im looking to add to my snare arsenal, i have a pretty big project coming up but i dont have crazy money to buy an old black beauty so i need a realistic gem..

i currently have a mapex prescious metal phosphour bronze (imense crack but a bit "snarey") and a Tama Starcassic Birch which is nice and dark but doesnt sound all that posh

any opinions on acrolites or supraphonics or an old brass slingerland? any other suggestions

and another thing.... i have a mapex saturn kit at the mo and have just been offered a slightly older birch pearl masters series... anyof you guys had experience with these kits or could offer advide?

cheers

oh yeah im largely recording rock / prog / indie

I love, and more importantly, the microphones love the Black Hawg by world max.
It has a crazy huge tuning range.
Like it much better than the 'black dawg' btw...

An old brass Slingerland sounds good to me. I love maple or some other good wood for larger snares and brass for small ones. I'm one of the few and proud that love a brass piccolo.

Dude....I gotta tell ya. You like the Matt Cameron Soundgarden snare sound?
One snare....Greg Keplinger Snare or.....





Ayotte Keplinger 14 x 7 Steel Hoop Snare. I love this snare.

Attachment 21140

Pearl Free Floting Brass 3 1/2 x 14... That will get you a great all around snare that will get some great body as well as crack like hell. Mine keeps finding it's way back on the snare stand, and when it is off for a special reason, it always comes back really quick.

Absolutely another vote for that. The Ayotte ones are bad ass. You won't be dissapointed.

Couldn't agree more... got one, LOVE it.
it is exactly like the "Hitmaker" snare (Black Beauty knockoff) sold by Drum Paradise in LA (think Audioslave snare sound, among others).

Another snare that I just love is the Arbiter 14"x6.5" maple... big, big sound...

Kit wise, gotta go with a Pearl Masters Custom or Studio. I got this one recently and love the thing; especially the kick... the thing just is sooo thick!

On just the snare front look into a Brady or Dunnett Tittanium shell. Also if you can find a 4x14 made from Bubbinga it will crack your skull! The rim knocks on those drums are to die for.... the harder the wood (most of the time) the more crack in the sound.

hi

why not build you own kit. do some research and you will find it will be cheaper to build a kit. here is a link to a very informative site.

http://forum.drumshed.org/

if you are willing to do a little work, purchasing a kit is a waste of money

have fun

cheers ramjet

I've always liked the Radio King re-issues.

Because, even for a drummer, it's a gamble. For example, sanding your bearning edges: to what degree? and what with? and how to it exactly? How to drill the lug holes? How to line them up perfectly? and space them around the hole shell?

Sorry too much trouble for me! Now you can buy DIY kits with all this done but by the time you invest your time and sand and paint it cost more than a Pearl!

I have on the other hand done a snare drum before which turned out ok. I actually still use it.

I've mixed and recorded the Holy Grail of chrome over brass - a $2000 vintage predecessor to the Black Beauty. Sounded unbelievable. However, I have been able to get fairly close to that sound with a much less expensive chrome over brass snare called "Big Black" made by Pork Pie. I saw one go on the bay for 250.

That Black Dawg snare looks pretty damn cool as well. Never used one but it's got all the right curves if you know what I mean.

... I am not a drummer, but I am obsessed with great drummers and great drum sounds.

cheers,

i think the older birch pearl drum would be super nice, the birch starclassic is going to have a thin shell, so if the pearl is the 6ply version of the masters studio, then it would be a little different.

the world max snares are a great suggestion, check those out.
also check out pearl's brass sensitone, they have a black laquered brass shell to immitate the look/sound of the black beauty (its a nice drum!)

and old brass slingerland is a great idea too. their brass shells have THREE lines on the shell, stell shells have no lines.

acrolites and supras use the same aluminum shell. i love those shells, very dry and midrangey. great pop. i actually prefer the 8 lug acrolite because of the lower end of the tuning range. some prefer the higher tuning range (and price!) of the supra. oh and the supra will get pitted because chrome plating doesnt stick to aluminum very well.

ok shutting up!
-will

super helpful! i think im going to try out a black hawg and mabe get a cheap old acrolite of ebay for shi*s and giggles

cheers!

hi

yes it can be a gamble but that is where research comes in, it takes all the gamble out. my drummer and i have just stripped his old ludwigs(mid 70,s i think) and recut the edges and sanded the edges true and it was the best thing we could have done to the kit . oh yeah and that was the first time i have used a router for anythingor even attempted something like that and now we are on our way to planing a full kit.

personally i would think real hard before buying a kit anymore

cheeers ramjet

I personally use (and I am going to start using on sessions) the Pork Pie Big Black.

I got my at Guitar Center for $225 brand new.

I took it to work one day at the studio and some of the guys asked me how much I rented it out for...

Delicious.

I guess they're discontinued, but I bought a couple of Chinese built Slingerlands a couple years ago after a friend tipped me off on these things...man...each of them is just great. I got a Slingerland 14x6.5" copper snare new for $99, and a Slingerland 14x4" steel snare new for $69 and they are very good and versatile. Found "Music Yo" selling them on eBay, and he sold 'em cheap. No series designation on them etc, I just know they were being made in China is all. Heavy duty stuff.

I've got those two and an Arbiter 14x5.5" maple and I'm covered with 3 distinct sounds.

War

I have a '67 Acrolite. It's brilliant in lots of cases provided you tune it with suitable heads, set the snare tension correctly, give it some ventilation (a small hole cut into the bottom head does it for me), and HIT it.

It's not a ringy or snappy as a Supraphonic, but then the aluminum tends to be less resonant than other metals. Hence its tendancy to choke up a little.

I don't think you can go wrong with any that have been suggested so far, provided you pay attention to all the usual things involved in snare ownership.

Cheers,

bdp

Ludwig black beauty!! Use it on every session!! For rock, which is what I usually record, anything that is 6.5, 7, or 8 x 14 sounds incredible. DW Edge is also a good studio snare.