DHOL CUSTOMIZATION HELP

[Hardeep]

Hey Guyz,

I have a dhol from India which to be honest, is decent, but not up to the standard I wish it to be at. It is a fairly bulky round barrel, with normal dagga side, and GBC Tilli.

What I was going to ask was is it worth me buying a NEW DHOL or CUSTOMIZING this old dhol. In terms of price, I'd prefer to customize it as it'll work out cheaper.

In terms of customization, could u help me with choosing tilli side - I'm lookign to get a BLACK REMO side, but have no clue about the different types of Remo head's there are, eg, Ambassador, Powerhead etc. Which is the best in terms of giving the best quality sound?

Also, my dagga is WACK (crap). Is there a specific dagga side I can get, or will any do?

Finally, just to ask, will making all these changes, ACTUALLY have an improvement on the sound of the dhol?

Thanks for your helps guyzz, Hardeep

 

[Gurbir23]

have you tried tuning it yet or getting someone to tune it for you ?

 

[Sunny]

GBC heads are legit

 

[Hardeep]

What do you mean by tuning it? I have pulled the strings and everything and to be honest, the tilli sound is not bad BUT I defo wana replace with REMO. In terms of the dagga side, it is completely crap lol. I was jus wondering tho, will changing the tilli side and dagga side have a big impact on the quality of sound, cus it is a large round barrel.

if you do recommend me changing the sides, i will defo get it done from a shop,, but jus need 2 know which REMO TILLI SIDE is the best (Powersound, Ambassador etc) and which dagga sound is good too.

Cheers for your help guyz, xx

 

[Karan V]

check if have that black shit on the inside of ur dagga side..sum dhols have em..that can effect the sound also.

 

[Hardeep]

My Dhol's from India so is blatently crap. I jus wana know tho, will CUSTOMIZING IMPROVE IT?

 

[dholi_08]

Uhmm...if you really want a Remo head, probably the ebony ambassador, or smooth white. It's your preference, or ask the guy in the shop if you want. And for the dagga side if it is that bad get it replaced at a desi music shop, or try soaking it in warm water, after removing all of the ropes and stuff.

Hope that Helps

 

[Gurbir23]

the dagga side, you have to break in which is why "vajay hoi dhol" are so much better because they're broken in already. A tip: bang the shit out of it, take your dagga, and hit it/play it for a couple weeks. After the break-in period, then judge the sound of the dagga. Also, to release some tension and to get a cleaner sound, pull each rope, and give the dagga head a nice slap, then move on to the next rope, and repeat till youve done the whole dhol. For the tilli side, take a wrench or whatever you want to tighten the bolts on the head. What you want to to do is mark off where you start, and give that bolt 5 turns, then the next one 5 turns, then the next one 5 turns, keep going till you end up at your starting bolt. Test the tilli head by quickly hitting it with the tilli, if its not tight enough, then continue tightening it in the same manner. People say to do every other bolt and way your work around but i tend to lose count when doing that. Keep tightening till you hear a sharp high pitched sound. Also, when you hit your tilli, make sure your hitting near the kannar (the rim of the dhol) because hitting towards the middle will ALWAYS give you a garbage sound.

 

[dholi_08]

Hey gurbir...i'm just wondering but do you know how to legit tune a dhol?? Like with the vajaa and everything? ...I'm just asking

 

[Gurbir23]

Hey gurbir...i'm just wondering but do you know how to legit tune a dhol?? Like with the vajaa and everything? ...I'm just asking

i can do it decently, but if i want it done perfectly i get my grandpa to do it ( hes a tabla/vaja professor). To have a tabla/dhol tuned perfectly, it takes someone with years of experience and knowledge to detect slight changes in pitch.

 

[H G]

Hey... i'm just wondering but do you know how to legit tune a dhol?? Like with the vajaa and everything? ...I'm just asking

The way I did my dhol was, play a few punjabi songs and find the most common note (I think its A# or something) and do what gurbir said and go around the dhol tightening the hooks until the pitch increases...Basically, do this until you hear your dhol really close to the songs. From there, you can play around with it and try to go for perfection.

