Okay, I know this has been covered a few times but I searched and haven't found a very good thread explaining how to tune marching snares. I will admit that I kind of suck at tuning snares...but I know for a fact there are plenty of people that have insight on this (people that marched corps, instructors, etc.). Maybe you could just write how your tech in corps tuned. I think this would help a lot of people out.

For instance:

What pitches, if any, did you tune the batter/resonant heads to?

How and what pitch did you tune the guts to?

What tips do you know of to get the best quality sound?

I know this will vary from drum to drum, but come on there are a bazillion people who could give some insight here. Thanks a lot!

I think there have been a few good posts about tuning a snare drum, but they have gotten buried in the dust over the years. However, you might be on to something. I don't see why we can't have a reference post that can be "stuck" to the board so everyone can easily find information. Not only could you find the information, but you could find different methods used by different people to create different sounds.

Thread Guidelines
Post your tuning methods for the world to see. Tell us what kind of sound you are going for and have achieved. Tell us what heads you are using and even the tools you have on hand to tune the heads/guts. Go into every detail on your tuning method (I don't want to see any one line tuning descriptions). Tell us what has and hasn't worked for you. Like any other thread, if your post is off-topic it will be deleted. If your post is not in a descriptive format it will be deleted. There isn't any need for conversation to go on between members in this thread. Let us make this a pure reference thread for members to easily find different tuning methods without having to read through garbage. This can be an invaluable guide for somebody to find information if it is done right.

I'll kick this off...

I use a head combination of Premier Tendura on top and Remo Falam on the bottom. They are both cranked pretty high and to no specific pitch. I then tune the snares to Bb (to make everyone who says its only drum corps if its in G mad). Then I place a piece of Electric tape vertical down the middle of the guts. This gives a nice staccato sound that sounds great in a line.

Derek

Snare Tuning starting from scratch:

Step 1: Place snare side head on drum.
Step 2: Dip bottom rim lugs into white lithium grease (or other lubricant of choice). This helps to prevent the lugs from binding up at high tensions.
Step 3: Place bottom rim on drum and tighten lugs until they are barely touching the rim. There should be enough tension to keep the rim and head from moving around.
Step 4: Tighten to head in a criss-cross pattern until desired tension is reached. I start by turning the key one or two full turns and then decrease to about a quarter of a turn as the tension gets higher. I use more turns at first to pull out the slack in head and then smaller turns later to keep the tension even and not over tighten one side. I typically tighten the lugs until they can no longer be turned. I do stop tightening about half way through and play on drum to let the head settle and stretch then let it sit for about twenty minutes. I have never let the drum sit over night and do the final tuning the next day, although it is typical for the head to stretch and have to adjust it later.
Step 5: I do not tune my head to a specific pitch I do however pick a lug, typically the highest pitched one, and tune each lug to match.
Step 6: My process for the batter head is exactly as my snare side. The pitch of my snare side head is close to the pitch of my batter side; just a little bit under.
Step 7: Turn off snare and slide a pen under the guts on the side opposite of the snare throw off.
Step 8: I tighten the first gut, starting from any side, and then tune the rest of the guts to match, but plucking it like a guitar listening for the pitch.
Step 9: I adjust the snare height so the guts are just resting on the snare side head.
Step 10: Re-engage the snare and test for overall sound of the drum. Adjust snare, batter, or snare as needed.

The sound I am going for on my set-up is a high and crisp sound. When my snare is turned off it sounds like a table top, but when it is on it does have a nice clean and wet sound. In addition I have two small strips of paper towel on the under side of the snare side head (inside the drum). They are next to the shell. Both are about three inches in length and one inch in width and held in place with white electrical tape. I use a Black Max or Falam batter side and Falam snare side head. I use a Pearl T-Bar drum key and a short stubby Phillips head screw driver for the guts. The screwdriver is only about three inches in overall length.

I posted something on cavaliers.org, and Paul replied with this. I don't agree with cutting the snares down so there are only eight. Otherwise, it is pretty straightforward.

