Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

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willyz
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Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby willyz » Tue Dec 03, 2019 8:47 am

Hey gang,

Helping out a friend here- if you could give your thoughts on the below, that'd be great.

-Stave Shells. Any body have any? Which companies? General thoughts on them compared to a solid shell or ply shell drum?

-Anybody have experience with a drum that was just short of its size? Meaning, a drum that fits 14" heads but edge to edge is technically closer to 13.75?

-Would you ever seek out a smaller, indy company for you next snare or kit? Which ones and why? If no, why stick to one of the majors?

Thanks dudes! Cheers!
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Odd-Arne Oseberg
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby Odd-Arne Oseberg » Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:56 am

I don't own any stave shells. The ones I have played have a sort frequency split I'd expect from a metal drum. A low fundamental, that's doesn't necessarly cut much, but that's where the woody character lies. Shell construction method isn't the only thing that creates a drum sound, so I could easily be fooled in some cases.

It will be Gretsch for kits and snare, for the most part. It's just the sound. There are a lof snares that I'd consider if I had more money and could afford collecting a bit. There are several AK, N&C. Longo and Craviotto snares on that list. Maybe not so small companies. I am getting a Farmer Sojourner kit at some point.

For small kit alternatives this one looks interesting, too.

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Paul Marangoni
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby Paul Marangoni » Tue Dec 03, 2019 2:25 pm

willyz wrote:
-Anybody have experience with a drum that was just short of its size? Meaning, a drum that fits 14" heads but edge to edge is technically closer to 13.75?

I had a Canopus snare drum that was substantially undersized, although I didn't measure it to see how much. I found it strange that they don't mention this anywhere on their website.
I don't like undersized drums. I prefer that they match the size of Remo's heads. Otherwise I find that you have to be careful when changing heads to make sure it's not pulling down on one side more than the others.

As for boutique manufacturers, I have no interest. I prefer not to own any "one-offs" or super custom instruments that I would be very upset to lose (to theft or damage).
I like stock, off-the-shelf stuff that is reliable, sturdy, and sounds great. If I was only going to own one snare drum, it would probably be a metal Ludwig (brass or bronze) or my 8" deep Yamaha.
I have absolutely no interest in solid or stave shells. That may change if DW ends up making Slingerland Radio Kings.
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nomsgmusic
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby nomsgmusic » Tue Dec 03, 2019 10:44 pm

Hey WillyZ!
Are you out East now? We should hook up if you are close by, I'm in NJ.
Anyway...

Stave Shells- I have a few, a Brady and a Unix. I am VERY wary of anyone making stave shells because they are relatively "easy" for someone to build-experiment in their garage, and if they don't know what they are doing the shell might have a possibility of failing at some time, leaving me angry and with no recourse. I have learned from some drum manufacturers and woodworking friends, that there is MUCH more to creating things from wood than merely cutting and gluing. It is also my belief that the original big proponent of stave shells being Brady, creates drums that sound unique because of the Australian Hardwood that they use, as much as from the stave shell construction. My Unix is Walnut, and very well made, and while it looks and sounds really good, it isn't "special." My solid shell Longo Walnut is SPECIAL! My Brady Jarrah's (both stave and ply) are also very SPECIAL!!!

Undersized shells-I know that some drums throughout history have been notoriously undersized, and some have been notoriously oversized and hard to get heads on. I can only imagine that an undersized drum would create a slightly more limited tuning range, and a slightly "tighter" sound. But if a drum is undersized by a 1/4" as you mentioned, that means that there is about an 1/8" of "extra room" around the circumference of the drum. This might make seating a head a little wonky (as Paul said,) but I'm not sure.

Small Boutique companies- I would never get anything from a very small drum company that hadn't established itself (i.e.. some guy making drums in his basement with a few badges, and a newly created website.) I have some drums that were made by the "bigger" name "major" boutique companies if you will (Brady, Longo, Eames, Keplinger, ADM, Sleishman, etc...) And although I have had spectacular (!!!!) work done by Heuer on the West coast and Precision in NY State, I have never had them make me a drum, and probably wouldn't. I would much rather have either of them apply their fine craftsmanship to a drum that was already made by an established company and then tweaked by a master- craftsman.