As for the REMO head, I think the most common black one is Ebony Ambassador (I've got 2) and if your shell rim is angled a bit, you'll get a wicked ringing sound every time you hit the thilli (which I think is better).

 

[bballkid2592]

Hey gurbir...i'm just wondering but do you know how to legit tune a dhol?? Like with the vajaa and everything? ...I'm just asking

i can do it decently, but if i want it done perfectly i get my grandpa to do it ( hes a tabla/vaja professor). To have a tabla/dhol tuned perfectly, it takes someone with years of experience and knowledge to detect slight changes in pitch.

So true...i play tabla...and after 6 years...ive learned to decently tune a pair of tabla. Its the slight differences is what you gotta look for...practice makes perfect =D

 

[Gaurav]

Hey gurbir...i'm just wondering but do you know how to legit tune a dhol?? Like with the vajaa and everything? ...I'm just asking

Using a vaja is the Best way for tuning a dhol/dholak/tabla an many more instruments when your about to play at show's. and yes it takes some practice, But once your really good at it. You just need to set one bolt (ghar) and you can do the rest by just hearing that same (ghar) an setting the rest. Its Hard but after A LOT of practice you get it.

 

[Hardeep]

THANKS GUYZZ! Your all heros lol Jus guna ask, eventhough REMO heads are good in terms of sound, will putting it on my shitty india dhol improve it's sound? Sorry, I just wanted to confirm this before I go buying the stuff.

 

[Hardeep]

Guyz, I'd just like to add that im in the process of redoing my dhol now.

I've taken off the dagga and treble heads, as well as the rope.

I've started sanding the dhol to get rid of the varnish, but will i need REALLY COARSE SANDING PAPER to get it all off.

Then, how will i fit in the dhol ropes when fitting in the new REMO HEAD?

 

[JupMasterG]

if your looking for a remo head...

if you want a black one get the - Remo Ebony Black Ambassador

if your looking for a clear one get the - Remo Clear Weatherking

I use both remo heads and gbc heads.
remo heads are a bit thicker and sometimes harder to tune on certain dhols because you need much longer hooks to tighten them. GBC and other tilli sides like from India are a little thinner and to me sound better than remo heads because they can be tuned more easier and i think in general give better sound than remo heads.

 

[dholi_08]

Thanks for the reply Guys! Yeah cuz i could tune a dhol DECENTLY, but i've seen the professionals do it, like my Tabla teacher tuned my tabla with the vajaa and he sort of taught us of how to look for the pitch that matches with the vajaa. It's hard but you need a really good ear.

And uhmm.. my bad the clear Remo is better than the smooth white, and your dhol should sound better with a remo head.

 

[brar69]

sup buddy, personally i got my dhol when i was in grade 3 and back then those dhols were straight gund. but one thing i found that the base(body) of my dhol was much better then people that i knew had which they bought over here.

if i were you i would try re soaking the dugga side and if dont already have em get Kundeh once you soak it put it back on re tie it up and get someone to tune it for you the kundeh and ropes like proper or get the guy at the shop to do it.

but if your planning on getting a whole new dhol you can get some pretty nice dhols these days over here which have like mic outputs and whatnot and if you really want it nice u can get the ones with the lights inside but that will cost u much more.

Personally i would just fix up the one u got and if u really want it better change both the side and depending on the kundeh if u got em maybe change them 2 it wont cost too much shouldnt be i got mine after they werent 2 pricey.. and while everything already off just give it a nice new stain of ur choice w.e colour.

hope that helps give me a shout if you need help

 

[Hardeep]

Brar! Your a genius, thanks mate. IK really appreciate your answer, thankss a lot. Yeah, i got everything off my dhol, jus got the barrel now, and im tryin 2 sand it down.

But it takes SO LONG? Is there a better way to sand it down, i dont wana buy any extra equipment. All i have is some COARSE Sanding paper :S

 

[brar69]

Brar! Your a genius, thanks mate. IK really appreciate your answer, thankss a lot. Yeah, i got everything off my dhol, jus got the barrel now, and im tryin 2 sand it down.

But it takes SO LONG? Is there a better way to sand it down, i dont wana buy any extra equipment. All i have is some COARSE Sanding paper :S

ye np bro