Ultimate reviews of best plastic drum heads

Drum heads are the thin, synthetic or natural membranes that are stretched over the drums of a drum set. They are responsible for producing the sound of the drums, and there are many different types of drum heads available, each with its own unique sound.

The most common type of drum head is made of plastic. Plastic drum heads are durable and affordable, and they come in a wide variety of thicknesses and coatings. The thickness of a drum head affects its sound, with thicker heads producing a lower pitch and thinner heads producing a higher pitch. The coating of a drum head affects its texture and overtone response.

Some of the most popular brands of plastic drum heads include Remo, Evans, and Aquarian. Each brand has its own line of drum heads, with different features and benefits.

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Top best drum heads for you to choose from

1. Evans drum heads for all music genres: Evans G2 Tompack, Coated, Standard (12 inches, 13 inches, 16 inches)

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 12″, 13″, 16″
• Clear/Coated: Coated
• Thickness: 14mil (2 x 7mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: ETP-G2CTD-S

Based in the United States, Evans has been famous for their revolutionary drum heads. They have been considered pioneers for the innovative design and manufacturing of different types of drum heads. D’Addario and Company acquired Evans in 1995, but there has been no change in the level of consistency and quality of this brand.

I am pretty sure many drummers like them for numerous reasons. For instance, these can be your best drum heads for the metal in the drumming arena.

I heard reviews about these drum heads from my friends and watched a review video that compared drum heads from different brands. Finally, I decided to buy these to replace my broken drum heads. First of all, you can buy them as a pack of three drum heads in various sizes. I also favor them being an all-rounder, pretty inexpensive, and versatile. This value pack can work with almost all genres and is popular for boasting great sound. For all beginners out there who are confused and can’t decide what to choose, I suggest trying these first. You are definitely going to feel a pure warmth while playing these drum heads as I did. Tuning is very easy too. You will be truly amazed at the depth of the drum heads which is consistent with any level of attack. Now you know why these are very popular among many drummers regardless of their style.

For drummers who like playing jazz or softer music, I recommend getting this coated version of Evans Tompack.

What’s included:

• Standard Tom Pack (12″,13″, 16″) drum heads

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2. The most popular Remo drum heads for all drummers: Remo Ambassador Coated Bass Drum Head – 20 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 20″
• Clear/Coated: Coated
• Thickness: 10mil (1-ply)
• Manufacturer Part Number: BR-1120-00-

Remo is regarded as the best company when it comes to manufacturing synthetic drum heads. For nearly six decades, they have been offering an amazing palette of products including the best bass drum heads. My audience, that wishes to keep things easy, will definitely prefer this brand. It is very difficult to match the musical and technical advantages of Remo drum heads. The coated ones I am reviewing currently are also the best drum heads for recording.

The company advertises that these are highly sought-after best drum heads for jazz. They claim that any drummer who is confused about what type of drum head to purchase should go for this one. Well, I am not surprised by this claim since it is not far-fetched. I believe it must be the highly demanded and fantastic drum head set adored by the drummer’s community.

So, I’ve mentioned how fantastic these drum heads areas I found their sound pretty good. It is also worth mentioning that the drum heads’ coated finish produces open and warm sounds. These heads also provide you with the desired bright attack and controlled sustain. I love them as they’re the best jazz drum heads the company has ever manufactured.

What’s included:

• drum head

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3. Best bass drum heads in the class: Evans EMAD2 Clear Bass Drum Head, 22 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 22″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness: 16.5mil (1 x 10mil, 1 x 6.5mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: BD22EMAD2

This is the best head I recommend for any drummer who loves experimenting with a different range of tonal styles. It offers a feature to help you decide your own drum’s tone. I like EMAD2 as it offers various muffling options, so I don’t have to change the drum heads whenever I need a new tone. I also find it easier to control my drum’s resonance.

The EMAD2 is definitely the best drum heads for rock. In my view, it should be the first choice of any drummer who wants to get a reliable head with great quality and amazing sound characteristics. It offers a flexible damping system which I found very helpful in adjusting the attack and focus. Plus, it allows you to get your desired tone easily.

