How To Tune A Snare Drum: Perfect Sound in Less Than 2 Minutes w/Rob Brown

[productofbelgium]

I knew i was right.Most drummer say : 'don't tighten your snare reso head tight!' , but i always say 'crank it up dude' :-) .And you are doing such a great job man ! We should pay or donate on your account for helping the drummers !

[mihaidrums]

I always have been a funk drummer, and I love the snare sound of Steve Jordan (from John Mayer Trio). That snare sound is so sexy, tight, and have body. Now, I know how to get that sound. Thanks man!!!! 5 Stars*****

[kook1028]

i never thought about using 2 keys at the same time before, thatll simplify things...instead of having to count my turns and then having to compensate for small little turns that I do by accident. I got a Controlled Sound X with black dot on bottom, thinking I'd get a really nice, deep sounding pop from it, I do get a pop from it, but I dont think my ideal sound is possible with my 14''x5'' snare. Mapex Meridian Maple, Controlled Sound X, Aquarian Hi-Def resonant. Would 14x7 or 14x8 work?

[penski77]

@kook1028 You'll definitely get more of what you're looking' for from a deeper shell, man. As far as going as deep as a 14x8, might not be necessary. You'd be surprised how much meat you can get out of a 14x6.5 with your head combination. However, Mapex does have a couple killer 14x7s around the $500 mark if you wanna go that way.

[penski77]

@eddievanhalenndslash Wicked. Glad it helped!

[TheHudson601]

Did this at my rehearsal last night. Worked fantastic and I'll do this with all my snares. This dude explains it right.........thanks

[Izobalax]

I'm on the market for a lovely "popping" 14x4 such as yours. Do you have one you can recommend?

[penski77]

@Izobalax Hey, man. This one here is an old Pearl JR Robinson Signature snare (before he switched to Yamaha). But it's just a 10 lug 6 ply maple shell. Honestly, nobody really makes crap these days so you're gonna be good whatever company you end up going with. As far as ones I've played personally, Yamaha's Maple Custom and Garibaldi's signature snares are KILLER if you can find a used one. Maybe just look for a good 10 lug with die cast hoops. :)

[Izobalax]

@penski77 Beautiful. Thank you for that, it's definitely appreciated. The pop you're getting from this one in the video is exactly what I'm after. The sort of snare sound I what that will cut through a kit featuring a cannon of a bass drum and open toms. =]

[Izobalax]

@penski77 Just to update, I decided to order a custom-made Highwood Custom Lite. 14x4. 4.5mm un re-enforced VG birch. Chrome Hardware with 2.3mm hoops, Cast lugs, Satin oil finish. It arrives in a week or two can't WAIT to apply this tuning to it. =D

[drumfanatik316]

This REALLY WORKS people!!! This is by far the best & easiest way to tune your snre drum and I've been playing & tuning for over 20 yrs!!! It seriously only took me 5 mins. to do this and it even eliminated some of the buzz from when I hit my toms, BONUS!!! Be sure to use 2 keys though, that is really the key because that will give you even tension all the way around!!! This truly made my snare sound so much better!!!

[drumfanatik316]

Dude, this was without a doubt the most informative & simple way I have ever heard on tuning a snare drum!!! And I've been playing for 20+ years!!! Every other instructional video is so technical that you lose interest or have forgotten what they're telling you!!! Thanks for posting this!! Can't wait to try it on my Ludwig Black Magic!!!!

[penski77]

@drumfanatik316 Man. If you have a Black Magic snare, that thing is gonna sound SMOKIN'! :)

[xdaltondavisx]

you help so much thanks man

[Slaty123]

Thanks for response, man, very nice lessons!!!

[Slaty123]

Your snare drum from "The Evolution of Hip Hop Groove" is tuned in this way???

[penski77]

@Slaty123 It is, yea. Used to be that the thinner 'piccolo' snares were popular for the kind of thing. Like 13" or 14"x3". Then dudes started switching to smaller diameter, but deeper shells. Like the 12x7 in the Evolution video. You can get the same crack and volume as the piccolos, but because it's deeper, there's a bit more body. 12x7 was the gospel drummer's size of choice a couple years ago. But yea. Bottom head tight. Top head tuned right up.

[penski77]

Wuddup Carlos. Not to use this as a slick shot to get you to subscribe to my mailing list...But it IS free and just takes a couple seconds. I do have a tom tuning video available that should help you out. My tom tuning method is a little different, but just as quick. Pop over to the site by clicking the live URL under this clip and sign up. Once I get the notification I'll hook you up with the video. :)

[SaladToppings]

@penski77 You're good my friend, you're good...

Done. Thanks again.

[SaladToppings]

Rob, would this also work on my toms and floor toms?

Thanks for sharing,

Carlos.

[ArbyMat]

Awesome, thanks for the easy and quick tip for making the best possible sound for a snare drum

[vandijkmark]

I've got a 12" maple Black Panther that's going to come alive thanks to this. Thank you...

Did you record using only that SM-57 room mic?

[penski77]

@vandijkmark Hey man. Lemmie know how that 12" sounds after you try it. Them Black Panthers are killer. As far as the room mic...You're just hearing the mic off of my Zoom Q3. Still a cool little gadget :)

[niguevara1985]

I tried this and it worked! :) Though i only did the bottom head and fingertightened the top head, but it sounds really good, even like that. Now I'm scared to tune the batter head, scared that it won't go as well.

[liquidrhythm1]

Great explanation; thanks again for simplifying the topic of tuning!

[DrumsTheWord]

Great video mate. Keep them coming!

Rob

[niguevara1985]

Do you ever check the pitch equality close to the lugs on both heads?

[penski77]

@niguevara1985 No, I don't. Once you get used to using two keys at the same time, you'll find that there's no need. I just go by feel. If a snare drum is fully out of wack already (you can normally tell by hitting it a few times with the snares off) I just back everything off and start from scratch.

[niguevara1985]

@penski77 I watched your tuning keys when you were tuning the batter head, some were going full turn, some turn and a quarter etc. And it still sounds great! I'm confused.

[twjewett]

YOU ARE THE MAN!!!

[FaithIsAccidental]

Great tips Rob, that snare is a beauty.