Metal vs Wood - these Snares Sound the Same | Season Six, Episode 41
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- čas přidán 25. 03. 2024
- Thanks to Brandon Graves, author of “Reflections for the Hands, Head, and Heart” for sponsoring today’s episode. Visit sladl.ink/BrandonGraves to order his book.
Shell material doesn't matter...nearly as much as you might think it does.
Drum shell material may be the variable that’s given the greatest attention when it comes to differentiating between drums. Generally speaking, most snares drums fit into one of two categories; metal or wood. But what if metal and wood drums sound the same and it’s really just a trick our eyes are playing on us?
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I’ve been saying this for years!!! I think what makes them seem so different is that most tend to tune a metal snare vs wood snare so different.
100 %
What a timely video for me. I 3D printed a snare drum a couple of weeks ago. Sounded ok at first, but I tinkered with the tuning here and there. Now that I have been playing it a few weeks, it sounds almost exactly like my mid '60s Jazzfest. Different shell material, different bearing edges, different heads, different wires, even different lug count. Slowly I naturally (and unintentionally) made it sound like most of my other snares.
Here is a thing I have noticed over the years with myself and my friends. No matter which equipment we procure, it always sounds like us. All my snares end up sounding a lot alike, no matter how they sounded in the shop when I bought them. My friends have gone through wildly different guitars, pedals, amps and even though they sounded different at first, my friends and I end up adjusting our gear to fit the sound in our heads, which may or may not be where the equipment sounds best.
So $12 worth of plastic sounds like hundreds of dollars worth of wood or metal in my hands. :)
got a link? I'm curious how it sounds!!
what does that mean, you 3D printed a drum ?
It means they printed a drum shell out of plastic with a 3D printer for $12 worth of filament. I would have to assume the hardware was not printed, but I want to see a video of it. Sounds very interesting.
@@morganblack1773 correct, I printed the shell. The hardware was what I had lying around that fit. I’ve seen printed lugs, but I didn’t try that.
It sounds decent. I took it to band practice Friday night. The guys thought it had a good crack. I normally use a Supraphonic with that band. Stood up to hard playing and rimshots. I’m pleased with it.
Thanks so much for the kind words and description. You guys make excellent content that I am proud to support. I feel like we approach music and sound from a similar place. This topic is also a fascination one. I have found myself using less snare drums as I have seasoned as a player and I believe it is due to this same concept. The better I get to know a drum, the better I can make it do what I want and the more it sounds like me. At this point, I use a 6.5 brass drum and a 5.5 mahogany drum for basically everything. I agree, the shell has way less to do with the sound of the drum than the heads, beds, edge, and player. Bravo guys for this episode.
Shell material never made or broke a gig or session anywhere ever. ✌
Well said!
The forbidden truth.
Two relative stories that support your point: I used to play regularly for my church, in a rotation with two other drummers. Same drums, same sticks, I was the one to tune the kit regardless of who played; the sound guy would talk endlessly about how the kit never sounded as good when the other two played as it did when I played. He was biased toward me as a drummer, of course (we have been working together for decades, and part of my sound was molded by him), but it just illustrates the different sound produced by different drummers, even on the same kit.
Also, one of the fun things the band I'm in does is have one of the lead singer/guitar players sit at the kit for one song, while I do some vocals in his place. The kit sounds COMPLETELY different under his playing. Again, same sticks, same tunings, etc.
A player's sound is made by the player. Different drums, tunings, and heads do different things, but the player is the most important variable in the mix. Fun video!
From my opinion the area of depth and ring where you can actually notice a significant difference is not where you would want your snare sound, that’s like some St. Anger sh
Holy cow! What a wonderful episode - thank you all for laying it out so perfectly for us
My back knows the difference when carrying an aluminum snare.
hahahaha, exactly
Such a weird comment. I mean how much less does it weigh? A few pounds?
This seems like a comment better matched for our sister channel, Feels Like a Drum...
