Tuning Up A Cheap Compact Drum Kit

2 of my subscribers asked me to share how I tune my Pearl Midtown cheap compact drum kit. The drum tuning method I use is fast and very easy. The sound I get is pretty darn good too! This video is also useful drum tuning for beginners.
👉Here is the link to the video review I did of this great drum kit: • The Best Cheap Compact...
👉Here is the link to my Brushes Mastery Course that I mentioned in the video: jazzdrumschool.com/course/bru...
👉Here are the links to the drum heads I use on my Pearl Midtown drum set
🥁Snare drum: amzn.to/3ByrhCo
🥁Rack tom: amzn.to/3FqqjsP
🥁Floor tom: amzn.to/3ByrhCo
🥁Bass drum batter head: amzn.to/3HRu4dZ
🥁Bass drum resonant head: amzn.to/3WhMj04
👉Here is the link to the Pearl Midtown compact drum set: amzn.to/3uq93SI
I'm using affiliate links with this video. Buying through me is a convenient way to get your drum gear and an easy way to support my KZbin channel. Thank you 🤙
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
01:13 The drum heads I use
02:26 The drum tuning technique I use
03:19 Snare drum tuning
09:11 Frequency range of drums
10:17 Rack tom tuning
11:40 Floor tom tuning
13:23 It's so fast!
13:38 Top vs. bottom head tuning
14:00 Bass drum tuning
14:23 Conclusion
14:53 Performance with newly tuned drums
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[@miguelreinosodrums]

I'm bookmarking this video as the definitive tuning guide. So easy to follow! Thank you so much Von!

[@jazzdrumschool]

Miguel thank you so much here too for your generosity! It's an honor to help you with your Jazz drumming both here and at jazzdrumschool.com. I'm glad the video was helpful. I was always struggling with tuning until I learned this simple method. In fact, today I taught this method to one of my Japanese drum students here in Japan. She got a great sound from her drum. She timed me and I got a snare drum tuned up in about an minute. After you practice this technique for a while, it'll become second nature. Many thanks again my friend 🤙

[@daviewavie112]

One of my new favorite drum channels. I’ve been learning a lot 👍🏼

[@jazzdrumschool]

Davie thanks so much for the kind words and for checking out my videos! I'm so glad they are helpful. I've also got a whole online drum school filled with drum lessons I know you'll enjoy. If you haven't checked it out, take a look: jazzdrumschool.com/ Many thanks again and keep swinging my friend 🤙

[@arasiah]

Agree. This is a super drum channel.

[@clarknova7331]

Hey Von, another fantastic, easy-to-follow tutorial. Lovely tones with the demo at the end! I finally picked up a Pearl Midtown a couple of months back after your recommendation video sealed it for me, and now I've replaced the stock heads with Skyntones, it's sounding great - I couldn't be happier with it. I might have to try the Fiberskyns next. Keep up the great work!

[@jazzdrumschool]

Clark thanks so much for the great comment and kind words. I'm happy you also got a Pearl Midtown drum set and you're pleased with it! I went to a gig the other night and the house kit was a Pearl Midtown too! It sounded great as expected. Pretty amazing how consistent the sound is from kit to kit. Keep swinging my friend🤙

[@irawong]

I agree with you on the durability of Evans Drumheads. I’m a basic, white coated kind of guy. In warm, humid climates (I think you know a little bit about summer humidity living in Japan), the white coating becomes tacky and sticky to the touch. If you have the heads stored in their original packaging, the heads will stick to the inner cardboard of the box and peel off some cardboard when the climate becomes less humid. I spoke to a representative from D’Addario at a trade show about the issue and he said the it had been resolved with a new formulation. He gave me his card, told me to drop him a line and send him an example of what I was referring to and that he’d send me free heads. He ended up sending me over $300 worth of heads, but same issue persisted over time. One thing I do from time to time is to clean the surface of white coated heads of stick marks, etc. with a Mr. Kleen Magic Eraser with some 91% Isopropyl Alcohol. The other night, I cleaned some Remo White Coated heads with A LOT of muscle and it cleaned up nicely with no coating removal. Looks practically brand new! With an Evans coated head, almost immediately the white coating started to come off as a sticky, tacky paste (basically paint) and I had to toss the head and use paint thinner to clean my hands and fingers. I told them to send me a note when they figure their coatings out. 😂 You use Remo Fiberskin heads which are so durable, they’ll last forever (unless you tear the coating). Besides, heads are so frickin’ expensive (TOTEMO TAKAI) now!

