Snare Reso Tuning: Ruler Method Explained

Snare Reso Tuning: Ruler Method Explained | Season Four, Episode 39

Рет қаралды 10,466

Күн бұрын

In the years since we first referenced the “ruler method” for snare side (snare reso) setup, we’ve received a myriad of questions about how to make it work for different drums, different snare beds, etc. We decided it was about time for a new video demonstrating some augmentations to the practice and a few tricks for ensuring the best possible experience with this method, regardless of the drum you’re using it on.
0:00 Intro
1:10 Identifying Snare Bed
3:25 Mounting the Snare Reso
3:46 Base Level Tension
4:41 Initial Height Measurement
5:57 Balancing Height Around Drum
7:16 Variables from Different Drums
10:13 Snare Demonstration
11:45 Why Use This Method?
13:07 Wrap Up
PATREON:
This season is made possible by our Patreon supporters. Join us on Patreon for access exclusive content such as Cymbal Sounds, our long awaited cymbal series, and MUCH more: sladl.ink/Patreon
PRODUCTION PARTNERS:
GIK Acoustics (sonic treatment): sladl.ink/GIK
AKG Audio (microphones): sladl.ink/AKG
Evans Drumheads: sladl.ink/EvansDrumheads
ProMark Drumsticks: sladl.ink/ProMarkDrumsticks
Signal chain:
Mics - Focusrite Clarett 8Pre USB & OctoPre - MacPro w/Pro Tools 12.8
Recorded at 48kHz / 24bit
Overheads: (Matched Pair in Glyn Johns - Cardioid) AKG C314 sladl.ink/C314Pair
Snare & Toms: AKG C518M sladl.ink/C518M
Kick Drum: AKG D12vr sladl.ink/AKGD12VR
No EQ or compression in use with drum demos unless otherwise noted
Acoustic Treatment:
GIK 242 Acoustic Panels: sladl.ink/GIK242
GIK 4A Alpha Pro Series Diffusor/Absorber: sladl.ink/GIK4aAlphaPro
GIK Evolution PolyFusor Combination Sound Diffuser/Absorber: sladl.ink/GIKEvolutionPolyFusor
GIK Tri-Trap Corner Bass Trap: sladl.ink/GIKTriTrap
Drums:
Pearl Masters Maple Custom Extra
Cymbals:
14” old K clone by Jesse Simpson over Zildjian New Beat Top,
Drumheads:
Snare: Evans UV1 / Snare Side 300
Toms: NA
Kick Drum: Evans UV EMAD / EQ3 Coated White Reso
Hosted by: Cody Rahn
Production & Consulting: Ben O'Brien Smith @ Cadence Independent Media
👂🏼👉🏼🥁
Leave your questions, comments, suggestions, requests down below and don't forget to subscribe!
*NOTE: Troll comments will be deleted. You're welcome to disagree with whatever you like but let's keep the conversation civilized and focused on drums.
--------------------------
Sounds Like a Drum is a CADENCE INDEPENDENT MEDIA production
For more information, visit www.cadenceindependent.com
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Пікірлер: 56

@AdamSoucyDrums 2 жыл бұрын

Remains the single most life-changing technique you guys have talked about on here! Great update 😊

@johnreardon4944 2 жыл бұрын

I agree wholeheartedly!

@Ds_Drums 2 жыл бұрын

Great vid and great timing. I am working on my 9 snare drums. New heads, take apart and polish, general overhaul. This is a great foundation for me for which to start. Thank you so much for posting.

@BeesWaxMinder 2 жыл бұрын

This Channel should do a section on how many Snare Drums someone should own to cover every eventuality (I know I have too many Snare Drums but I’m not sure just how many IS too many😵‍💫!)

@drumsoup1695 2 жыл бұрын

@@BeesWaxMinder It’s (N+1)-D, where N is what you’ve got and D is the point at which your significant other dumps you.

@BeesWaxMinder 2 жыл бұрын

@@drumsoup1695 😂👍

@byrondickens 2 жыл бұрын

Using a small combination square for this would eliminate any parallax error from looking at the ruler from different angles.

@danielcohn6884 Жыл бұрын

This comment should be pinned!

@EricMartinPercussion 2 жыл бұрын

Great video! I really appreciate how you defined all your terms at the beginning. It really made everything easy to understand. I’ve been using the ruler method since you guys first showed it, and it’s been working very well for me. Thanks for all the great info!

@roycox4415 2 жыл бұрын

The entire time I was watching your first video on this method and now this video, I was thinking that it was the silliest and most unnecessary thing I have ever heard of. Then I tried it. All I can say is thank you! It absolutely works and it’s a game changer for finicky snares that require more “perfect” snare bottom head treatments. Well done guys.

@magmorix3883 2 жыл бұрын

This makes so much sense! Definitely going to try this soon!

@ayuu. 2 жыл бұрын

I love the ruler method! Been waiting for an update since the first one was out! THANK YOU SO SO MUCH! Love this! ❤🧡💛💚💙💜

@BUDBY13 2 жыл бұрын

I love these videos, there Very professional, very informative.

