how do you kill the ring???

[N34Li0]

im not new to drumming but i still need much help with tuning and such but i just dont get one thing. how is it that drummers can get such a good sound and have nothing placed on their toms at all? how do you and others you know get the ring out without those cheapo methods like i used of taping paper all over the toms?

[LiveGoat]

This is a subjective thing but I think all drums have to ring a little. The way a lot of drums sound on albums and live shows has a lot to do with the way they're miked. Taping and dampening drums kills their projection and that's not something you want to do. Beyond about 15 feet or so the ring dissipates and the audience hears the initial attack and that's how it should be (according to me, of course). It's true that a drum can sound like crap and ring but the ring isn't the reason it sounds like crap. In my opinion if it rings it sings.

---LG

[swoeman815]

you have to take it to mordor and throw it in the fiery pit. :p

sorry, I can't help with your problem tho. I get a little rattle from the snare when I hit the bass drum, but it's not a ring.

[N34Li0]

This is a subjective thing but I think all drums have to ring a little. The way a lot of drums sound on albums and live shows has a lot to do with the way they're miked. Taping and dampening drums kills their projection and that's not something you want to do. Beyond about 15 feet or so the ring dissipates and the audience hears the initial attack and that's how it should be (according to me, of course). It's true that a drum can sound like crap and ring but the ring isn't the reason it sounds like crap. In my opinion if it rings it sings.

---LG

so how do your drums sound and how did you make them like they are?

[Salicete]

Much of the unwanted ring can be tamed with proper tuning, and heads appropriate to your particular drum and tastes.

I do not think that there is any single magic bullet to defeat ring, it often takes time and experimentation. Sometimes, less expensive shells can have an annoying tendency to produce unwanted ring and overtones, but that can be fixed.

Moongel, Rem-O-Rings, tape and any other number of methods and gadgets exist to deal with this issue. Often if you just take the time to tune the batter and reso carefully, you can eliminate the ring without the benefit of any other device.

Take one tom and spend some time tweaking the tuning. I would bet you would eventually get a decent sound. Once that drums is set up, got to the next and tune it relative to the first one.

If you still need additional muffing, use it. Lots of drummers do and it is by no means low budget or cheapo method. If it works it works, who cares what it did or did not cost. Time and patience can produce some great results.

[LiveGoat]

It really depends on the drum size, style of music you play, what heads you use and your own personal preference so take this with a grain of salt. I play a bonham sized kit minus the 18 inch floor tom so I tune em pretty high on the reso side and less high on the batter. I also use emporoers on the batter and ambassadors on the reso. But really the best way is to see what the players you listen to and want to emulate soundwise are doing and start from there. The drummer's Bible has a little section on basic tuning templates for different genres of music so that might be a good place to start. Wish I could help more but it can be a touchy subject. I have a friend who's a drummer who thinks my drum sound is crap even though he concurs that they are in tune and I'm the same way about his sound so you really have to follow your ears and experiment.

---LG


so how do your drums sound and how did you make them like they are?

[syaoran05]

well, in all the drumsets ive played [just coz i dont own a kit] they all dont ring and they have these things in common:

pinstripes
reso tuned higher than batter [ideally this should be a third or fourth higher than the batter]

there are some kits ive played that have clear unmuffled heads [ambassadors and the like] and they have beautiful ring [yes, the ring is not bad] same thing, reso tuned higher than batter.

[slingerland755]

You can buy O-rings or you can take an old head and a razor blade and make your own.

[aydee]

1) tuning
2) million other a la carte gizmos , like dampening rings, tape, moon - gel etc.

Tuning usually does it for me, in most situations.

I sometimes place my cellphone (a small one ) on my snare, which is tilted towards me, which gives me the right snare sound.

I DO NOT reccommend you try this.

[dizkneelande]

this site might help you.

http://home.earthlink.net/~prof.sound/