Snare Arsenal

[Bart Elliott]

Tell us how many snare drums you own. If you are up to the task, list them here! Tell us your favorites ... if you can. The previous thread on this topic was accidentally deleted.


Here's a list of mine:

• Ascend 4" x 14" Brass Shell w/ Die Cast Rims 10 lug   
  
  
• DW 5.5" x 14" Maple Shell w/ Die-Cast Rims
  10 ply w/ Natural Maple finish, 10 tube lug d. 8/5/98   
  
  
• Fibes 6.5" x 14" Maple Shell w/ Die-Cast Rims
  8 ply Maple w/ Ruby Red lacquer finish, 10 tube lug,
  AFT Snare Strainer & Butt Plate   
  
  
• Gretsch 5.5" x 14" Birch Shell w/ Die-Cast Rims
  refinished in African Bubinga, 8 lug,  c.1968   
  
  
• Kent 5" x 14" Steel Shell 6 lug   
  
  
• Ludwig 5" x 14" Stainless Steel Shell - Super Sensitive 10 lug, Pre-70's   
  
• Ludwig 5" x 14" Aluminum Shell - Akrolite 8 lug, d. 4/24/67   
  
• Ludwig 14" x 15" Field Drum - Stadium d.1960   
  
  
• Pearl 6-1/2" x 14" Stainless Steel Shell - Professional 10 lug   
  
• Pearl 5" x 13" Omar Hakim Signature Snare 6 ply African Mahogany shell, 2.3mm shell counter hoops, 8 lug.
   
  
• Slingerland 5" x 14" Stainless Steel Shell w/ Nickel plated Brass Rims, 8 lug   
  
  
• Yamaha 4" x 12" Maple Shell - Peter Erskine Signature 
  MSD-12PE - 8 ply w/ Vintage Maple Finish, 8 lug   
  
  
• Yamaha 5.5" x 14" Bamboo Shell 
  BMSD1455 - 6 ply w/ Natural Finish, 10lug

[Nick]

Only one,  :-[ a Mapex ‘Black Panther Maple Deluxe 13" x 3.5"

:)

N

[BigBillInBoston]

I own three:

DW Edge (maple and brass), natural maple, 13x7, (now with 42 strand snare  ;))- Great drum and currently my primary snare. The 42's really helped to get more articulation at lower volumes.

DW Collector's Series (natural maple), 14x4- Another great drum that I use mostly for small group jazz. Great with brushes.

Ludwig Supraphonic (circa 1963), COB, 14x 5.5- I'm the original owner. Sold the kit that I bought it with originally but won't sell this versatile, great sounding drum.

BigBill

[felix]

7

60's Ludwig supraphonic 5.5 x 14 chrome over brass
70's Ludwig acrolite
80's Royce 5.5 x 14 luan
80's Sonor Signature 8 x 14 beech parallel action
90's Sonor Force 3000 6.5 x 14 birch
90's Sonor Designer 6.0 x 14 seamless ferromanganese steel
90's Yamaha Manu Katche 5.5 x 14 black enamel over brass

I'd say right now I like my Yamaha and Signature drums the most- the siggie is heads above all of them in sound and action but is so heavy- I had to pack it in a floor tom case last weekend  ::)

[felix]

Man, I'd like to play bart's maple fibes drum and the yammy bamboo.
I'd also like to take a crack on the dw edge snare.

[jokerjkny]

DW Collectors Aluminium 13x5 - nice, bright, open crack & pop.  my main snare.

DW Craviotto shell 13x5.5 - bought it used on Craigslist from a gent out in billyburg.  hardware was pretty beat up, but the shell was in good condition.  had the guys at Drummers' World hook me up with a few new lugs, hoops, etc., and voila! good as new.

Ayotte woodhooped 6 ply 12x8 - despite its diminutive size, its tuning range is quite impressive.  but these days, i'm actually using it as the main rack tom or as the "middle" tom between my 10x9 & 14x14.  sometimes, i'll even tune it up as a snare, yet place it as the main rack tom for some funkie coloring.

but i've really been gas'in for a Brady Jarrah 14x6.5.  amazing tuning range, and killer woody backbeat.  and also, a DW Edge 12x5.5.  heard one at a recent gig, and WOAH, soo impressed!  like someone turned up the sweetness and "crack" knob on the snare.   ;D  but it was appallingly heavy for something so small, but life aint perfect.   :P

[BigBillInBoston]

80's Sonor Signature 8 x 14 beech parallel action

Felix, how would you describe the sound of this drum? I've never played a non-marching snare this big. By "parallell action" I assume you mean that the snares are released from both sides of the drum? Also, I have no doubt that it's quite heavy. Don't know if my 13x7 Edge is quite as heavy...but it too is a load to cart around :o.