@DrumFly 2 жыл бұрын

I've been using this method for couple of months. thanks for sharing.

@mickeyalbi 2 жыл бұрын

This is ironic because I just bought a new reso head for my snare. Just in time for me to tune it correctly! Thanks guys!

@cor3ylee 2 жыл бұрын

Perfect breakdown of the method!

@arturosaenz9208 2 жыл бұрын

Heading to my drum dungeon,this technique I have to try,I've have always tensioned by ear and feel,this way is totallydifferent.thank you for your information

@drumjedi5301 2 жыл бұрын

I've never considered the ruler technique. Thanks for this, going to try it the next time I replace a snareside head.

@silhy37 2 жыл бұрын

Interesting man, Tomorrow I'll try the ruler method for the snare Reso. I normally tune in general with a Drum Dial, ear and finger pressure on each lug to fine tune on the way up.

@drummercarson896 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome video

@leoparcoeur 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@substylee3129 2 жыл бұрын

Getting some Deftones - Passenger vibes from that beat 7min mark. Cool video man I will try this and see how ti goes.

@groovehog1 2 жыл бұрын

So I had some time to use the measure technique on my Supraphonic while doing some recording yesterday. The change in how that drum recorded before and after was really extraordinary. I’ll preface what I found by first saying that while I’ve spent a fair amount of time playing in the studio, I’m a total newbie to the engineering/tech side of it and there’s more I don’t know vs what I do. Before even recording it, the most obvious change to my ear was the increased amount of sensitivity and resonance the drum had. Under the mics, that was ever more noticeable. But the biggest surprise was with how that little change totally cleaned up the picture. When isolating the top and bottom snare mics, the drum sounded open, resonant, and “clear”. The crazier thing was that it was equally noticeable with all the mics on. Best I can discern is that the wonky overtones you’d normally get from uneven wire tension across the head creates a lot more “noise” in the raw recording. So while there’s still the typical snare wire buzz that happens as you play other drums, it’s clean and open. All the weirdness of ambient overtones bleeding into other mics and interacting with other drums was eliminated. Again, as a complete newbie to the engineering side of things, there’s now so much less to have to sort out when approaching the actual mix. It makes it much less overwhelming and intimidating, and that’s a big deal!!

@weezypeezy4366 2 жыл бұрын

Bruh … what kind of hats are those 😍 🔥 Much obliged

@danielcohn6884 Жыл бұрын

Hi again Cody (or Ben). Just joined the Patreon. Your content is invaluable. Question (if you have the time): I just acquired a 70s supraphonic in fantastic condition, practically no pitting, all original. First time using one. First experience with a Ludwig believe it or not. I tried putting a new Evans snare side 300 on it using your ruler technique (2.0). i cleaned and lubricated t-rods, set the head as evenly as possible (the snugness seems inconsistent around the bearing edge, some wobble, but seats down well enough when I press it down a little). I finger tightened, performed turns, and checked the heights only to find they're dramatically different on the throw vs butt plate side. In fact, the hoop height is visibly different (>~ a half cm). Submitting more thread visible on the t-rods on the naturally low side than on the side I'm trying to bring down, suggesting there is (in theory) much more tension being applied on that side. I have to apply what seems like an inappropriate amount of tension on the high side taking it way out of range of where I'd expect to be finding even pitch, in order to bring it down to match the lower height. I'm applying almost no tension beyond finger tight on the low side, they're just barely clinging. Normally I'd worry about the drum being out of round, but is that something that can even happen with a supra? It looks true to my eye, as do the hoops, though I haven't measured them. Next, I'd worry about the head being bad, but I've never had a wonky head from Evans before. New Ludwig X thin snare side head on the way in case that's the issue. Is it possible the head is sliding off to one side after seating the hoop for some reason? What could cause this and how can I remedy it? Drum doesn't sound to bad. Some swuirliness and extra noise from the wires, but it could be my knot/uneven wire tension to blame rather than the head. Or it could be the tremendous dissonance in tension/pitch causing it...

@Eurodrummer666 2 жыл бұрын

As usual I give a thumb up even before watching the video.

@SoundsLikeADrum 2 жыл бұрын

Well shoot! We appreciate your faith!

@Eurodrummer666 2 жыл бұрын

@@SoundsLikeADrum I know it'll be spot on, and I especially like snare related videos, since they helped me a lot to obtain and understand how to tune them effectively. By the way, what about making a video about 10" "baby" snares?

@chewygad7899 2 жыл бұрын

Hail Satan.

@Eurodrummer666 2 жыл бұрын

@@chewygad7899 lol

@VasilisKoskinas 2 жыл бұрын

I have a question, in my experience with using tension based tools to tune a head,(like tention watch for example), I found after starting developing my ears a bit better on hearing pitch, that if you put the same amount of tention on a lug around the drum, it doesn't mean that the pitch is going to be the same.So, how acurate is that method when you're trying to tune all the lugs at the same pitch in any drum of course and not only bottom SD head?

