In my opinion there is only one rule to drum tuning - RULE 1: THERE ARE NO RULES !

The notes below are intended as guidance only. EXPERIMENT and if you find something that works for you, go with it.

Before looking at some basic tuning tips, let's first think about the drum head itself.

There are 3 basic types of drum head:

1. Single-ply; A single sheet of material is used to make the drum head. Such heads tend to offer an open, bright and resonant sound. e.g. Evans G1, Remo Ambassador
2. Double-ply; These heads comprise two sheets of material. They offer a warmer, deeper more controlled sound and tend to be harder wearing. e.g. Evans G2, Remo Emperor
3. EQ or Speciality Heads; There are many heads available which offer different types of EQ or control via muffling rings, dots, oil filling between plys, vent or holes, etc. e.g. Evans Hydraulic, Evans EMAD, Remo Pinstripe, Remo Fiberskyn

Within each category of drum head there are a dazzling array of features to consider; thickness of plys, coated or clear, etc.

Talk to your dealer and to other drummers and try out as many diferent heads as possible. In addition to 'the big two' or Evans and Remo, checkout other manufacturers such as Aquarian and Attack to see what they have to offer.

Once again, it all comes down to personal choice; only YOU know what sound you want from your drums.

TIP - Many budget (and some mid-price) kits come with relatively poor quality heads. Save some of your budget and invest in a set of good quality heads. You'll be amazed at the difference in sound that good heads can make!

TIP - If you have spent a lot of money on a Pro level kit, don't strangle your drums by fitting heads that are too thick or too controlled. Fitting Remo Pinstripes to a budget kit is a great idea as it will improve the sound by removing unwanted overtones and boosting the low end. However, fitting the same heads to a top-of-the-range kit will take all the character out of the drums - character that you have paid a lot of money for.

TIP - If you buy an Evans drum head, don't throw the box away; there is a very good set of tuning tips on the back!

Think of the drum head as a clock face; many of the instructions below refer to positions on a clock face.

• Before you start, check that the bearing edge of the drum and the hoop are clean and in good condition.
• Put the head onto the drum (I usually position it so that the logo will be at 12 o'clock).
• Put the hoop onto the drum ensuring that the holes for the tension rods line up with the lugs on the drum shell.
• Insert all the tension rods around the drum. At this stage just get them finger tight, don't use a drum key yet.
• Once all the tension rods are finger tight, take your drum key and tighten each rod a quarter turn in the following order:
  • 12 o'clock
  • 6 o'clock
  • 2 o'clock
  • 8 o'clock
  • 4 o'clock
  • 10 o'clock
  • 5 o'clock
  • 11 o'clock
  • 9 o'clock
  • 3 o'clock
  • 1 o'clock
  • 7 o'clock
• Note - if the drum you are working with does not have 12 tension rods, use the above list as a rough quide to the tuning sequence. e.g. for an 8 lug drum go 12, 6, 3, 9, 2:30, 7:30, 4:30, 10:30
• Repeat the above process until the drum produces ROUGHLY the pitch you desire. Tap the centre of the drum head after each tuning sequence to check the pitch.
• Now fine tune the drum by taping the drum head gently with your finger or a stick about 1 inch in from the hoop by each tension rod and checking that all the pitches are equal. Following the same sequence as above and adjust the tuning of each tension rod as you go.
• Repeat the fine tuning process until taping by each tension rod produces the same pitch.

TIP - Experiment with tuning the bottom (or resonant) head equal, slightly higher or slightly lower that the top (or batter) head. There is no right or wrong, try things out and see what you like best.

Another very personal issue. I like to hear drums sounding as 'natural' as possible i.e. with little or no damping and with very careful use of noise gates on sound desks. Other people prefer a more controlled sound. You pays your money and takes your choice. Bear in mind that whoever you might be working with (band members or sound engineers) may well have a different view to your own on this matter. A little bit 'give and take' and diplomacy works far better than insisting that YOU are right and they are wrong.

If you HAVE to damp, here are a few guidelines...

Try a small piece of Gaffa/Duct tape (about 1 inch x 2-3 inches) positioned either close to the hoop or actually touching both the head and the hoop. Alternatively, invest in one of the purpose made damping products such as Moon Gel that can be reused.

DON'T fill your bass drum with old t-shirts, jackets, blankets, etc.! You might lose that annoying ring on the drum but you will also lose lots of volume and character. The key to a good kick sound is to use low mass damping. Ideally use one of the purpose made pillows such as those made by DW or Evans. Failing that, a lightweight towel folded and taped so that it is touching either the batter and/or the front head. Once again, experiment and see what works best for you. DON'T cut a huge hole in the front head! As before, you will lose lots of volume and character. A four inch hole cut carefully with a sharp knife positioned about 2 inches in from the hoop at about 5 o'clock or 7 o'clock on the drum head will accomodate virtually any mic and retain most of the power and character of your drum. Think about investing in a HOLZ hole; they are a specially made surround for kick drum ports that look great (chrome, gold or black) AND will stop the head ripping or splitting if your sound engineer is somewhat less than carefully with his mic and stand.

Firstly check the manufacturers recommendations for cleaning their drums. For most drums a weekly wipe over with a damp, clean, lint-free cloth is all they need. Be very warey of using household type cleaners as they can leave a residue which is difficult to remove or even damage the drum's covering.

Some players never clean their cymbals. They enjoy the slightly darker, warmer tone that a good cymbal will develop with age. Other people (like me) prefer their cymbals to look and sound as much as possible like the day they purchased them. There are lots of cymbal cleaning products on the market (each cymbal manaufacture produces their own plus many other brands). My personal favourite is Groove Juice which I have used for many years and find much easier to get a good, quick result that the 'cream' type cleaners.

TIP - Some cleaning products can remove the manufacturers logo that is printed on most cymbals! If you want to keep your Zildjian/Sabian/Paiste logo, try a small area first and if it looks as though the ink is coming off carefully clean AROUND the logo.

As with drums, a wipe down with a damp, clean, lint-free cloth should be enough to keep your hardware looking good. If you have particularly dirty or sticky areas, try diluted Groove Juice (1 part Groove Juice to 4 parts water).