Bass Drum Tuning - How To Tune Your Bass Drum

[ivanha1]

0:17 are you serious?? it sounds perfect!

[thebadjay]

this guys doesnt know how to tune a drum. a pad, a towell AND the emad dampening ring... FACT. you put a dampener in your drum and it KILLS the low end and slap from your beater. Look inside any pro touring or session drummer kick drum and you will find it EMPTY. this guy is a d-bag..that is all

[xXxdrummer49]

@thebadjay it's all personel man... it's whatever you prefer

[PatrickFromGermany]

I like the sound!

[Lazetar]

Revolutionary new way of dampening your snare, "SWAT Snare Wire Arrestor & Tuner", search "SWAT" in "Musical Instruments" category at eBay.com works great! Check it out!

[bubbasock]

All the tone is gone... too much muffling

[FalseKingPseudo]

hey i need help, my bass drum bracket broke for my 18x20 and it has six in all to hold the head but now it has five what should i do (it uses long brakets insted of short ones).

[crlaw75]

Nice looking resonant head.

[188metalhead881]

Which head is best for a bass drum? A remo, or an evans?

[thebadjay]

@188metalhead881 i have a dw kit and have tried every head on them. the evans emad, i prefer the coated emad, are my favorite... the aquarian superkick II isnt so bad either...

[thebadjay]

@188metalhead881 i use the coated evans emad on my dw set. LOVE it.

[newtonlkh]

some sound examples of low and high pitch could help... rather than fast forward everything...

[xShortyZz]

Why doesn't he use a DRUM THRONE...

[742617000027j96]

Hey, i have a question: I have been using remo heads for quite a while, so my question is: Should i go over to evans, or keep on going with remo?

[dragonman2012]

@742617000027j96 go with whichever you like, though i'm an evans man. If you go Evans, grab the EMAD 2. You won't be disappointed.

[Kamissick]

@dragonman2012

I prefer Remos, but for Bass Drums your 100% correct. Evans EMAD's are the way to go.

[colliernation96]

@742617000027j96 well i use both evans on my snare and remo on my toms so its just what ever you like

[Arcadeisonfire]

13 people use expertvillage for drum tips.

[Who2Are1You]

@Arcadeisonfire HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! i usually hate these kind of comments, but damn, that was comic gold! i seriously think expertvillage is a prank channel... and i love them for that.

[rokdog013]

the parts that are fast forwarded is just him tapping at each point and listening for the same note. you want to get the head at each tuning key playing the same tone or pitch. then after both heads are tuned you want to check the tone of the resonant and batter heads. sometimes a drum will sound like crap because the heads are tuned together.

[Jen0os]

Great job skipping the parts where you can learn something : )

[DjABBlends]

worlds most dead bass drum!

[warscarr]

so i tune the whole drum and then realise i dont have a hole in the heads to put muffling stuff in *facepalm*

[diexico]

@warscarr

lol

[IronCobraKid]

don't muffle get a kick port

[deathdog0022]

Ok, I have wrinkles in mine but the piece(bolt holder thing) won't let the bolt go in...any help would be good! Plz

[shazibIsMySon]

WTH? HE HAD A DRUM KEY ON EACH OF THE LUGS!!!

[Binxes11]

@shazibIsMySon Some kick drums are built where every single lug, except for 2, have a twisting grip on them.

[ShazibElahi]

@Binxes11 oh.... that makes sense. thank you for enlightening me,...

[jpoggi93]

ok red throne, blue drums, blue reso bass head, blue porthole protector, blue beater, ur favorite color is orange!!

[SaltyPenguinAHT]

That drum seems too muffled.

[trainmandan05]

Iv'e got to admit, You guys are good. =-)

[Clinterus]

I wish they didn't fast forward the entire way through the tapping sections.

[kiffy731]

@Clinterus all hes doing is looking for the different pitches, your drum will vary like his so it doesnt really matter, just try and make every tension rod area sound the same

[Clinterus]

@kiffy731

No I know, I do this as well. But it would still be interesting to see him to do it...to me at least.

[n0b0d1r]

Good instructional video!

[cruzdrum]

look up bob gatzen

[chdonncha]

i put two pillows in my drum and i hear is a big like "dangg!" noise :S its way too loud for an adverage bass sound i dunno how my one is so badly out of tune perhaps a new skin is needed

[GazHasJazzHands]

I had my head phones pretty loud and the intro nearly gave me a fucking heart attack.

[OfficialKaelenCanady]

@GazHasJazzHands Me too, i fell out my chair lol

[TheDustyspears]

@GazHasJazzHands Me too man. lmao

[ninjaman1777]

cool but one i use a pillow and two on the front head i hand tighned all of them and then twist bout 3times on every lug, then on the beater head hand tighin, then twist two times. This will get your bass drum soudin good!

ps:if you dont have a 22x20 bass then it might not come out as well, also make sure you have a front head with mic hole as this makes a diffence!

