Hey Guys,

Does anyone have any useful videos or website links for drum set tuning especially from a metal perspective !

Ted from Tourniquet has several instructionals on tone, tuning, and technique. Check out the Official Tourniquet Website.

Hey 325ad,

do you have the direct links at all on the tourniquet site to these subjects ?

Crank it high, let it fly!
(For blastbeats and speed, anyway...)

The general modus operandi in metal is to use small drums, tune them high (snare often as high as it will go) so that they "cut through everything" on stage and so that you can bounce your sticks really easy (for finger-blasting or fast snare fills). This is what I do to create those really sharp blastbeats.

This is usually not the most pleasing way to hear drums, but chances are, that if you part of some band called "Vomit guts", "Death goratorium", "Dark krieg winterbite", "Blood to ashes" or some other really metal sounding band, you're not really targeting the nice, easy listening crowd anyway so just get out there and pierce some eardrums and cut high through the guitar distortion.

If you're looking for more of a melodic metal sound, tuning shouldn't be any different than tuning for any other type of melodic music. Make sure the drums sound the same all the way around, probably thirds apart (ask a piano player if you don't know), and go for it.

Your application determines a lot of what you are tuning for. You will need to tune higher and use more clear/open drumheads for live, unmiked situations than practice/recording, which you will enjoy lower tuning and more coated/dampened drumheads.

If you have triggers and play metal, I wouldn't worry about tuning your bassdrum(s) very much. Just put the triggers on them if you can when playing live to sound "like an album".
People that whine about triggers never attend concerts, they just think the focused bass drum sound on the album is natural, which it isn't.

Derek Roddy and Flo Mounier have tuning clips on their videos which I have and recommend.

Hope this helps and be encouraged to keep playing for our Lord!

I saw a vid that said you want the snare batter a third or so higher than the reso. and then you want the tom-tom about a step or two lower than the snare. going down thirds from there. Bass Drums are pretty much to ear or what feels good on the feet.

www.freedrumlessons.com

Try this. They have some good tuning instruction on videos they make anyway.

rebornholy wrote:

Hey Guys,

Does anyone have any useful videos or website links for drum set tuning especially from a metal perspective !

You should get a DrumDial, they're great.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVx6YxHKt4U