Cowbells

[vinnieL]

Hey guys just wanted to let you know the Pearl cowbells are very nice indeed. I picked one up and it's loud and sounds great! I have several JCR's and an LP ES3 and this bell in my opinion sounds better than the others. Give one a try see if they suit your taste.

[ChanChanChan]

I myself like the Meinl and have a few JCRs. They are very great and nicely made.

[caballoballo]

The sound of Cowbells depend on some aspects.

1- The type of music you play
2- The size of the band
2- The acoustic of the room, club,ect

Some will sound ok while playing along but in the midle of the band is another story.

I have try many ( Lps,Meinl, Jcrs,Pearls, Remo,ect )and got rid of many. Now I carry 2 jcrs which I selected over about 20 JCRS. One Mediun Low and a mediun high. I found those two to work better for me. The best thing to do is to take your beater to the store and try as many as you can to find the sound of your preference.

[vinnieL]

Caballoballo no dispute there my brother very sound advice and i did take my beater with me to the store . I have 4 JCR's and i find that while they are great in a band setting because they cut through, they all have a little too much overtone for me in the living room setting jamming with friends etc. I know they break in over time thats why i keep all my bells and don't get rid of them as i know they will all change some with time.

[caballoballo]

Hola Vinnie, yes, Jcrs tend to have or I better said they always have that overtone. The cure is to glue a piece of rubber in the mouth of the campana, try different locations until you find the spot that produce the sound of your preference. I found some square pieces of rubber in home depot with an adhesive side ready to go..

[vinnieL]

Thanks for the advice brother i will try that besides having several bells just makes for more variety in sound! with all my bells i think ive got pretty much most situations covered LOL ive got 3 JCR's 1 LP ES3 and the Pearl.

[Mr. Conga]

Indeed, J.C.R's have an overtone, but they are really nice sounding bells, try putting maskin tape around the mouth of the bell, right by the edge, outside the bell, it muffles the overtone a little bit if the maskin tape is plced right, same concept of holding the bell closer to the mouth, which produces less overtones.

[vinnieL]

Yeah i'll try that or electrical tape see which works better in any case i have a nice collection of bells with 3 JCR's a Pearl and an LP.

[Mike]

It´s funny, I even LOVE the lively overtones of my J.C.R. medium hand bell...!
The actual tone projection is what counts in live situations with other, louder instruments.

[yambu321]

MIKE,

I ALSO HAVE A MEDIUM PITCH, HAND HELD JCR COWBELL, I USE IT ALMOST EVERYDAY DURING PRACTICE, AND I LOVE IT. I'M SURE THAT, THERE ARE VARIATIONS FROM ONE BELL, TO ANOTHER. BUT, WITH MINE, IT TURNED OUT, RIGHT ON THE MONEY.

CHARLIE .

[Mike]

MIKE,

I ALSO HAVE A MEDIUM PITCH, HAND HELD JCR COWBELL, I USE IT ALMOST EVERYDAY DURING PRACTICE, AND I LOVE IT. I'M SURE THAT, THERE ARE VARIATIONS FROM ONE BELL, TO ANOTHER. BUT, WITH MINE, IT TURNED OUT, RIGHT ON THE MONEY.

CHARLIE .

Yes, Charlie, awesome bell, isn´t it?
Mine did not even need much breaking in, it sounded great right out of the box.
Cali the sorcerer knows his job
It´s the bell I use to "lead"/conduct my percussion band, and it ALWAYS cuts through...
Greetings
Mike

[caballoballo]

Yeah, sometimes you lucky sometimes you not. A friend who went to N.Y visited Cali and brought me a mediun low pitch with kind of a mellow tone which I really liked . After listening from a live gig recording it prove not cutting thru the music . In other ocasion with other Jcrs they sound Ok on the stage but the sound just does not project from that point. It is a trial and error situation until you get the correct one. It is also a matter of taste from the player. One very important part is the beater and your technic playing the bell. If you have a video of Roberto Roena, take a closer look and hear the way he plays, it is not the classical rhytm. I wish I could find a way to post some notation with his pattern.

[Raymond]

JCR bells are the ones prefer because of the variety of sounds, no two bells sound a like, even if the intention of Cali is to have the same sound, and their overtones....The overtones cut through anything...However, my experience is that the original overtone will eventually change once the bell breaks in. (Break in is the "peak sound" after several playings).

I agree with Caballoballo that sometimes you will get a sound at the store, where I play the hell out of it to make sure I get the sound I want or looking for, and then when you go somewhere else to play it, the sound is different....Sometimes is the accoustics of the place and sometimes is the "break in" factor I mentioned....

I have close to 20 bongo hand hels from JCR..Yep! Not enough gigging for that but I am a collector of the sounds and tones...and I like the variety. Bought them here in Puerto Rico or at Cali's place in the Bronx...Love to go there everytime I go to New York....

What bell to use in my case, is my feel with the song, ie., some songs require are higher pitch, some are more tipico with lower, drier sound, etc, etc...Also, if I am playing covers I tend to try to go with the original recorded tone of the bell in the song.

I've been brining 3 bells to my gigs ranging the three more common tones...(Of course, sometimes I varied the three ranges).

Pearls??? Well..I endorse them but right now they only have one good handheld bell which is the original sound that sounds like a Sergio bell from LP...Their jam blocks are much better and their new beater is as good as JCR.

My two cents here....

Saludos!

[Whopbamboom]

I'd like to add a couple more points to the discussion, even though some of this is common sense for some.

First off, you can have a great difference in sound between two supposedly "identical" bells. This can not only make it difficult to discuss with direct comparisons over the internet (not being able to hear in person), but can also mean that you'd have to try several bells of each type to really know that you've "tried them all".

Second, the sound varies greatly depending on what the striking tool is... cowbell beater, drumstick (nylon tip, wood tip, shank, etc.), hammer handle, yarn mallet, etc.

Third, the sound varies greatly depending on where on the bell you strike it (side, top, edge of mouth opening, etc.)

Fourth, the sound can change with use over time.

Lastly, you can dampen with a wrap of duct tape, or foam rubber inside, or you can also leave naked, etc. etc. etc.


So.... there are LOTS of possibilities out there when selecting cowbells. Many variables can be involved.

Bottom line... you might luck out and find the perfect bell the first time, or you may have to go through a lot of experiementation. But when you find the winning combo for what you are looking for, hang on to it. You don't want to have to repeat the process all over again, especially when "identical" bells may not even produce the exact same sound again.

My 2 cents as a percussionist...

[thomas newton]

I'd be really interested to see better material on youtube for cowbell.

There's one that's meant to be funny - you be the judge...http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=UT4cGVNuSnA

A tiny bit here that is desperately out of synch....http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=zfMTFUdgL_4

This strange series...http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ_Knw5latM

If you have any other links, stuff you could post, things you would be willing to show, etc. that would be great.

tn