I love playing various music genres so I’ve been searching for a durable bass drum that could let me alter the dampening easily for a while. I highly praise this drum head as I don’t hear the same sound with different hitting. Trust me, you would be amazed at the results you can get with this EMAD2. You can always use the thin one or the wider ring to get your desired tone with this drum head.
As there are many professionals like me who would love to have control over the tone of their drums, the EMAD2s is my top recommendation to all of them.

What’s included:

• drum head

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4. The best sounding drum heads out there: Evans Genera HD Dry Drum Head, 14 Inch (B14HDD)

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 14″
• Clear/Coated: Coated
• Thickness: 12mil (1 x 7.5mil, 1 x 5mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: B14HDD

Drumming has been an integral part of my life since I was eight. I have been an Aquarian guy, a Remo guy, but Evans Genera converted me. The heads are very easier to tune, and now I am an Evans guy for life. Out of all brands available online, this is my most favorite multi-purpose snare head with a well-defined attack. I recommend this to all drummers who want something pretty durable for rock, jazz, and everything else, and, besides, they should be easier to tune. After using these drums, all I can say is that Evans pioneers in manufacturing the most consistent drum heads, and this one turned me into a die-hard fan of this drum head. This does not mean that I will stop using Remo or Aquarian heads, I am just talking about my experience with Evans Genera here.

Evans Genera will give you a very controlled sound, plus it eliminates all extra unnecessary overtones and resonance. It comes with vent holes and floating base rings making overtones pretty minimal. I would suggest using a small piece of moon gel to dry it for close-mic situations or recordings.

It will be important to mention here that this piece is considered as a revolutionary all-purpose snare drum batter heads than other competitors. I have many friends who find it the best drum heads for metal and have become loyal users after using it for so many years.

What’s included:

• drum head

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5. Best resonant drum heads, of course, it’s great if it is Evans: Evans Snare Drum Head, 8 Inch, 10 Inch, 12 Inch, 13 Inch, 14 Inch, 15 Inch

(S14H30)

• Batter/Resonant: Resonant
• Size: 14″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness:3 mil (1-ply)
• Manufacturer Part Number: S14H30

I have just one word for this item, Awesome! Yes, I am openly praising this drumhead. A few years back, I needed a replacement for my snare-side head. After hearing so many good reviews from my friends, I finally got it. Trust me, I could easily feel the immediate and apparent improvement in quality. It is even, feels beefier, easy for tuning, and snares sound greatly.

The 300 clear snare-side by Evans is very thin. It features a very responsive 3-mil single-ply film that provides a tone that is not very bright or dark. With its dynamic range, you will get a precise snare sound at all levels. I simply love it as once I got it, I almost forgot about it. You might be thinking maybe it broke during the trial, but luckily it does not break just like other side heads during tuning.

I recommend it as an all-purpose side head as it is versatile enough for all genres of music. I really liked that it allows my snares to speak at any snare tension. You can feel that it reacts well to tuning changes, keeps the snares to be crisp, and lets the drum’s tone speak. This is another best-selling series from Evans and a great addition to your bag of tricks.

What’s included:

• drum head

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6. For the best drum heads for recording, Remo is the industry standard: Remo Ambassador Hazy Snare Side Drumhead, 14 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Resonant
• Size: 14″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness: 3mil (1-ply)
• Manufacturer Part Number: SA-0114-00-

This was recommended by my best friend a few years back as the most versatile snare-side drum heads from Remo I could find anywhere. All I can say is that you can literally use them for Rock, Metal, bebop, or any music genre. From my experience, the Remo side head is very sensitive and pretty thin so it works in any way you like to play. You may be beating crazy hard or playing soft, it will pick up any sound. Just to add to your knowledge, this is the head which is mostly shipped with different brands of drums. If you need to replace your Evans Clear 300, you can use this one.

Just to be clear, you can’t play it with sticks as it is not the top side-head. So you don’t need to knock its head down, otherwise, it is going to break. I have used it with different brands of drums and played Jazz, some blues, Rock, etc. It is well constructed and a perfect fit and gives you the snappy resonation you need for your type of music. You can call them bottom head, resonant/snare head, just not “Batter”. Don’t get confused with “Clear” or “Hazy” terms, these are all the same when you are using Remo.

