Different types of snare drums
 

Hey, I know there are many types of snares, but what characteristics do they all have?

For example:
the more plies...the louder?
Metal snares have a more accented crack?
That type of stuff about snares. If anybody could help me, I'd be really grateful, or if you could give me a few sites to look up I would highly appreciate it as well.

Generally metal shells are brighter than wood shells, and the thicker the shell the ringier the drum will be and it will project more.

[U][B]Snare drums;[/B][/U]


[U]Brass:[/U] A very sharp edge to the sound and very rich with mellow overtones.
[U]Steel:[/U] A step more towards bright with a very pronounced ring, allot of body and longer decay than brass.
[U]Aluminum:[/U] Clear, open sounds with bright, crisp overtones and is capable of incredibly loud rimshots.
[U]Bronze:[/U] A close cousin to brass with the overall character of woods, can be loud, a good all around drum.
[U]Copper:[/U] A close cousin to the Aluminum drum only slightly warmer.
[U]Hammered:[/U] Same overall characteristics as the parent material, only slightly less resonance to varying degrees.
[U]Metal Thickness:[/U] The 1mm shells are not as low to mid range resonant as thicker shells such as 3mm plus.
[U]Metal Cast Drums:[/U] Very Loud and Resonant due to special cymbal alloys used in the casting process.

[B][U]Hoops/Rims[/U][/B]
[U]Die Cast Hoops[/U]: Thicker and stronger then triple flanged stamped hoops with an ability to allow more even tuning of the head and as a result, the head is usually more responsive throughout the tuning range with less varied overtones. As such, may create a slightly drier sound on thin shell, small sized drums due the weight of the rim causing the drum to vibrate less freely. They can also be made out of differing materials such as nickel or aluminum and all aid in changing the sound of the drum.
[U]Triple Flanged or “stamped” hoops[/U] come in a variety of metals, which affect the tone of the drum. The thinner they are the more difficult they’ll be to tune with. Many drummers prefer these on toms because of the ability to tune “fatter” or “warmer” than with cast. Aluminum makes for a higher pitched tone than does steel and as a result is used on snares quite a bit for a great “crack”. Brass makes the drum more musical and aids in the presence or high-pitched overtones.

[U]Wood Hoops [/U] have the virtue of being either rigid or flexible, depending upon the manufacturer’s thickness of the hoop. As a result, they can take on the tuning characteristics of a cast hoop if rigid or flanged hoops if thin in construction. However, the rimshot sound is considerably different and acts like an extension of the shell so the drum is usually both more resonant and brighter.

For more information go to [URL=http://home.earthlink.net/~prof.sound/index.html]Here[/URL]

Thanks, that was a huge help, but it doesn't say much on how the size affects the drum. :S...any other sites anybody?

Edit: just found something else on the site about depth etc.

Mods, if you could give kriz some good rep, I would appreciate it. :)

[QUOTE=Deranged_Drummer15]..but it doesn't say much on how the size affects the drum. :S...any other sites anybody?..[/QUOTE] Well imagine a 13", and compare the sound to a 20" snare if there is one. It's not going to be exactly the same. Its going to give it more reverb within the drum.

Diameter affects pitch and response. Bigger = lower pitch, less responsive, smaller = higher pitch, more articulate.

[quote] Well imagine a 13", and compare the sound to a 20" snare if there is one[/quote]

me wanteth me 24" snare drum and double pedal...

That would sound terrible.

[QUOTE=kriz14][U][B]Snare drums;[/B][/U]


[U]Brass:[/U] A very sharp edge to the sound and very rich with mellow overtones.
[U]Steel:[/U] A step more towards bright with a very pronounced ring, allot of body and longer decay than brass.
[U]Aluminum:[/U] Clear, open sounds with bright, crisp overtones and is capable of incredibly loud rimshots.
[U]Bronze:[/U] A close cousin to brass with the overall character of woods, can be loud, a good all around drum.
[U]Copper:[/U] A close cousin to the Aluminum drum only slightly warmer.
[U]Hammered:[/U] Same overall characteristics as the parent material, only slightly less resonance to varying degrees.
[U]Metal Thickness:[/U] The 1mm shells are not as low to mid range resonant as thicker shells such as 3mm plus.
[U]Metal Cast Drums:[/U] Very Loud and Resonant due to special cymbal alloys used in the casting process.

[B][U]Hoops/Rims[/U][/B]
[U]Die Cast Hoops[/U]: Thicker and stronger then triple flanged stamped hoops with an ability to allow more even tuning of the head and as a result, the head is usually more responsive throughout the tuning range with less varied overtones. As such, may create a slightly drier sound on thin shell, small sized drums due the weight of the rim causing the drum to vibrate less freely. They can also be made out of differing materials such as nickel or aluminum and all aid in changing the sound of the drum.
[U]Triple Flanged or “stamped” hoops[/U] come in a variety of metals, which affect the tone of the drum. The thinner they are the more difficult they’ll be to tune with. Many drummers prefer these on toms because of the ability to tune “fatter” or “warmer” than with cast. Aluminum makes for a higher pitched tone than does steel and as a result is used on snares quite a bit for a great “crack”. Brass makes the drum more musical and aids in the presence or high-pitched overtones.

[U]Wood Hoops [/U] have the virtue of being either rigid or flexible, depending upon the manufacturer’s thickness of the hoop. As a result, they can take on the tuning characteristics of a cast hoop if rigid or flanged hoops if thin in construction. However, the rimshot sound is considerably different and acts like an extension of the shell so the drum is usually both more resonant and brighter.

For more information go to [URL=http://home.earthlink.net/~prof.sound/index.html]Here[/URL][/QUOTE]



Add the new DW Titanium snare onto your list there and getthe specs for it, then u'll be unstopable

Titanium is similar to a good steel snare from what I've heard.

All I know about the titaniums is they are **** expensive .... around like $1,800 usd i think.

What about all the wood types of snare drums?

[B]Maple[/B] compared to African Mahogany: Mahogany will have an approximate 20% increase in low frequency resonance over the Maple drum, mid and high frequencies will be the same from a reproduction point of view.
[B]Maple[/B] compared to Birch: Birch will have about a 10% loss in reproduction of low end compared to Maple and about a 20% increase in the high end, with the mid range remaining about the same. So the Birch kit will definitely be a “harder” and “brighter” sounding kit.
[B]Beech[/B] is in between Maple and Birch. All other Maple colored woods used in laminated shells are basically there for either structural integrity or looks and do not have the desired qualities (meaning density and grain structure) of the above.
[B]Mahogany [/B] has earned an undeserved bad reputation due to the use of inferior grades such as Luann on low cost drums for appearance reasons. But Mahogany is a very rich sounding and warm tone.
[B]Oak[/B] is a very bright cutting sound and stick attack and presence are very pronounced.
[SIZE=1]
This is straght from the prof sound tuning gude.[/SIZE]

Since we're on the subject of snare sound. Can someone post a link, or tell me a song, where someone is playing a normal snare then another song where that person is playing a Piccolo snare?

I just want to compare.

Nice posts kriz14 rep+??

I dont deserve the rep, as all i did was copy and paste from a site. :p