Snare wires for jazz??

Hey all, long time no see!

Anyway, I'm using a 5" ludwig supraphonic snare from the late 60's. Been playing mostly functions and mostly rock etc. Have had puresound equalizer snares on it for a while and I love them for that. But I'm now in a jazz band. Did my first gig a couple of weeks ago and just felt the equalizers weren't right. I just feel I need more snare sound, especially for my rolls (buzzs etc). I'm using a lot of brushs in what I now do, Jeff Hamilton retractable wire ones.

So does anyone have any suggestions for what I can try? I don't know what's out there. One shop I rang suggested some Pearl sensitive ones (said he used them). No one really has anything in my town other than standard Gibraltar ones.

Hi,
I owned and played supra with normal puresound blasters snare wires and it had very nice open tone that is recommended for jazz too, i would not go for other snare wires because puresound snare wires are very good if not the best on the markt.
I would try also puresound -Custom- model for 14 snare with 16 strand.it should work well.
greetings

goughy said:

Hey all, long time no see!

Anyway, I'm using a 5" ludwig supraphonic snare from the late 60's. Been playing mostly functions and mostly rock etc. Have had puresound equalizer snares on it for a while and I love them for that. But I'm now in a jazz band. Did my first gig a couple of weeks ago and just felt the equalizers weren't right. I just feel I need more snare sound, especially for my rolls (buzzs etc). I'm using a lot of brushs in what I now do, Jeff Hamilton retractable wire ones.

So does anyone have any suggestions for what I can try? I don't know what's out there. One shop I rang suggested some Pearl sensitive ones (said he used them). No one really has anything in my town other than standard Gibraltar ones.

Click to expand...

I know Jeff Hamilton uses regular Puresound 16-strand wires on his snare. I believe 16-strand used to be a popular standard, so that might be a good place to start. Roy Haynes, on the other hand, uses 24-strand wires on his Yamaha Copper snare and that snare sounds very good. So, a 20-strand or 24-strand set of wires would probably work quite well. In fact, I think most snares you see used for jazz tend to have 20-strand regular wires on them.

Just a perspective.

I love the Puresound Custom 16s, though they're hellishly expensive.

If you want a 20-strand set, you might try the Pearl Ultra-Sound (SN-1420I) that you mentioned, they sound excellent (hard to distinguish from the Puresound 20s) for a lot less money.

It's worth remembering that snare drums during the jazz age commonly came with 12-, 14-, or 16-strand wires. 20 as a "standard" is a relatively recent thing.

See the videos below for a ton of information on snare wires.

Meanwhile, you haven't mentioned heads. For maximum sensitivity (and the tone you're after) you ought to be using a single-ply coated for a batter and a 2mil (hazy Diplomat) or 3mil (hazy Ambassador) snare side head, assuming you aren't already. Leave the muffling at home. A Fiberskyn batter is another option.

You might also find the sound you're looking for through tuning. It is sometimes the case that having the snare side head lower than the batter works, so even though most drums sound best with the snare side head tighter, it would be worth the time to experiment.

Bob Gatzen on snare wires 1

Bob Gatzen on snare wires 2

I'm using an evans genera dry coated on the batter - I usually have an ambassador but wanted to try something different and now I'm playing unmiked and not rock. Oh well, still like the sound though, just not the amount of ring I'm used to. An ambassador 3mil snare side I think. I don't like them too thick either. And no one gets near one of my drums with muffling or gaff tape!!

My tuning varies all the time, but at the moment it's usually a tighter top than bottom, and not fatback or anything. I like a bit of high crack.

Thanks for the links too!

I use and love the Pure Sound copper 14" 16 strand.

Don't know to much about this ,but I've read a lot of pro's go with Canopus wires. I know they make some of the very best jazz kits around. I'm sure there not cheap. Check out some of there sites.Theres one that shows all there snare wires. They have a lot of different ones. Good luck.

Oh I forgot to mention, you may want to try a coated diplomat batter wide open. Great for buzz rolls.Great for sensative. Great for jazz. Its cheaper then wires, will make a bigger difference, and you'll end up doing it anyways. Lot of guys say its to thin, it will break. I don't think so, I beat the crap out of mine and hve no problem. In fact I've been using them on all my toms also . They sound great.

Yeah, Canopus vintage, sound great, nice sensitive sound, not as dry sounding as the puresounds, a little wetter.
PC

I personally like the Fat Cat Snappy Snares. They are a bit wider than your typical strands,which will give you that snare sound you might be looking for, but they sound great and you can adjust the sensitivity of the wires for low volume playing(and buzz roles) by loosening the inside wires with a screwdriver. Give 'em a try. BTW, this site helped me to pick them out: http://www.malletjazz.com/snares/snarewires/. Hope that helps.