How to set up a drum set

The goal is a setup where you feel balanced on the throne and can reach every drum, cymbal, and pedal without leaning or stretching, with your shoulders down and your arms relaxed. Bodies and kits differ, so the heights and distances in this guide are starting points. Adjust from there until the goal is met.

Set up the kit around you, starting where you sit: throne first, then the pedals, snare, toms, hi-hat, and cymbals. The drawing shows a common right-handed layout. Tap a step to see where each piece goes.

Left-handed drummers often set up the mirror image, with the bass drum pedal under the left foot and the hi-hat on the right. Some drummers, left- or right-handed, keep the right-handed layout and play open-handed: the left hand plays the hi-hat, so the hands don't cross. All of these work. This guide describes the right-handed layout; for a mirrored kit, swap left and right.

Start with the throne

The throne is the drum stool. A good place to start is toward its front edge, rather than all the way back, with the height set so your thighs are level or slope slightly down toward your knees. Then adjust until you feel balanced and can lift either foot without tipping.

Then set the distance. With your feet on the pedals, start with your knees at about a right angle or a little more open, and check that your ankles move freely. Every other piece goes where it fits you in this spot, so set the throne first. If you change its height or distance later, the pedals, snare, and cymbals may need to move too.

Bass drum and hi-hat pedals

• Put the bass drum pedal under your right foot (left foot on a mirrored kit), straight out from that leg. Clamp it to the bass drum hoop so it can't slide.
• Check the beater. It should hit near the center of the bass drum head.
• Set the spurs, the legs on each side of the bass drum, so the drum doesn't creep forward while you play.
• Put the hi-hat pedal under your other foot. Your legs make a relaxed V, each foot in line with its knee.

Start with your whole foot on each pedal. That's heel down: you play from the ankle, which works well for soft playing and for learning control. Your teacher may show you heel up later, for louder playing.

Snare drum height and angle

The snare goes between your knees, a little toward your hi-hat leg. Start with the top of the drum a few inches above your thighs, flat or tilted slightly toward you. Then adjust it until your sticks reach the center of the head close to level, without catching the rim.

If you play traditional grip, your teacher may have you tilt the drum down to the right. With matched grip, keep it flat or close to it.

Toms

Mount the rack toms over the bass drum, as low and as close to you as they'll go without touching each other or the snare. Tilt them slightly toward you. You should reach the center of each one with a small move forward, never a stretch. If your kit has only one rack tom, center it over the bass drum.

The floor tom stands to the right of your right leg, about as high as the snare. Keep it flat or tilt it slightly toward you.

Hi-hat height

If you cross your hands to play the hi-hat, as the drawing shows, the right stick passes over the left one. Start with the top cymbal a few inches above the snare so it has room to pass without clicking. If you play open-handed, the sticks don't cross, so set the hi-hat where your left hand reaches it comfortably. With the pedal up, leave about an inch between the two cymbals.

Ride and crash cymbals

In this layout, the ride goes on your right, above the floor tom, where your right arm reaches it without straightening. The crash goes on your left, above the hi-hat and the high tom, a little higher than the hi-hat. Tilt both slightly toward you. Open-handed players often move the ride, or add a second one, closer to the hi-hat side.

Every cymbal sits between two felt washers, with a plastic sleeve over the metal post of the stand. Metal touching the cymbal can crack it. Tighten the wing nut just enough to hold the top felt; the cymbal should still swing a little when you hit it.

Check: can you reach everything?

Sit tall and try each of these. If something doesn't work, change one thing at a time, starting with the throne.

• Play each drum and cymbal once. You should reach every one without leaning or lifting your shoulders.
• Play the rock beat: hi-hat, snare, and bass drum. If you cross your hands, the top stick passes over the other without clicking.
• Play down the toms from high to floor. Your sticks don't catch a rim or another drum.
• Play the bass drum and the hi-hat pedal. Your ankles move freely, and your legs don't feel stretched or squeezed.

Then play your first grooves from common drum beats. To learn how each piece is written, see how to read drum set music.

Setting up a shared school kit

A kit that several drummers share goes back together faster with a few marks:

• Mark the floor or rug with tape around the throne, the bass drum, and the feet of each stand.
• Use memory locks, the small clamps on stand tubes, or wrap tape around each tube at the right height.
• Take a photo of the setup from the throne and post it near the kit.
• Between players, start by changing the throne and the snare. If that moves you closer or farther, check the pedals and cymbals too, and put everything back when you're done.
• Tighten wing nuts and stand screws by hand, just until they're snug. Forcing them strips the threads, and a cymbal clamped too tight can crack.

To learn the layout before you sit at a real kit, Free play in Percussion Trainer has a right-handed kit seen from the throne. Tap each piece in the order you'd set it up.