So what is it with the cheaper snare drums?

Elvis said:
Ok, lemme see here....I'll take 3 ply Slinger-Leedy bass and toms (I always like the Leedy Beavertail), Rogers chrome steel Dyna-Sonic snare drum, Ludwig Jazz Festival snare drum, Gretsch Floating Action bass drum pedal, Super Zyn cymbals from Premier and the internal bass drum muffler seen in the 1966 Sonor drum catalogue.

...that'll work.
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pssst... keep your eye on your local guitar center ( worked for me- a
miracles move at their own rate! mint 1966 set .......in 2023~~ found.
 
my experience. I have 2 Tama snares. 5 1/2" Maple Artwood 10 lug with triple flange hoops that are pretty heavy, and a Tama Poplar Imperialstar 5" 8 lug with much lighter hoops. Same heads and similar snare wires. They sound different, but I think I can get them close in sound with similar hoops. But I do like the differences and both are great sounding in my opinion.
 
Bo Eder said:
When you look at your average metal snare, there’s not a lot to it. Some lugs, a strainer, wires, heads, boom. Yet, an old Tama Swingstar 6.5” snare really doesn’t come close to my 6.5 Supra. So what do you think it is? ....
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I have no idea what it is, but I know it's real.
Mostly all the same or similar components for the same functions, but snare drums can sound miles apart.
Across all price ranges too.
 
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Over my many years, I've owned some real dogs and some works of art (see avatar). I agree with Chris Whitten above on the "buy the best drums you can afford and go from there" advice. That said, I lucked onto a 6" Jenkins Martin Blaemire snare about 3 months ago. I'm finding it to be my most versatile and best sounding drum I have.
 
wildbill said:
I have no idea what it is, but I know it's real.
Mostly all the same or similar components for the same functions, but snare drums can sound miles apart.
Across all price ranges too.
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I had access to two snares for a while that were the exact same snare drum. One sounded great and the other was boxy and dead sounding. I didn't take them apart to look, but I suspect one must've been out of round or had bad edges, while the other was defect-free. Just like cars, you could buy a great make and model, only to find out you bought a lemon, lol.

Case in point, I once owned an AK / Craviotto brass snare. Sounded dead. Tried everything. Nothing wrong with the shell. I sold it and don't regret it one bit.
 
single-ply said:
I had access to two snares for a while that were the exact same snare drum. One sounded great and the other was boxy and dead sounding. I didn't take them apart to look, but I suspect one must've been out of round or had bad edges, while the other was defect-free. Just like cars, you could buy a great make and model, only to find out you bought a lemon, lol.

Case in point, I once owned an AK / Craviotto brass snare. Sounded dead. Tried everything. Nothing wrong with the shell. I sold it and don't regret it one bit.
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I’ve had similar experiences. Not long ago I had a Tama Starphonic bubinga that I loved; an opportunity came up to get a deal on a Star bubinga and I prematurely sold the Starphonic to pay for it. The Star looked beautiful and perfect, but sounded dull and bleh. I should have kept the “cheaper” drum!
 
single-ply said:
Over my many years, I've owned some real dogs and some works of art (see avatar). I agree with Chris Whitten above on the "buy the best drums you can afford and go from there" advice. That said, I lucked onto a 6" Jenkins Martin Blaemire snare about 3 months ago. I'm finding it to be my most versatile and best sounding drum I have.
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I agree on those Jenkins-Martin drums. I got to borrow a 6.5” snare for a week and fell in love. I’d love to get a whole kit of those drums - maybe before this year is over…..
 
Bo Eder said:
I agree on those Jenkins-Martin drums. I got to borrow a 6.5” snare for a week and fell in love. I’d love to get a whole kit of those drums - maybe before this year is over…..
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My Blaemire is definitely one of my favorites. Right now Jenkins Martin is not taking orders because the main builders were a father and son team, the dad died and the son injured his back badly. JM is still in business and trying to fulfill previous orders, but Jenkins Jr posted recently that it’s still looking like a long time frame. If you see some used ones, that’s your best bet!
 
bongoman said:
My Blaemire is definitely one of my favorites. Right now Jenkins Martin is not taking orders because the main builders were a father and son team, the dad died and the son injured his back badly. JM is still in business and trying to fulfill previous orders, but Jenkins Jr posted recently that it’s still looking like a long time frame. If you see some used ones, that’s your best bet!
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Eek! I guess I’ll have to wait. Hopefully they come back to taking orders soon. I just want basic black, but on the used market, it looks like that regular greenish fiberglass look is what’s available.
 
Bo Eder said:
Eek! I guess I’ll have to wait. Hopefully they come back to taking orders soon. I just want basic black, but on the used market, it looks like that regular greenish fiberglass look is what’s available.
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There is a black or charcoal set on Reverb right now, but the drum sizes are BIG and there is no snare included. The price is big also.
 
Bo Eder said:
Eek! I guess I’ll have to wait. Hopefully they come back to taking orders soon. I just want basic black, but on the used market, it looks like that regular greenish fiberglass look is what’s available.
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Have you seen some of the greenish ones? That's what I'm looking for and can't find any.
 
I think toms and kicks tend to be much more forgiving in terms of sounding good when they're not constructed the best. We tend to play our most technical stuff on a snare so we really put it through the paces compared to the other drums. That's my theory on why nobody likes the Gretsch renown snares.
 
Philaiy9 said:
I think toms and kicks tend to be much more forgiving in terms of sounding good when they're not constructed the best. We tend to play our most technical stuff on a snare so we really put it through the paces compared to the other drums. That's my theory on why nobody likes the Gretsch renown snares.
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Nobody likes the Renown snare ???
 
eric_B said:
BTW: isn't the Worldmax version called the Black Dawg? :confused:
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They've changed it to Dawg. They were always Hawg when I first heard of them in the 00s. Didn't get one until 2020 mind best £225 I've spent in a long time.

Same drum either way lol!
 
Philaiy9 said:
I think toms and kicks tend to be much more forgiving in terms of sounding good when they're not constructed the best.
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I agree, but also the bass drum is a very simple sound in modern music. The bass drum and snare are by far the most important parts of the kit on any recording session. So the snare is the most complex aspect to get right.
 
Chris Whitten said:
I agree, but also the bass drum is a very simple sound in modern music. The bass drum and snare are by far the most important parts of the kit on any recording session. So the snare is the most complex aspect to get right.
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ive sometimes thought id like to experiment with using the small tightly tuned rack tom as a snare and the snare in the place of where a second snare usually goes. would i imagine be a pretty acquired taste,
 
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