@SoundsLikeADrum that's great 😂😂😂
@@ruffryder13 Oh man! You've never owned a Vistalite!!! I have a 22'' Vista kick and a 28'' WFL 3 ply kick and the weight difference is shocking!! The Vista feels like a boat anchor!!
Very interesting topic, thank you for this!
Great video people . Thank you .
Informative and suprising. I appreciate the time and effort spent making this great channel.
The thing you can't get in a video are the differences in feel, which sometimes does come down to the drum configuration and materials. A 6.5" deep thin shelled drum with triple flange hoops won't feel the same as a 5" deep, thick maple drum with re-rings and die casts. When playing, that difference in feel can inform my playing in a way that (naturally) translates into a different sound, just because of how it changes my playing.
That’s true but you’re talking about specs rather than materials right?
@@evilhubert Sure, but materials plays a part. In the video, they had two drums with different shell materials, but also different number of lugs, different hoop styles, etc, and (slightly) different depths. A thin, sharp shell like the INDe kalamazoo will feel different than a Craviatto baseball bat edged solid snare. Sometimes, those differences in specs make a huge difference, and aren't captured when you just say "bronze" vs "maple"
Thank you for doing the bait and switch! Most of what we think we hear is influenced by what we see, and many musicians just won't accept it. I deliberately didn't look at the video just to see if I could discern which drum was which, but I couldn't. Great video!
Thank you! Finally i can have a good night's sleep. Best episode so far!
Love this! My goal years ago was to build an awesome drum arsenal like we see all over social media. I quickly discovered the importance of heads, hoops, wires, etc. before the shell. I’m glad I went through this journey & appreciate drums for what they are. NOT the super specific materials or sounds. We haven’t even opened Pandora’s box of sound / EQ. 10 out of 10! TY
Exceptional! Useful, clear, demonstrable, and irrefutable. Thank you!
I still feel that there's difference in sound from some drums because I BELIEVE they respond differently. And because I hit them with a different attitude and expectation, which is then self fulfilling. (plus, close-mic'ing also adds continuity between drums, which might sound a smidgeon different were a listener right in the room, with fresh ears (and their eyes closed).
Finally, "the Placebo Effect" is real in unexpected ways. So real, in fact, that in a recent study I reviewed, even people who KNEW they were getting the placebo, felt some benefit from it. So this is often why we seek out more gear for a different sound, not because it will sound different, but because we believe it will, and may find inspiration in that. I don't see that as a bad thing.
Thanks again for your always stellar videos!
I'm happy that someone else said this. Thanks for proving me correct after all these years.
I have 1 snare drum that I’ve gigged and recorded for the past 20 years. I recognized this a long time ago. Glad to see y’all noticed it too.
This is why I love this channel! You guys demystify things so concisely. The way I would put it would be that there's a Venn diagram of the Pearl and the Acrolyte, and that their area of intersection is far larger than most of us imagine it to be. I guess I was fooled by the first demonstration. When I saw Cory hitting the Pearl I thought "Damn, they sound identical! Well, if they really sound that close, then point taken!"
While your point is well taken, the near field experience of hearing the drum without amplification is different. My COB Slingerland snare is definitely a bit warmer than my Rogers steel Super Ten and both are different than my 15" fiberglass snare that has a great dry articulateness that steel and wood are not capable of. Once you put a mike right next to the head, the electronics tend to decrease the differences... and out in the audience (miked or not) I'm sure the difference isn't discernible. I've learned that the near field listening experience (my hearing the sound directly) , if it's what I want to hear, is a big factor in my increased efficacy in expressing myself. Same thing with cymbals...
Always played maple snare drums but a few years ago I tried a yamaha copper snare and wished i'd had the money to buy, it was such a joy to play.
Always enjoy your vids!!! I wonder if they would sound the same if equipped and tensioned the same. Very interesting !!
Awesome video!
Thank you for making this video! All the points you brought up are absolutely true. One question I do have is if different shell materials are louder/ quieter when playing with the same dynamic level / stick hit force. Now that would be an interesting test.
