Snare Wire End Plates

Bluekit

Member
So I was checking my snare drum hoops for flatness on a granite countertop,and decided to check my snare wire the same way,,,I was surprised 😮 how out of shape they where,,these are standard Ludwig wires,,that have a flat part where the wires are soldered in,,and slight bend at the tip of the end plate,,where the string would go,,both areas had hi and low spots across them,,
The flat end of the plate was easy to get it to lay perfectly flat,,I used a rubber screwdriver handle and lightly tapped until it was straight and flat,,the harder part was the bend end of the plate,,but my countertop had what they call a bullnose rounded edge,,,I was able to use the slope of the countertop edge to get the other ( with the slight bend it) perfectly flat also,,question do,you guys ever check this,,or am I overthinking,,,,
 
You can never overthink snare wires.
 
Some end-plates are designed to lie flat, and some are pitched. The flat work better for shallower beds, while the pitched work for deep beds (in general). The odd thing is that the Ludwig wires are pitched but their beds are on the shallow side, at least the supras and acrolites. I know because I bought a set for an old acrolite, and they were terrible on that drum. The wires did not contact the head properly near the end-plates, so response suffered and sympathetic buzz was bad. I swapped them out.
 
Some end-plates are designed to lie flat, and some are pitched. The flat work better for shallower beds, while the pitched work for deep beds (in general). The odd thing is that the Ludwig wires are pitched but their beds are on the shallow side, at least the supras and acrolites. I know because I bought a set for an old acrolite, and they were terrible on that drum. The wires did not contact the head properly near the end-plates, so response suffered and sympathetic buzz was bad. I swapped them out.

This is interesting. I have an early 70s DynaSonic that I just don't like. It didn't have the snare frame when I got it. It sounds good, but the response of the wires anywhere but center just sucks. The wires are also more than standard, like 30 strands at least. This was how I got it also. This drum is supposed to be super sensitive, yet mine just sucks. The wires are either choked or rattle like crazy. There is no in between. Perhaps the wires don't fit the bed?

I haven't played the drum in 3 years because of this.
 
This is interesting. I have an early 70s DynaSonic that I just don't like. It didn't have the snare frame when I got it. It sounds good, but the response of the wires anywhere but center just sucks. The wires are also more than standard, like 30 strands at least. This was how I got it also. This drum is supposed to be super sensitive, yet mine just sucks. The wires are either choked or rattle like crazy. There is no in between. Perhaps the wires don't fit the bed?

I haven't played the drum in 3 years because of this.

I believe that Dyna-Sonics have either no bed at all, or very little, so (in theory) it should be able to handle wide snares without too much issue. That said, it isn't what that drum was intended to use.

The current wires may just be old and stretched out. I'd experiment with a set of wires that have flat ends, and fewer wires, in the 16 to 20-strand range.

Or, you could replace the frame and get stock wires and run the drum as it was intended.
 
This is interesting. I have an early 70s DynaSonic that I just don't like. It didn't have the snare frame when I got it. It sounds good, but the response of the wires anywhere but center just sucks. The wires are also more than standard, like 30 strands at least. This was how I got it also. This drum is supposed to be super sensitive, yet mine just sucks. The wires are either choked or rattle like crazy. There is no in between. Perhaps the wires don't fit the bed?

I haven't played the drum in 3 years because of this.

I know there are some that say the Dyna sounds good w/o the snare rail, but I've tried it, and the response was terrible. Not surprising, as there is virtually no snare bed. Snare wires won't lay right across a head w/o beds (unless you use something like the dyna rail). The dyna is not meant to be used without the rail, so it's no wonder you're unhappy. Buy a rail and set it up properly
 
I know there are some that say the Dyna sounds good w/o the snare rail, but I've tried it, and the response was terrible. Not surprising, as there is virtually no snare bed. Snare wires won't lay right across a head w/o beds (unless you use something like the dyna rail). The dyna is not meant to be used without the rail, so it's no wonder you're unhappy. Buy a rail and set it up properly

Yeah I checked it a little while ago. Virtually no bed. The snare is 42 strand, and the ends aren't flat. I found a place about 10 miles from where I work that has the frame and snare. I do have the snare gates still, they were in a box of parts when I aquired the drum. Should be fairly easy to put back to original. I shall do this in the near future and give the drum another chance.
 
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