What drummer doesn’t want more thump and low end added to his or her bass drum? I’ve never encountered anyone who would deny this bonus. The Kickport can give us just that. By now, most of us drummers have all seen the advertisements in Modern Drummer and Drum Magazine for the Kickport and been a little curious. Several months ago the curiosity broke me, and I ordered a few. Now it was time to see if this simple plastic cone-like accessory could live up to the hype.
The Kickport is basically a small plastic cone which fits in the port of your resonant head on your bass drum. It acts in the same manor as a speaker cabinet boosting the low frequencies, and focusing the air to add more thump. If you don’t have a port on your drumhead, a template is provided and the port can easily be cut with an x-acto knife. With the hole in place, simply slide the Kickport on and secure it in place with the rubber fittings. Only one thing left to do, give it a kick!
It’s recommended the Kickport be used with a non-muffled batter head. My first test was on a bass drum with a felt-muffled Aquarian Superkick II head. The Kickport did exactly what it claims; deeper tone and more thump. But for my own personal taste, it added a little too much muffling with the Superkick II head. My second trial was on a bass drum with a Remo Powerstroke III head (this is the one used in the video). BOOM! The Kickport delivered. I really liked the amount of dampening with this head, and was very impressed with the sound. It was crushing!
Better feel, more lows, and lots of punch. All drummers must try one. Come see me at Chesbro, pick up a Kickport, and experience the THUMP!