Yamaha AHM Tom tuning

S

spaseman

New Member
New to the group . Bought a Yamaha AHM many years ago and knew nothing about tuning . Now , I’m wanting to know . My toms are 10” , 13” , and 16” . What pitch are the shells tuned / built / made to ? Or are they ? Is that even relevant ? Should I be concerned with head tuning pitch and not be concerned about the shell pitch ?
Any help would be appreciated .

Thanks

- Joey
 
Welcome to Drummerworld, Joey. Nice to have you here!

You definitely don't need to worry about any "shell pitch," as a lot of folks outside the DW orbit don't even really think that's a real thing.

I have a set of AHMs-- they're superb drums and are built to handle all sorts of tunings like most modern drums. I'd recommend watching some drum tuning videos online or getting a TuneBot and learning to use it. Learning to tune a drum kit takes some time, but it's ultimately very rewarding to be able to get different sounds on your kit very quickly. Good luck and let us know if you need more specific advice.
 
Tunebots and other similar devices are a cool tool but the only thing they teach you is to rely on a device and not how to tune by ear. In the end I think it's all moot because you are tuning for the sound you want more then pitches. Some may argue against me but if you tune a drum to A or to B... It's still going to sound like that same drum just slightly higher or lower. I think it's more important to find the head combination and tuning range that works for your kit, playing style, and preferences than it is to focus on specific "shell notes".

Welcome aboard
 
spaseman said:
Any help would be appreciated .
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Ok. Going out on a limb here let me say if you are involved in any profession (skill, interest what ever- and you do it pretty well..

Organizing the drums can be similar. To other activities. If you're a (say) cabinet maker you (want) like everything even, organized individual cupboards into a set that's pleasing to the eye. Even if something is individual to your style that's ok too.

So with the drums there's tension rods all around each drum including the bass drum; you want those Adjusted 'even' from one to another each on the top and bottom side.
Not extremely tight (as they'd break maybe something) Nor Too loose as they'd fall out on the ground.

So you are assembling and anything you organize in another part of your life can apply; Drums are a mechanical thing not a violin of guitar string


Assemble an even (the tension of the heads) moderate not too extreme and the shells dimension (size) will take care of the rest.
And you can within parameters adjust this mechanical thing

You want en even tension thing that will not fall apart upon use

😁 as would any, plumber, mechanic, File sorter, dress maker, any another profession
 
after that the hi medium and low-
Drums playing them are a physical thing "Oh my aching legs" is a Good thing
 
the third and final part is hearing. Your ears. You may hear or heard a fantastic stunning drum fill , how a certain part fits, and think where did that come from? what did he /she hear? So gradually over time develop and mentally file a repertoire of combinations of motions moving sound around
lol : ) Yea That's it. then carry them in and out of spaces and places get a parking spot as close to the entry door as possible
 
roncadillac said:
Tunebots and other similar devices are a cool tool but the only thing they teach you is to rely on a device and not how to tune by ear.
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That's actually not true. Using a tune-bot still requires all the regular skills that go into tuning. It just takes some of the guesswork out of the job. You still need your ears and your eyes and your hands.

Now that I think about it, tune-bots show you why it's better not to tune by ear.
 
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I don't want to be "told" what pitch to tune to I prefer to "discover" it
then afterwards "file" it.
I don't really need a physical device for that
chicken or the egg I'll take the egg
you can be sure it will be a chicken
so those (i have a Watch/Tama) to me are mostly "memory" devices
if you need or is kind of a back-up to have one
or is sometimes confusing because one drum at 50 another similar drum at 50 won't seem identical so
you have to figure (or leave) it for other reasons
 
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i want certain subjective pitches so I guess in that sense I am pre-judged ("give me Elvin toms the Motown snare with the Bonham bass")
or that's what I said; they're an-after-the-fact of what you already know to want
So you use the device to repeat
It's just like a "checking" device right? To see you are even ?. right or no.
like a Tire gauge or no?.
 
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I understand the concerns. I'm just saying that tune-bots are a Godsend for people who are generally terrible at tuning, and will improve every aspect of the process for them, and leave them the better for it if they want to go it alone afterwards.

For those who are already good at tuning by ear, a tune-bot will take the last little bit of guesswork out of it and help those players to clear heads more accurately, giving them more of the good thing they were after in the first place.

If we disagree that cleared heads are desirable, then that is another conversation. I don't think that there is a lot of debate around that point, however.
 
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Whatever else it is, sound/pitch is measurable. And, once measured, sound is replicable.

So, let's say I want to sound like John Riley. I liked his drum sound when I heard him at the Vanguard. So I get Yamaha drums and the same heads. Great. Well, I can also look up his tunings and see that he tunes top and bottom heads alike. I can now replicate his sound, or at least get close to it, by following his numbers. If I don't like it, I can take it up or down a bit.

I may or may not be able to guess that Dennis Chambers' toms are tuned with the bottom heads higher, but if I look it up on the TuneBot page, I can replicate that.

Or, closer to home-- once I have my drums dialed in the way I like them for my home studio, I can write down those numbers. Then if I need to retune for another room or replace heads, I can quickly dial my old sound back in. And I can even do it while there's noise around me.

I think the arguments against TuneBots make about as much sense as arguments against, say, rulers.

But back to the original poster: Good luck! They're amazing drums and you should have no problem getting amazing sounds from them.
 
Neal Pert said:
Whatever else it is, sound/pitch is measurable. And, once measured, sound is replicable.

So, let's say I want to sound like John Riley. I liked his drum sound when I heard him at the Vanguard. So I get Yamaha drums and the same heads. Great. Well, I can also look up his tunings and see that he tunes top and bottom heads alike. I can now replicate his sound, or at least get close to it, by following his numbers. If I don't like it, I can take it up or down a bit.

