Best Low Volume Snare Drum

[d2dadub]

I am playing a lot of gigs now that are fairly low volume. I have some pretty stellar snares (Brady, Dunnet), but they are not exactly quiet. I am partial to 13 " snares. What is your opinion on the best kind of low volume snare? Size, shell material, etc... Currently play a lot of church and small rooms. the music is acoustic rock, funk, jazz. Please advise.

[GRUNTERSDAD]

I would think maybe learning some dynamics and just learning to play at a lower level would be the proper route.

[fourstringdrums]

I would think maybe learning some dynamics and just learning to play at a lower level would be the proper route.

+1 But also using lighter sticks or hot-rods if that suits a bit better.

[Mendozart]

+2. Dynamics, hot rods, brushes = low volume.

[bojangleman]

+3. smaller sticks and brushes is as good as you will get..and some dynamic practice.

Alex

[sticksnstonesrus]

+4.

Seems obvious, right?

A reason more than "just because":

"Playing light" is a learned trait. It's not easy to play light-n-fast. Or even, light-n-even (sometimes). Especially when you're used to playing at a harder or heavier volume. Defintely takes some getting used to. Hot rods, brushes, and lighter weighted sticks definitely help take the "attack" off some...but the most throrough way to lighten the volume up, is to learn to play lighter.

Understood, that only goes to a point. Then burshes, hot rods and such get the win anyways...

:-)

[KCDrummer]

I think maybe the problem D2dadub is having is that he IS doing his best to play quiet, but none of his current snares have the sensitivity or the mellow sound he's after. I've never played a Dunnet, but I have played Brady and those things are loud!

You guys could all be right, it could be that he's just whacking the things caveman style with axe handles and needs to learn how to lighten up but I'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt.

NOW, I'm going to recommend a maple snare, no more than six inches deep. I think an Evans J1 Etched or Coated G1 head will give you good sensitivity at softer volumes. I also swear by maple hoops, they give the snare a bit warmer and mellower sound.

Looks like it might be SNARE-BUILDING TIME! Now THAT is the most wonderful time of the year. :)

[xush]

it's all well and good to learn to play lighter and use brushes or rods, but that doesn't just change the volume, it changes the tone too. Rock and funk isn't quite the same w/ brushes/rods, ya know?

There are some snares that will produces less volume than others, but I don't know that many folks shop by those criteria. Would probably be best to test drive some at a local store and see what you find. I recall a smaller Pork Pie maple snare being one of the 'quieter' drums on display at a local store recently.

Don't know if it's an option for you, but many church/small venue drummers use E-kits these days. Nothing quite like a volume-knob on your whole kit for dealing with stage volume in small rooms.

[The Ploughman]

If the room is that small, brushes. or ........


Buy a CAJON.

[harryconway]

I am playing a lot of gigs now that are fairly low volume. I have some pretty stellar snares (Brady, Dunnet), but they are not exactly quiet. What is your opinion on the best kind of low volume snare? Size, shell material, etc...
I would check out something like a Yamaha SSD 1250 A. That's what I like to use, when you don't need every, any, or all of your snare hits to sound like gun-shots. I have 3 other snare drums (all 14") My newest aquisition is an Ahead, and it is by far the loudest. My quietest is my Yamaha 12x5, wood shell. Sweet drum, and I use it for my low-volume needs. Fits the bill perfect.

[gmrakich]

I am playing a lot of gigs now that are fairly low volume. I have some pretty stellar snares (Brady, Dunnet), but they are not exactly quiet. I am partial to 13 " snares. What is your opinion on the best kind of low volume snare? Size, shell material, etc... Currently play a lot of church and small rooms. the music is acoustic rock, funk, jazz. Please advise.

Am I missing something? Stick dymamic velosity (don't hit so hard)
I have a 13x7 sheaok Brady that sounds just as good at low volume as it does being clubbed like a baby seal. Also a Ludwig SUPERSENSITIVE might be worth checking out if partial to "quiet bite." Solid and one ply wood shells can sound great at lesser volume, but it all gets back to paying attendtion and keeping the beast at bay that wants to just smack the snare with out control.

[Shedboyxx]

Lots of good stuff being advised here.

I have had a similar situation in my own church up until about a month ago. We just merged and moved into a new sanctuary that allows me a bit more volume freedom than the last location,

But for a few years I had a different situation. When I first got there they were using electronic drums. I own an SPD-S and managed to also use the TD-8 they had there but I was never happy with it. Not to derail or hijack this thread but churches often will go this route because it immediately solves the volume issue. This is especially a consideration with the many players of limited experience that you find volunteering in churches.

I happen to have quite a few years under my belt and have spent much time trying to get good sounds out of acoustic drums while playing with singers, for musicals, low volume club gis, weddings, etc. I was able to get them to switch over to acoustic drums at one point but made sure that I was extremely sensitive to volume issues. To give perspective, none of the other players used amps. They all went direct into the sound system and then relied on wedge monitors for stage monitoring. If you've never done this then you may not realize how much ambient sound you normally get from amps, especially open back amps. None of that happened.

