Need a snare drum, got advice?

I'd like to get a snare drum for low volume at home playing/recording. This could be used with an acoustic guitar and an accompanying Tele, with brushes and a regular drumstick... kinda like a country trio sort of thing.

I have no idea what to get... Birch, maple, steel... I guess I want something with a warm sound. Any advice?

deja vu

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/bad-dog-cafe/333576-need-snare-drum-got-advice.html

You want wood. Old mahogany by any of the major manufacturers would be good, covered or not. Modern drums are usually maple or birch, they're a little bit snappier than the mahogany would be but not unpleasantly so. If I were buying an old drum it would be Slingerland or Ludwig. New would be Yamaha. They make great sounding drums and the price is not that expensive. If price is no object get a Craviatto :)

I'd avoid the metal drums for the use you're describing. Too loud and too ringy. I'll admit I'm biased. The only good sounding metal snare I've ever run across is my copper Slingerland. Other metal drums have been a disappointment, whether it's me or someone else playing it,

You want wood. Old mahogany by any of the major manufacturers would be good, covered or not. Modern drums are usually maple or birch, they're a little bit snappier than the mahogany would be but not unpleasantly so. If I were buying an old drum it would be Slingerland or Ludwig. New would be Yamaha. They make great sounding drums and the price is not that expensive. If price is no object get a Craviatto :)

I'd avoid the metal drums for the use you're describing. Too loud and too ringy. I'll admit I'm biased. The only good sounding metal snare I've ever run across is my copper Slingerland. Other metal drums have been a disappointment, whether it's me or someone else playing it,

Old wood snares work perfect.

Yes, an older Ludwig or Slingerland wood snare drum will work better for you. Mahogany is mellow with less ring, maple is warm and ringy, birch is dark and harsher sounding, although a lot of drummers like birch for recording, because it is not as resonant as maple and doesn't project all that well. Maple drums are better for live situations, but every drum is different. I've recorded three or four CDs with a maple snare. Hunt around. You'll find something. Go to www.drumforum.org and check the classified section.

Another really good recording snare is the Ludwig Acrolite, an aluminum shell drum that is surprisingly dry. It was a student drum. Kenny Aronoff recorded a lot of John Mellencamp's stuff with an Acrolite. You can get them for $120 or so on eBay.

I have been seeing several local roots rock groups and one bigger act, Dave Finley that used acoustic guitars and one of the cajon drums. Seems to be kind of a thing. I got a paying gig coming up I think I'll use the proceeds to buy one of the low end cajons myself.

As for snares the pawn shops are usually full of the student snare kits, usually Pearl and Ludwigs. Not fancy but you can get some mileage out of these.

For years, I had an neat little cocktail kit in my studio. For me, as a guitar player....it was the perfect drum situation. Takes up very little space. Looks really cool. Plus you get a bass and snare combo, so you can get more out of it. Plus you can play standing up....which as a dude with tons of nervous energy....I really like.

I haven't looked in a while, but in recent times they could be had on ebay pretty cheaply. Whenever I had drummers over to jam....they would JUMP at the chance to play what I referred to as the rocktail cocktail kit.

I'll second the recommendation for the Acrolite. Thousands upon thousands sold over the years to highschool students, you can find them on the 'bay, on craigslist, in the pawns, and in the used dept. at Music Go Round and GC everywhere. $120 or less. Sometimes you can even score one at the flea market or a yard sale for $20 or so.

I'll second the recommendation for the Acrolite. Thousands upon thousands sold over the years to highschool students, you can find them on the 'bay, on craigslist, in the pawns, and in the used dept. at Music Go Round and GC everywhere. $120 or less. Sometimes you can even score one at the flea market or a yard sale for $20 or so.

Right. There a LOT of them out there! Grab one fast, because they're getting a cache as a "cool" drum to own, and you might see the prices going up for the older 70's blue and olive Ludwig badge models. I think I paid $90 for mine.

Whatever you do, don't buy some cheap Asian POS metal snare. They all sound like clanky crap.

Thanks for all the input, guys. I'll need to look into that Acrolite snare this weekend. My local GC has a used Pearl MPS1455S 'limited edition' for $135. From what I can tell, it's 4 plies of poplar and 2 plies of maple, with a veneer wood finish to make it look "exotic", haha. But it does look nice. How would this compare to something like the Acrolite?

Another really good recording snare is the Ludwig Acrolite, an aluminum shell drum that is surprisingly dry. It was a student drum. Kenny Aronoff recorded a lot of John Mellencamp's stuff with an Acrolite.
I am by no means a drum connoisseur. Hey, I'm a guitar player. However...

The first time I heard James McMurtry's Painting By Numbers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kca5E3xk8II) on the radio, back in 1990, I'd never heard of him, and had no idea who he was. But, I said aloud, "I know that snare drum! That's Kenny Aronoff!" And I was right.

I used a Tama Artwood custom maple (thick shell) for a solid "crack" for a solid backbeat but for sensitivity with brushes and soft strokes with a stick, I loved my thin Maple Mapex Saturn Studio snare. For brushwork I would recommend a remo coated ambassador drum head on the Mapex Saturn Studio or something along those lines. The textured surface is sweet for brush work. For a good recorded solid backbeat that doesn't wash everything out I would recommend the Tama Maple Artwood custom or something thick and wood with an Evans reverse power dot centre or somethign along those lines. You can use moon gels which are like gummy bears but don't stain the skin to dampen unwanted overtones for recording. If you can find those you'd be good to go. A snare that sounds good for brushes will often give a more washy sound when hit with a stick I found. Your choice of skins will make all the difference as well as the actual snare wires which come in a variety of widths with a variety of numbers and types of wires. There's a lot to know about snares and tuning and such. It'll take more than just a drum to get what you want I am sure. Like guitars. There are a lot of them and there are different strokes for different folks.

http://www.puresoundpercussion.com/PSPHome.Page?ActiveID=2391&sid=b5c84ab0-6b10-4280-a9d1-f406d062ee73