I NEVER buy a drum to resell it, or with resale in mind, but I do know that any sort of "boutique" drum companies (except for the "major" boutiques like mentioned above) are very hard to resell. That combined with many of their exorbitant prices make it a risky purchase to me. And I work too hard for my money to risk it on a drum, of which I already have plenty....

MSG
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Morgenthaler
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby Morgenthaler » Mon Dec 09, 2019 5:36 am

willyz wrote:

-Stave Shells. Any body have any? Which companies? General thoughts on them compared to a solid shell or ply shell drum?

-Anybody have experience with a drum that was just short of its size? Meaning, a drum that fits 14" heads but edge to edge is technically closer to 13.75?

-Would you ever seek out a smaller, indy company for you next snare or kit? Which ones and why? If no, why stick to one of the majors?

Thanks dudes! Cheers!


1 I've played a number of Brady stave shells. They sounded thunderous and funky.
2 I've played a few snares that were just shy of the size. They tended to get a little boomier and harder to control, tuning-wise.
3 I have 4 snares and really am not looking... but any snare that sounds great would always be of some interest, no matter the brand.
:)
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Odd-Arne Oseberg
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby Odd-Arne Oseberg » Mon Dec 09, 2019 8:19 am

Paul Marangoni wrote:
willyz wrote:I have absolutely no interest in solid or stave shells.


I probably fall in that camp too, and it's really just about something that works well in general and with the sound of the kit. For general use I really like something with a simalar basic timbre. For the most part I just want some more Gretsch drums. Metal shells mostly. I don't really get the 1-ply purists as they're not right for every context IMO.

Paul Marangoni wrote:
willyz wrote:That may change if DW ends up making Slingerland Radio Kings.


That's the biggest news this week, isn't it. Wonder how they''ll turn out. As far as I know the Radio Kings are first on the list. I have an old one. Don't know if it's a "good one", but it's doing it's thing for me. If there's a third kit on the wishlist for the future, it would probably be a Slingerland. It's a classic sound and sort sits right between the other two. It's a design that wouldn't necessarily be hurt by some slight upgrades. Broadkasters are amazing, so.... I also think there is a greater interest in vintage tones than new tech these days, so what DW is doing is probably smart from a business standpoint as well. Keep Gretsch going and bring Slingerland back.


nomsgmusic wrote:Hey WillyZ!
My solid shell Longo Walnut is SPECIAL! My Brady Jarrah's (both stave and ply) are also very SPECIAL!!!
MSG


I'm sort of sad I've missed out on owning a Brady. Kai has a bunch, doesn't he? They seem very special indeed. The stave ones I imagine are mainly to have a fat back beat option.

I put my Longo walnut back on the stand yesterday. I just want to spend some time with it for variation. It's not really a main kit drum for me, but it is a nice compliment to the BB for orchestral work.
i
nomsgmusic wrote:Hey WillyZ!
I NEVER buy a drum to resell it, or with resale in mind, but I do know that any sort of "boutique" drum companies (except for the "major" boutiques like mentioned above) are very hard to resell. That combined with many of their exorbitant prices make it a risky purchase to me. And I work too hard for my money to risk it on a drum, of which I already have plenty....


I don't either and I doubt anything I have now will ever go. I'll do some changes to my Club Custom, though.

I think a company will have to offer something truly special and for my taste the only thing that comes to mind, except is something really unusual like an Avant III, or something, are Ak drums, which I guess aren't really unknown. My interest in Adrian's drums are prettty much limited to a BB and that 4x14 copper, though(Less expensive than I feared, so I'll eventually get one.). My wishlist is pretty short.
Last edited by Odd-Arne Oseberg on Thu Dec 12, 2019 9:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
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willyz
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Re: Snare Drum Inquiry (give me your thoughts!!)

Postby willyz » Thu Dec 12, 2019 9:50 am

Good stuff gang- thanks!!

Keep it coming!

Cheers.
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