The drum dial shows how much tension is on the head at any given point. If you loosen only one rod while all the others are still under tension, the single loose rod will read higher than if all the rods were equally loose. Hope that makes sense...

Tunebot measures pitch, not tension so it's kind of a an apples/oranges comparison.

John

Mom gave me 50 bucks for my birthday yesterday and today I moved my daughter back to college. Stopped by a Guitar center an bought a drum dial. This is a well built (Made in USA,Yay!) instrument. I did not have much time to play with it tonight but I did set it on my 18" floor tom and I was surprised to see the readings all within 4 degrees or pound, whatever its called of each other.

So, now, should all the drums have about the same reading? I know it comes down to the ears and what pitch you want, I suppose I just need to experiment instead of ask stupid questions.

Jeff,

Try these settings on -all- drums.

For low-pitch: 70 on bottom and top.

For mid-range: 75 on bottom 70, or 75 on top.

For mid/high: 80 on bottom 75, or 80 on top.

The drums will sound great and at most, you'll have to tweak a rod or two to achieve perfection. Some of my drums really opened up after I tuned them with the drum dial. It's a great tool.

John

^ Thanks for the setting bruh, also why 75 for mid-range ?? i'm curious ?

Thank you John!

I tend to tune both heads to about the same pitch. Sometimes bottom heads just slightly tighter. Toms are generally 75 top and 75-76 bottom.

On the club date kit 20, 12, 14- 14x14 I tune a bit lower on the top- top 70-72, but bottom I keep at 75. I asked Drum Dial and they recommended 74 on top for the 14". Sounds great either way, to me.

check out DrumDial's video on Youtube when you get a chance. It is a several part series but tells ya everything you need to know about using it.

Justin, thank you for the you tube tip.

I cant imagine hearing the difference between 75 and 76 but im sure you pros can hear it.

Do you get lugs that you have to really crank on the key to get them where you want them, and then others that you want to go down and you loosen the tension rod way up and the gauge wont move? That has been my experience, I suppose the rim might be bent or something.

I've tried all the gadgets over the years.

The Drum Dial, the Neary drum torque, etc.

Only the Tune Bot has shown itself to be useful. Pitch, not tension, is what a drum is tuned by.

You still have to use your ears but havin a number to reference helps alot with the fine tuning.

I have found during my thousands of gigs in medium-sized venues that the kit needs to be tuned according to the size/shape/acoustics etc of the venue, as well as what kind of wood/construction was used to construct the stage/riser, how hollow-sounding the stage/riser is, temperature/humidity &etc &etc

IOW what worked at the last place sounds choked at the next, the notes I prefer to tune to might simply not work in a given venue. Of course mic'ing helps...

So for me it's been ears all the way, and always different.

Mitch

With the bottom head being a little tighter, like a 76 setting, it's not that it really changes the pitch really... at least not to the ear.. but for me it gives me a little smoother tone out of the drum. And as far as the other guys' comments- I fully agree that the acoustics of each room will vary the effectiveness of a drum's tunings. I find that overall the DrumDial is a great TOOL to use, not an end all 100% solution.

JC- also if you are having problems with a lug, it is possible that the bearing edge could be defective there, or the rim is bent. Those Drumdial videos will also address those problems and how to check/fix it if it is the rim.