SSC Tom Tuning Troubles

[paradiddlediddle666]

Hey all!

As the title implies...I'm having a bit of difficulty getting my toms 'dialed in' just right! First off...Let me say that I'm perfectly happy with my kit and I'm not faulting the drums in any way (I'm chalking this up to 'operator error', for sure!). Tuning the toms has been kind of a hit-or-miss experience for me.

Here's the deal:

I've got the pitch of the batter heads just right, but I'm having trouble getting the resonant heads evenly tuned where they're not causing weird overtones in the toms.

For reference, I'm running coated G2's over coated G1's. My tuning scheme has been:

After finger tightening each tension rod...

* 1/4 of a turn on the batter side
* 1/2 of a turn on the resonant side

The difficulty I'm facing comes from not being able to get a nice consistent pitch from rod-to-rod on the resonant side.

Any SSC owners have any useful words of wisdom? Thanks in advance!

[jay]

Perhaps it is a bad bearing edge.

[paradiddlediddle666]

Perhaps it is a bad bearing edge.

No. The drums are ALL structurally sound.

[vtdrumdude]

After finger tightening each tension rod...

* 1/4 of a turn on the batter side
* 1/2 of a turn on the resonant side

The difficulty I'm facing comes from not being able to get a nice consistent pitch from rod-to-rod on the resonant side.

Any SSC owners have any words of wisdom? Thanks in advance!

Sounds to me like you are trying to tune them too low - 1/2 turn past finger tight is probably not enough tension to get a good stretch on the head. i would try adjusting your tuning up slightly to see if the overtones go away, or at least become tolerable. Also a good idea if you are going for a very loose tuning is to tension the head well past the tuning you want at first to let it stretch and seat and then tune back down to the pitch you want. Also, are you muffling the opposite head as you tune? If not this might help you isolate pitches much easier. Or just get a Tunebot. I have an SSC kit and even though they do prefer to be tuned lower, any drum has a point where there isn't enough tension on the head to pull it taught in all directions - just a slight tweak upwards can really make a big difference.

[The Kurgan]

Have you heard someone else play your kit?

Also try fluffing out a cotton ball and leave it inside.... 1/2 piece on smaller toms.... Works great.

[MitchLyons]

Tune them higher then you'd expect. Tuning anything just above wrinkle is the worst way to tune anything

[DeanHartley]

Have you heard someone else play your kit? Also try fluffing out a cotton ball and leave it inside.... 1/2 piece on smaller toms.... Works great.

I do this for my floor tom and it sounds great.

[IMF1]

I do find that these drums can be "fussy" to tune at times. I find myself tuning them lower than previous sets, particularly the resonant head. I find that it's critical to get just the right relationship between the top and bottom heads or they either sound too high and boingy or flat and dead

[paradiddlediddle666]

I do find that these drums can be "fussy" to tune at times. I find myself tuning them lower than previous sets, particularly the resonant head. I find that it's critical to get just the right relationship between the top and bottom heads or they either sound too high and boingy or flat and dead

That pretty much sums up the issue! Achieving an evenly tuned batter head isn’t a problem…It’s trying to discern same pitches (and get an even sound from the reso) from one tension rod to the next on the resonant side. This, coupled with the fact that I’ve yet to find the ideal relationship between the top and bottom heads.

Typically, I tune the resonant side higher than the batter. How much higher is the million-dollar question. I was hoping some SSC owners could provide some insights.

[IMF1]

I find that these drums sound best with the heads fairly close in pitch, with the bottom slightly higher for projection. I'm not sure what the number of turns is. Maybe 3/4-1 turn for the bottom head and about a half turn past where the rods start to bite for the top head. Depends on the heads you're using too I suppose. I use Evans EC resos on the 10 & 12 rack toms and clear G1s on the 14 & 16 floor toms as I like my larger drums to sustain for longer. I'm using Evans EC2s on top of all my toms. I find them a little less fussy in terms of errant overtones and easier to tune up than the G2s I used previously. I'm curious if anyone here uses single ply batters on their toms. Seems like everybody uses 2 ply heads as well

[paradiddlediddle666]

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions; However, I don’t think I effectively explained my issue.

I understand and follow all of the fundamental tuning conventions (moving around the drum in a star-shaped sequence…depending on the number of lugs; tuning in small increments; choosing a lug with the most pleasing pitch and using it as a ‘reference lug’ to pitch match the other lugs to; etc.),
But, I just can’t seem to evenly pitch match my lugs all the way around the drum. As soon as I get the majority of them to match, there’s always one that’s a bit off, and when I adjust that one, it throws off the pitch of the other lugs.

Basically, I end up chasing pitches around the drum. I generally have good luck with batter side…it’s just the resonant side that seems to give me trouble. I’m getting pretty fed up and I’m about ready to say, “Screw the resonant heads, I’ll just remove them and play my toms single-headed (similar to Lars in the “…And Justice For All” era).

I’m not an idiot! I KNOW what a properly tuned drum should sound like. I just can’t seem to get the hang of it! I’ve watched countless numbers of videos on Youtube, Followed the advice of various drummers, but with no success!

Oh…and yes…I’ve tried both the Tune-Bot and Drum Dial. Despite carefully reading the instructions, watching ‘How to’ videos on YT, Even speaking to the manufacturers on the phone, I couldn’t get either of those devices to work for me. I realize there are many of you out there who’ve used them with great success…I’m just the rare exception, I guess.

[The Kurgan]

Try tuning the head by feeling near the lug for pressure..... Adjust the head normally so that each screw is equally tightened, then instead of listening to the pitch at each screw use your finger & feel the head pressure.... Adjust the screws so it feels the same at every lug.... Then make any minor adjustments based on pitch.

& try the cotton ball trick.... It works great.

[paradiddlediddle666]

Try tuning the head by feeling near the lug for pressure..... Adjust the head normally so that each screw is equally tightened, then instead of listening to the pitch at each screw use your finger & feel the head pressure.... Adjust the screws so it feels the same at every lug.... Then make any minor adjustments based on pitch.

& try the cotton ball trick.... It works great.

I tried your “tune by feel” technique and it has given me the best, most consistent results! With a little practice, I think I’ll be in good shape! Thanks for the helpful tip! And yes, I’ve tried the cotton ball trick with my floor tom, and it definitely helps tame the sustain!

[The Kurgan]

I tried your “tune by feel” technique and it has given me the best, most consistent results! With a little practice, I think I’ll be in good shape! Thanks for the helpful tip! And yes, I’ve tried the cotton ball trick with my floor tom, and it definitely helps tame the sustain!

Glad it helped.

Early on I went to a Drum store.... Owned and operated by drummers.... I took a snare in for some help with tuning & he tuned it by feel without even listening to the lugs. After he finished it sounded better than it ever had & he never listened to it....all by feel. Since then I tune all my drums that way.

[paradiddlediddle666]

Glad it helped.

Early on I went to a Drum store.... Owned and operated by drummers.... I took a snare in for some help with tuning & he tuned it by feel without even listening to the lugs. After he finished it sounded better than it ever had & he never listened to it....all by feel. Since then I tune all my drums that way.

I started by tuning from feel; When I got the drum in a range I was happy with, I tapped around each lug and listened to the pitch. Surprisingly, a great majority of them matched and I only had to make slight adjustments to one or two tension rods to get everything singing nicely!

I think the more I use this method, the more sensitive I’ll become with the drum key!