Great video!
Wow, it's great that you guys did this video. It reminds me of the various videos made a Glen Flicker at SpecterSounds. Who had made various videos debunking tone sounds on electric guitars 🎸. Where he does a blind comparison on different guitars, amps, pick-ups or speakers and guitarist get upset cause they can't pick the right ones. So YEAH, it's hard to tell when you don't see the instruments and have to figure if it's wood or metal.
Keep the great work 👍 😊
I think with sound differences, it’s less about shell material and more about sizes/head choice. I have a 13x7 OCDP Maple/Ash Snare and it has a lot of low-end punch and thud at high tunings that aren’t (as) present with a regular 14x5-14x8. I had a Heavyweight on it because I thought the extra mass as well as shorter diameter would mean the high-pitched, but bassy sound I was talking about but it was too thick and choked the drum out. The G12 was my next choice and it was like magic, my favorite head on that drum by a long shot 💪
exactly, a nice piccolo 14"x3.5" or pancake, a standard wood 14"x5.5" and a deep metal 14"x6.5" won't have the same sound and they can tune very differently.
they both sound good to me and thanks for the video
Thank you!!! We need more CZcams channels to acknowledge that. Flimmaking suffers from that too.
Thank you!!
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!
Great video. I've been messing with people online by asking for help picking a better ride cymbal based on audio from a couple of samples alone when in fact it's the same ride all the time and i only switch between nylon and wood tipped sticks.
can't believe I just turned my phone around when the first comparison started and I noticed the simularitys - then Cody revealed that trick of having different audio/video!!
i was thinking that they sounded pretty similar, but the wood i guess sounded a little darker to my ears bur like he said he just hit it differently
That first sequence - ahhhh, got me good! You guys did a superb job tuning those snares as close to identically as is practically possible. Metal or wood, doesn't matter - does it sound good? That's the most important part. For me, which drum I choose to play is kind of like what shoes or hat I decide to wear on any given day - just a mood thing. Cheers!
One of the best videos you guys have ever made!
Thanks! What was it that really stuck out for you?
I’m a 60 year old drummer been playing for 50 years and still gigging and have had many, many drums. I’ve always believed you can make almost any drum sound good “respectively”. Your video did a great job demonstrating this FACT! Thanks so much for all you do. Peace
I was thinking about exactly this scenario just yesterday: wondering how much our eyes decieve our ears, and how accurately or scientifically we can even do comparisons between different pieces of equipment unless all parameters but one are the same. Thank you guys for making this video to prove my train of thought was going in the right direction - and now please get out of my head, or I'll have to ask you to pay rent! 😄
That was great. As far as I can hear on my tiny phone speakers, the wooden snare sounded a touch drier. However, you can play the metal snare in a way that sounds drier too.
You are certainly spot on the fact that the player is the most important factor in the sound.
I can generate distinctly different sounds striking a solid surface (a floor or a chair, for example) just by griping the sticks differently. If it is that obvious on non- instruments, the difference a player makes on drums and cymbals is even greater. 😊
i love this ❤
I observed this first hand at a Simon Phillips clinic back in the 90s.
I was excited to see Simon playing his usual 6.5x14 Maple Snare Drum. Instead he was playing a metal drum, brass iirc. The sound was exactly the same!
Really fascinating, once again it proves that we feast with our eyes and our mindset is altered as a result. I tend to gravitate towards metal snares, not that I dislike wooden shells, but I have more metal snares... now I'm asking myself...why? Thanks, guys, great food for thought (pun no intended). Cheers.
I’d love to see a segment on the Rogers Dynasonic wood snare, with the best tuning.
ehh, I agree with the sentiment that the player has a greater impact on the sound, the role of gear is overstated etc. But the change from one to the other at around 8:16 is very clearly different. I'd be curious to see what kind of a story the spectrograms tell. I think the ludwig has a more prominent ring, and a more gradual decay, where the pearl has a bit more of a subdued ring and a faster almost gated sounding decay. Obviously this could be attributed to any number of differences, not just the shell material, but there is definitely a difference, even without looking.