1. Tuning Your Marching Snare Drum
This short document is a step-by-step how-to guide on successfully tuning a Yamaha sFz snare drum. First, we must define the type of sound that is desired in our performing and practicing situations. Next, we must discuss top and bottom head changing and general care, and individual snare tuning.
Sound
The most important word to consider when tuning a snare line in an advanced, contemporary field percussion ensemble, is "short". It is important to see that "high" doesn't necessarily mean "short". Therefore, it is important to check other aspects of tuning the snare drum that doesn't necessarily involve the drum heads themselves. The snare sound should be crisp and articulate, with little or no after-ring.
The Bottom Head
The bottom head, or "snare-side head" should often be tuned first; it is often the bottom head that determined the "shortness" of a drum's sound. Here are the steps to changing and tuning a snare-side head:
1. Take the old head off and throw it away. Check to see if any tension rods (lugs) are bent, or washers are missing. Check tension rods by placing on the ground and rolling; if there is a "wobble", they need to be replaced. Do not take the tension rods from the rim, unless they are bent. When replacing a tension rod, dip about 1/8th of an inch of the new rod into Vaseline, and then place it back into rim.
2. Take a clear plastic bottom head, and spread paraffin wax (used on surf boards and for canning veggies) in great amounts along the inside of the head's metal hoop. Continue further inside, for the head will definitely stretch a great deal.
3. After you are sure all tension rods and washers are in good shape, take the rim off (with washers still hanging) and place the new, clear plastic head on the bearing edge. Place the rim back on the drum, and tighten the tension rods lightly until you can no longer move them with your fingers.
4. This step is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: make sure that the head is on the bearing edge evenly, this means that there is the same amount of space between the bearing edge and the rim all the way around.
5. Tighten each tension rod with a spin key about one quarter turn, starting on the tension rod (lug) immediately to the left of front center (about 7 o'clock) and goi8ng around in a clockwise manner. This will be referred to as the "reference lug". Then check the spacing of the rim and the bearing edge again. Check the rim to avoid any "roller coaster" (rippled heads) effects early on. If you neglect this step, the head will already be unbalanced; this significantly shortens its life and allows only about half of its full cranking (tuning) capacity.
6. After complete evenness is achieved, begin on the reference lug, and tighten in 180 degree increments (half turns), But continue ACROSS THE DRUM rather than around. Be careful to keep track of where you are! Continue for about 3 revolutions about the rim, then wait a few minutes for the head to stretch. Then continuing again, in the same increments, until the pitch is high enough that its sound blends with the top head's sound. Of course, it won't be as tight, but it shouldn't be significantly lower.
7. Before each rehearsal or performance, tighten the head CLOCKWISE in 1/8-1/4 turns all the way around, being sure always to start with the reference lug and end with the one before it.
8. Be careful not to base your tuning entirely on feel. Always be looking at the rim to avoid unevenness.
9. Above all, keep tuning your bottom head. This head is always changing, especially with climactic inconsistencies. If the drum sounds bad, check the bottom head. But if it sounds great, leave it alone=)


The Top Head
We use Premier Tendura brand top heads, which are made of an extremely durable and bullet proof material called "Kevlar." These heads are strong enough that without proper care while tuning, significant damage can be done to the free floating top unit of the sFz. This damage comes in the form of "egging" (ovaling of the rim). Once a top unit is "egged", a new head will no longer fit its dimensions. Here are the steps in tuning a top head:
1. Follow step one, for bottom head tuning.
2. Paraffin wax is applied, but rather than to the head itself, apply a healthy amount to the metal bearing edge.
3. Follow step 3, above, except be sure that you put the rim back on in the same spot that it was before. To facilitate this, place one tape marker on the rim, and one on the top unit, to signal the correct tension rod placement when the new head is placed on the bearing edge.
4. Follow step 4 as above.
5. Starting with the reference lug, tune the top head in the same way as you would tune the bottom head, checking for evenness, etc, except continue to go around the drum, not across. Also, with Tendura heads, it is best to tune them as much at first as possible. In other words, try to make the drum sound high in pitch right away. Once a Tendura settles, it is hard to tune it up again to maximum crispness.
6. Often, if a Tendura has been exposed to unsuitable weather conditions (primarily wetness), it will become "dead" sounding after a number of days. It is recommended simply to change a head such as this, as it will never sound good again.
Tuning the Snares
Often a "wet" sounding snare drum is the result of poorly tuned snares. If the snares are too lose, they sound wet, or long. If they are too tight, they sound choked off, and cause the drum to ring significantly. If one is having trouble getting the drum to sound short, it is helpful to check the snare tuning. Tune the snare in the following way.
1. Obtain a very small flathead screwdriver, and two pencils or pens.
2. Turn the drum over, and throw off the snares (the snare throwoff device is opposite the snare tuning screws).
3. Place a pencil approximately three inches inside the rim, under the snares to suspend the snares for tuning, then throw the snares back on.
4. Plucking the long parts of the snares should give a distinct pitch to each one, like playing a guitar or harp. Starting with the outside snare, tighten or loosen the twelve screws until the pitch is uniform among all snares. Go for a high pitched sound, that resonates well.
5. Keep in mind that once you have tightened one, tightening others will affect the pitch of that one. It is impossible to get all of the snares exactly the same pitch. If they are relatively tight, and are nearly the same pitch, the snare sound should be crisp.
6. If the drum sounds choked off or ringy after tuning the snares, you may have gone too far. Loosen them up a bit, still focusing on a distinct pitch.
7. Also, usually these snares come from the factory with 12 or more snare. We will generally cut off four of these, so that each snare has eight snares. Often too much snare sound results in the "fat" or "long" sound that we so detest.

