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TO TUNE
DRUMS
Four Steps To A Better Sound
By Gene Okamoto
ALK TO TEN DIFFERENT DRUMMERS and youll get ten different ways to tune
drums. The reason is that theres actually no wrong or right way to tune a drum,
or right or wrong pitches to tune it to. So the best I can do is share the ways I tune
drums. As the former product manager at Pearl Drums, I would actually use two
methods: Method A is the quick one that I generally use at trade shows when I need to tune
a lot of drums, and I use Method B to tune my own drums. Sometimes I combine the two.
Both methods include four steps: (1) preparation, (2) seating the head, (3) getting the head
in tune with itself, and (4) fine-tuning. Steps 1, 2, and 4 are the same in both methods; only
step 3 is different.
Learning how to tune effectively takes practice, and I recommend practicing on drums
that are relatively easy to tune, such as 10 or 12 six-lug toms. The skills you master from
tuning these drums can be applied to all other drums.
FIG.
FIG.
FIG.
3
When the tension rods are finger tight,
switch to your drum key and continue tightening using the same crisscross pattern (FIG. 4).
You may hear cracking noises dont worry,
this is normal.
Periodically tap (FIG. 5) the head
at each tension rod to hear the
progress of your tuning. I like
to softly hit a rimshot with
my finger; however, many
drummers prefer to use a
stick or the end of a drum
key. Whichever method you
prefer, try to hit the head at the
same spot near each tension rod
for consistency.
Tighten the head until all the wrinkles disappear, then tighten it some more until the
pitch is a little higher than what you normally
tune to. Now youre ready to seat the head.
FIG.
velop a feel for how large or small your adjustments need to be. As you zero-in on the final
pitch, only tiny adjustments are required.
Tighten only the tension rods where the
pitches are low. Dont make any adjustments to the tension rods where the pitches
are high. I normally dont seat the head
when bringing the head up in pitch; however,
it doesnt hurt to do so. I always seat the head
when bringing the head down in pitch.
Tap the head again at each tension rod and
listen to the pitches to see if the head is in tune
with itself. Are the pitches the same? If yes, the
head is in tune with itself. If not, repeat the steps
until the pitch is the same all around the head.
NOTE: The pitch of the head will get higher
and higher as you repeat this process and
the final pitch may be higher than you want.
Well adjust this later.
Turn the drum over and tune the other
head to itself by following the steps previously described.
METHOD B Tuning In Opposites: I
learned this method from a drummer named
George Rutter and it works by lowering the
pitches that are high and raising the pitches
that are low until they meet in the middle at
a common pitch.
As in the example above, tap the head
at each rod and listen to the pitch. Some are
likely to be high and others will be low.
Then loosen the tension rods by about an
eighth of a turn where the pitches are high
and tighten the tension rods by about an
eighth of a turn where the pitches are low.
FINE-TUNING TOMS. Now you have the necessary elements to tune all the toms in your
kit. You can tune the smallest one first and
progress to the largest, or tune the largest
drum first and progress to the smallest, or
start in the middle and work your way outward
it doesnt matter. Just remember that each
drum has a range of pitches where it sounds
best, and if you try to force a drum to tune
higher or lower than its range, its sound will
be less than optimal. For example, if you start
with your smallest tom and tune it too low, by
the time you get to your largest tom, the pitch
may be too low for that size. You may need to
get a larger tom or tune all your toms higher.
Take a tom whose heads are seated and
in tune with themselves. Tune the top head
close to the final pitch you desire by raising
or lowering the tension rods as equally as
possible. Tune the bottom head using one of
the three top/bottom head relationships described earlier. Seat either head if necessary.
The most difficult of the three top/bottom
head relationships is tuning both heads to
the same pitch. Tuning in opposites is helpful in this situation. If the top head is higher,
loosen it and tighten the bottom head. If the
top head is lower, tighten it and loosen the
bottom head. Seat the heads and get them in
tune with themselves as necessary. Repeat
this process until the top and bottom heads
are the same pitch.
MOUNT THE TOM TO YOUR KIT. The weight
of the drum on the tom mount may change
the tuning slightly, so compensate according-
FIG.
7
FINE-TUNING BASS DRUMS
The bass drum can be tuned the same way
as toms with the same top/bottom tuning
relationships: both heads tuned the same, the
back head tuned tighter than the front, or the
back head tuned lower than the front.
I personally tune the resonator head (front
head) lower than the batter (back head) to get
depth while maintaining good rebound from
the tighter batter head.
Bass drums usually require some sort of
muffling to control sustain, and the simplest
mufflers are pillows or blankets. However, if
you want a cleaner look, visit your favorite
drum store to see and test the wide variety of
self-muffled drumheads and other types of
mufflers that are available.
Its also popular to put a hole (FIG. 7) in the
front head to reduce the amount of boom
and/or to allow a microphone to be put into
the bass drum. As a general rule: the smaller
the hole, the fatter the sound; the bigger the
hole, the flatter the sound.
FIG.
8
however I prefer the second method in order
to take the wrinkles out. Try both options and
see which one works best for you.
I always tune my snare drum to the same
pitches: I tune the snare head to the G
above middle C and the batter head to
the E or F below the G depending
on my mood. I got these pitches from Paul
Yonemura, a good friend and a great drummer who has perfect pitch. While listening to
Ed Shaughnessy and Joe Morello tune their
snare drums, he discovered that both tuned
their snare heads to G and that Morello
tuned his batter head to E and Shaughnessy tuned his batter head to F.
Just for fun, try giving these pitches a try. If they
work, great! If they dont, at least youll have a
starting point to find pitches that you like better.
With careful tuning you should be able to
play your snare drum wide-open. However,
if you need muffling, you can use one of the
ring mufflers mentioned earlier to eliminate
unwanted overtones.
FINAL WORDS. Practice tuning to get proficient and fast, and experiment with different
heads, muffling, and pitch relationships to build a mental encyclopedia of sounds. There
will come a day when a musical director, bandmate, or producer asks you to get a particular sound when he or she does, youll be ready.