favorite quick fix drum solutions

[junkstar]

OK, the drummer walks in and proclaims he has not played nor tuned nor re-skinned his drums in over a year. Sets them up and they sound like complete crap. I don't know how to tune them (any good resources for learning?), and he does not either. This happened to me last week.

I had him use my kick and snare - they sound great - but his toms were for shit. What would all of you do for a quick fix in a pinch like this? Just grab the key, some papertowel and tape, get to work on them and hope for the best? Any favorite quick tips?

We talked about him spending the time to get his kit properly set up before he goes into a recording situation again, but I'm thinking now more than ever that I need my home kit in tip top shape in case this ever happens again. May be the best solution.

[Doublehelix]

Been there man, and feel your pain! I make sure I go over all that during the PrePro with the band. New guitar strings (this means BASS too!), drum heads, etc. I have a list of do's and do-not's that we go over before they even step foot in the studio!

Tuning drums is an art. You can learn how to do it, but it takes practice to get it right. You really should learn how to do some basic tuning, both for your kit, and for any clients that you get in that have no clue how to tune their own kit.

Here is a helpful link to a site called the drum tuning bible. Should help get you started.

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

[RodC]

Been there. I keep a remo prepack in stock, and a couple of different snare heads. Put their best heads on the bottom. You can pick up a pack for about $35.

I have bands show up in that condition that I have told them everytime. "Replace your drum heads!!" Of course if they have an old set on that they are in love with I'll record them.

I know its $35 but it will save you some time.

[junkstar]

Yeah, haha, I attended one rehearsal before the session and his kit seemed perfect. He arrived with a different kit and explained the rehearsal space kit was not his. He also showed up missing hardware parts and with no sticks (and two hours late). I had a kind but direct discussion with him. Thankfully, he did play well, just his toms sound like flapping metal sheets on the track. They will just have to remain buried in the mix.

[Blade]

I had him use my kick and snare - they sound great - but his toms were for shit. What would all of you do for a quick fix in a pinch like this? Just grab the key, some papertowel and tape, get to work on them and hope for the best? Any favorite quick tips?

Here is my opinion......and I've been a profressional drummer for 26 years.

No drum should ever need papertowels, tape, or any other object placed on the drumhead.....unless that's the sound you are going for.....aka 70's type sound.

The tone of the drum is controlled by the bottom head. If you want good sustain, then always make sure the bottom head is tuned higher than the top. The top head is then tuned for pitch.

For a more controlled sound, tune the bottom head lower than the top.

The only way I can't get a head to sound good (old), is if it is streched beyond the point of tuning it....like if it has dimples in the head from stick marks.

From what I can tell, Ringo never changed his heads.....all the pictures show brown patches from the target area of the head and they always sounded great.

Worst case scenerio..........get the best that you can out of the drums and then run a sample underneath them for tone purposes.

Good luck and have fun!

-Blade-

[I'm Painting Again]

If the kit is in really bad shape there is not much you can do to make it sound spectacular in a short amount of time..It can take hours and hours to tune a really difficult whole kit to your room..therefore the best solution is to keep a nice house kit in tune to your room to use for recording in these type of situations..You really get to know drums when you have your own kit..I totally recommend getting one..it's like the best thing thats ever happened to me..I love playing the drums though..

[junkstar]

Maybe I should bring my kit to a pro for a set up. Anyone in Westchester that's fair-priced and talented?

[I'm Painting Again]

what kit do you have?

I will gladly swing by and check it out for $0.00

[drumsound]

Maybe I should bring my kit to a pro for a set up. Anyone in Westchester that's fair-priced and talented?

Better yet have them come to your room. The acoustic space will dictate certain things about the tuning of a drum-set.

Tune the drums so they sound the same at each lug. If there's too much pitch bend tighten the heads and get them closer in pitch to each other. If you like that tone but there's a bit too much sustain try some moongel. Make sure the pitches of the individual drums work together as one instrument.

[mjau]

try some moongel.

If, for no other reason, than your wife can find the little moongel container and think it's some sort of "marital aide" until she asks you to explain yourself.