[misterchuckle]

Holy shit he moved fast at 2:16!

[yumyum999zz]

It is Drum Tuning Lessons like this, that continue the ambiguity in the subject.

[RoundWounds]

I think it sounded best after the first muffler. Good open sound but not too wobbly sounding either.

[SaltyPenguinAHT]

Mike Michalkow is one of the best online drum teacher I have ever seen.

[Titleification]

i love this guy,,

me no homo

[efrainargenis]

o man! thats a beautiful sound and a beautiful drum. thnx for the lesson

[ParkishVids]

it never ends!

[TheRushDrummer]

u look like Steve Carell lol!!!!

[ssonicdeafmonkey]

lol it didn't sound too bad the first time lol

[Maggot4Life6SIC6Nate]

@ssonicdeafmonkey I know right, im like wth are you talking about????

[vladywarrior]

OMG!!! lot of muffling!!!, is that a real tuning??? lol....

[godsrebals]

haha it sounded better when he first played it

[Cring0r]

worse 9 minutes of my life, p.s. that bassdrum still sounds like a dead P.O.S

[tombrenttomb]

@Cring0r i know, they mic'd his voice but used shitty camera audio for the drums. he knows what he's doing though so i trust that it sounds good in the room

[masterdrummer19]

@charlesisgayerthanyo kills the head faster... small things like scratches and dents just ruin the sound of drum heads

[Gunnershaun1380]

Lol this vid was posted on my birth day XD

[masterdrummer19]

wow, he puts the drum key against the head.. horrible choice

[juicedupnsloppy]

Now I'm not really happy with that.It looks like I'm out of towels and foam. Lets rip appart my bed and stuff more junk in there.

[superbroskie]

you wouldint be able to hear this bass drum in a live performance only if u have a mic on it!

other than that thats a really nice kit u have there yamaha is the best!

[CountYorik]

Great Video thanks.

[TheSdDRumer]

I think...

you used a lot of muffing, the towel....

the ring thing....

that sponge thing

8.10 = to me the best sound

[c0d3x001]

i really like that resonant head

[paulrox177]

wow they copied " freedrumlessons"

[vladimir0B]

@paulrox177 this is actually the same exact guy who works for freedrumlessons

[paulrox177]

@vladimir0B i guess that explains it 

[toddy1968]

by 2:12 I already had shot myself in the head. But the pillow thing is a good idea.

[metalmike83]

Best sound came at 8:54

[LB1495]

it sonds pretty good beforea anything haha and sick reso head

[drummer4life54]

why the hell do they have to use mics

[tjtonzo]

@drummer4life54 cause you cant hear it other wise dude......

[AikkuKun]

What the hell. O_O

It sounded PERFECT at 8:10. It sounded horrible after that.

[molotow76]

UR A LITTLE TO LOOSE!!!!!!!!!

[iSlinkyyyHoldThaD]

@13crusiej how come it sounds perfect and damp and yur anidiot who likes tomake their tom and bass realy loose cause they dont usetheir money on dampening rings???? Fagget.

[WillEyeAmz]

"let's go ANOTHER step forward and just stick a baby in there to muffle it even more!"

[iSlinkyyyHoldThaD]

@WillEyeAmz lol.

[Megadeaf75]

@WillEyeAmz LOL UR SICK UR SICK!!!! lol funny tho

[SimonVicFirth]

@WillEyeAmz Dude, my cat climbed into my bassdrum once (through the mic-hole) and fell asleep laying in there. Didn't have the balls to kick the pedal xD

[WillEyeAmz]

@SimonVicFirth LOL YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE IT! that's great man

[KillerDrummer88]

@SimonVicFirth I'm kind of sadic, so I would definetely try out that!! :D maybe a good rock fill with snare drum too :)

[WillEyeAmz]

his old friend is a pillow!

[Kantich]

:D:D as you can SEE .. not a good sound :D:D

[PapaKenny777]

This guy just turned drum tuning into a science...

[RADIOHEADismyname]

mike is the shit

[mqmqmwmw]

8:57 I thought he was going to drop his pants and pee it as the final tweak!

[mqmqmwmw]

Damn I can't tune it that fast!..how does this guy do it?

[COGICSticks]

i dont like the way that bass drum sound at all lol but hey its not my bass drum,hitting the drum key on the drum head hurts the head it leaves little marks,hey i tune my bass drum the same on both sides mulfing it alittle and it sounds great,bass player love my bass drum lol but again its what ever the drummer wants the drum to sound like.

