After acquiring new heads, today I attempted to re-tune my snare. It's a Steel Pearl Session Snare with a Hi-Energy/Classic Clear combination.

I know the basics of tuning and learnt by following the guides on the Aquarian website, but I feel I need further assistance on this.

I tuned the drum up nice to my ears and then put the snare wire on. It was my impression that the tighter you have the wires the quicker the decay of the actual snare sound. I tightened it to the point where I was afraid that it would snap and still achieved an awful sound. I then searched the forums and google for drum tuning and found that on the Remo site they suggest tuning the snare side head higher in pitch than the batter. I went back and tuned the bottom head higher, then reattached the snare. Now it's got even worse - barely even sounds like a snare drum.

How should I tune both heads to achieve a quick attack? How tight should my snare wire be?

Thanx,
Bob