[I'm Painting Again]

I find those "sticky hands" you get in the 25 cent machine work as well if you want to save $6.25 on the 3 pack moongel..

[justhitthebutton]

well NOT every drum/kit will sound great...completely natural.....some DO need moon gel or tape. different wood/composites, sizes, heads, player, sticks and style of playing will make the same drum sound completely different. i have a '72 silver sparkle 6 ply with reinforcement rings/bearing edges. it sounds completely thin and weak with too much resonance/overtones when using ambassador heads, and sounds completely dead, lifeless and boring with evans heads on them. my snare is a '68 mother of pearl ludwig marching snare. 12 inches deep. sounds freaking awesome with aquarian satin finish heads, but horrible with remo heads of any kind. so unless you expect that every drummer go out and spend money of every make of head to find the one that sounds best on his kit and then stick with that brand, then you will need to use moon gel or tape. i would rather do this than to trigger a sample.
every studio should have someone who knows how to tune a kit in many different ways, not just rock or pop or metal or jazz. listen to every style of music you can and learn to tune drums accordingly. if you want a dead sound, ala keith moon, its the tuning and head dampening, not a certain mic/room/etc.
if you can afford it you should own a stoplock drum key and if possible a drum watch. this will save your ass more times than ever when you learn how to use it properly.
if the drummer doesn't realize how bad his dead heads hurts the recording, then there's not much that you can do other than to own a studio kit that you will have to take the expense of keeping it tuned and in great mechanical shape.

[???????]

Here is my opinion......and I've been a profressional drummer for 26 years.

No drum should ever need papertowels, tape, or any other object placed on the drumhead.....unless that's the sound you are going for.....aka 70's type sound.

I agree!

The tone of the drum is controlled by the bottom head. If you want good sustain, then always make sure the bottom head is tuned higher than the top. The top head is then tuned for pitch.

For a more controlled sound, tune the bottom head lower than the top.

This is interesting, because it is not consistent with my experience at all. I find that I get the most sustain if I tune both heads to the same pitch, and the least sustain (out front) if I tune the bottom head higher. If I want an 80s DOOOooosh tom sound where the pitch lowers through the sustain then I tune the bottom head lower than the top. Now tuning the bottom head higher can make the tops project a little more toward the drummer. Depending on how yr overheads are set up they might pick up on this, and the spot mics would pick it up. But not the room mics, and not the audience (in a live situation) at least in my experience. Tuning the reso head tighter makes for the most controlled sound, at least to my ear. And it seems to sustain the least. To me.

[Blade]

This is interesting, because it is not consistent with my experience at all. I find that I get the most sustain if I tune both heads to the same pitch, and the least sustain (out front) if I tune the bottom head higher. If I want an 80s DOOOooosh tom sound where the pitch lowers through the sustain then I tune the bottom head lower than the top. Now tuning the bottom head higher can make the tops project a little more toward the drummer. Depending on how yr overheads are set up they might pick up on this, and the spot mics would pick it up. But not the room mics, and not the audience (in a live situation) at least in my experience. Tuning the reso head tighter makes for the most controlled sound, at least to my ear. And it seems to sustain the least. To me.

Maybe it has to do with the type of heads that are being used. I guess it's.....

"to each his own" LOL!

I've just realized over the years that if I want sustain, and I'm talking a jazz type tuning in rock....aka Ringo Starr, John Bonham, etc....., I always get that sound with the bottom head tuned ever so slightly above the top head. Also when I do this, I don't have the crank down as hard on the top head and thus, not choking the sound and being able to tune the drum to the pitch I want.

Also, using drum language, the bottom head is known as the resonating head.

Everyone has there methods......Rock on!

-Blade-

[Johnny B]

if the drummer doesn't realize how bad his dead heads hurts the recording, then there's not much that you can do other than to own a studio kit that you will have to take the expense of keeping it tuned and in great mechanical shape.

Until you get the guy that refuses to keep his drums in any kind of decent shape OR use anyone else's kit. That was a fun session. Of course, it didn't help that the rest of the band was hungover.