[carcrashstar93]

"can you hear that?" No, I have it on mute. idiot.

[cristianriutort1]

It sounds a lot better tunned. Great job.

[fluffyninjas]

Ok so my Pearl World Series bass drum sounds like knocking on a door, is that normal, and if it is, is it considered a good bass drum sound?

[bbathtub101]

@fluffyninjas anything is considered good as long as you like it, but if you dont then just readjust your tuning on it, replace your current mulfing with whatever you want, theres loads of things you can do to change the sound of your drums :) also trying using a different pedal beater, for example mine is two sided so i have the choice of felt or plastic, like i said theres loads you can do to change the sound

[SomeoneWitSkill]

@fluffyninjas

well, it matters, u can prolly have it tuned a diffrent way to make it sound diffrent, but it doesnt matter, it goes by how u like it, do u like it sounding like its knocking on a door? if not then re tune it a lit more or a little less, im guessing by that sound its pretty lose, because i have a maple gretch and mines sounding straight thud and its really loose.

[idlehands1111111111]

this video blows, thank god i can tune on my own

[mqmqmwmw]

@idlehands1111111111 Yeah right, thats why you had to watch this video...

[idlehands1111111111]

HAHAHAHAHAHA THIS VIDEO FUCKING SUCKS!

[bobcatmonster]

can you make any bass drum sound like that, or is it the fact that it's really expensive?

[RoshanDrummer]

wok what was that?

why do you fast forward at the point that (IMHO) is the MOST important?

Let us HEAR the differences and what he is adjusting...

[6sic666666]

It sounds all the same to me..

[yigal94]

lol there is not much difference between the first sample and the last ~~

[AshtonOL]

honestly all of the last tests after the tuning all of the hits sounded the exact same.........

[carcrashstar93]

I laughed at "external ring".

[sordidsanctity]

sounds like a spastic kermit the frog

[blakey32]

"can you hear that? so i can hear a tone, so im definitely getting a sound from this head" hahahaha

[sucka11223]

Does it matter if your hole on the resonant side is not a prefect circle ? mine isnt really a perfect and it doesnt have that ring thing around it

[Incenerater]

Why tune if you stuff it full of crap? It's not like you get and kind of projection....FAIL!!!!!!!! I'm a drum tech and I cant tune right in 5 min.

[chadlius]

oh my god has it finished yet. my cymbal bag has more personality. check out his video on sucking eggs

[sundrum]

there is a huge difference between first hit and after it was tuned!

[barbaflor]

i dont even want to hear you end result ... i liked how it was anyway

[maciekomis]

wow, too much stuff inside of that "guy".

awesome tension rods! i'd love to have that! but when he's putting his pillow under the brum at 4:40 that can accually detension some of the rods.

it doesnt matter so much but still.

i liked the sound better without that towel inside!

[keybox8]

sounded better at the begining

[NiggerRustig]

It's like, start tuning, you suck at it, throw as much shit in your shell as possible, and voila

[CodyGrey]

Sooo much inside the bass drum.. That's gonna be real quiet. I use like.... Nothing?

[DrumFill09]

is that a mapex meridian stacked up behind you?

[ToOlOGT22]

how would the tuned bass drum sound without the microphone, just with the cameras microphone?

[toujames]

that's a beautiful bass drum

[steveyweveh]

@toujames YAMAHA :D

[ninjaman1777]

@toujames that and the front head! lol

[musicman387]

he kinda looks like mel gibson.

[fragglerocks94]

you have alot of old friends! hahahaha

[mmousejunkie]

thank you very much. very good information!

[plokplokersable]

soooooo, how do you tune a bass drum????

[hockeyislife6348]

for a mic

[LittleGreenBag1]

@CyanideAlecks75

my friend cut a hole in my bass drum, after i tuned it, it sounded a lot better

[MrDannyDrummer]

As a pro I will say that It´s all down to the music you are playing, but as a tip for the small pub/club gig or just practice, the more defined your bass-drum sound is , the better. so you can hear what your playing and if it is in time..so muffle it, but not too much!! ;) at the end of the day It doesn´t matter the head you put on the bassdrum as long as it´s a double ply to make it sound thudier!!

[WePureDef]

if u put a hole in ur bass drum it makes it louder :)

[BlueDragon1194]

the hole in bass drum is for the sound to come out sounds better, he dont do it, the some bass drums already come with hole..

[CyanideAlecks75]

you dont put the hole in it you buy the skin with a hole in it :)

[hockeyislife6348]

you can put one in you retard. all remo bass heads come with the template for it

[TheBlokeWhoIAm]

@MrDrumboyen

The hole in the bass drum is the hole you put the mic in when recording or just to hear it better.

sometimes people cut 2 holes out.

