It strikes me as I read this forum and things like the Pearl Drummer's Forum that it is essentially impossible to talk about drum tuning on the internet. We inevitably end up using terms like loose, tight, medium, etc which mean absolutely nothing.

Case in point: last evening a rather dodgy metal act opened (great guys, great at what they do, just not appealing to me). I was impressed by the drummer's snare sound and I asked him how he had the batter tuned - "medium" was the response. While I was setting up my gear I picked up his snare and the batter was tuned tighter than anything short of a parade drum. There was no give whatsoever. The batter head was essentially like a granite countertop. But to him, I suppose that's medium tension.

That's why so many of us A) can't tune or B) chase different drum sounds without achieving them. We read something on the internet or get advice from other drummers like "Drum X sounds great with high tension" which, of course, is far too subjective to mean anything.

I have always wondered if those drum tuners actually work. Anyone use?

I really think tuning a drum is relative to what you want the sound to be, having the right heads for the sound you want, and tuning it in the correct "x" pattern. Tunning drums are a bitch, but there is really no "actual" tunning for drums....not like a stringed instrument.

The "tension dial" tools could be useful here, but the values they return depend a lot on where you place them on the head. So there would still be some gray area involved, I believe.

heeeeeeeeeey, ringo!

You guys are going to think I am a lunatic for saying this, but I actually start at the piano if I am in the studio- I tune the top and bottom head of the rack tom to the F above middle C if it's a dark sounding drum, of the F below middle C if it's a really bright sounding drum. I leave the bottom head that pitch and adjust the top head up or down, depending on feel and tone.

Then I just go down the drums in thirds, bottom head first, then top head, then adjust. So, they'd go:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: C
16" floor/18" floor: G
18" floor: D

You get the head on and get it pretty close by feel, then place your finger lightly in the center of the drum (don't press) to get the harmonic tone and tap the head right in front of the tension rod. Match the pitch at each of the tension rods to the pitch of the key on the piano.

I like to keep toms in thirds, but you can do fourths or fifths if you'd like. Just make sure that when you hit them that they have a correct interval and make a little two note chord. That way when you play "Nub" is sounds like Mac's drums.

I like to start the snare drum about half way to "I can't turn this lug any more" and then tighten it up evenly until it sounds right. Unfortunately, this is something i haven't pitched on the piano, so I'll either have to show it to you in the video or you can work it out on your own.

dontfeartheringo wrote:Then I just go down the drums in thirds, bottom head first, then top head, then adjust. So, they'd go:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: C
16" floor/18" floor: G
18" floor: D

Not to pick nits, but those are fifths.

endofanera wrote:

dontfeartheringo wrote:Then I just go down the drums in thirds, bottom head first, then top head, then adjust. So, they'd go:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: C
16" floor/18" floor: G
18" floor: D

Not to pick nits, but those are fifths.

Actually as we are going down in pitch as the drums get bigger, them are 4ths.

down in pitch, and I meant to measure in thirds.

My mistake:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: D
16" floor/18" floor: B
18" floor: G

Clearly the work of a drummer....

dontfeartheringo wrote:You guys are going to think I am a lunatic for saying this, but I actually start at the piano if I am in the studio- I tune the top and bottom head of the rack tom to the F above middle C if it's a dark sounding drum, of the F below middle C if it's a really bright sounding drum. I leave the bottom head that pitch and adjust the top head up or down, depending on feel and tone.

Then I just go down the drums in thirds, bottom head first, then top head, then adjust. So, they'd go:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: C
16" floor/18" floor: G
18" floor: D

You get the head on and get it pretty close by feel, then place your finger lightly in the center of the drum (don't press) to get the harmonic tone and tap the head right in front of the tension rod. Match the pitch at each of the tension rods to the pitch of the key on the piano.

I like to keep toms in thirds, but you can do fourths or fifths if you'd like. Just make sure that when you hit them that they have a correct interval and make a little two note chord. That way when you play "Nub" is sounds like Mac's drums.

I like to start the snare drum about half way to "I can't turn this lug any more" and then tighten it up evenly until it sounds right. Unfortunately, this is something i haven't pitched on the piano, so I'll either have to show it to you in the video or you can work it out on your own.

Yeah I just tune by ear, x pattern that shit, nice heads, and away I am with drums always sounding good. That piano shit is crazy

TRIFECTA wrote:

dontfeartheringo wrote:You guys are going to think I am a lunatic for saying this, but I actually start at the piano if I am in the studio- I tune the top and bottom head of the rack tom to the F above middle C if it's a dark sounding drum, of the F below middle C if it's a really bright sounding drum. I leave the bottom head that pitch and adjust the top head up or down, depending on feel and tone.

Then I just go down the drums in thirds, bottom head first, then top head, then adjust. So, they'd go:

13" rack tom: F
14" rack or floor/16" floor: C
16" floor/18" floor: G
18" floor: D

You get the head on and get it pretty close by feel, then place your finger lightly in the center of the drum (don't press) to get the harmonic tone and tap the head right in front of the tension rod. Match the pitch at each of the tension rods to the pitch of the key on the piano.

I like to keep toms in thirds, but you can do fourths or fifths if you'd like. Just make sure that when you hit them that they have a correct interval and make a little two note chord. That way when you play "Nub" is sounds like Mac's drums.

I like to start the snare drum about half way to "I can't turn this lug any more" and then tighten it up evenly until it sounds right. Unfortunately, this is something i haven't pitched on the piano, so I'll either have to show it to you in the video or you can work it out on your own.

Yeah I just tune by ear, x pattern that shit, nice heads, and away I am with drums always sounding good. That piano shit is crazy

It's nuts and it's probably a little obsessive, but it works.

I don't do it all the time, but if people are looking for an ultimate objective starting point, there it is.

F.

Start at F.

Go from there.