I may or may not be able to guess that Dennis Chambers' toms are tuned with the bottom heads higher, but if I look it up on the TuneBot page, I can replicate that.

Or, closer to home-- once I have my drums dialed in the way I like them for my home studio, I can write down those numbers. Then if I need to retune for another room or replace heads, I can quickly dial my old sound back in. And I can even do it while there's noise around me.

I think the arguments against TuneBots make about as much sense as arguments against, say, rulers.

But back to the original poster: Good luck! They're amazing drums and you should have no problem getting amazing sounds from them.
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Well put.

I don't know if guitar players shame each another for using an electronic tuner instead of doing it by ear, but I see some parallels here.

I wonder if the calfskin guys gave the Kevlar guys a hard time when that technology became available? Probably!
 
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where's the link to this Tunebot page
I want to see who's on it
I'm looking for Benny Benjamin and Elvin Jones

yammyfan said:
I don't know if guitar players shame each another for using an electronic tuner instead of doing it by ear, but I see some parallels here.
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a guitar has to blend with other melodic instruments on-stage- drums stand-alone.
".. I only need (must have: 😁 ) the title of the next tune not the key "
 
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My thoughts on the tune bot….first off, I’m not a naturally gifted drum tuner, hell, I’m not a naturally gifted drummer, either. I have to work my arse off to be “decent”. So, I bought a tune bot 3 years ago….and thru a lot of trial and error, I can tune quite well. I can tune light years better now totally by ear than at any point before I got a tune bot. My ear is much more acute and accurate today. If I forget the device, I can still manage a solid tune by ear. But it wasn’t easy…

The pitfall of the tune bot, especially trying to capture lug to lug tunings….you must learn to ignore the “false” readings it will give off. This takes time to realize and have your ear trained enough to disregard some readings. It can be particularly difficult on higher tuning captures like the snare reso head. But it will work if you stick with it. You can really get lug to lug to lug spot on tuning once you learn what a true reading is…and do not reach for the tuning wrench until you are confident. Getting the fundamental on the center strike of a drum is much more full proof. Lug to lug more difficult…but doable and reliable once you filter out false readings with your brain.

But the device is worthwhile, unless once again…you are just a naturally gifted tuner by ear. For folks not so naturally gifted…it gives you a fighting chance to improve your ear. And your drums.
 
Definitely want to say that I wasn't giving tunebots users crap nor implying that they are lesser, if anything it's a much more methodical approach that should yield more precise results. I just think there's something magical about drums where you can slap a head on, give it a few even turns on each lug, and it will probably sound pretty good.
 
I went ahead and retuned my kit (10-12-14-16) today…so here are my tunebot numbers if this can help anyone get a starting point. I went into this with a good idea where I wanted my fundamentals to be (146-123-97-77) but I went in blindfolded as far as reso and batter rod tensions….I just experimented until I thought the drum sounded it’s best. I had no set ratio drum to drum….just wanted them to sound good to my ear and be in the interval (call to post)…and then move onto the next. Here is where I ended up:

10 batter - 243
10 reso - 247
10 fund - 146

12 batter - 193
12 reso - 205
12 fund - 123

14 batter - 168
14 reso - 184
14 fund - 97

16 batter - 134
16 reso - 141
16 fund - 77

These are not yamahas, they’re rn2 renowns with coated ambassadors and die cast hoops. But regardless, no matter what drum you have…you definitely will need to experiment. Reso higher, batter lower….reso lower, batter higher….or maybe it sounds best with reso and batter equal….you will not know for sure until you get in there.
 
I guess not only applicable to the OPs Yamaha Toms, tuning is an acquired "art" IMHO. As a simple Hobbyist "Drummer", playing at home (thus far anyway), a retiree at 72, I resurrected playing drums in 2019 after 50 years {1969]. I was Xmas gifted a cheapo Gammon Kit by my wife (of all people) who appreciated that I made a comment earlier in the year (2018) of rekindling an interest in playing again. I was approaching retirement (did it in May 2021) and was totally surprised to find that under the Xmas Tree! I was as excited as a 12-year-old kid. I gave that kit to my Grandson (5 at the time - who always enjoyed hitting the drums when he visited....."Poppi, can we play with the Drums") and purchased a PDP Concept Maple Kit USED in early 2021. Since getting back into it, I watched Numerous YT videos for drum makers, drumhead, and tuning reviews & How Tos. I knew nothing of drum tuning way back when I first started circa 1967. With the Better drum kit in hand, I undertook efforts to Tune all the Drums, trying various Drum heads. A well known Drum Store in Long Island recommended Evans G2s coated for all the Toms (5 of them) - IHO, they sounded best with maple drums. I also tried Evans EC2s Clear with the standard Reso heads.

I have found that lower tuning levels to be to my liking - with less over ringing and more of a Doooo, Doooo sound best described by Jason on DRUMEO. I knew nothing of Snare Buzz. So I try every means to curtail the Snare Buzz that I get from 2 of the rack Toms [8 and 10" toms]. It is a fickle thing to find that Sweet Spot of a likeable Tom sound with minimal Snare Buzz. PS: After watching a recent review of the G2s coated vs the UV2s coated by a couple of British guys on YT, there are only subtle differences to my ear. Perhaps a bit brighter with the UV2s. Maybe it;s because they are brand new Heads ? The EC2s clear sounded a bit to Plasticky to me. Bottomline... Tuning is an Art with applying just subtle turns of various Lugs on either head , despite what Rob Brown says :):)
 
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