Drums with Wings? Tonewings Full Kit Test & Review!

Tonewings were kind enough to send in some of their cool internal resonators for me to test out. I hope you enjoy the video, please let me know in the comments what you thought! I'm so curious to know what you guys think!

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Drums used:
12x8, 14x14, 16x16 C&C Gladstone Custom
22" Dream Energy Crash Ride
18 & 20" Dream Energy Crashes
14" Dream Contact over Energy Hats
20" Dream Lion China
8" Dream Bliss Splash
10" Dream Libor Hadrava Stack

Mics:Kick: Behringer BA19A, Shure Beta 52a, Warm 47JR
Snare: Beyer Dynamic m201 / SM57
Toms: CAD M179
Overheads: Rode NT5
Mono Room: Carillon Axis 88
Knee Mic: SM7B
Close Rooms: MXL V76G
Mono Room: Carillon Axis 8

[thepluggy]

A suggestion Eli, maybe you could look at putting in "drums" at the end of you name, the youtube algorithm might put it out to more drummers in the suggestions section, you definitely deserve more subs dude.

[antonk]

I'm not at the studio rn but it's clear that the biggest difference was between no wings and 1 wing per shell. And that was a difference I certainly liked, esp on the snare drum, giving it a very nice attack characteristics and clearing up some messy resonances in the low freq, making them fade sooner, thus paving the way to bring out a nice sound of the body with compression down the line

[mxmup]

This is fascinating.
I somehow got the blind test right, but only on the raw/unmixed examples (?)
Probably only because I kinda knew what I was listening for:
If you've ever had any experience with the Steinway bell on their grand pianos - these seem to do a similar thing to the tone, but much more subtle.
It's easy to get lost throwing around nebulous adjectives, but there's something in the upper midrange; a sort of added detail that might not even be present in the drum to begin with.
Thanks for the video!

[caleb_stephen]

The thing that made me guess A was the tone wings was the hit on the 16 in the mixed audio of B. There was something in the overtones that didn’t feel as focused as A did.

[slayabouts]

I think it would have helped to do an A/B comparison of each individual shell in addition to the whole kit. I’m sure that would have added even more time to produce what I’m assuming was already a lengthy recording process for this video though haha

I did hear a very mild difference though. On first listening I kind of preferred B, but I tried cutting back and forth between the two processed sounds and A does sound a little more polished for a mix. I think it’d be interesting to hear the two in the context of a full mix with guitars and bass. I wonder if maybe your kit just didn’t need them as much and they’d make a bigger difference on a lesser kit that needs more treatment. Either way, they seem like a final 5% kind of thing for studio recording more than something your average drummer should consider spending money on. It’d be like buying an expensive boutique pedal maker’s take on a tubescreamer when the original is likely good enough

[ctrodrums]

B is with Tonewings, it clean up and focuses the tone. By the way, you should review a P77 test part 2, by just removing countinously portions of the internal ring! Let's say 1/8, 2/8, 3/8 of the ring....up to no internal ring.

[jameslightbody]

It is very subtle but I can hear that as more wings were added, the more the drums sounded choked - or as some might put it - focused. I guessed A was the wings. Great video, keep it up man!

[BMdrumz]

great video! awesome kit! These are super interesting. judging on the recording it seems like one wing. does enough and the more you put in it seems like the drum just suffers from diminishing returns. 2 or 3 doesn't really seem to do anything and then 4 just seems to choke the drum.

[steffenthurian]

First of all, i don't know why you don't have more subscribers. I really like that drum nerdy stuff ;) My guess is that A is with the tonewings installed and B without. I hear more sustain on that last floortom hit on B. But yeah, pretty subtle - putting a different amount of cotton balls in there would probably have the same effect and being cheaper

[tybreedlove]

I hear a lower fundamental with the tone wings and less sustain. I use them on my thick cast snares and they do exactly what i want them to do which is a Lower and focused tone and control sustain. However i have found that they do not work on every drum. Some drums sound better without them. Ive never tried them on kits, but am interested in putting 2 in my floor toms now. Thanks for the video!

[adamalexanderray]

Well done for having the patience and courage to spend a whole day to make this video.

It must have been incredibly tedious.

Thanks for doing it so we don’t have to.

As for the the product itself, if I had a drum so “problematic” that I couldn’t resolve it with standard tuning and muffling techniques, and I have to spend money to make it sound how I like on a product like this, then it’s throwing good money at a bad thing. I’d rather just get a different drum altogether if the normal approach still can’t get me a decent sound.

The only real obvious difference was on that piccolo snare, but I’m sure traditional dampening techniques would have got you equally varied sounds and they could be installed and removed very quickly.

[alexisondrums_]

Tonewings or no, these are some pretty massive sounding fucking drums.

[vladgutsman]

Thank you Eli and everyone who comes on the video, very well done and thorough! It is however very difficult to present the feel of the drum and what Tonewings brings in the sense of presence and ambiance 🤘🤘😎🎶🥁 another suggestion, please try Studio HD tonewings in a metal drum (any metal shell)
We had also developed a Max Control HDC tonewings (different metal composition)
Will keep you posted on when they come available!!
Thank you

[bengreen]

I picked A. Love the analysis cousin! Very scientific approach. I also appreciate the reference to the psychological component of confirmation bias and placebo effect. These tone wings are interesting, it seems different drums sounded best with a different number of wings in! Overall I seemed to prefer 0 wings though, more clarity and natural resonance. Is a tone wing inside the drum much different from attaching hardware outside?

[andreasbreitwieser]

I liked definitely B better than A, means that the natural sound of your drum kit sounds amazing and does not need any gimmick to change the sound.

[dudecrush]

I don't know if "adding mass" is exactly the right term for what is happening, I think because brass is a denser and more resonant material, it activates with the shell and then draws out that sustain. Adding mass is part of it for sure, but like...it's essentially bleeding more out of the shell by acting as a hybrid shell material. I do notice that the drums start to sound bogged down when there are too many wings. I dunno, these are pretty weird. I kinda wanna try now.

[mahsegmah]

Could the purpose of the tonewings is to give the drum a wider range. Like make the drum sound better in a lower tuning? You tuned the drums identically so I think no matter what it’s gonna sound similar but maybe the extra weight would give the drum more control at lower or higher tunes where without it it’ll be out of control

[cmartel]

Don’t know if it’s the tone wings but the raw B is much dryer. Raw A is much so good.

[index]

Slingerland did this to their snare drums years ago...

[camerondean]

I can't tell enough difference to purchase them.