How To Properly Change Snare Drum Heads

Sometimes, replacing your snare drum heads is the most tedious and time consuming task out of any of the other drums. You need to take the snare off, the rims, and make sure it’s tuned right or it’ll throw your entire mindset off while playing. Check out the video, or follow along with my instructions to see the quickest, easiest way to achieve this.

Begin by taking the top head off. To keep tension even around the drum, loosen the tension rods as if you were tuning the drum, by doing opposite sides simultaneously, instead of just going down the line.

After the top head is off, flip the drum over and begin to take the snare off. For this step, I would losen the tensioner, to make the snares loose and easier to work with. The last thing you want to to be loosening a tightened snare and not have any idea what that tension is going to do once it lets go.

Once the Snare is out of your way, continue by loosening all of the tension rods the same way as the top. Upon getting the drum head off, check lug screws to make sure they’re all tight, and replace any broken pieces.

ASSEMBLY

I usually start with the bottom head, since it requires the most time. Be sure you have the right Rim (the bottom will have slots in for the snare wire), and make sure it’s properly lined up with the snare mounting hardware. The last thing you want is to get your head tuned up and realize the snare holes aren’t lining up in the rim.

Tighten the Snare back on after your tension rods are all in, tightening merely enough to get ripples out. When tuning the drum, you’ll want to start with the top in most cases, so get both heads on, as well as the snare, and experiment to make the drum sound custom to your liking!

Properly Change Your Snare Drum Heads