Good snare

Nitemare

Senior Member
I'm looking for a good snare, metal or wood, that is good for ghost notes. I do alot of ghosts and my current snare (ddrum d2 snare, horrible) doesn't allow it. I'd prefer it to be under $150. Thanks.
 
It'll come up sooner or later, so why don't we just flog it senseless from the get-go.

Ludwig Supraphonic LM402 (OR LM400 if you're searching for a shallower shell).
 
Thanks, I've been trying a few Ludwigs, my drum teacher has 4 I think. Most sound good. I haven't tried the supraphonic yet
 
Another decent snare drum for the money is a Tama Artwood Custom. You can find them between $150 and $200 USD. I bought one about three or four yours ago and they sound really good. They're 7 ply all maple shells. They even come new with quality Evans heads.

These aren't really good pictures, but here it is.


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Dennis
 
Thanks! I will definantly check out the Tama, I love everything made by Tama. Beautiful kit btw. I've tried smaller snares, they're hard to adjust to, especially for me, I'm 6'3 and my arms are extra long (some kinda abnormality) and I use long sticks. Lol.
 
I recently bought a Pearl Sensitone snare from Ebay for $100. It was new, the snare that come with Pearl Visions kits, not the Sensitone Elite. Musician's Friend sells them for between $120-135. I really like mine.

Also Mapex makes a line of snares called MPX. There are sound samples on the Mapex site, and Midwest Percussion has good prices on them. Peace and goodwill.
 
At 150.00, I would aim for a used 60's or 70's Ludwig Acrolite.

You are probably not going to find too many Supraphonic LM400's at that price with out buying a drum that needs a little work.

A used brass, bronze or aluminum Pearl Sensitone would fit the bill as well. They sound pretty good for non seamless shell snares.
 
Another vote for the Acrolite. I loved mine - that drum can do everything (Supraphonic owners notwithstanding).

If I wasn't in the market for a versatile wood drum, I'd get another one.
 
I have a simple birch Stage custom snare from yamaha, 14x5,5'' which works really fine when cranked up, and i can play really silently, but some fine, fine, fine ghostnotes.

Worth a try, but i bet you can find better. - but atleast it's cheap... i guess.
 
Tama 7x13 maple. Black sparkle is a lacquer, not a wrap. Re-fitted with Ego tubes and, of course a May Mic (I put May Mics in everything!) Great for the type sound / playing described.
 

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Another vote for the Tama Artwood Custom! I picked mine up last year @ 6.5 x 13".
They've got other sizes to suit your taste. It comes with the Evans Power Center Reverse Dot that I switched out to a HD Dry.

I also use it as a main snare, nice tuning range. IMO, a very smart - quality buy.
You may need to go a little higher than $150, for a quality (new) snare though.
 
The thing that makes a snare good for ghost notes is sensitivity at low volume. This is going to be mostly determined by the shape of the snare beds, the shape of the snare-side bearing edge, the choice of snare-side head/tuning, and the choice of snare wires. The last two are totally up to you; the first two are the choice of the drum manufacturer. A big drum company typically cuts all their snare beds and edges the same, even on different models, so a visit to a drum retail store can give you a lot of information. Tap lightly on a display drum, at various places on the batter head, with a stick or with your finger tips. If it sounds like a snare drum -- if you can hear the wires cleanly in the sound -- that's a manufacturer to consider on your list. If it sounds like a tom -- if the tapping doesn't activate the vibration of the wires -- it's possible that the problem is in the beds and edges, and tuning for sensitivity will be a challenge.

These are things that a custom builder can design especially for the way you want to use the drum, but at your price point I don't know of any to recommend, so stick with the big companies.
 
Just curious, how horrible can a ddrum d2 snare be? Could it be your setup? What heads are you using (batter and snare side)? Are they old or new? How tight to you tension your heads? What kind of snare wires are you using (10, 20, 40)?
 
Just curious, how horrible can a ddrum d2 snare be? Could it be your setup? What heads are you using (batter and snare side)? Are they old or new? How tight to you tension your heads? What kind of snare wires are you using (10, 20, 40)?

No matter what i do to this snare (havent tried changing snare wires) it sucks.
 
At 150.00, I would aim for a used 60's or 70's Ludwig Acrolite.

You are probably not going to find too many Supraphonic LM400's at that price with out buying a drum that needs a little work.

A used brass, bronze or aluminum Pearl Sensitone would fit the bill as well. They sound pretty good for non seamless shell snares.

+1 to everything you said here!
 
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