Drum Tuning Tools – Reviewed
So, I decided to see what the buzz was about drum keys/ tuning aids available on the market.
There are two distinct types out now that differ from the standard “turn and tune” keys that everyone has used for decades.
1) A tympanic pressure gauge, which measures the tension of the drum head at each lug.
2) A torque key which can be set to a very wide tension range. These measure the tension of the tuning peg, not the head.
Each type has it’s pluses and minuses, and as a result, their specific applications. Let’s look at each in detail.
Tympanic Pressure
DrumDial
Price: between 50 and 60 dollars US.
The Good:
The tympanic tuning gauge is more expensive, but allows you to always dial in the specific tuning of the drum head. When putting heads on for the first time, this gauge, combined with a cordless screwdriver and a drum key bit, can make very quick work of getting a full kit tuned up very precisely. You don’t have to actually hear the drum at all to use this type of tuner as long as you know the settings for the drum.
For the active gigging musician, drum techs, or staff that work in a drum department at a music store, this tuner can literally save hours per week when reheading a kit. Also, Recording engineers can get a tremendous benefit in preparing a house kit prior to the drummer showing for a session.
Also, if you wish to get head tension on each lug exactly the same and then fine tune with your ear later, this will work for you. I personally do not find I can fine tune a drum to the pitch I like while it sits on a table. I need to fine tune a drum while it sits on a tom mount or stand and rings free.
The Bad:
This gauge requires the drum to be completely horizontal, on a stable surface like the floor or a table to function correctly. This is not a “tune your drums at the gig” type of tool.
Another downside is it requires you to “know” your drum, you have to know what pitch you are looking for initially and then match that pitch to the tension value on the gauge. You probably want to make some notes for each drum so you can get it done quickly the next time.
Summary:
A tremendous time saver when re-heading a kit, or bringing existing heads back in tune when you have some time to take the drums off their mounts to go through the process. I consider this an “offline” tool, but a great addition to any drummers toolkit.
Torque Tuning Key
Evans Torque Key
Price: about 17 dollars US.
Have you ever sat down on a kit at a gig and you hit a tom, and it sounds kind of funny? Then you take out your standard key, and you proceed to try and get each lugs pitch roughly equivalant, all the while in between set music is blaring in the background. You have less than five minutes until the downbeat, and at this point you will be happy to get a pure fundamental on the drum, rather than your “ideal pitch”?
Part of the problem with this scenario is that harmonic overtones of the drum can actually project stronger than the fundamental to your ear. So, each lug may “sound” like it’s in tune when one or more could be off by a 3rd or 5th etc.
Enter the Torque key.
This tool allows you to dial in a specific lug tension and once that tension is met, the key “clicks” letting you know. In practice, I found it easy to set it to match the tension value of one of my lugs as a starting point and then quickly go up or down on all other lugs until they were equal. The end result was a very nice sounding fundamental pitch, and since Ithe drum was pretty much in the ballpark to start with, the sound is what my ears wanted to hear. It took less than 2 minutes to get the drum done. That works for me at a gig.
The Good:
Inexpensive and gets each drum lug very close to each other. It can be used at a gig, while the drums are on their mounts, or when you cannot specifically listen to or hear the drum. It can also really help you in situations where you must play a kit you are unfamiliar with, like a backline rental, or a studio that has their own house kit.
The Bad:
If your drums are old, or in need of some maintenance, this key could be a problem for you. Since it works off tuning rod tension, if one rod is bent, or corroded or the threads are wrecked, it will be difficult to get the head to a specific pitch for that lug with this tool. If on the other hand, if your kit is in good shape, you take care of your stuff and maintain things regularly, this won’t be a problem.
Summary:
A great tool for live/ studio based quick tuning. Can be a time saver when completely reheading as well.
The price and size of it make it attractive to carry around in your stick bag. and if for some reason, you lose it, you won’t freak out because it cost an arm and a leg.
Let me know your experiences with either or both of these types of tools, readers will benefit from more than one opinion, or scenario.
- Jeff
4 Responses to “Drum Tuning Tools – Reviewed”
July 24th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Hello friend,
I´m from Brazil and got this tuning tool today just cant wait to use it on my kit !!
The thing is , I don´t have an idea to start up can you give me some numbers to tune my kit?
just an idea would be very helpfull!!
thanx a lot,
Marcelo
July 28th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Hi Marcelo,
Sorry for not writing back sooner, things have been REALLY busy lately.
I reviewed 2 different tools both of them are completely different in their approach and their reference points.
If you mean the Drum Dial (Which I think you probably do) then I would start somewhere around 72-74 on the batter side of your toms.
On snare, I would try up around 85-88 as a start.
These numbers all depend on a varitey of factors. What heads are you using, what type of sound are you going for etc.
Usually the best way to find out is tune one drum by ear the best you possibly can, then take your measurements on that drum, fine tuning a bit.
Then try those measurements on the other toms and see how it works for you.
As for the torque key, there is really no way to give you precise numbers because it is completely connectected to the resistance of the tuning peg, rather than the head itself.
Hope this helps, thanks for reading!
Jeff
January 5th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
I tune my drums with a tension watch want a john bottom sound so a low sound
January 5th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Hi Orlando,
I assume you mean a “John Bonham” sound, referring to the drummer for Led Zeppelin. You can find quite a bit of helpful info on the web about his drum sound and head selection, but not a tremendous amount about his tuning.
He used many different kits during his lifetime(the only major difference was the use of a 26″ bass drum at times instead of a 22″)
My ears tell me his drums were tuned fairly high rather than low from a tension point of view. The low pitch can be attributed to larger drum sizes. His toms were 14, 16 and 18 inches in diameter.
If you are using a drum dial, I would recommend starting in the 76-80 range for tops and bottoms and see what that does for you. If your drum sizes are smaller, then you will need to adjust downward towards 72-74 to get similar pitches.
Do a bit of research on head choice, that will help you quite a bit towards getting the authentic Bonham sound.
Best Regards,
Jeff
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