From the course: Drum Setup and Mic'ing in the Studio

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The proper tuning of the toms

The proper tuning of the toms

From the course: Drum Setup and Mic'ing in the Studio

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The proper tuning of the toms

- Now if we move on to the toms, how do you reconcile the tuning of the top and the bottom as a sort of rule of thumb? - Pretty much the opposite of what the snare drum is. - Oh, interesting. Okay. - Yeah, yeah. I think that the top head on a rack tom, or floor tom, should be higher than the bottom head. I think it gives you a nice bend. And, uh, let's see how this works out. This head's a little high on the top here, let me mess with this a little bit. So that sounds pretty good the way it is. It's got a nice long decay, but you're not getting any weirdness in the decay. What I look for is a smooth decay in the toms. Now it may be a little long. Some people would say, "Hey, that's a little too long. "Can you shorten that up?" and at that point I might use a little Gaffer's Tape, and Kleenex, or any number of things to tune that up, but as far as the bottom head goes on this. That is actually pretty close to the top head on this one. - Mhm. - A little lower, it's a little lower. Let…

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