BASS DRUM TUNING

Re: Bass Drum Head Tuning - A Serious Predicament

What kind of heads are you using? I like the Aquarian Superkick series batter heads. No need for anything in the drum for muffling, the head just booms.

I guess the real question is why do you want to tune your head lower if it sounds good the way you have it. If what you have tuned is working for you it doesn't really matter how everyone else does it. Keep in mind everyones taste for sound is totally different and so are their kits. If you tune the batter down and leave the reso tight you'll probably not get the depth and punch you are looking for, I would keep them both in the same tuning range. The reso a little tighter is one thing but if you have it cranked up tight it will probably ring alot and not give you that short fast punch.

I wouldn't say people detune their heads, they actually tune them to that wrinkle free point originally.
 
Re: Bass Drum Head Tuning - A Serious Predicament

I know how you feel Theo. I had the same problem.

What I did was I got a Remo Powerstroke 3 w/ the falam patch on it and tuned it relativley low. Then, I tuned the reso head about medium loose and muffled about 30% of the bottom portion of both heads. When I first tried it I got an incredible punch for it and I havent touched the tuning since! Hope this helps!
 
Re: Bass Drum Head Tuning - A Serious Predicament

I find that, unmic'd, the higher tuning sounds better, giving good projection and a fuller sound. In mic'd situations I like the lower note that a looser head produces (and the mic provides the roundness and punch). I never tune mine quite so low it wrinkles, though. I like to hear a defined, clean tone.

The reso tighter than the batter can work very well, though you may have to work to find the optimum relationship between the pitches of the two heads. Have fun!
 
Re: Bass Drum Head Tuning - A Serious Predicament

Theo said:
8< snip snp snip >8
Also...do you have any other ideas how i could create a good BOOM sound suitable for funk, r&b, really tight pocket kind of stuff? Keep in mind i have no hole in my reso.

Thanks.

Hey Theo.

In a mic'ed situation, mic placement can make a pretty big difference in your bass drum's sound. Try everything you can think of, mic inside, outside, near the batter, further away from the batter, one mic inside, and another outside, etc.

I have no hole in my reso, and I have the heads tuned really low (just past finger-tight) with a small pillow inside barely touching both heads. My mic is inside the bass drum about 12" from the batter head pointed, more or less, at where the beater hits. I get a nice punchy sound (a little like Neil Peart's bass drum sound), although I'd like to up the attack a little...

-Michael
 
Bass Tuning Perspective

Just thought I'd share a little story with you guys. I've been playing drums for thirty eight years and think I have a pretty good handle on how to make my drums sound good. This weekend I was playing a gig and as we were setting up the guy who runs sound asked to hear my bass drum. He was standing right in front of me, no mikes on yet and in fact my set wasn't even completely set up. I hit the bass a couple times and he immediately said "oh that's going to be way too boomy, can you muffle it or shove a blanket in it?" I told him I would take care of the "boominess" and that he would love the sound. I DID NOTHING. I just finished setting up the drums placed the mikes and then told him to go out front and give a listen. Once he was out away from the stage I hit the bass drum and he immediately smiled. "Wow that's perfect, what did you do?" I just told him it was a little drummers trick with some extra tweaking. The point of this story is to not necessarily accept that the sound that is heard is the same as when you are sitting behind or standing directly in front of the drums. If the sound guy had told me it was still too boomy I was prepared to do a little actual tweaking but experience has taught me to trust my ears and know that things have a way of sounding different depending on perspective.
 
Re: Bass Tuning Perspective

You are right Pete, the same thing happened to me ! You pointed a real problem playing live gigs : sound engineers dictatorship !!! (more often with drummers !) Would this guy ask a Stradivarius player to fill his violin with foam because it sounds better to his ears???
My drums sound the way I want it to sound, and I never let a sound guy tell me how they should !
 
Re: Bass Tuning Perspective

Yeah Catlover, those Strads just have too much sustain! Once you've learned how to get good sounds from your instruments trust your ears guys. Sound techs are supposed to help you sound good, not the other way around. Of course this all assumes that you, in fact, can get your drums to sound good to begin with. Drums produce lots of overtones and frequencies that techies hate dealing with. Good tuning and proper mike placement will take care of most sound issues.
 
Re: tuning bass drum

Try the search button for bass drum tuning and/or bass/kick drum heads, as well as looking at the thread "cutting a hole in the bass drum". There should be enough info in all of those posts to get the answer you're looking for.
 
Re: tuning bass drum

I tune mine a bit loose.I don't have a hole in it.I have 2 blankets in it,a big one and a smaller one.
 
Re: Poll: how do you tune your bass drum

My 20x14 has a P3 clear batter and an ebony P3 reso. No port and wide open (no laundry inside). Nice tight sound. My 26x14 has a P3 clear batter and an ebony Ambassador reso. with a HOLZ port. It too is wide open. Total rock boomer, just like it was made to be. My 28x14 has the same head set up as the 26, but a small block of foam glued to the shell that touches the batter head for a little more sound control. Super boomer.
 
How to tune a bass drum

I play an 18"x22" Tama Rockstar Custom bass drum.
Although i've tuned it with a Drumdial, it doesnt seem to cut it for me.
Im looking for a better sound, somthing like Thomas Langs bass drum off Creative Control.


If anyone can help me, that would be great.
-Thanks
 
Re: How to tune a bass drum

i found the drum dial tunes drums a little higher than i want so maybe you need to take it down alittle. plus i don't think you'll be able to get thomas sound that easily, i think he has a rather large bassdrum but i'm not sure.
 
Re: How to tune a bass drum

Just experiment until you find that sound your after. Find out what heads he uses (head selection makes a big,big difference in sound) as well as if he ports the front head or not (that can make a big difference). Also, since you have the drumdial (i have one also, amazing) experiment with different tensions. Your never going to sound exactly like him (especially since your using completely different drum sets) but you should be able to get what your looking for.

Hope that helps
 
Re: How to tune a bass drum

Once you make a drum head selection, you'll probably have to compromise the Thomas Lang sound a bit. Work more with making the Rockstar sound as good as it can.
 
Tuningup me bass drums

hey, i just bouhgt a m series kit. im trying hard to tune the bass, gee its so hard to get the sound i wanted.. i want a deep bassy sound from it. it had the original heads, which is a remo 1 ply muffed on both sides. then i took off my powerstroke 3 from the old drums n put it on... cant get the deep sound.

so my question is, can someone help me how to tune it up? i followed the steps in the tuning bible, but cat get there... how should i tune it?

oh and how much pillow stuff to put IN it?
 
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Re: Tuningup me bass drums

For me, bass drums are completely different than tuning toms.

I've always had the best success with tuning the front bass drum as low as it goes then up a turn or two on each lugh. Then I tune the batter head as slack as it goes before it wrinkles and becomes dead. That gives the lowest fundamental pitch without sounding like cardboard, and without booming and boinging and needing muffling.

I use Emad coated and EQ3 coated heads.

Stu
 
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