BigBill

[jokerjkny]

I own three:

DW Edge (maple and brass), natural maple, 13x7, (now with 42 strand snare  ;))- Great drum and currently my primary snare. The 42's really helped to get more articulation at lower volumes.
(...)

hey bill,

how's the tuning range on the Edge?  i heard they can be a tad limited, tho that limited range does sound awfully good.

[Mister Acrolite]

I've got 14 at the moment, but plan to do some housecleaning.

In current use:

• 5x14 1966 Ludwig Acrolite
  
• 6.5x14 black-sparkle Acrolite (AKA the Blacrolite)
  
• 5.5x14 Radio King (circa 50's/60's) in the delightfully tacky "Capri Pearl" finish
  
• 5.5x14 Yamaha John JR Robinson "Nail" snare  FOR SALE
  
• 3x13 Ludwig Black Beauty piccolo (winner of the Holy Crap That Drum Is Loud award)
  
• 10x14 maple George Way (predecessor to Camco)
  
• 5x14 COB round-badge Gretsch
  
• 5x13 maple/mahogany Slingerland (from musicyo.com)
  
• 5.5x14 copper Slingerland (ditto)
  
• 6.5x14 brass Slingerland (ditto)
  
• 4x12 custom single-headed maple from Resurrection Drums

On the "I need to put these up for sale on Ebay" list:

• 5.5x14 Pearl maple free-floating
  
• 3.5(?)x14 Pearl brass free-floating piccolo
  
• 5x13 Pearl steel Forum snare, wrapped in Black Diamond Pearl (not by me!)

[size=-4]Thanks to James Walker for coining the term Blacrolite[/size] ;D

[Mister Acrolite]

Only one,  :-[ a Mapex Black Panther Maple Deluxe 13 x 3.5

Does this mean you gig without a backup snare?!?!?!  :o

Nick, Nick, Nick. What are we going to do with you?   ;)

[felix]

the way I have the siggie tuned now is smooth, warm-mellow tone in the cut- kinda clear, more sustain than my birch sonor- dryer than maple drums I've heard- great body as you can imagine- good spread with the sonor "thickness" I like so much when you hear the snare response whip back.  Sorta hits you in the chest at first and then the way you have your heads tuned will give you a nice after effect-  very sensitive believe it or not, one can get a lot of different tones by just the way you hit it- so it's kinda hard to play/difficult to get used to in that respect.  It's not as loud as a marching drum and I don't have it tuned near as tight, but I've played other signatures that were tuned like that.  Can't wait to record it.

[BigBillInBoston]

hey bill,

how's the tuning range on the Edge?  i heard they can be a tad limited, tho that limited range does sound awfully good.

Joker, I'm not sure I've explored the entire tuning range to date. I've tuned it to various levels in the mid to high range with good success. Have not explored any low tunings.

BigBill

[felix]

I'd like to hear that blackrolite, the 10x 14 and the 3x13 black beauty- I bet that blackrolite is a blast to play

[Christopher]

Here's my little collection...

• 1967 Rogers "Powertone" 5" x 14" COB
  
  
• 1990 Drum Workshop 4" x 15" Brass
  
  
• 2001 Yamaha "Steve Gadd"  5" X 13" 6-ply birch
  
  
• 2003 Slingerland 4" X 14 Steel
  
  
• 2003 Slingerland 5.5" X 14 Steel
  
  
• 2003 Slingerland 6.5" X 14 Steel

Got the Slingys in a package deal. All three for 99 bucks at musicyo.com. Now they're 99 per.  

[Jay Northrop]

Ok time to list my arsenal...

Tama-12"x4" Piccolo Steel.6 lug

Tama-14"-5-1/2" Swingstar ( Aluminum.8 lug )

Crown-14"-5-1/2" wood ( 60's I love to sound of this guy.My second favorite.8 lug )

U.S.Mercury-14"-5-1/2" Steel ( 60's,by far my favorite and most used and versatile snare.8 lug  )

Groove Percussion-14"-6-1/2" ( the BIG boy of the bunch.Completely re-done by me with new hardware.The one word here is LOUD!Its steel.8 lug )

14"-5-1/2" wood ( 60's,I am unsure of the maker..I beleive Penncrest though from the set it is part of.6 lug )

Two-T.J Percussion 14"-5-1/2" Steel ( One of which was my first drum...6 lugs on each )

Granted some of these aren't the most special or greatest snares in the world.I must say though they have always pleased my pallete and all are with me every time I am in the studio.