So generally I would need to keep the volume to a point where I could hear vocals and rhythm section through my own wedge. An interesting side note is that it actually became easier to hear the others when we took away the electronics. That's because there was (originally) a full electronic drum set in my monitor competing with all the other sources I needed to hear. Take away the e-drums and everyone is much clearer.

The solution that worked best was as follows:

* Small drum sizes - On my advice, the church bought a Gretsch Catalina Jazz set for a little over $500 (US dollars). Bebop sizes, 12 &14 toms 14 snare 18 BD. Single ply heads
* Thin cymbals (I brought my own)
* Small light sticks - Firth HD4's. I tried ProMark 7A's but never got them to feel right. The Firth's worked for me. I also occasionally use rods or brushes. However usually more when I know the timbre of what we are playing works with them. One downside for me in using these softer impact implements is that you lose the attack and crispness of sticks. That has proved problematic when some of the players across the platform can't hear the 'tick' and start to drift, time wise.
* A wood and foam drum shield. This was custom built by one of our members who did a great job. It was about 4 ft. tall with 3 panels. I know that many churches use the plexi-glass models but they seem to create as many problems as they solve. I also had some caring members say they missed being able to see me as wood is not transparent and you can only see my head and the tops of the cymbals. I reassured them that I was OK with it and everyone seeing me was not at all important (but thank you!). FWIW - some of the youth worship team said they liked it better without the shield.
* An adjustment in drum miking and monitoring by the sound crew. This is still a work in progress and it's made more challenging by the fact that we have several different sound techs (volunteer) with different opinions and skills. What did need to happen was for some of my drums to go into the other players' monitors. My time is good but not everybody else's. They needed something in their monitors to keep them lined up.

*FINALLY - I bring my Pork Pie 5 x 13 maple snare in. This drum is a wonderful drum for low to medium volumes. I've never heard it sound bad anywhere. It gets a great sound across the head, a very nice cross-stick and warm, meaty rimshots that can be lovely when played softly.

And it's that last comment that I'd hope all pursuing would marry together with the above. If you don't practice playing rim shots softly, you won't achieve the quality/volume delta needed to present your best rimshots in a low volume situation. I'm using rimshots as an example but the concept translates to all kinds of playing, different drums and cymbals, different areas and techniques on the set. This is a maturity/ears thing as well. Don't expect to hear the same sound that Bonham or Lars got in the studio. But do expect to get a good sound of some kind. Sweat over it and pursue it doggedly. Start to hear sonic possibilities that work musically with your setting and environment.

It's good gear, good (not stock) heads, tuning and very much good technique. The Pork Pie drum isn't the cheapest snare out there but I got it for a steal on eBay. I see them regularly for under $200, sometimes finishing for considerably less on the Bay. I put Puresound snare wires and Aquarian heads on it (coated single ply, Classic Clear snare side) and it's wonderful.

I love Pork Pie snares, own 3 of them and some day hope to get a full set of Bill D's wonder girls. However I don't see Pork Pie as the Holy Grail in that there are other quality, thin shell, maple snares out there. What ever you get, put new heads on it (DON'T neglect this) tune it up or get a pro player if you are uncomfortable with that and then practice playing softly on it with sticks and rods. This doesn't take blazing speed or complicated patterns. Just time, practice and the goal of sounding good.

HTH

Jim

[Pete Stoltman]

I think that the way the snare is set up is going to be the most important factor. Using heads and tuning that sound good with a light touch is the key. To some extent shell material and sizes will have an impact on that. The thing is that you don't want a drum that requires a strong stroke to bring out the tone. A simple example of this that everyone probably is familiar with is a Ludwig Supraphonic. Take a 5x14 and put a couple good quality single ply heads on the thing. Tune it to a mid level tension and you should be good to go. I have a couple narrow shell drums that I've set up with Diplomat weight heads that I can actually play with chopsticks and get a nice tone. Not that I want to do that on a regular basis but it works. Looking for a brand, size, shell material as a magic bullet will probably not solve the problem for you.

[danander11]

3-4 Sundays a month, I play for a small church that holds service in the morning, in a school gymnasium.. Wood floors, concrete block walls, and steel ceiling.. :-| A no-win situation.

I've worked at playing softly and using alternatives to sticks, but the biggest help came when I got a DW Collectors 5x12 maple snare.. I use a remo renaissance RA head on top, thin snare on bottom.. and it's worked great for me.

No matter how quietly I tried to play, it was almost always a tad too loud for some things.. so I gave in and went with the less-is-more mantra... When I play there, I play very simply and cleanly.. not doing much at all. There are many ways to serve a song, (and your congregation), and for there, in that context, I provide just enough "color" to give the intended feel of the song, without actually playing everything that was done originally.

One last thing I picked up along the way, move your hand position up on the stick.. you would be surprised at how well that works.

It can be frustrating for sure... I ended up offering to play at a much larger church 3-4 times a month, ( 3 services the first Sunday, then as needed on other evenings), just to be able to "stretch" myself a little.. My weekends are usually pretty busy with playing at a few different places.. but I have learned a great deal by trying to do less, quietly. ;-)

Hope this helps...

Peace.