nice jazz snare/ride cymbal suggestions?

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drummersteve

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hi there
i currently play drums in a kinda punk/emo band, but i play (and i dont mean to sound big-headed here) funk, jazz, swing,hiphop of a high standard in my own time. ive got a really nice sound to my current snare for the style my band its, a really good crack. but for my jazz playing it doesnt have the dynamic control i would like to have. all the time when i listen to jazz the snare seems really open, snares quite loose, and they have this kinda "laid back" sound, whilst still being responsive. anyone know what i mean? anyway, i like the sound ive got with my current snare, so i was wondering if anyone knew of any really nice jazz-sounding snares out in the shops? preferably not costing a hell of a lot, but i can blow the bank a little. thanks.

also, what do people think of the zildjian k-custom rides? i really like the darker tones on the k-customs, what do other people think? thanks!

steve
 
ride

im not sure about snares, but Paiste Traditional series has good jazz cymbals. Go to the Paiste website. And im not sure, but i heard the Mike Portnoy Custom Meldoy Masters Snare by Tama works as a good jazz snare...
 
awesome, il check them out. thanks dude, anyone else have any suggestions?
 
Jazz playin'

I've got a K custom Dark 22" ride that just KILLS for jazz work. Every ride cymbal I've ever played sounds different - ESPECIALLY with different sticks/tips. Check out a ball end like the Peter Erskine model on a dark K jazz ride. Then try an acorn shaped nylon tip and you'll see what I'm getting at. I prefer Zildjians for jazz work, Paiste just seems too loud to me for jazz work.

For jazzy snares I really just leave things wide open with no muffling. Loosen the snares until you're able to get a good buzz roll goin'. Every drum will have it's sweet spot, so take your time to find it. A lot of punk and R&B drummers tend to crank the snare heads as tight as they can, which will often "choke" the sound of the snare. For jazz work, get a good medium tension going between both top and bottom heads. Then for a deader sound, hit the center of the drum; for a ringy pop, play more toward the edge of the drum.

Cheers, Rez
 
Use either Ks or Istanbuls for a jazz ride. They should be pretty dark unless you are playing with a big band. Go and play a bunch before you decide. Get one with enough articulation so you can play uptempo (fast) shit on it as well.

For the snare, get a wood one. Then keep the snares pretty loose so you can get a buzz out of your left hand.
 
I'm a fan of K's which can be very good as jazz rides - while a 20" can work, I think a 22" can be better (a couple of rivets can be a great enhancement, but should be done by someone who knows what they are doing). I agree that different sticks/tips can draw out various tones. I prefer a nylon "acorn tip" wihich is not too overpowering, yet the nylon adds a distinct attack.

Regarding snares, it's always a matter of tase, but I prefer a Maple in a standard 14" x 5.5" (or 14" by 5") with an open sound. I've also gotten a good jazz tone from a Maple 13" x 3" - but a standard siize snare seems to lend itself more to the open sound of jazz. I am not a fan of a steel snare for jazz (candidly, I am not a fan of Steel snares period)
 
My 20" K Custom Medium Ride has gotten glowing comments from nearly every jazz musician I've played with. For Jazz I often use 7B wood-tipped sticks that have a longer cone shape with a well defined bottom ridge, so I can pull a nearly infinite number of sounds/tones from the cymbals.

I usually have two rides and hihats on my jazz set-up. My prefferred 2nd ride is some old unkown brand ultra-light 18" ride with a single rivet about half an inch from the edge.

As for snares, I've found that nearly any snare will do the trick, so long as you don't crank up the tuning. I've always used Remo weather king coated ambassadors on the batter side. No muffling, no sound control dots, coated all over. Traditional grip helps me keep my snare sound loose, but very controlled.

I'm using a 6" deep Rogers steel snare that gets used for jazz, funk, hip hop, rock and latin with the same tuning. Since I started recording, I've been desperately seeking the right all-wood snare; preferrably a heavier, darker wood.

My feeling is that as long as it not for recording, you can get nearly any snare drum to sound good for jazz with the right head, tuning and most importantly, technique. It is most critical to get the right ride or two. Make sure that when you first play it you can ride it with at least four different basic tones.
 
I recently picked up the Sabian Paragon 14" hi hats. They are absolutely amazing for jazz, fusion, funk and latin. I don't really want to rock out on them too hard, but so far they have taken some beatings and really shined through.

I used to covet the 14" Zildjian K Custom Dark hats. They seem more limited to jazz and fusion than my Paragons. Actually, everything seems kind of useless compared to the Paragon hats in my jazz-centric opinion.
 
I use 13" Dark K's for jazz - that actually work well with fusion/funk as well.
 
If you like the Paiste series, you should also look at the Pulse 357 series (built by Paiste). Nice dark tone at a decent price.

They come as singles or in a cymbal pack (20" ride, 16" crash, 14" hats). The latter supposedly retails for $260, but Musician's Friend has it for $80. Anyway, definitely worth trying them out if your local music store has some on the floor. That said, I would like the pack better if it came with the 18" crash, which IMHO has a much nicer sound.
 
can't beat the k custom ride, it's the best thing out there, especially for jazz.

as for a snare, i'd pick up an old ludwig super sensitive on ebay, you'll be amazed at how good it sounds for snare work in jazz. the 5"'s are pretty rare, but very nice.
 
Check with the pros

If your going for a jazz sound, it's hard to just tell you what exactly to buy...so listen to your favorite jazz drummers and try to narrow what you want. Find out that drummer's name, and see if you can do a google search to find what kind of gear he used.

My fav jazz drummers would have to be the late Buddy Rich and the late Gene Krupa. They used to play Slingerland and Rogers kits. And of course, traditional Turkish cymbals are a classic for conventional jazz (zildjian for example).

Sabian has a lot of great cymbals for jazz (Hand Hammered). They also have a whole signature series of jazz cymbals (i forget his name). Go to the site.

Have fun, jazz lives!
 
I'm a huge fan of the Meinl stuff. Their Byzance series is excellent, way better than the K stuff (in my opinion of course). They're completely hand hammered in Turkey and very much in line with the prices of the K stuff. The setup I have is the 14" byzance dark hats and a 21" dark ride. They sound great, dark and jazzy and look badass!

Rory

meinlcymbals.com
 
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