Snare Tuning

spinninsticks

spinninsticks

New member
Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone has any guidelines to share with regards to snare drum tuning ?

I was tuning the reso side of my snare with instructions (really following strictly) from the Drum Tuning Bible and the head seems to be really over stretched I dare not go on now lol. Anyone here uses the Drum Tuning Bible here requently ?
 
hey man its hard to tell u, if it convenient u can bring ur snare down to the music labs and i'd take a look at it for u. ask for mark
 
Hey Mark!

Going down to music lab would be alittle inconvenient for me.. probably I will bring it down the next meet up to get some advice from you if you happen to be there.. lol. Thanks for the offer though, I really appreciate it. ;)

As for the drum tuning bible, does anyone follows that to do their tuning on the snare drum ? Just some clarifications that I wanna make. Hopefully there's someone that can help. :)

Cheers
 
Sure, bring down the snare for the meetup dude. I'm sure some of the folks will be able to help you with the tuning. Especially if drumhobbyist is around. ;)
 
spinninsticks said:
As for the drum tuning bible, does anyone follows that to do their tuning on the snare drum ? Just some clarifications that I wanna make. Hopefully there's someone that can help. :)
Click to expand...

Until you get to go to the next meet, you can try posting about the things you want to clarify.

I used to follow it, but have since developed my own method from things I've read and learned. It's like learning how to brush your teeth, after a while you do what's most comfortable for ya.
 
This is one of the steps taken from the "Tuning" section under "Tuning and Seating." Tuning and Seating

"Using two keys 180 degrees apart (or in the case of an odd number of lugs use 1 key in a star type pattern), tighten in half turn increments together until you've put 2 complete turns on all rods of the drum. The musical note is not important."

I did this with the bottom head but it felt over stretch already at the 1 1/2th turn, so I didn't feel right. I did follow through doing 2 full turns but it looks like it couldn't go any tighter, and based on the following step, that should be the lowest clear tone.

Hope if there's anyone who can help clarify. Thanks in advance! ;)
 
What head are you using to do this? How many lugs does your snare have? What model is your snare? After two full turns, if you apply pressure on the head with your fingers, how much can you push it in? Just for some context.

This step IS intended to stretch out the head a little. Sometimes, people even leave it at this point for a day or two, before returning to continue with the rest of the fine-tune process. It's definitely not the 'lowest clear tone' at this stage, I think you misread the instructions.

It'll be much easier to check out a video on youtube, just do a search. Text descriptions can be sometimes quite confusing and hard to follow. Words can only do so much.
 
bklk said:
dude...

YouTube - Bob Gatzen - Snare Drum Tuning
Click to expand...

Hey man, thanks for the link! Actually I did attempt to tune based on his advice/instruction, but it wasn't the kind of sound I was looking for. Probably I should try again as I might have not done it properly the first time. Hmm.

to weckl-x thanks for the info, it at least clears off some of my doubts haha. At that point after the 2 full turns, I definitely couldnt push down the head anymore. I'm using remo ambassedor snare side and evans power centre reverse dot on a pearl ref snare 14x 5, 10 lugs.

So do you mean that that step was meant to stretch the head, and loosen afterwards ? This tuning thing is very new to me haha.
 
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spinninsticks said:
Hey man, thanks for the link! Actually I did attempt to tune based on his advice/instruction, but it wasn't the kind of sound I was looking for. Probably I should try again as I might have not done it properly the first time. Hmm.

to weckl-x thanks for the info, it at least clears off some of my doubts haha. At that point after the 2 full turns, I definitely couldnt push down the head anymore. I'm using remo ambassedor snare side and evans power centre reverse dot on a pearl ref snare 14x 5, 10 lugs.

So do you mean that that step was meant to stretch the head, and loosen afterwards ? This tuning thing is very new to me haha.
Click to expand...

K well maybe i can help basically what kind of sound you are looking for?
are you intending to achieve with a sharp snap from the snare or one with a lower tone and a subdued snap... note also that the kind of snare affects the tone you want to achieve as well e.g. a wood snare and a steel snare, picolo and a full snare will produce different kinda tones... where do u wish to practice or issit used for performances cus for practices usually i tune the skins to max (small room) but i would have to tune it down for performances as it has to reach the end of the hall.... with all these down maybe i'd be able to help u better...
=) cheers!
 
opps just read ur post... hmm if this is the legendary 20ply ref snare your talking about i think i might have the solution.. the sound for this snare is naturally deep this is due to the 20ply so dont dream of achieving the same kinda snare snap you can get for a picolo... although this snare will allow you to get a really nice recording sound.. try this on for size... tune ur snare side to its max so much so that when you snap the skin with your fingers you get a nice sharp ping sound... once that is done add on the snare and bring it up as close to the skin as possible so that you get the snare in pretty tight on with the skin... now for the easy part which is tweeking the top side do full turns at least 3times at the 12,6, 3,9 positions always crossing over each side... next do 1/4 turns each time testing the sound by hitting the snare **take note at this point the snare will normally sound sharper this is due to the lack of the dampener ring** u might wanna try adding on the dampener ring and test it with a hit... 1/4 turns each time till u get the sound that you want....
Remember the drummers in the past didnt have drum tuners nor you tube but follow the steps and you should be fine... oh btw keep that snareside tight!
 
