Bleaching black mesh heads

[hemiboy]

Could you safely bleach black mesh heads to white without destroying them? I can afford buy new white heads, but I don't like the US choices for white mesh and the ones I like overseas are z ed triples or Humm drum 3 plys will be super expensive with shipping and import duties. They are much cheaper than Roland over there but I am here. Pintech reactions, harts, Billy blasts, remo silentstrokes are all louder than my current black 682 meshes. I would buy white 682's but they are made from a completely different material and are louder as well. So back to bleaching, will it work successfully?

[jpsquared482]

I seriously don't think this will work. The black pigment is molded into the black mesh strands, through and through.

[hemiboy]

Thanks I am going to overpay but get what I want which is Z-ed triple x!'s

[KennyinDundee]

I don't think bleaching would give you results you'd be happy with to be honest.

[hairmetal-81]

Maybe dye them to white?

[hemiboy]

Yeah going to a textile or crafts place to look at dye

[Intruder]

Dyeing black to white will not be easy.
Good luck.

[hemiboy]

Yeah the opposite would have been a walk in the park but dark to lite a nitemare! I think I will just step up and pay the freight for the z ed or humm drum triples in Europe and be done. By the time I buy the dye and apply it for 4 or 5 heads, and then hope the dye doesn't come off from stick strikes

[TheYardbird]

What 682 heads do you have now? I currently have their white 2-ply heads and I think they're quite loud, especially the bassdrum. You say the Pintech Reaction head is louder than the 682 ones? You sure? I was looking to buy some white Reaction heads to get my acoustic noise level down :/

[hemiboy]

I have the blacks. I think I posted when you first got here about the blacks being quieter than the whites, maybe not. Anyway, according to digital drummer mag's February 2014 edition( most recent) head to head review, the quietest heads out there right now are white z-ed triple x ( which I have been told are the same as Humm Drum 3 plys) The black pintech reaction tested there also is rated louder as well. I asked Ryan from Pintech and he told me that there new white Reaction is exactly the same head material and construction, only difference is the color. So it is louder also. 2 suggestions, the first being a stretch. Ask Rene at 682 drums to even exchange you for the their black 682 model which is rated the second quietest to zed tripps, , or keep your white 682 as a back up and buy the z ed tripps. Incidentally , the pintechs are not cheap even though Ryan is a good guy and will work with you. I am going to buy the z ed tripps

[Tommy_D]

I agree on the loudness of the bass head, Yardbird. Its a very coarse mesh they use and it scratches against itself a lot. Sounds like you are hitting a tennis racket and all the strings are scratching and making cracking noises.

I have installed some Remo Silentstrokes on my Ddrum kit and they are sort of quiet. The stick tip makes a scratchy sound (think of a DJ scratching on a record) when you hit the head. That's a bit annoying. Whats worse thought is that these heads stretch like crazy. I was testing my 2Box module and tinkering with some trigger settings for about an hour the other night. Took off the head to adjust the height of the trigger and to my dismay the head had dents all over it. When tight you don't see these dents, but when loose the head looks like the lunar surface. I have never seen a head this beat up from just an hour of tinkering. I really worry that they wont last more then a few months of real playing.

[hemiboy]

Thanks for posting Tommy, sounds like one head to stay clear of , unless it is to be used as a reso head only and I don't need resos , I use the pearls for that

[PintechUSA]

Please also keep in mind that not only do some mesh heads make a louder "noise", but some mesh heads make a "different" noise. Hard to explain, but although a decibel reader may say one head is louder by X%, you may personally prefer that louder head because it makes a different audible tone/sound.

I only bring this up because our heads have been tested against just about everything that is out there. We've done our independent testing, and I can say without a doubt that different heads sound differently. And although sound is an obvious thing to look at, make sure you don't base your whole decision on it. Stretching and reliability is a HUGE factor in mesh heads.

Although our mesh heads are generally towards the top of the list when it comes to quietness, I can honestly say that I have not personally heard a huge difference between our brand and some of the other brands we've tested against. Can you hear a difference? Yes. Is it a HUGE difference? Not from what we've seen.

We are in the middle of building a photo and video stage - We plan on doing some comparison tests in the near future. I will put mesh heads on the list so we can show the differences.

[allanjohn]

I have to agree with both of Ryan's points. The differences in volume between the loudest and softest is not that big, especially at moderate playing levels. But there is a big difference in tone and buzz, and some heads have much more pleasant tones. But that would be totally subjective. The bigger differences are in the bounce dimension, with some allowing far more rebound than others. And, of course, longevity differs as well.

[hemiboy]

In the ideal setting where I had all the mesh heads at my finger tips to test for rebound , volume and general sound I am sure that some of the heads that have been rated "louder" , played might be fine! So hard to buy without playing, with waiting time, and shipping cost factors . One hour in a test environment would make it easier to pull the trigger