How do I tune an 18" floor tom?

[Redeye]

I have just added an 18" floor tom to my Crush Acrylic kit and am having trouble getting it to sound good. I just assumed it would be like a 16, but bigger. The dealer threw in a pinstripe for free, which I also thought would be a good choice. If I tune it down low like I usually do with my 16, it sounds really thin and papery, like there is no bottom head on the drum. When I bring it up a little, it gets boingy (sorry, I can't think of a better word), like a basketball bouncing in an empty gym.

This is my first 18" drum. If anyone has any experience getting one to sound good, please speak up. I'm a Remo user and need to stick with clear heads, but will use any weight that will work. I don't think my problems are caused by the shell material, because all the other drums sound great. I have a DrumDial, so if anyone wants to get into numbers, that's fine.

Since no good thread can be without pictures...

[Northern Redneck]

how are you tuning your reso?

[rickthedrummer]

I tune mine the same way I tune my 16", just a little deeper.

[MartyM]

Have you tried to tune the reso tight and then your batter just over wrinkles? 18" are gonna give you a deep sound..I like using a mallet stick on my 16"s sometimes. However I am not too familiar with clear heads..always used coated.

[atomcorr2]

theres not much that anyone can tell ya . youll just have to mess with both heads until you come up with something that you like , then when you get it sounding good , tune the rest of your drums to it ...

[slinky]

that is a sweet picture! your beater selection is interesting. do you get much punch out of the kick with the main pedal?

[Shawn76]

From my experience,I tried a different combination of heads and I found that a thicker head on the 18" made it easy to tune and get the boom you are seeking.
Look at it as a bass drum and how thick the heads are,in fact,some people do use an 18" bass drum.
The combo I found and liked was a Hydraulic on top and EC2 on bottom. It seemed to give me the sound I was looking for but not everyone is looking for the same sound. Try a coated head.I have seen that used on kits a lot.Clear heads on the entire kit except for the 18" floor tom.

[Bish]

I have an 18" Pulse floor tom and 22" bass drum that I bought as an add-on.

The best results I had were to bring the reso up to a pitch higher than you'd expect. (You should be able to compare with the 16" reso to ensure the 18 is a little deeper.) On the top, be ready.....I used a clear black dot. That gave me a thwap like you've never heard. After that I tried a clear pin and that head is still on there. Same deep thwap but with no overtones.

[isaacvining]

On mine I have both of the heads SUPER loose. Sounds so-so behind the kit, but sounds HUGE under a mic.

[N2Bluz]

I would agree that the bottom reso should be fairly tight. Heck, maybe you can cut a port in the bottom head, just like you would an 18" bass drum. That will keep the resonance inside between the heads to a minimum and cut down on the "boinggggg". Put the Pinstripe on the batter head, tighten it for the stick action you want and see how it sounds.

[Kazaamski]

Ahh, the mythical 18" floor tom aka a fine looking coffee table. I never could get a very good sound out of my 18". I read about a guy using cotton balls inside the drum to help muffle. The cotton balls would help control the boing, but weren't as deadening as say s piece of moongel. I believe it was the Shannon Larkin interview from like 8 years ago. Anywhoo, good luck with your new coffee table/ I mean floor tom. Sweet looking kit BTW

[slinky]

i love my 18 almost more than my 16. Someone mentioned clears all around and coated on the 18. I've always seen that the other way around but maybe it works good that way. Don't know much about acrylic shells but with my wood shell if I put my ear close to the head then start tuning it, it sounds bad ***. They are singing more than you think.

[itchie]

had a issue with my 18" acrylic too pinstripe as well

ended up putting a clear power stroke 4 on...helped control it a bit

[Ricardo]

I've played an 18 for decades.
I use a clear Emp on batter and a clear Ambo on reso.
Sometimes with a "zero-ring".
The batter is tuned a turn or two on each lug over wrinkles.
The reso slightly tighter.
Sounds awesome.

[kay-gee]

I've found 18 floors to sound rather thin. There is a reason why larger diameter drums such as tymps and basses are played with mallets and beaters. I don't think a wooden drum stick can pull enough sound from the drum. Of course this is only opinion. I have no scientific evidence to back my claim. My set of USA came with a 18" floor and I soon discovered I didn't like it, so it became a bass drum and now I love it.

all the best...

[longgun]

Shane, I've never owned one...................played one on a friends kit.......................he had an Evans Hydraulic on the top and bottom......................sounded great IMO and I'm not a big hydraulic/pinstripe fan normally

[marko138]

I had the same tuning problem with my 16x13 tom. Really couldn't get a solid sound from it like I could my 14x11. Either too thin or boingy. So I just don't use it.

[Redeye]

Wow - thanks for all the great advice everyone.

Typically I tune the reso heads on my 10 and 12 tighter than the batter heads and on the 14 and 16 I usually match them.

Here's my plan based on what I already was considering and what you all suggested. I'll try them all and see what works best.

• Crank up the reso head, drop the batter
• Mic the drum and see if it sounds good out front (I don't always close mic my toms live, so this is situational)
• Try a small port hole in the reso head
• Get some clear black dots (Control Sound - I've been thinking about trying these anyway)
• Try the Powerstroke
• Leave it at home

I'll report back when I have a working solution. Thanks to all for the help!

[Redeye]

that is a sweet picture! your beater selection is interesting. do you get much punch out of the kick with the main pedal?

That's the Vater Vintage Bomber that I have been using for a couple of years now. I get none of the "click" sound on attack, but still plenty of punch. It's more boomy and less focused than a hard beater. It also super light. I tried to use 2 for the double, but they are so big they hit each other.