Hi bro (spinninstick)

Actually Snare sound are personal sound.. Some drummer like it tight and some like it loose. This is how i tune my snare
1. Hand tight all the tension rod using ur finger.
2. Press the centre of the skin using ur finger.
3. Tighten the tension rod 1 full round and do it diagonally.

That way u'll get all the tension rod tighten at the same level. The sound is up to u. How u like it to be. It goes the same for the strainer. Some drummer like it tight and some drummer like it just by touching the bottom skin.. Snare is an individual sound.. Thats why artist drummer have their signature series snare. Its their signature..
 
Hi Zam,

Just thought I should chip in a little.

The finger tightening method is a really old-school method (to suggest even tension) that my teacher used. However, this method only works if all tension rod and lug screw thread are machined to be perfectly the same and lubricated exactly the same. This unfortunately only happens in the perfect world which we don't live in. There're too many factors that'll prevent this method to work such as lubrication, thread groove evenness etc. Finger tight only means that you can't turn that particular tension rod further, but it doesn't mean that it has gone the same depth as the opposite lug. It could have lesser lubricant coating and thus refuse to turn further than the opposite lug (this is just one of many possibilities). So this particular lug is not asserting as much pressure on the head as the opposite lug.

The best way to tune the drum is to use your ears and strive for pitch evenness (even then....because a snare drum has two heads so perfect evenness will never be possible...you just get them as close as possible).

Hope this helps someone...

Regards,
Alvin
 
alvinthedrummer said:
Hi Zam,

Just thought I should chip in a little.

The finger tightening method is a really old-school method (to suggest even tension) that my teacher used. However, this method only works if all tension rod and lug screw thread are machined to be perfectly the same and lubricated exactly the same. This unfortunately only happens in the perfect world which we don't live in. There're too many factors that'll prevent this method to work such as lubrication, thread groove evenness etc. Finger tight only means that you can't turn that particular tension rod further, but it doesn't mean that it has gone the same depth as the opposite lug. It could have lesser lubricant coating and thus refuse to turn further than the opposite lug (this is just one of many possibilities). So this particular lug is not asserting as much pressure on the head as the opposite lug.

The best way to tune the drum is to use your ears and strive for pitch evenness (even then....because a snare drum has two heads so perfect evenness will never be possible...you just get them as close as possible).

Hope this helps someone...

Regards,
Alvin
Click to expand...


Hmm that i agree but then again snare drums are not toms and basically the snare crack comes from the snare side skin and well like honestly i like the strainer tight in that way i can play around with the strainer adjusting knob at the side so i can get a fuller range of sounds... yep yep thats what i suggest... btw added note as well that i learnt thru the years sometimes its better to give options on the snare e.g tighter top/looser bottom so that you can have a full range of sounds and utilise those hours of stick work that you put in every day =)
 
Thanks Alvin.. Defintely finger tightening cant be perfect.. And even if u use the evan snap drum key also wont be 100% perfect level.. U r right about the pitch level of every tension rod.. (This is the most important one) Cause u wont know if ur hoop is still straight after playing few rim shots. So even ur hoop might look straight, the pitch from the tension rod might not be the same.. Most important thing about tuning a snare is the pitch of every tension rod. The rest is up to individual.. How high or how low u want ur snare to sound.

This is the method i use to tune my snare.. Finger tight, use the key, listen to the pitch from the side.(This is the one i forgot to say) and make sure its almost sound the same..

Drum is a wonderful instrument to play. It is so free that every one can have their own technics of holding the sticks, sitting posture and stepping on the pedal. But for new drummer, its best to learn the proper technic first before developing ur own style and technics. Its like driving. Learn the proper way in school.. Drive like a racer when pass.. hahaha.. I'm sure a lot of people do that..

Thanks again Alvin..
 
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Thanks for the input everyone ! To be honest I've not been playin with the tuning lately (yes reality has taken a toll on my free time). I shall experiment around with the snare real soon! :-D
 
Yeah i do that alot, just mess around with the tuning you're bound to find something you like or better than what you previously had.
 
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