[@jazzdrumschool]

Ira! Thanks man for the comment, for watching and for your advise on the care of drum heads in humid environments. I do know what you are talking about. I remember the soot from my brushes would come off on my hands all the time in Hawaii. Happens here to in the Summer. Cool that the D'Addorio rep was so responsive. I think they're a great company. Just haven't figured out the coating yet. Yes, heads are definitely more expensive these days! 🤙

[@rhythmcaster2018]

Hi. Thank you very much making this drum tuning tutorial. This helps clarify a lot of things. I'll try your tuning and keep practicing it.

[@jazzdrumschool]

Thanks so much for the comment and I'm glad it's helpful. Please try and let me know if you have any questions. Swing on my friend🤙

[@Joethedrummer]

Cool, great demonstration, thanks.

[@jazzdrumschool]

Joe thanks for the comment and I'm glad you enjoyed my approach. If you give it a try, let me know how it goes! Keep swinging my friend🤙

[@sthulander1]

Low to high : Bb - Eb - G = 2nd inversion Eb triad. Nice video!

[@jazzdrumschool]

Nice ears! I had no idea I was tuning to those pitches. I like 3rds and 4ths in my tuning. Keep swinging my friend 🤙

[@gillesbatteur5921]

Hi ! Thanks for this demonstration ! 😊

[@jazzdrumschool]

My pleasure and thanks for the comment! If you try this way of tuning your drums, let me know how it goes. Keep swinging my friend! 🤙

[@gillesbatteur5921]

@@jazzdrumschool Thanks Von ! I discovered your videos last week, and I am literally impressed by your style of play and your pedagogy. I bought a Sonor Aqx Jazz last month, put some remo Ambassador skins (my favorites since 25 years !) in it and will try your method. IT already sounds great, it should only be able to be better! Thank you very much ! (Sorry if my english isnt very good, i'm french and use sometimes google translator 😉)

[@jazzdrumschool]

Thanks for discovering my videos! It's great to connect with you and hear about your drum setup. It's amazing how compact drum sets can sound so good. If you've got a video of you playing your drum set, I'd love to see it. Keep swinging my friend 🤙

[@arasiah]

Thank you!! I am going to try this. Do you have a recommendation on how frequently drum heads need to be changed?

[@jazzdrumschool]

Thanks for the comment, question and for watching! It all depends how much you play them. I can usually get about 6 months out of a head before I need to change it and I play quite a bit. Hope that helps and keep swinging my friend 🤙

[@djevlhelvete]

Would you say that, after getting rid of wrinkles, you barely tensioned the rods about half a turn or maybe even less? Thank you for the video!

[@jazzdrumschool]

Thanks for the question and for watching! It depends on the drum. For snare drum, I'm going to crank it tighter than the toms. It all comes down to your taste as well. I like my toms to have a beefier sound rather than a purely singing high-pitched BeBop sound. The same is true for my bass drum. Experiment with different tunings and see what you like. The key is to have the drum resonate at more or less a definite pitch. You will also enjoy the tuning section of my Brushes Mastery Course: jazzdrumschool.com/course/brushes-mastery-course If you haven't already checked it out, and you'd like improve your drum brushes playing, I know you'd love the course. Hope that helps and keep swinging my friend 🤙

[@Mobby74]

It may be a matter of a personal preference for tunining, but for my ears the drums sound a bit deadish in the final result. First, I like drums a bit higher for jazz, more singing so I am okay with overtones, and with wide open tone, so no muffling anywhere.

[@jazzdrumschool]

Mobby thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment. I hear ya about the open higher-pitched sound. That's something I forgot to include in the video so thanks for mentioning it. My tuning preference has always been a little lower than the usual Be-Bop sound. Still, the same tuning method will help you to tune the drums higher or lower. If I had tuned them up higher, I think you would have heard the sound you like. Many thanks again and keep swinging my friend 🤙