The ambassador will give you a well-balanced resonant and open sound. This all-around snare head is something that goes on the opposite side, but at the same time, it is significant enough to allow maximum sensitivity to your snares. It will amplify sustain and enhance the volume of the resonance of your drum.

What’s included:

• drum head

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7. Searching for the best snare drum heads? Get Evans Reverse Dot… End of Story! Evans EC Reverse Dot Snare Drum Head, 14 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 14″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness: 17mil (1 x 7mil, 1 x 10mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: B14ECSRD

So, one of my friends told me that he was switching all of his snare drums to this one. Did I ask him why? He told me he got the “Perfect” sound, “Great” tuning, and the drum produced “Rich” volume for his brushes. Well, he just confirmed what I have been telling the beginners who ask me about the best snare drum head with easy maintenance. It is easy to tune and clean. I have used this head and found it awesome. I can assure you that it gives your snare a fine loud crack. Its nice opaque frost color perfectly mixes with my aluminum drum’s alloy shell. Yes, it is my premier royally snare drum I got when I started playing drum myself and I never regretted buying this one.

Just a quick tip, you can upgrade your resonant heads and snares with this one to get the desired crack for various tuning ranges. If I review it technically, this snare head is composed of two plies; the top one is 7-mil and the bottom one is 10-mil film. It comes with Evan’s edge technology giving you the perfect balance of tones, and it also eliminates the unnecessary high and mid-range frequencies. As the name mentions, you will see a reverse dot (a silver center dot) underneath the top ply. This dot helps in getting great attack and control. Evans claimed that this item works pretty well with brushes and that is exactly true. You can also purchase this snare drum without the reverse dot. But I think the dot makes it durable, accentuates attack, and does not choke the sound.

What’s included:

• drum head

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8. Aquarian drum heads for solid five-star performance: Aquarian Drumheads Super-Kick II Drumhead Pack (SKII22) 22 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 22″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness: 14mil (2 x 7mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: SKII22

Renowned drummer “Roy Burns” established this company in 1980. In 1987, they began manufacturing drum heads and immediately became popular due to amazing product quality. They have introduced new design solutions and set new trends in all kinds of drum accessories.

This is the only Aquarian product I have included in the top ten list as it the best rock drum heads you can find on the market. Since I am reviewing bass drums, this one is perfect for those who literally don’t want to have a pillow in bass drums. Now, you don’t need to worry ever again, just get this Super-Kick II. This was one of the best heads for my bass drum I could lay my hands on.

The company claims that its patented “Floating Muffling System” delivers what every drummer dreams of, A pre-dampened sound! You get a punchy but beautiful and natural sound. I have used it and confirm that you don’t need extra dampening. My sound experience was really good and enjoyable. If you have this one, you have everything you want in a bass drum head. In fact, it gives a balance to the punchy, low-end sound.

It features double-ply heads which are great for Metal and Rock players. The heads are heavyweight and will last for an extended time. So, if you are practicing and double kicking it all day, don’t worry as they will remain in good shape and you will not feel any change in the performance.

What’s included:

• drum head

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9. The best tom drum heads for Church: Remo PP-1470-PS Pinstripe Clear Tom Drumhead Pack – (10 Inch, 12 Inch, 16 Inch)

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 10″, 12″, 16″
• Clear/Coated: Clear
• Thickness: 14mil (2 x 7mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: PP-1470-PS

If I say that all products in the pinstripe series are best-sellers, I am not wrong. Rock/Pop artists absolutely love this series as they get an amazing balance between increased attack and controlled overtone. These are the best drum heads for the church. One of my friends works for a church as a purchasing agent and the drummer there requests only these. I believe this drum head is hugely popular because they sound amazing and there is no need for much tuning. There should be no doubt about it as Remo is famous for its creative design solutions. These heads feature a quick decay which makes them an ideal option for fat sounds of Rock, Pop, and Rhythm and Blues.

