The remo kevlar heads. I know there are the Falam II's, Cybermax's and Whitemax's. What exactly is the diffrence between these heads, and will anyone last noticable longer then the other. We're talking about buying new heads for the snares, And I've basically been put in charge of it.

Which would be the best bet to go with for durability purposes, Simply because we can not shell out cash for new heads after the others are stretched. Which head sounds the best and lasts the longest at the same time. Thanks in advance.

I'm unfamiliar with the Cybermax head, all I know is what is on the remo website: a super-high-tension head. The Falam II is a Kevlar laminate which is very stiff/hard and (to me) makes a snare sound like a table top.

The Black/White Max are Aramid fiber laminates which have a softer feel and (imo) a much better sound: much more "snare drum" than "kitchen table."

All of these should have a similar longevity, though the Falam will last basically until all the coating is worn off.

i'd say the cybermax heads. they've lasted us since marching season last year, and they haven't torn or gone dead. and we crank them up pretty high.

You can never go wrong with black max or white max. I tried a cybermax on my 13x11 inch Pearl ffx, and while it didn't sound bad at all, in my eyes it wasn't special. as for falams all I can say is what I've heard;

1) they are very hard on hands

2) they need to cranked very high to get a good sound

3) that good sound is very table-top like

4) they are extremely durable.

So I'd say go for white max (a nice, bright, and articulate head), black max (like the white max but with a darker sound and color ), or a cybermax (durable and has a nice sound).

In order of ideal tension/pitch from highest to lowest:

Cybermax
Falam II
White Max
Black Max

The Cybermax is the replacement for the old Tendura. It's basically a pipe band head, suited for very high tension.

The Falam II is also a relatively high pitch head. Its Kevlar fiber and square weave don't have quite as much "give" as some of the newer aramid fiber heads.

The White and Black Max are an aramid fiber head with sort of a herringbone pattern weave. It has a little more "give" than the Falam, giving it a warmer tone and making it a little easier on the hands. Although the construction of the two heads are identical other than dye, the Black Max tends to have a slightly darker tone.

All of them are very durable, as are the MX White and MX Gold from Evans. Unless you abuse them with a drum key (cranked too tight and/or unbalanced), they should last quite some time.

i thought falams were bottom heads

They have a bottom and batter head version of them, there are also batters with a dot.

I really don't like Falams. They're too "boxy" sounding. White Max and Black Max are just more open sounding it seems, not to mention way easier on hands like someone said. You can get both dry and wet sounds out of Max heads. They last awhile too. I love em

I did notice that, we have the sFz's, So I do believe they come with Falam's. (This shows WHY I'm asking about new heads)

The stock head is as old as the drum, this will be the drums third year, and we havn't replaced the snare heads yet. The heads were only recently tuned, but were abused for 2 years, they had a nice warm sound to it, then after about a week, they lost tune and the sound became very raw. Almost "table top" like you guys said.

Yeah Falams start to sound like a drum with a White Max, only with the snares turned off. Literaly thats what I've heard from some Falams is a sound with no snare response at all.

9Volt: I'd like to note that a head that is kept tuned, in the "in tune with itself" sense, will generally last longer than one that is neglected. If you get into the habit of tuning snares and tenors, at a minimum, once a week the heads will sound better over time as well as helping your BD shave a few dollars off the budget.

Anyway, if your heads are 3 years old you might need to replace the bottom heads, too. If they're plastic instead of fiber (if they're the original heads they probably are) they almost certainly should be replaced.

If you're after longevity you need to stear clear of plastic heads, so that pretty much leaves you with Remo Falam II and Evans MX5 or Hybrid, assuming your school isn't wedded to one brand. The fiber heads will cost ~3 times as much (~2 times for the Hybrid), but last 5 or 6 times as long (assuming you keep the bottom head tuned up.)

From "driest" to "least dry/wettest":
Falam
MX5
Hybrid

The Falam and MX5 are going to have about the same lifetime. I haven't used the Hybrid, yet, though it is designed to last longer than a straight plastic head.

Yea, our snare heads have been splitting, but I seem to be the only one on the line who can tune the drums. I have not taken the time to go and find snare side heads.

I know we are okay on those, the previous BD who originally ordered the drums actually took care of the percussion, granted, they were not very good at keeping the band disciplined, (and they sounded horrible) but she did take care of the percussionists. We have a nice stock pile of snare side heads, and some old mylar heads (batter) Would these possibly work for the bottom too?

Right now the problem seems to be, we have to buy these heads through the band boosters, if the band itself bought heads, we would have to buy from the local music shop. They sell everything at suggested retail price, so I could only imagine paying $60+ for a drumhead. I do believe they only sell remo too, they are not tied in with any brands, they just only stock certan brands. Example, they only recently started stocking vic firth instead of Ludwig sticks because they know we use(d) the Ralph Hardimons.

No, batter heads wouldn't work for the snare side. They're too thick. You'd get pretty much zero snare response.



Your band doesn't have to buy from the local shop. There are probably hundreds of reputable vendors who accept school district purchase orders. Maybe someone's just being too lazy to deal with the paperwork to generate a purchase order.

No, we do, somehow we have a contract with them or something, the band can not do things like, buy brass instruments, repair instruments, ect. They are the instrument provider to the schools, and I'm pretty sure there is a contract where the school has to go through the local shop. The boosters however can go wherever they want, exactly why I'm trying to order from steveweiss.

Working for a school district myself and being familiar with the purchasing process, I doubt the school locked itself into an exclusive deal with one vendor -- much less one who's charging full MSRP.

But I digress... In the meantime, do what you gotta do to get some heads.

Well, Ill ask my BD about that, becuase if he can be buying percussion stuff from other dealers, We should definatly take that route. Well, It actually won't matter, my school systems broke, we have been self funded since we got the drums because we never get a budget.

Falams sound very nice in my opinion. But I usually play black or white max. They will last longer if you know how to tune them correctly. Which I would PM one of the mods like Toe or multi-Thomm in order to get a greater idea on perfect tuning.

There are also about a million posts about different ways to tune. My own personal tip, don't crank them right when you get them and make sure to lube up your lugs.

The fall season is only about three months for high school, and if someone breaks a white or black max in that about of time, they are playing wrong. From what I have seen from most high schools is that the player plays don't play through the head enough to come close to breaking the head.

Also I would shoot for Columbus Percussion. They are much faster and cheaper than Steve Weiss during the fall in my personal experience. ;-D

In conclusion, you should be fine with a white or black max as long as you tune them slowly throughout the season. That's all I have for now. Have a nice day.