Snare Drum Head Shootout

tarnationsauce2

tarnationsauce2

Welcome to the jungle.
Snare Head Shootout from forum user Slap Back at this GearSlutz thread.
I thought the info would be useful here too. :)










Answer key below...



























Answer Key:
Track 1 = Evans Genera G2 Clear
Track 2 = Evans Genera Dry Coated
Track 3 = Remo Ambassador Coated
Track 4 = Remo Pinstripe Clear
Track 5 = Remo Reverse Dot Coated
Track 6 = Remo Ambassador Clear
Track 7 = Aquarian Hi Energy
Track 8 = Remo Powerstroke 3 Coated
 
It's all a matter of taste

A few of them sounded real good but for my taste track 3 had the sound that I most like to hear. That was the Ambassador coated.
 
I was a fan of 1, 3, and 5 (guess I'm an odd ball :p).

Was nice to hear that 5 was the remo controlled sound, as that's what I tend to use. I think if I had a studio only snare, i'd rock the coated ambassador. That was my favorite of the samples.
 
You forgot the †† 'with my drum, mics, room, chain, ad nauseam' disclaimer.
... Not to mention what kind of drum and the mic process. There's noobs here, like me :D

Good ol' Ambassador always wins on my wood snare, but Evans PCRD works better on the metal snare ††.

Very cool study though, wish I had your patience.
 
I liked 1, 6 and 8. I have the remo powerstroke on my snare at the moment. Sounds like it needs cranking up a little in that sample though, at least to my ears. Mine sounded a little dead when I first put it on, so I tightened it a little bit more than I usually would and it sounded a lot better.

Might have to get my hands on one of those evans heads. I've never used evans on any of my drums before.
 
i've used the powerstroke 3 coated head for approx. 10 years and i love it. at least on my "stock" wood tama snare that came with my kit. it gives it a good bite.
 
Haven't listened to the samples because, as Midipunk says, my snare/environment is so different that I just experiment with heads/tuning and I think I'm nearly happy!

I've been using coated Ambassador since I started playing and never had problems, other than the durability so I just upgraded thickness to a coated Emporer and the sound difference is negligible, it's got just the thick 'crack' I like for rock, without sacrificing the ghost notes I use when I play funk and Jazz.

Then again, I do use a '60s Ludwig 400 so you can't really go far wrong whatever you use on it :D
 
2, 4 and 7 sound like absolute poo, although 7 sounds less like poo than 2 and 4.

3 is waaay to ringy, but then that's a head that can be toned down. It rather have something that I can tone down rather than a head I'm stuck with that's too dead sounding.

8 was do-able, but 5 was the best followed by 1. 6 was good too.

I have used 5 for 16 years now, so my ear is biased because that's the sound I like. I knew what 5 was before looking.
 
tarnationsauce2, thanks so much for starting this thread, great idea!! :cool: I never imagined that heads could change the sound of a drum so much & some of us can't afford to buy lots of heads & compare ;) brilliant

phil, i'm curious as to why you are so against the sound of 2 & 4 because those were my favourite tracks. I know music is a very personal thing but can you not see the use of that kind of snare? I'm just wanting to know (i'm going to buy new heads myself as i've been stuck with stock heads for a while & don't want to have to stick tape all over my drum to get the sound i like eg 2 & 4.) I saw a use for all of those sounds :confused:
 
_brian_ said:
phil, i'm curious as to why you are so against the sound of 2 & 4 because those were my favourite tracks. I know music is a very personal thing but can you not see the use of that kind of snare? I'm just wanting to know (i'm going to buy new heads myself as i've been stuck with stock heads for a while & don't want to have to stick tape all over my drum to get the sound i like eg 2 & 4.) I saw a use for all of those sounds :confused:
Click to expand...

Because in a dense mix it will sound like a cardboard box. You don't hear it here, because all the instruments are acoustic, but add some distortion on the guitar or a bunch of other instruments and that snare will soon disappear. The other heads breathe much more and are not as restricted sounding.

And you're right, it's all personal taste. They don't sound bad really, they're just not my sound. But can you imagine how boring the world would be if everything sounded only the way I like?:)
 
tarnationsauce2 said:
Is that a Supraphonic? I got a Supra not too long ago and so far I like the coated Ambassador it came with.
I haven't tried anything else yet. I was thinking maybe a Powerstroke or maybe G2 coated.
Click to expand...

Coated G2 on a Supra is love. I use them all the time, I find that they last longer than coated Ambs do. Just personal experience.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top