I agree with everything you have said here. However, I have one thing to add. Some drums can be made to sound louder than other drums in a live band setting. My new Yamaha oak drums can be set up to be louder than my vintage Slingerland drums. But both can sound very much the same hit softly in a studio setting.
Ode to the sight screaming classes eh? Haha Always felt like the best snare tensioning experiences came from breaking down my expectations of specific drums, and focusing on making specific sounds.
I know a drums artisan who always says: " there are no differences between types of drums, there are only good sounding drums and bad sounding drums, regardless the way they are made or the meterial they are made of"
It's really interesting! I've been using the same starter kit I bought 30 years ago cause the sound guys love it, so I've never "upgraded." I bought a piccolo snare, but other than that, I left it the same. I'm curious though, can you do this again with different tuning? Does a lower or higher pitch change the way the head resonance interacts with the shell?
What a kind a processing your using? Some plugin?
I didn't "watch" the video at first. I set my phone face down and just listened through my headphones. Couldn't tell which snare was which. The changes from one to the other were noticeable, but I wouldn't have known which was aluminum and which was maple without looking at them. The both sounded like nice snares.
Interesting episode as usual. Both drums sound great, but there are subtle differences that I could hear in the video. The metal drum sounded a little more open / ringy and the wood drum was a little bit dryer / less ringy, but that is exactly what I'd expect just from the different hoops fitted. Was it the shell or the hoops that was making the difference, or both, or possibly some of the other differences between them... My guess is it's all the differences that are playing a part in the sound. Also the wood drum seemed to be tuned just slightly lower in pitch.
In the backbeat groove I hear a clear difference in the sustaining resonance. The metal one sounds like you hit a keg, the wood one doesn't. I love that keg sound!
Totally agree that the drum sound people think of comes mostly from the head choice and individual playing style; we've been preaching this as well. But also wonder if this demonstration simultaneously shows us that ply-wood shells (or at least hard maple plys) are insignificantly different from metal shells because of their rigidity, particular porosity, and overall less ability to resonate (because of glue, gaskets, etc.) and so they just sound similar in pitch and resonance to aluminum. Just some navel gazing...
Maybe we'll see a stave vs. acro or a steam-bent vs. acro episode some day?
Maybe my ears are more fine tuned but I can hear a difference. I've been spending a lot of time recording different snares at different tunings so my ears are probably a little more tuned in than most. The wood drum was dryer it only rang out when you hit it harder. Also a different sounding ring. Maybe do another video where you are not showing the drum Pan the camera up a little bit and see if someone can tell the difference.
I hear the same. I see the point he's trying to make totally but there is definitely a difference in the sound. Pretty clear too.
What am I learning through watching these videos? I SUCK AT TUNING!
It seems That when I do land on a sound that makes me happy, it has more to do with luck, than skill. I feel as though I'm am always chasing sounds. Sad thing is that I've been doing that for nearly 50 years.
I have often been complimented on my drum sound by other drummers, and it's usually in relation to the drums I'm playing, but I don't feel consistent, and can struggle with certain venues.
It's a process. Thanks again guys for proving that.
The only time I clearly heard a difference was on the pocket groove. The metal seemed to have a little more "pop & zing" to it. But maybe it was just the tuning.
Yep, I find that actual metal drums have more overtones / sustain / ring
@@contramachina354 and people also give different tastes to identical fruit flavor yogurts if they have different colors.
I hear your point, BUT they do sound very different. I promise I did listen to the video first before watching anything. However is very true that you can do the same work with either one. AMAZING VIDEO!