Paul Milano
FMM 70-74

Although (making this longer), I don't know why it doesn't say to tune to a certain pitch. Because the heads are ever changing (bottom heads)?

Update:

Just a little more info for whoever wants it...the BD that I work for showed me how he tunes his drums. He went to a couple Blue Devils clinics to learn what he knows. The batter head is tuned to a D, and the bottom head to a B (minor thirds, top head higher). Guts to a low pitch, so they don't get overtightened. The snares on my line are slightly bowed on either side, not just resting on the bottom head, to get a little more response. The guts are tightened just enough to get a response from the batter (top) head, maybe a little more but not overtightened. The BD is 51, and he's been a teacher for 17 years. I have to say for him not being a drummer, he has an excellent way of tuning drums. I hope this helps you guys out.

Drum: Pearl FFX 1412
Top Head: Remo K Fallm II w/ center dot
Bottom Head: Remo Hazy Deplomat

Step 1: Take both rims all the way off and place a bit of lube in each hole. This will one, keep the lugs from binding up, but also will make it easyer to tune higher.

Step 2: Put bottom head on. Tighten 4 full turns after finger tight. This will allow the bottom head to seat and streach.

Step 3: Put on the top head, Place the drum on a folded up bath towel so you only hear the top head.


Step 4: Tighten top head till it no longer has a bad overtone/ring. All turning should be done in a circle. Crank 2 1/4 turns after head sounds free of ring.

Step 4: Tighten bottom head slowly over about a week till only 1-2mm of rim stick out over edge(ONLY ON A Pearl SNARE)

Step 5: Adjust gut hight so there is a slight bend bent from the bearing edge. The gut must be quite tight. And tuned all the same.

The result: When played OUTSIDE it will have a very high wet sound. If Played inside it will sound bad.

-Joey

For my Premier pipeband snare (HTS 700) I use a cybermax top head which is an inprovement over the older tendura heads, and a everplay hazy bottom. For our tuning we use the Jim Kilpatrick tuning block. It's sorta like a feeler gage for the top and bottm heads. It allows for a more even tension across the top and bottom heads. I feel it's better than going diagnal and better than the Tama tuning dial; which is great for basses and tenors. I've heard of some guys modifing the block for other drums(Pearl,Yamies, etc..). But for the most part, we'll take the highest pitch drum and tun to that by way of the bottom head. Then test and retest and adjust accordingly..

Drum: Premier HTS 780
Top Head: Evans MX White
Bottom Head: Evans MS3 Clear

When Replacing both heads:

After removing and tossing (or giving them out, whatever) both heads, be sure to inspect the rims, shell, and cage for any signs of wear or damage, fix anything that needs fixing, and make a note of everything else. Replace the shell in the cage, making sure to line the badges and stickers up right (doesn't affect the playing, but just looks better). Clean the bearing edge on the bottom of the shell with a DAMP (not WET) paper towel or clean rag. make sure all moisture is removed after this step.

Place the bottom head on the bearing edge making sure it's even, and stays even throughout the process. tighten the lugs finger tight, greasing all of them with petrol. jelly. After finger tightening, use a key to tighten the head to the desired pitch. Usually at MHS, we just tune the heads until they sound good, not to a specific pitch. We use too many key changes in a show to even bother trying to tune our snares like tympani.

When tuning the guts, a specific pitch again isn't looked for, just a feel of what sounds good. Slide a pencil under one end of the guts and turn the snares on. Pluck the snares like guitar strings to find your pitch, picking the one you like and tuning the rest to that.

Replacing the top head follows much the same procedure, however instead of criss-cross tuning, tune in a circle once the lugs are finger tight. Again, no specific pitch is necessary, simply tune the heads to a good pitch. Put the drum on a pillow when tuning, in order to dampen the bottom head and the snares.

If desired, tape guts with one strip of stick tape in the center of the bottom head, or two, evenly spaced strips.