[Tkitna]

Three

60's era keystone badge Ludwig acrolite. I have no idea what actual year it is. I cant find any year stamped on the inside. All I have is the numbers on the badge. I'm going to have to find out one day. Anyways, thats my main snare and I wouldnt trade it for anything.

Pearl sensitone. Really nice snare. I dont know why I bought it to be honest, because I dont use it very often. Its full of crack and my nicest snare for sure. I guess i'll have to wrap another set around it someday.

Steel Pearl export snare. I'm giving it to my brother along with my old set as soon as I buy a couple cymbal stands and rehead the kit. I reheaded this snare last year and never really got it to sound like I wanted, but I didnt mess with it for very long. No reason I guess. Good enough for the brother.

**Currently attempting to make a cheap snare out of a concert tom because I have no use at all for the tom and I have to many hoops laying around. I'm sure it will sound like crap, but everybody needs a project.

[James Walker]

UPDATED - OCTOBER 2005:

*denotes a home-built or refurbished drum

Synthetic shells:

• 8x12 Tempus fibreglass *
  
• 4x14 Tempus carbon fibre*
  
• 5x14 Tempus fibreglass*
  
• 6x14 Tempus fibreglass*
  
• 6x14 Marcato carbon fiber*
  
• 6.5x14 Tempus fibreglass*
  
• 8x14 Tempus carbon fibre*
  
• 8x14 Tempus fibreglass*
  

Wood shells

• 6x10 maple Keller shell *
  
• 3x13 maple/mahogany*
  
• 5x13 Joshua Tree Percussion red oak stave*
  
• 6x13 Global Drum Company black walnut *segment
  
• 6x13 maple Keller shell*
  
• 4.5x14 Exotic Drums bubinga stave*
  
• 5x14 Ludwig "Pioneer"
  
• 5x14 Morgan Langmuir redheart stave*
  
• 5.5x14 maple Vaughncraft steambent*
  
• 6x14 Global Drum Company tiger maple segment*
  
• 6x14 Joshua Tree Percussion cherry stave*
  
• 5.5x15 Keller shell (maple - home-built)*
  
• 12x15 Ludwig&Ludwig field drum (maple)
  
• 6x14 Leedy "Alliance" (WWII vintage, wood hoops and lug casings)
  

Metal shells

• 5x14 Ludwig "b/o badge" Acrolite (aluminum)
  
• 5x14 Wurlitzer (Leedy) shell rebuild (brass)*
  
• 6.5x14 Yamaha "Manu Katche" brass

If I had to pick just one, well...let's put it this way:  if the Mothership comes and the aliens only let me take one snare drum with me, it's going to be the Tempus 6X14.

[agogobil]

'98 Ayotte-Keplinger ss 14x6.5 steelhoop  Aquarian coated Response2 batter

'02 Dunnett ss 14x5.5 "Kemmistry"  Aquarian coated single-ply with power dot

'00 Fibes 14x5.5 maple  Aquarian single-ply

'81 Gretsch COB 14x5  8-lug  Aquarian American Vintage

'?  Ludwig Acrolite 14x5  B/O badge  Remo Ambassador

'01 Ludwig  Black Beauty 14x6.5  Ludwig medium wt.

'98 Premier APK  14x5  Aquarian single-ply

'02 Tempus fibreglass 14x6  Aquarian New Orleans Special

'03  Tempus carbonfibre 14x5  Evans Power Center reverse dot

self-assembled:

acrylic 14x4.5  Gold-n-Times shell  Aquarian New Orleans Special

fibreglass 14x5.5  Tempus shell  Remo Ambassador

tough to pick a favorite, but the 14x6 Tempus is hard to make sound bad ... in any room ... with an Aquarian New Orleans Special batter, it's flat-out ridiculous for rock.

[psycht]

Alas not enough for me. I only have 2 and one is barely alive:

5.5x14 Perl steel Forum - Main snare. Sounds good, but needs repair.
5.5x14 Tama steel Rockstar - backup snare, but need new hoops, heads, snares, & throw switch.

about to upgrade very soon.

[Christopher]

I think I'm suffering from "snare drum envy" after looking at some of the lists...    :P

Can I be cured?  ???



Seriously, beautiful stuff guys.

Any pictures?