These pinstripe heads are clear, and Remo has made them as double Mylar plies with 7-mil thickness, so they are more durable than other brands. I might prefer them over Evans g2 clear.

What’s included:

• Pinstripe Clear Tom Drumhead Pack, 10″, 12″ & 16″

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10. The best-coated drum heads for low-pitched tones: Remo Emperor X Coated Snare Drum Head – 14 Inch

• Batter/Resonant: Batter
• Size: 14″
• Clear/Coated: Coated
• Thickness: 20mil (2 x 10mil)
• Manufacturer Part Number: BX-0114-10

Well, these are my ideal snare for rock, have excellent control, and last for a very long time. These are thick, big on the attack, and low on sustain, so they give you a warm controlled tone. The one I am reviewing right now is 14”, but you may get it in different sizes for small snares. The firm designed it to last, so it is a good option for heavy hitters. It is made of the most resilient Mylar head you can find in the market. I also agree that’s it is durable as it is a double free-floating ply and coated drum head. It is great for a loud environment, you can tune it high to get cutting, loud sound or tune it lower for a fat, warm tone.

Thanks to the reverse black dot of 5-mil thickness, there is consistency in the tones. The coating enhances responsiveness to brushes. But the thickness of the heads means it is less receptive to light touches.

What’s included:

• Drum Head

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FAQ of the Drum Heads

1. How companies make the drum heads?

Companies commonly use Animal skins to make the drum heads. They are also using thin plastic especially “Mylar” to provide a great “smack” sound. When these drums are struck, they produce a sharp sound with deep bass tones. The most popularly used drumheads are single ply and made from a single sheet of Mylar. Many drums in different sizes and models are marketed for different tunings.

2. Can you help me with the measurement of my drum heads?

This is an easy task, but you must follow these steps in precise order.

1. First, use the drum key to loosen the screws at the drum’s top;
2. Then, remove the head and metal loop. You will be left only with the shell;
3. Use a tape for measuring the diameter of the outer side of the shell. You will be measuring your drum head actually;
4. You can use this measurement to get a new head, place it on the shell’s top with a metal loop;
5. Finally use the drum key to tighten the screws around the drum.

3. How to change drum heads?

Simply follow the steps of “How to change drum heads”. You need to get the measurements first to get a replacement.

4. How to tune drum heads?

Well, each type of drum head follows different techniques. So, if you are a beginner, ask your friends to help you in the tuning process.

5. How to clean drum heads?

You will need a clean, damp piece of cloth to clean a coated head and non-ammonia cleaner for a clear plastic head. I would advise avoiding water spraying on the drum heads directly.

6. Few tips for beginners?

I have been asked a few questions commonly, so let me give you some tips:

1. It is easy to find the best resonant drum heads for toms. Just remember to buy single-ply clear heads from Evans, Remo, or Aquarian to get the job done.
2. When searching for the best drum heads for recording, there are many factors to consider like the tuning of the drum, type of mic and room, and not just the brand.
3. You might be looking for the best cheap drum heads, but you should prefer quality first. I have included many drum heads that are great, versatile, and affordable.
4. If you’d like to buy one of the best mesh drum heads, you may find out that some of the best brands are not US-based. But 3-ply is available worldwide and has great response. So, go for it.

Conclusion:

After reading this article, I am pretty sure you will be convinced that buying the best Evans drum heads or other renowned brands is not at all a complex method as it seemed at first. I have compiled a list of my top picks of different drum heads, their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. Don’t be fooled by promotions or cheap prices nor is it just a matter of taste. You might get a low-grade head with poor quality and sound.

I have extensive experience in playing drums of different brands and I would recommend my audience to get their hands on heads from three companies: Evans, Remo, and Aquarian. They make quality drum heads with different thicknesses and features. I have mentioned tips and specific recommendations in my top ten list of best drum heads.

Just to clear your confusion, unlike cymbals or hardware, drum heads are reasonably priced. Though some features may cost you a few bucks more, you should always look for the drum head which can capture the sound as you desire. Also, you don’t want to keep buying these every other day, so it’s better to get a quality head made by one of these three companies.