New Drum With S Hoops

[chris perra]

Just got a new drum that came with S Hoops today... I've never even seen them before..Weird and very cool.. Any body here use S Hoops?

[Paul Marangoni]

Gavin Harrison swears by them.

[groober]

Love them !

[bstocky]

I've tried them on a couple of snares - Firchie, Ahead... maybe another one. I don't think I liked them or they didn't seem to make a difference. Maybe the cross stick sound was weak or funny?
Gavin likes them because they hold his O ring mufflers in place. I'm not sure if there's a sound or tuning benefit. Maybe the sound is more focused or less weird overtones? There are videos of Gavin talking about them. I'm sure he'll pop in here when he sees the thread title.

[bstocky]

Just type Gavin Harrison s hoops into Google and you'll find all kinds of info. Here's a quote from Gavin.

I'm using the S-Hoops on the tops of the toms and top and bottom of the snare.
I originally got curious about them after reading a review in Drummer magazine. They seem to make sense to me - and because I'm someone who likes using "O" rings I thought it would be a great way to stop them flying off mid tune. Carrying on that idea I thought it would be good to try them on the toms too. They do subtly change the sound of the drum (for the better in my opinion) and they have a rigidity to them like die cast but without the tone sucking weight.
Plus, of course, it's impossible to damage your bearing edges once they're on.

[chris perra]

I played with it yesterday.. It originally came with flanged hoops.. I've been using die cast mostly for a couple year and didn't like the cross stick feel as the flanged was a little lower in height.. Not a big deal but I mentioned it to the drum builder.. He suggested S Hoops.. Checked them out and I'm digging it.. Sort of half way between Die cast and Flanged... The cross sticking sound like diecast.. but it lets the drum breathe openly like a flanged hoop

I wanted this drum for live so I can play smaller loud rooms without killing anybody.. It's a demo drum for his new lacquer process to see if he could Lacquer over plastic and wood and have the finish stick.. With a cheap shell made of Ash or something.. So far so good.. Open tone but quieter than my other snares..

I wonder why drum manufacturers don't Have a line of drum that have loud kick and toms, But a reserved snare.. For jobbing musicians who need to deal with crappy loud rooms.. Even recording wise it would make things easier mixing wise for overhead or room mics if the snare/tom relationships were matched from the start..

[chris perra]

What would be the softest or quietest wood for reduced volume in building a drum that you guys know about?..

[Rhythmatist]

I put S-hoops on my SOTA snare about 2 years ago. They're said to split the difference between flanged and die cast and that's pretty much what they do. A bit more focus than flanged but not as dry as die cast. They took a little getting used to for cross-stick and rim click stuff since they tend to "sing" a little. AFA rim shots, I was able to get used to the lower profile fairly quickly and I was surprised as to the amount of tone variance you get depending on what part of the sick you rim shot with. In the normal spot it's very fat and up on the shoulder near the tip is very cutting and sharp, much more so than the other 2 hoops.

[Rhythmatist]

What would be the softest or quietest wood for reduced volume in building a drum that you guys know about?..

In my experience, mahogany. I'm sure there are others but that's the first that comes to mind. much more mellow than maple or oak but in some tuning ranges can be almost as vibrant.