Why does my snare sound like this? ? Please help!

J

Johnny Tsunami

Member
Example:

My snare was sounding fine until it suddenly started to have this terrible buzz and ring to it. I tried loosening and tightening the top skin, bottom skin, snare wires and also put different combinations of blu-tack on the top and bottom as dampeners but nothing fixes the horrible buzz. When I unclip the wires, that long ringing sound never used to happen.

I recently bought this PDP CX kit secondhand so the tape isn't my doing.

I would much appreciate any help anyone can offer,
Thanks guys.
 
That boxy sound is a bigger issue than the buzzy wires. Luckily, you should have no trouble fixing it up. (as long as the bearing edges are good and the shell is in round)

The problem is most likely the heads and/or the hoops. Start by getting new heads.

Take the hoops off and check them for warping, and make sure they are in-round.

My Ludwig Acrolite sounded like this when I pulled it out of the attic. It had old heads and warped hoops. I replaced the heads, and bought new 2.3mm triple flanged hoops top and bottom. It sounds like a new drum!

As for the wires, step one is to have a good bottom head that is tuned properly. (the resonant head should generally be tuned higher than the batter side)

If the wires are twisted or not properly seated against the bottom head, it can cause buzzing. Check the chords or straps that hold it in place to ensure it is centered properly. If the snares don't look perfect you could just buy some Gibraltar snares for $9 on Amazon, or splurge for the PureSound wires.

Do all that and your snare should sound like new.
 
First it doesn't seem to be tuned high enough (top / bottom skin) and maybe not tuned evenly.
Try to go back from the start : every bolt tuned by hand first first the skin entered. Then tune up but don't be shy ; tune up.
 
Do you know this video already?

I'd remove the tape and try the heads you already have and follow the procedure in the video. I hope this helps.

Edit: There's a new video on trouble-shooting.
 
Last edited:
Strip the drum and tighten every screw and reassemble with new heads and wires. Eliminate anything that could rattle. A rattle can happen inside a lug, so just be advised. De-rattle the drum before reassembling. While you're at it, check you hoops for roundness, trueness and/or warping. If the head binds to the hoop and won't drop out by gravity alone, get a new hoop.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top