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Thread: Tuning drums

  1. #1

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    Default Tuning drums

    How exacly do I tune drums.. I cant seem to find how to tune them. I know your supposed to find the sound that 'you' want, well what am i supposed to do? sit there for days turning each lug a little bit until i find a sound? Iv been told my drumbum, to turn the lugs until the wrickles are almost all out and then turn the lugs 1/4.. but its not really working. so can someone tell me very simply.. how to tune my drums? I don't really have a specsific genre i drum to. but i dont drum to funk, rap dont drum to much metal either, usually just rock and a bit of punk rock and a little country sometimes. I dont know if that will help you at all though.

  2. #2

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    Well man Im sorry your going to have to hear this because you have probably heard it before hahahaha there is no "right" way to tune your drums, you just have to kind of experiment until you find the sound you like. It is a pain in the butt trust me, it takes awhile but once you find the sound you like its not hard to tune to that sound again. Or you can buy something like the DrumDial which supposedly works magnificently:




    DDB swears by the evans torque key:



    Sometime this week im going to pick one up. Oh and yes wrinkles are not good in your heads, in my 13" mounted tom the only way i thought it sounds good was pretty loose so i left it to where there was just a little bit of wrinkles left, the head got destroyed, its completely dented all over the place and unusable untill i get a new head. So i myself agree with DDB no wrinkles haha. good luck
    Last edited by drummer; 02-16-2008 at 10:30 AM.

  3. #3

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    If it helps any, Lafirin, I read something about starting with your lowest tom (mine is 16X16) and tune that in relation to your base. Then work up through the toms, tuning in thirds (the first two notes in Here Comes the Bride). I did this with my new kit and then I got an awful snarey sound because the toms were tuned just right to cause snare vibration. I began tuning up and down on the 12" tom , because it was the worst offender. When I got it right, I began going through the rest of the toms and the bass to get the intervals right (thirds) between the drums and quite by accident I found a perfect pitch for the 10" tom - it just sounded so sweet, so I retuned everything in relation to the 10" and I found a sound that was perfect. I only get a slight snare vibration and I can live with it. When I strike the 10" and the 12" toms at the same time, the harmony in the drums is so cool, I just want to do it again and again! It was all a process, but it was worth it. Now I know exactly what I want to hear, and which drum to start with to get it. BTW, the sound was so good that I tuned the resonant heads the same as the batter heads to preserve the sound. I'm still working on the snare, but it's coming along.

    Don't get frustrated, just know that the sound you want is there, it just takes time to find it the first time.
    Quoting gonefishin: Just have some bacon with ya when you go pick her up..........youre an instant chick magnet.





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  4. #4

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    i tune my toms fairly low, about a turn past a wrinke, and the bottom heads tuned tighter about a third in pitch higher. it will give you a big wet resonant tone that might sound a like a little much from behind the kit but when cranked up in a loud situation it really brings out the sound.

  5. #5

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    Im not very good at tuning. I just tune evry lug half a turn at a time till they are really tight.

  6. #6

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  7. #7

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    Thanks. I´ll read it when i have time.

  8. #8

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    It's really a well of information. Talks not only about tuning but about how the size and depth of the drums effect sound, along with types of drum heads, and different woods.

  9. #9

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    its a long one thats for sure

  10. #10

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    A friend of mine said to tighten them up way tighter than there supposed to be. Then Let them sit near warmth over night and they should be about right, with a lil fine tuning but I tried and it worked great. I use Pinstripes though it probobly depends on the head. but I play rock punk hardcore and metal.

  11. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by PEACEdrummer
    A friend of mine said to tighten them up way tighter than there supposed to be. Then Let them sit near warmth over night and they should be about right.
    You'd want to be real careful doing that!! The wood would warp if left for too long, or if it was too warm.

    I think we're gonna need an exact temperature Peace.....
    I Shall Never be caught, you will never obtain my Weapons of Mass Percussion, MWA HA HA HA HA!!

  12. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by PEACEdrummer
    A friend of mine said to tighten them up way tighter than there supposed to be. Then Let them sit near warmth over night and they should be about right, with a lil fine tuning but I tried and it worked great. I use Pinstripes though it probobly depends on the head. but I play rock punk hardcore and metal.
    This doesn't really make any sense. I imagine the only benefit would be to stretch the head some. Just because you tighten a drum and let it stretch, doesn't mean it's tuned at all.

