[SNARE CHOICE] Please Help me !

daniboun

Senior Member
Hi guys,

Need your help to choose a new snare, I'm hestitating between these models :

- TAMA SLP G Maple 13X7, 13 Ply 5mm maple shell
- Ian Witt African Mahogany, single Ply Shell with reinforcement rings 14X6
- Drum Sound Mahogany KHAYA, 7 Ply Mahogany Kahya (Senegal) Shell 14X6
- DDRUM Dios Walnut Shell 13X7; 8 ply Walnut shell
- CVL Italy Custom Snare, 13X7, 7 Ply African Mahogany Shell

I can get any of these snares for about 350$ (apart from the Witt)


TAMA SLP G Maple 13X7 :



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Ian Witt African Mahogany Single Ply 14X6 :


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Drum Sound Mahogany Khaya, 7 ply 14X6 :



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DDRUM Dios Walnut, 8 Ply 13X7 :



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PS : no picture for the CVL one...
 
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I've played that Tama one in a store and it was pretty awesome. I would've bought it if I didn't already have two Tama snares sized 6.5x13 (one maple, the other steel). I've never heard of the others.
 
I have heard the Tama and played the Ddrum, I have no experience with the others. The Tama is pretty awesome, and probably the one I would go with.The Ddrum sounded real nice too, it would be nice if you could hear them all at the same time somewhere. Good luck!
 
This question is based upon wood types more than brand name. If you want a quiet snare, mahogany is your wood. If you want a loud and dark sound with a shorter decay,loads of attack, walnut. If you want warmth roundess and sustain, plus volume, maple.
 
I have heard the Tama and played the Ddrum, I have no experience with the others. The Tama is pretty awesome, and probably the one I would go with.The Ddrum sounded real nice too, it would be nice if you could hear them all at the same time somewhere. Good luck!

Interesting ! Which one is more versatile between the Tama and the DDRUM ? Need something warm and pretty soft.
 
This question is based upon wood types more than brand name. If you want a quiet snare, mahogany is your wood. If you want a loud and dark sound with a shorter decay,loads of attack, walnut. If you want warmth roundess and sustain, plus volume, maple.

I already have an African Mahogany snare (Pearl African Mahogany limited edition 14X6.5) it's fantastic snare but not as quiet as you could expect. Mahogany is a great wood with a lot of bass and generate a pretty warm sound.
 
Same answer. Mahogany seems to be what you want. The Pearl Omar Hakim snare is very warm and quiet. Give it a try as well as the others.

Of course volume is under the player's control. But mahogany's properties are warmth and low volume due to the wood being soft and pourous.
 
Same answer. Mahogany seems to be what you want. The Pearl Omar Hakim snare is very warm and quiet. Give it a try as well as the others.

Of course volume is under the player's control. But mahogany's properties are warmth and low volume due to the wood being soft and pourous.

Not to get off topic, but doesn't Pearl use African mahogany, also known as bubinga? When you say mahogany (not African) I think of the wood that was used on vintage kits...not bubinga. Unless those kits were originally made with bubinga!

Agree with the second part. Although the thickness of the shell will also affect how it projects.

-Jonathan
 
You can't really ever go wrong with a quality maple snare. The tama gets my vote for versatility, build quality and overall bang for the buck. I know ddrum is improving, but I would still be hesitant to spend that much on a snare from them.
 
I'd go with the Tama too. Tama snares are overall great, versatile, have fantastic hardware and sound phenomenal. You won't be disappointed!

Good luck!
 
Interesting ! Which one is more versatile between the Tama and the DDRUM ? Need something warm and pretty soft.

The Tama is more versatile and did sound a bit warmer over the Ddrum,both sounded good but the Ddrum was a bit darker and more aggressive, both had die cast hoops to tame them out a bit but in the end if thats what you are going for then the Tama should do fine.
 
Not to get off topic, but doesn't Pearl use African mahogany, also known as bubinga? When you say mahogany (not African) I think of the wood that was used on vintage kits...not bubinga. Unless those kits were originally made with bubinga!

Agree with the second part. Although the thickness of the shell will also affect how it projects.

-Jonathan



Hi mate.

Unsure. My Masterworks kick is mahogany. I owned an Omar snare and it was a very quiet snare. I sold it because of it.
 
Hi mate.

Unsure. My Masterworks kick is mahogany. I owned an Omar snare and it was a very quiet snare. I sold it because of it.

I find this fascinating as I own a Tama Warlord Bubinga kit and its very loud. Now the shells are extremely thick, but I always remember (at least in Tama ads), bubinga being described as a very hard, loud wood. Anyways thanks for your input! Back to oogling your gear thread for the next 20 minutes or so. :)

-Jonathan
 
Hi mate.

I am unsure if the Pearl was bubinga or actual mahogany. My bubinga Tamas are very powerful. That Omar snare was underpowered though regardless of the wood. I also had the 13x8 LTD snare Pearl were making at the time from the same material. That drum was also weak. I sold both in the same week after being unsatisfied with their performance on a gig. My other drums in those sizes, mainly Sonors, squashed them like bugs.
 
Hi mate.

I am unsure if the Pearl was bubinga or actual mahogany. My bubinga Tamas are very powerful. That Omar snare was underpowered though regardless of the wood. I also had the 13x8 LTD snare Pearl were making at the time from the same material. That drum was also weak. I sold both in the same week after being unsatisfied with their performance on a gig. My other drums in those sizes, mainly Sonors, squashed them like bugs.

Hummm real African Mahogany is known as : KHAYA Mahogany (Khaya senegalensis) and can be found in tropical Africa and Madagascar (especially in Senegal).
The Afzelia of the family Fabaceae is the other real Mahogany wood but I'm not sure that the standard drum industries use those kind of woods, they are really expensive...

The only snare I saw using genuine KHAYA Mahogany it's the Drum Sound KHAYA Mahogany snare made in Italy, checkout here :

9713072.jpg
 
Just buy a damned snare drum! You either need one or not. What is going on here? People spend time helping. I own possibly 80 snare drums. No two are the same. No member can decide for you. What is your budget? What do you want? Use your ears. YOUR ears. And remember bandwidth costs money.

As far as I can see, you have the information you require.

Decide. My time is not for wasting. Are you wasting my time?
 
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