Just like any other musical instrument, drums need to be tuned.

(Have your drum key handy.)

When tuning your drums, you want to achieve several goals. Firstly, you need to tune a drum so that each side of the drum is in tune. So basically the top must be in tune, and the bottom must be in tune. Secondly, you want to make sure the top and the bottom are in tune with each other. Lastly you want to tune the drums with each other, from smallest tom to largest tom drum.
If you can achieve all three your drums should sound excellent.

To go over the elements of a drum click here to see the glossary for descriptions and pictures.

When you look at an assembled drum from the top you will notice that the lugs are evenly spaced around the drum. When you tune a drum, you will follow a sequence, where you will use opposite lugs as you tune, as shown below.

Drums differ, and some may have more lugs or less lugs, just adjust your tuning sequence to suit the drum.

Before we start choose a tom and make sure the drum does not have heads on.

We will start with the bottom head. Place the head on the edge of the shell, place the rim on and start screwing in the tension rods. Finger tighten all the tension rods. Now take the drum key and tighten all the rods one full turn using the opposite lug sequence in the picture above. Repeat half turns until the drum head is flat and smooth.
Take a stick and tap lightly near each lug. What you want is to get the same sound when you tap near each lug. If the sounds are the same, the drum is "in tune with itself", and your first goal is achieved.
If some of the sounds or pitches are too high, loosen the rods a fraction. If some of the pitches are too low, tighten the rods a fraction.
Continuously tap near the lugs and monitor your progress. Repeat the process until you are happy that the pitch near each lug is the same.

Repeat the entire process on the top head.

We now have to get the top and bottom to blend. You can tune them to the same pitch, you can tune the top to a higher or lower pitch, it all depends on personal preference. Most people tend to tune the bottom head tighter than the top head.
For now we will tune them the same. Take your stick and tap the top and bottom of the drum, if the sound the same, you have achieved your second goal. If they are different, loosen the side that sounds too "high" and tighten the side that sounds too "low" until you are satisfied that they are tuned to each other.

You can now tune all your toms. You want your smallest tom to have the highest pitch, and your largest tom (floor tom) to have the lowest pitch.

The only way you will eventually get it right is to keep practicing the tuning process.

Snare Drum

Use the process as above and make the bottom head tight. You can adjust the snares using the strainer. Don't make the strainer too tight.
Play around until you are happy with the sound. Just like you get different toms for different sounds, you get different snares that have different sounds.

Bass Drum

For the bass drum, just follow the tuning process, and maybe place a pillow in your bass drum for muffling. Your front head will be fairly tight and get your batter head until it sounds the way you want.

At the end of the day, there is no right or wrong way to tune your drums. As said before it's all personal preference, so keep practising until you have a sound that you think suits you. Some days you may spend hours trying to get the right sound, other days it will take you ten minutes.

If you have any questions or comments, mail info@sadrummer.com