie cast hoops with high-quality flanged hoops and the result is a better drum and a better sound.

[Johnny G]

The original purpose of cast hoops was the old (pre-1960) three-ply Gretsch shells -- they wanted to keep the shells thin but they were not strong enough.
Rather than go with re-rings, they tried using very high-quality cast hoops, screws, & lugs in order to make a thin shell into a very strong drum.
The origin behind today's Gretsch USA was then born.............

I have compared the USA cast hoops with "other" cast hoops and you can immediately realize the different weights.............I then assume not all cast hoops are of the same standard.

It thus makes good sense to me if you replaced cheapie cast hoops with high-quality flanged hoops and the result is a better drum and a better sound.

Very interesting information. I had no idea of the origin of die-cast hoops. I have also noticed an inconsistency in the world of cast hoops. I was told by a Tama rep years ago that it is the density of the metal and the process used to harden the product that makes this difference.
I used to have die-cast on my old Sonors, but the new one's came with triple flanged, so I have noticed a distinct difference in how they hold tuning over time and punishment. The old die-cast win, hands down. I plan on upgrading my batter sides soon.

[daniboun]

Hi,

I personnaly love S Hoops. These Hoops have the best of both world : Focus of Die Cast hoops and that opened sound of triple flanged ones.
Moreover, the crosstick sounds just fantastic.
They are using the same concept of Safety HOOPS.

Check this video and listen by yourself :

[drumsetsnide]

…I swapped out the die cast hoops…for 2.3mm triple flanged hoops… took an old snare with a very nice shell but flimsy hoops and replaced them with 2.3mm hoops Has anyone else done similar?…"To be clear, this wasn't about die cast versus flanged. It was about cheapie hoops versus stronger, more resilient hoops…

It was about cast vs. flanged as indicated by your original post. You presented one vs. another and then asked if others had this experience. So I'm confused.

[Pearl MCX Man]

That's what I thought he meant too.

[bdonley]

Got cast one's on my SSB Gretschs. Been thinking about trying 3 flangers, just out of curiosity. The Brooklyn's are coming with old style double flange hoops.
For the sake of argument, have you played wood hoops? Had some on these. Great sounding toms. Actually, the whole set.....

[Warren Wright]

It all depends on what type sound you are shooting for - as to what type hoops you put on your kit. If you mic your kit - Die-Cast hoops will get you a more focused - tight sound that works really great with mics.

Whereas, if you play live without mic'ing, you might want to go with the Triple-Flange hoops. Pearl has a 1.6 mm triple flange hoop they call the Fat-Tone hoop that really opens up your drums and they are super rigid.

[mkennedy]

It was about cast vs. flanged as indicated by your original post. You presented one vs. another and then asked if others had this experience. So I'm confused.

To go into more detail...I started out by explaining how changing the hoops on my Renowns had a drastic effect on the sound. I wasn't saying flanged were better than die cast. That's what led me to upgrade the 1.6 mm flanged hoops on my Sonors to 2.3mm flanged hoops and it significantly improved the sound of those.

[drumsetsnide]

Fair enough. I may have misinterpreted what you were saying originally.

I may have to do a little more experimenting with cast and triple flanged. I will have the opportunity as I have cut some shells, routed new edges, and drilled new lug holes. I will compare them side by side with my other kit as both of them are Tama- all birch- and the shells will be the same sizes. Should be a simple but pretty cool comparison.

[markdrum]

Hi,

I personnaly love S Hoops. These Hoops have the best of both world : Focus of Die Cast hoops and that opened sound of triple flanged ones.
Moreover, the crosstick sounds just fantastic.
They are using the same concept of Safety HOOPS.

Check this video and listen by yourself :

I thought that S-Hoops were the same as safety hoops. If Guru and Ahead use them on their snares then that's good enough for me. I put a S Hoop on the batter side of a Pearl 5" brass Sensitone and it sounded great. The Pearl hoops weren't slackers but the S Hoops were a great improvement. I'm getting ready to do the same on a Tama 14" piccolo and on a Yamaha Musashi. That's my plan for Thanksgiving!.