Drums generally aren’t tuned to specific pitches, but instead to produce clear, full tones.
Drum tuning is an often overlooked aspect of drumming. It is important to learn how to tune your drum set, as it not only makes you sound better but leads to a more satisfying drumming experience that will make you want to return to your drums again and again.
You only need two basic items to tune your drum: a drum key and drum sticks. You’ll need your drumsticks to tap on the heads when you’re tuning them.
A drum key is a small tool used to loosen or tighten the tension rods that control the pitch of the drum. When you tighten the tension rods, the pitch of the drum will go up. Meanwhile, loosening the tension rods will lower the pitch. You can also use drum keys to adjust hardware such as hi-hat stands and kick drum pedals.
Some drummers even use two drum keys when tuning drum heads so they can tune opposing sides of the head at the same time. This gives them equal tension. Professional drum techs sometimes use a turntable. This allows them to rotate the drums easily as they adjust the drum’s tuning.
However, different styles of music call for different tuning.
When tuning for rock music, for example, drummers will tend to go for larger drums. These drums have a relatively low tuning that limits the resonance of the toms. There’s more of an emphasis on the ‘crack’ of the snare.
Meanwhile, heavy metal drumming requires focused and tight sounds. These drums are large and tuned low, with the snare tuned higher to create more volume and cut through the mix.
Pop music requires a more balanced sound that’s open and has more resonance than a larger rock sound. Pop drummers achieve this even sound with medium-sized drums.
Meanwhile, jazz drummers want to achieve as much resonance as possible, and typically tune their drums higher.
Should the kick drum be in key?
The kick drum (or bass drum) is at the bottom end of your kit and produces a deep sound. Kick drums usually measure 22 inches in diameter, with smaller drums often used in quieter gigs or jazz gigs.
Kick drums are usually tuned lower than the low E on bass guitar. When turning your kick drum, wait until the wrinkles disappear in the head, and then experiment with the pitch until you find a tone you like.
But while the sound is important, feel is also vital in a kick drum. Pay attention to the bounce and feel of the drum when deciding how to tune it.
If your kick drum doesn’t sound so defined, pitch the resonant kick drum head slightly higher than the batter head. This should refine the tone. Also, if you move your drum set around a lot make sure to check the tuning. It’s easy to accidentally adjust the tuning when moving drums.
What key is a bass drum?
When tuning a bass drum you should tune the batter head first, with the resonant head off the drum. Start finger tight and turn all the rods individually until you remove all the wrinkles. As bass drums are quite large, you may need to press the center with the palm of your hand.
Don’t try to crank each rod. Rather, add a little tension at a time on each trip around the drum. You can achieve this by half-turning the key at a time.
This should help you achieve an adequate level of tension, but if you want a bouncier feel, take the head up half a turn up on each rod. Tap gently around the head (about 2-3 inches in from the edge), to check for an even pitch all the way around.
This doesn’t have to be exactly perfect, but just make sure there aren’t any glaring differences and adjust where necessary.
Now you can dampen the bass drum if you wish. A small, rolled-up towel placed towards the resonant head should do. Sometimes it can be useful to dampen both heads, especially for close miking.
Depending on the heads you’ve chosen, it may be useful to add a similar-sized towel to the batter head. Do not attach the towel to the head itself, but rather to the inside of the drum. This is so the towel will rest against the front head once you’ve put it on.
Now you can tweak some more. If you can, repeat the seating procedure used on the batter head and return to finger tight. Press in the center to remove wrinkles, and then turn your bass drum over into the playing position. Engage the spurs and attach your favorite bass drum pedal.
Tuning a bass drum so it sounds like how you would want the crowd to hear it can be pretty difficult, especially if you’re tuning alone. But there is a way to achieve this. Lie down on the floor with one foot on the bass pedal facing the front skin.
Then, play a slow and steady pulse with your foot and start working on the front head to dial in the sound you want. Doing this will mean the bass drum will be struck differently when you’re playing, but it gives you a chance to hear the pitch, tone, and resonance of the drum for yourself.
You’ll probably notice two things when tuning the front head. Firstly - and probably not to your surprise - the pitch will start to go up. But more importantly, the clarity and focus of the sound will improve.
Before tuning, you’ll most likely get a lot of low-end rumbles but not so much definition. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and some players like it, but if you want to achieve a focused or punchier sound then keep tuning and gently increase the tension of the front head.
This could be a great base to experiment with different tunings and different heads until you find the sound you want.