How to Get a Drum’s DrumDial Number
“Tuning is all subjective…for maximum sustain you want your drum heads in-tune with its shell.”
Thanks for this. I am a happy TuneBot user but have been considering adding a DrumDial to my toolbox. They each have their advantages. The TuneBot measures actual frequency (e.g. lug frequency or fundamental), which is important since a drum head has different modes depending on where you hit it. TuneBot will get you to a target note. It can also get you to a different note for batter and reso (e.g. if you want different sustain). The DrumDial looks exciting to MAINTAIN the tuning once you achieve it. You can use the DrumDial in a noisy environment without damping the other head – the TuneBot is a mess if the rest of the band is tuning up.
How-to
1. Each drum’s shell has an innate resonant tone. Find it using tuner.
2. Get resonant head to similar tone as shell. D-sharp, for example…444Hz or whatever.
3. Place DrumDial in center of drumhead. This gives tympanic pressure of the head overall (when it’s at the same tone as the shell).
4. Make each lug’s DDN the same (as the DDN from drumhead center).
5. Repeat #2 for batter whilst damping resonant head – use tuner to mimic same tone.
6. Repeat #3 for batter head.
Now, all the lugs’ tensions match each head’s centerpoint tension, and both heads match the shell’s tone.