@ScottyBradley 2 жыл бұрын

This is full of lots of great information. I would love to have more video of the ruler in the correct location on the snare side head with voiceover. I'm still confused about what the ruler actually touches, the head or the bearing edge?

@SoundsLikeADrum 2 жыл бұрын

The ruler should be sitting atop the head at the bearing edge. You're looking for consistency in the height of the counter hoop above the bearing edge. This is shown several times throughout this episode.

@EvanBDrums Жыл бұрын

I have a question about the point at which we measure. Do we place the base of the ruler on the bearing edge, and then measure to the top of the hoop? I found it quite hard to see exactly what was happening with the ruler in the video.

@sarfarazsultanoo 2 жыл бұрын

is there any impact when the tom is 11,75inch instead of 12 for the tuning?

@Jeremy_Sims 5 ай бұрын

So I have some questions for this video. Do you measure the height of the snare head in between the tension rods in between the snare bed only? Also, when he first started he said he needed to measure the tension rods adjacent to the snare wires, does that change based on how wide the snare bed is?

@TessaAnderson 2 жыл бұрын

Do you have a video discussing number of port holes on a drum and how that effects it? I have been considering adding one or two more port holes to my pdp concept wood hoop kit because it has a beach ball sound sometimes. Any thoughts ??? I looked up on KZfaq and there is nothing about it

@SoundsLikeADrum 2 жыл бұрын

Do you mean ports in the shell of the drum? Nope, we've yet to explore that topic but, generally speaking, ports allow more air to escape creating a drier and louder sound. Porting drum shells may or may not help with some of those weird overtones, which tend to come from the internal shell symmetry. We've explored a couple of non-invasive hacks to help mitigate these issues in previous episodes including this one: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/gtCkZs6httnLgJc.html

@TessaAnderson 2 жыл бұрын

@@SoundsLikeADrum I’m trying to avoid a beach ball sound So ya My shell has one port pdp I heard noble and Cooley puts a bunch of vents on their toms or something. I must be crazy

@drumsoup1695 2 жыл бұрын

@@TessaAnderson See the cotton ball method on this channel. Works for me.

@groovehog1 2 жыл бұрын

God I love this channel! Too bad I already spent $ on all those other gadgets. 😬🤣

@mrgurbik 2 жыл бұрын

I somehow have a memory of you mentioning an actual product that orchestral percussionists use to achieve the same effect. Is that something that's available to buy? Perhaps SLAD should design and market their own. I'd buy a dozen

@danielcohn6884 Жыл бұрын

I see you guys are using the pure sound straps. I know in earlier videos you guys said you were partial to string for it's superior elasticity/extensibility. Do you guys still feel that way, or has sentiment changed?

@SoundsLikeADrum Жыл бұрын

We use the straps on the Custom Pro series (with the quick release cotter pins) but strings for everything else. That’s just our preference after setting up hundreds of drums and experimenting with most of the snare wires on the market.

@danielcohn6884 Жыл бұрын

@@SoundsLikeADrum thanks for clarifying. Your content is unmatched in it's utility and honesty

@Juniscrazy 2 жыл бұрын

I’ve tried this with an index card didn’t have a 📏 when I first saw your past video. Have to say the snare buzz has been lovely on my snares

@brandonplaysdrum 7 ай бұрын

I think I bent my die cast snare side hoop doing this. Is that normal?

@SoundsLikeADrum 7 ай бұрын

This is less common with die cast hoops but certainly possible. The amount of bend should be quite minimal given the amount of resistance.

@brandonplaysdrum 7 ай бұрын

@@SoundsLikeADrum thanks 👍🏻

@Juniscrazy 5 ай бұрын

Shouldn’t bend with this since this is making it even all around. The snare should by at the same high everywhere so it wouldn’t be bent unless it was bent already

@mistermysticmusic3307 2 жыл бұрын

I like mine tight to sound like straight high "BAT" Sound from snare with not so much res..I do play alot of hiphop. Maybe that's why idk..I need 2 snares 4 Real so I can interchange...but that snare sounds great I like it.

@BeesWaxMinder 2 жыл бұрын

Do you think things like The Drum Dial are ever needed..?

@SoundsLikeADrum 2 жыл бұрын

We've never needed them but they could certainly be helpful in experimenting. The key is not to let tools like that become a crutch. Even with this method you don't really need a ruler- you could use all sorts of things to help check for consistency of height. Beyond that, trust in your ears. Cheers!

@BeesWaxMinder 2 жыл бұрын

@@SoundsLikeADrum cheers 👍

@dconsmack 2 жыл бұрын

I agree with Cody. It’s best to have the knowledge and control over your tuning without them. However, I’ve found the Tune Bot and Drum Dial helpful for quantifying my work AFTER I’ve figured it out without them. If you’re in a consistent environment and want to quickly get back your previous results you can reference the readings from those devices as a quick starting point. But, they can never replace your ears and experience of experimentation and practice of tuning by using your ears.

@BeesWaxMinder 2 жыл бұрын

@@dconsmack That makes sense and it’s good to know -thank you so much for sharing