How to Tune a Drumset

Step 2 The General Steps for Drum Tuning

The following steps are designed to give you an overall view of how a drum should be tuned. The next few pages go over steps and tips for specific kinds of drums in your kit. Drum heads vary in size, thickness, reinforcement, amount of oil, coating, and just about any other variable you can think of, but the tuning method is always rooted in the same basic technique.

With the fresh drum heads in hand, grab the corresponding drum and gather the separate pieces. You will want to have the metal hoop and tension rods off of the drum before you start. In order to save yourself a few curses and fist shakes at the sky, start with the bottom (resonant) head first. This will allow you to first set the proper tone of the drum, and you can adjust the sustain and attack of the drum with the top (batter) head.

Find the bottom side of the drum (if you cant figure it out just look for the badge and then turn it upside down). Lay the resonant head onto the shell, and then place the metal hoop on top of that. Insert all of the tension rods into the holes of the hoop, and make sure they are in line with the lugs on the drum shell. The best way to start is to finger tighten the tension rods into the lugs, one at a time, going around the drum. Don't over-tighten here, just make sure the rods are snug and that you cant move the hoop back and forth across the head.

Ok, now grab the only tool you will ever need (as a drummer), the drum key. There are several style and function options when it comes to buying a drum key, but the basic drum key always suits us just fine. For info on other keys you can find, jump over to the last page. Now, follow the pattern on the numbered picture below, and starting with number 1, tighten the tension rod only a quarter of a turn. Follow along the numbered pattern from 1 through 8, always tightening the rod furthest across the drum from the one you just tightened.

(FYI, if you are tuning a 6 lug drum rather than an 8 lug drum as shown in the diagram, just make sure you are always tightening across the head of the drum.)

Depending on a whole host of factors, you may have to tighten each rod only a couple of quarter turns, or it may take you five or six. Once you have done a few quarter turns, try tapping your finger or the drum key on the drum head right next to each tension rod. If you cant get a distinct tone from this, go another round of quarter turns and try again. The goal here is to get the pitch of these taps consistent across the head (i.e. make slight adjustments by turning the rod so that you can get the same pitch every time you tap next to a rod). This step can take some time, and if you get frustrated and cant find the magic tension for each rod, just loosen them all and start again. Its worth getting some practice in anyway. The results will reimburse you for the work in the end.

Once you have achieved a conformed pitch, its time to flip over and move to the batter head. The tuning of this head determines the timbre (sound quality) of the drum while the tuning of the resonant head determines the tone. Follow the same steps to get the head and rods in place, and continue with the numbered pattern of the diagram below.

Keep tightening the batter head until you have a sound that you like. Everyone over-tightens the heads on the first few attempts at tuning their kit, but in time you will discover that only a few turns of the key are necessary. The sound that you want to achieve here is a thumpy, pow sound rather than a short boom. I know its abstract but you will see what I mean.

These are the basic steps needed to tune any drum. Its not that hard and with a little practice you will develop your own technique. Now, for tips on tuning specific drums, lets continue.