  13. #13

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    I can't stress enough how important it is to not forget about that resonant head on the bottom... "Finding that sound" is a lot more in depth than just tuning your top head and leaving it at that. Sure it can be a long process before you get it just right, but I found that after maybe an hour or two of concentrating closely on the sounds and feel of each drum after tuning the resonant head, the sound I was looking for came much clearer and easier to find.

    -32
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  14. #14

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    well said 32nd!

  15. #15

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    hmm

  16. #16

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    Well timed "hmm" there jamiejp! Welcome to the DrumChat!
    Quoting gonefishin: Just have some bacon with ya when you go pick her up..........youre an instant chick magnet.





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  17. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by jamiejp View Post
    hmm
    it is true though

  18. #18

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    My approach to tuning is to keep the resonant heads tune as tight as possible and to play around with the batter head till it sound all right.

  19. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by vinnysimmo View Post
    My approach to tuning is to keep the resonant heads tune as tight as possible and to play around with the batter head till it sound all right.
    tight as possible, as in as tight as the screws go? or tight as possible before the drum is "choked"? you deffinately dont want to go too tight.

  20. #20

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    Well i use common sense. I wont break anything.

  21. #21

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    well, ya never know with some people these days

  22. #22

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    Quote Originally Posted by vinnysimmo View Post
    Well i use common sense. I wont break anything.
    as vinny looks over to see his drum shell collapsing

  23. #23

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    HAHA! That'd be a laff!

  24. #24
    drums-rock Guest

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    i dont really mind the way my drums are tuned ... well sometimes

  25. #25

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    Thumbs up Re: Tuning drums

    Hola Como estas' All Artistic Artist Drummers **
    As The Art of Tuning DRUMS , for every Artistic Artist as we All Know
    is so Very Different ,..As their is So very many Factors to this Art form within A ANCIENT ART FORM it-self,THe different kinds of Wood ,the sizes of the drums,the Heads that each Drummer ARTIST use's,the cymbals,the sticks .
    brushes mallets, even the hands,Fingers, & where your performing ,per-say
    The ARTIST is a very /Busy Working Artist Drummer & I know this For A FACT because of My own Experience ,THAt the Size of Each Room ,Or Studio,
    Night Club, A classy Place or just (BARS) Hiltons all casinos.,Large Concert
    Venues ,as their is As Many different size ROOMS as their is DRUMMERS * so
    the acoustics of each ROOM is Very different ,then Your own STUDIO ,Your
    Room where ever you Perform Out Door Concerts all this is Very important,& also THe Style
    of Music that the Drummer ARTIST Performs ,all contribute to each Creative
    Unique Stylist ARTISTIC ARTIST DRUMMER ....Unique way The ARTIST DRUMMER TuNES his TRAPS,CANS,SKINS,KIT,(TAMBORES) What the Actual Sounds ,the Action,the Feel the sweet smoothness of the over all projection
    of the Brightness ,Shine of The Whole Set which is Tuned too each Drum
    as a combine Unit of Structure, Textured tones that all Blend with the WHOLE ensemble of the ARTIST SET up ,,I always Tune my TAMBORES
    as I tune every Drum from My Bass drum sound & ACTION,Then Every thing now must
    be As this works Very good for me As I perfer this tuning in conjunction with
    My Different Sizes of Each CymBals ,as I feel the Actual Acoustics (SOUNDS) of the Room ,size Whatever size room it is,also how I am set up out doors with My Group (BAND)) But I always STATE what ever THE creative Artistic Artist Drummer
    feels & wants is All great ,I just know that I have been doing this My whole Life & I gained alot of KnowLedge & Experience with Pure on the Road & Many MAny STUDIO
    GIGS as I am A WorKing ARTIST DRUMMER **as This works For Me,,,ITS ALL
    A great Journey within this ANCIENT SPiritual ANCIENT ART Form of DRUMMING & ALL DRUMS & PERCUSSION....GRACIAS**
    Last edited by STICKSWIZZARDDRAGON; 02-16-2008 at 04:13 AM.

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