Modern Pipe Band Drums

[EagleJCS]

It might be possible, but it would probably not be in a competition band’s best interests to ‘go retro’ and use rope-tensioned drums, at least in a competition setting. There's nothing in the rules that says they can't, but some of the techniques now in use by drummers would not be possible with the lower tension and the drummers would likely have to re-learn how to play. (They rely on the stick rebound from the higher tension to be able to play with more expression.)

Another factor is indeed getting the pipes to pitch lower. The drones wouldn't likely be as much of an issue as the chanters, though I've read that newer drones (made in the last 10 years or so) won’t go down below a certain threshold pitch. It has to do with the length of the drones, the size of the bore and the types of reeds in use.