[mkbyrne]

i thought it sounded alright hahaha

[Borden00]

You don't need any muffling with the right heads, get the Remo Powersonic bass head, most expensive, but worth every penny, also don't be afraid to tighten up the reso head

[psycropticx]

the clear or coated one? I can't see the difference

[Borden00]

The coated head will just provide a little bit more warmth, that's it.

[organicmilk5]

which side should be tighter?

[eatrocksah]

how much muffling do you need man??? don't muffle your drums...any of them...tune the bass batter very low and the resonant medium tight...the whoe point of a resonant head on a bass drum is to RESONATE and projection

[Zimmy244]

for recording, the muffling is good, for live applications take some muffling out.

[packeltrick]

which head should be tighter?

[70359hb]

i dont know if i should put a pillow inside my bass drum or if its necessary...help

[KyleSmithR]

Maybe it would be better to tune it without a mic. To get the plain sound of the drum.

[MrDRUMVIDEOS]

Awesome!!

[austineatsbagels]

thats a lot of drum keys

[Wiswalla]

He remindes me of the Monk 0,o

[Sddrummer182]

he said that he doesn't want to muffle the drum while he's tunning but he has a pillow inside it

[carcrashstar93]

when i tune my bass drum, do i have to sound as patronising as this guy?

[sordidsanctity]

@carcrashstar93 sounds like a spastic kermit the frog

[SomeoneWitSkill]

@carcrashstar93

lol yes its part of the process :)

[maggotvenger94]

That way you get a really low bassy pitch! :D

Its a great way, and SO easy!

And why do all that fine tuning and do all those things when you can easily tune youre drum in three steps AND get a better result?

Use one pillow to muffle.

I recomend trying this method!

[bryanmcdonald19]

but sometimes with that method your batter head is too loose and you dont get the proper bounce. ive seen that video and it does work well though sound wise.

[maggotvenger94]

Thats why I tune my resonant a bit lower so that I can have my batter head higher and still get a low pitched sound ;)

But I see what you mean, and if its too loose you can just tune it a little bit higher and muffle it more and you will (most likely) get a low pitch and rebound ;)

[bryanmcdonald19]

yea man thats exactly how i got mine set up now.

[maggotvenger94]

Then you tighten each tension rod a quarter of a turn and then youre done with that side;

On the resonant side you do the same thing but you DON'T do the last quarter turn. That way your front head is really low pitched and you get a great feel on the batter head. I use Remo Powerstroke 3 on the batter side and stock pearl front heads in the front. I also cut of the internal muffling ring on the front head, but thats opptional.

I'll try to post a video on this within the next couple of weeks;)

[maggotvenger94]

I found an AWESOME and EASY way of tuning! :D

I stole one of Bob Gatzens techniques called the "wrinkle technique". Wen you do the wrinkle technique you take the batter head and tighten the head just until it resonates. then you put your hand in the center of the head and push down so you see wrinkles appear. Then you take one tension rod and LOOSEN it until you see the wrink appear and grow and when it stops growing you tighten it around a quarter turn. do this on all tension rods.

[Eddie147741]

Omfg.. brutal sound...

[MrYummy234]

do port holes make the sound any different????

[posthardcoresux]

thats the best sounding bass drum without half of the muffling you put in there.

[erikk00101]

How do you get low sound in your bass drum??

i have a pearl exr but cant get the bass drum low whitout a pillov or something

[MrYummy234]

try tuning the non kicker side lower than it and see what it dose

[bryanmcdonald19]

a low sound? haha maybe if you watched the video then you would know. different drum heads sound alot different as well. just follow the steps shown including the muffling. at least thats a perfect sound for what i like.

[DRUMSTUDDZ]

totally love your drum kit man..

wished i wish for that for my new year's gift instead of a crapy shirt not a good too (The shirt)..

[xDrumsx4xLifex]

due, your equipment is nice

[hunterlovesdrumming]

the first hit to me sounded good...lol

[BradyDZ]

Haha I know right? Well, all it needs to lose is the reverb, but other than that...! ;D

[bobcatmonster]

@hunterlovesdrumming hell, i think i liked the first one the best. :)

[Boldmeateor]

@hunterlovesdrumming I think it did too.

[CyanideAlecks75]

what kind of bass drum head do you use?

[weckl666]

he is using a evans emad drum bass head... the complete pack comes with g2 clear for toms and a coated for snare.. and resonant is a yamaha that cames with the set :p

[CyanideAlecks75]

ok cool, i got evans heads now so i will tr it

[Drummerful07]

Very Helpful :-)

[bat830]

this guys a great tuner! thanks for the videos free drum lessons!!!

[AntMessC1]

thats a nice kit

[freestylefilmsinc]

i love you bass drum resenance head