Drum tuning

Tuning toms is the act of ensuring that: When tuning a drum, drummers must keep in mind that the top (batter) head controls attack and ring, while the bottom head controls resonance, sustain, overtones, and timbre.

The reason for this is to keep an even tension across the drum head, which is impossible to do if the lugs are tightened differently.

The process is repeated for the remaining lugs in order, moving from one side of the head to the other.

Single-tension systems largely replaced the ancient rope-tension methods in the late 19th century and are still used today in lower-priced drums for student use.

In this system, one long tension rod with a threaded end extends through the hoop holding the top drum head and then down outside the drum shell to a threaded hole in the bottom hoop.

There usually is a small guide halfway down on single-tension drum shells to keep the tension rods straight.

In older drums, the hoops are often held tight by separate clamps through which the threaded tension rod fits.

Tension is applied by turning a special key that fits into a hexagonal drive, but many bass drums (especially those models designed for concert use) have permanent wing-nuts permanently affixed to each tension rod, even on double-tension drums.

Drum heads tightened in this manner are not as tense as more modern single-tension or double-tension systems, but offer a historically deep tone in keeping with the heritage of certain music, such as Pipe and Drum Corps, Fife and Drum Corps, and historical military bands such as Field Music ensembles that were common during the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War periods.

One approach is to loosen the batter head a quarter to a half turn.