How To Tune Your Toms Like a Pro | Easy Drum Tuning Part 2 of 3

This episode is part 2 of 3 called How To Tune your Toms Like A Pro. This is a way to get a great all around tom sound in a few minutes after changing heads. There are many different types of toms and one set of toms can't do every sound. That’s whet that make them out of different woods, with different rims and different heads. One tom CAN’T get every sound. If a pro drummer or producer wants a different sound, they use a different kit. Don’t believe videos that tell you that you can get very sound out of one drum just by tuning it. The 13” tom I tuned the top head (Batter) to a E and the bottom head (Resonant) to a G for a minor 3rd relationship. The pitch of the batter head will not be as clear because it’s a 2 ply Remo Coated Emperor. If I used a single ply clear or coated on the batter head I would tune the to the same pitch which would depend on the key of the song and the drum. The 16” Floor tom had the resonant (bottom) heard (Remo Clear Ambassador) tuned to D and the top head (Remo Coated Emperor) and the top (batter) head tuned to a D above for another minor 3rd relationship. Remember the pitch will not be as clear because a 2 play head is not quite as accurate as a 1 ply. The 2 ply is much more durable and will last longer on a session especially with a rock drummer. If I’m using Remo Ambassador’s on both the top and bottom head, the will usually last for 3 songs in the studio and need to be changed. If the drummer is using stocks that have a ball instead of tapered tip they will dent the heads fairly quickly. Once a head is dented (pitted) they can’t be tuned properly and need to be changed out. Also, nylon tip sticks will quickly destroy a clear, single ply clear batter head so I usually don’t let drummer use them.

13” Batter (2 Ply) Head tuned to E
13” Resonant (1ply) Head tuned a minor 3rd above to G

16” Batter (2 Ply) Head tuned to B
16” Resonant (1ply) Head tuned a minor 3rd above to D

The Bottom Heads usually sound great when they are a Perfect 4th apart.

If the drums can’t be tuned to an accurate pitch of there’s a loose lug, either the rim is bent or the bearing edge is not even. You can check this by putting the bearing edge in a flat surface and bring to slide a piece or paper under it.

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[sideoutside]

Tuning drums is also called, "It's now time to hate life.."

[drslothlehoff]

Rim job. Good head. 13 inch. Clear batter. So tight. Can't beat it.Thanks Rick!

[CynHicks]

I remember as a young guitarist watching my then drummer tune his drums after getting all new skins. I never complained to him about my Floyd Rose again. Lol.

[utubehound]

I don't get the whiners down below….it took me years or trial & error as well as buying many books & mags on recording too learn what you are teaching for free. I still learned a lot from this series as with all your teaching. Thx Rick!!!

[IFightGod]

except the labels didn't line up - so it's all off

[freecitizen]

More tips: use two drum keys, directly opposite each other, for the star pattern so that you’re not pulling it to one side and then the other.
And just do a bit a time as opposed to several turns at a time.
Get a DrumDial, check as you go, write down tension settings that you like and you will then be able to exactly recreate what worked for you every single time.

[christarwitch]

A "mil" (as in mil thickness of the drum head ply) is 1/1000 of an inch. It is not shorthand for a millimeter. Don't confuse the terms folks. Very different measurements...

[michaelmattice]

Hello Rick, I've been playing drums since 1989. In that time I never really mastered tuning. No, I DEFINITELY never mastered tuning. I never thought about tuning to where the drum 'sings', instead, I tried to force it to where I wanted it to be...Well, I've learned my(your)lesson...Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom! Continued success Rick!:)

[anttilohikoski]

14mm = 14 millimeters = 0.55 inches
10mm = 10 millimeters = 0.39 inches
Now that's thick.
"Mils does not mean millimeters. A mil is equivalent to a thousandth of an inch." as said already by @PabloJ1968

Love the vids, keep it up!

[PabloJ]

Mils does not mean millimeters. A mil is equivalent to a thousandth of an inch. That goes for the thickness of the plastic of the drumhead.
Ply: layers of veneers that made the body of a drum. Maple / poplar / maple, birch, etc are described in terms of plies, not inches.
Good video btw.

[YellowLAVA]

Breaks up the glue





But i have Evans heads

[patrickbrennan]

There are 25.4 millimeters in an inch

If a drum head is “14 mm thick”, it’s over half an inch thick !

Rick, what am I missing?

(And thank you most sincerely for all the teaching - you are incredible)

Patrick

[FedericoMaracaglia]

Congratulations! Love this series, can't wait for the third episode and for the episode about tuning to the key of a song. Just a note about the thickness of the heads: the unit is mil (also known as thou) which is a thousandth of an inch not a millimeter, so an ambassador would be 10/1000 of an inch and an emperor would be 14/1000 of an inch. Thanks for your videos!

[ArchieBC]

Rick, I've got 35 years behind the the kit and you just gave me the BEST tuning demo I've ever seen! You're a gold mine of info!

[phoenix]

*_That was beautiful Rick - I've been playing drums since 1966 and like most people struggled with the tuning... In those early days, everyone seemed to have a different opinion on tuning, so I simply experimented, and funnily enough, came to the same conclusion as you, including thinner lighter drum hoops... What a coincidence, or maybe not, even so, what you say is not very widely known... So I'm very pleased to know I haven't been deluding myself all those years._* 👀😀😎

[thekriks]

thanks, Rick, for freely sharing the knowledge you have gathered. -Michael

[marendenison]

3:58 "The reason I'm using an emperor head is because John Bonham used it" LOL

[pumpkin]

Shouldn’t you also use the star pattern when palm tightening? I noticed when you palm tightened that on the first two lugs there was more slack than when you got to the other side. Did you pull the rim to one side?

[grinningDEATH]

Very informative. I personally like a very tight sound on my toms.I use remo pinstripes on all my toms with remo muffle rings to eliminate the resonance. I can't stand toms that ring out. To me ringing or resonate toms sound like toy drums I bought my kid. I tune my batters to the tension I like then tune the resonate head to get the pitch I'm looking for. My method is fairly time consuming takes me a couple of hrs to tune my 7pc. Can a tuning method be right or wrong? I tune by ear and everyone always compliments the way my drums sound.

[craigcampbell]

The most important thing when it comes to tuning drums, especially toms is to get the drum in tune with itself. I always use two keys and tighten the lugs across from each other the same amount at the same time. I'll touch the center of the drum head with my fingertip and tap around the edge at the lugs. I'll tune the lowest up to the others and occasionally press down on the drum head to seat it and stretch it. Once you get it in tune with itself it will sing as long as the head is at a decent tension for the drum itself.