Tuning the Kick Drum

When recording the kick drum, I have found it best to take the front head off all together. This eliminates errant frequencies swirling around in the drum and focusses the mic on the drum itself and not the ambiance of the room. Ambiance is good for over head mics but not good for the kick drum.

As for the beater (batter) side, use the same star pattern that you used on the other drums to eliminate wrinkles in the head. Then go around and tighten each tension rod about a quarter of a turn. Once you've done that, you're done except for muffling.

Unlike the other drums, a great kick sound comes from a loose head, a good kick mic, and proper techinique by the drummer which will be discussed later.

Once you have removed the front head, put two small pillows or a small blanket inside the drum up against the beater side of the head. Your muffling material should come about a quarter of the way up the head. Next, mic the kick drum and put a thick blanket or several thick blankets over the front of the drum to reduce bleed from the other mics. Be careful not to move the mic out of position when doing this.

Now you're done tuning the drums but be sure to read the rest of the "Recording Drums" series. Great drum tracks are more than just tuning. It involves your hitting techinique, EQ, and even your sticks. All aspects must come together to get that perfect drum tracking. The good news is that each step is very much within your reach, no matter how long you've been playing.