Drumming For Beginners – Drum Tuning Tips
Posted By on June 6, 2010
Well tuned drums are absolutely essential, if you want to sound good. The unfortunate fact is that many drummers don’t know how to tune their drums. Playing an out of tune instrument is really no fun, even a great drummer can sound terrible. In this article we’ll talk about why tuning is important and what techniques to use in order to tune your drums.
Let’s start with why – why is tuning so important? The answer to this question is rather simple. You will, of course, sound better. That is the number one reason. You will also get much more out of playing. Not to mention the prolonged life of your drums.
With the whys out of the way, let’s continue. What do you need to tune a drum? As far as tools go, you’ll only need a drum key. But you will also need a good ear and a bit of patience. It will take time to learn it, so remember – the more you do it, the better you will get.
If you are completely new to all this, it’s good to have someone to walk you through. You should understand that tuning is a delicate process and if not done correctly can actually permanently damage your instrument. Most beginners think that you have to seat the new drum head by tensioning it down. This is actually wrong and can in fact damage the head. And a damaged head cannot be tuned properly.
Go slowly, don’t rush it. Break it in naturally. Patience is important. It’s essential that you learn proper techniques like for example – the opposite lug tuning sequence. With this technique you move back and forth across the drum and not around in a circle. This way you’re tightening more evenly.
Yes, it will take time and effort to learn how to properly tune your drums, but in the end it’s definitely worth it. Get yourself some good instructions and you will see – it’s really not that hard.
If you want more detailed instructions, take a look at tuning drums videos. Also see beginner drum lessons.