I'm not saying I would be able to tell a Superstar from a Supraphonic in a blind test, but I could definitely tell the difference in sound. It's not a MASSIVE difference, but the wooden snare sounded just a tad deeper - with more oomph - and behaved differently as it was decaying. I checked it blindly, because you're right: our senses influence each other - and I came out still hearing a difference and I could tell which was the wooden snare and which was the metal one (only because I came to recognise these specific snares and their distinctive sound - I'm not saying this would be true with other snares, I'm sure there are some out there that can sound identical).
I was even stunned in the beginning with the trickery because I was indeed hearing the exact same snare sound and was like "wow, amazing! They DO sound identical!"
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I do still believe every drum has it's own unique voice, but I completely agree that the differences can often be very minimal.
Im at work just listening with no video and I could hear a difference
If you didn't know it was a comparison between two drums, do you believe you could have heard a difference?
Yeh I agree I heard it too. Was surprised that the Acrolite sounded a bit more lively. But audiophiles might agree, it's a small difference and the tuning matchup is splendid.
Agreed - but I think the differences have to do with one drum having only 8 lugs and triple-flanged hoops, and the other having 10 lugs and die-cast hoops, not the shell material.
Hi Cody, you are on a new level here 🙌 I've just watched the other videos released this month and you are so much more alive basically. Really didn't expect the first comparison to be a deception 😅 But what I mean is being more playful, also speaking your truth more directly. And at the end of the video a proper guidance as you call to action by saying "work on your ear training". Overall I like the tone of this and the other videos very much 💛 I feel like something has changed, shifted recently in your life, some liberating experience maybe. Either way, just wanted share what I saw and share the love 🙏🫂
I've always felt that the thing that makes a snare good is down to mostly one factor, how articulate the snare sound is. It seems like some snare drums, no matter how I tune them, sound like a loose bag of change when they're hit. These ones might work OK for hard backrests when struck right in the middle, but don't really track buzz rolls, ghost notes or any kind of subtle playing. I do hear subtle differences of different shells in snare drums, but as long as they have that articulate quality and can be tuned to be crisp, just about any of them could work for any style that I might play, from jazz standards to heavy rock....
Sooo Right!
I have a picollo snare by Dixon that is metal (my only metal snare).. it certainly sounds WAY different than my larger drums..but that's as far as I can compare - I assumed the metal had something to do with it's different sound outside the smaller pitched up size but this will be an interesting video. @3:30 - the metal snare hit on one of the examples resonated 'back and forth' (oscillation) more even than the following wood example..BUT that could have been due to not hitting the head in the same place.. a few variables with that but the tonality was almost exact.
Hello! This video is great, as usual with your content! I would like to ask you a question on a similar topic… As a drummer, I am very much in love with my instruments and, as it is nearly 25 years that I play, I am starting to consider buying a very high end drum set. How do you tackle the issue of not being caught in all the marketing and how would you choose this kind of kit? I am not a rich man (for now at least), so I would like to have your opinion if sometimes it can be worth to buy an expensive kit, as it will last for a lifetime…
Thank you very much, I hope this can be useful for many drummers!
When I think of a metal or metallic 'sounding' snare, I think of that sort of sound that became popular with 90s and 2000s trip hop. Like, an industrial type of snare sound. Or St Anger
Very interesting…and yep I agree…
I love my nickel over brass 6.5x14 DC snare. The snare that came with my set was terrible, I mean complete junk. I watch your channel, and many others, and just could not get it to sound good. Finally had a guy put out a 15 sec video. "If you're watching this video, you haven't been able to get your snare tuned. Throw it away, it's junk!" He was right. I'd be interested in seeing the same snare with different heads, both mfg and type. Tnx for the video, always learn a lot.
Good lord I thought it was just me. It feels nice to say this out loud, finally. “Shell material doesn’t matter.”
Next to playing I would say that the biggest influence on the sound of a drum is the room and the position you are listening to a drum.
Your assertion is correct - the answer is no, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. It's only because you tuned them so identically and I knew one was metal and also that you played them within a few seconds of each other that I was able to tell them apart due to the slight difference in overtones from the higher resonance of the metal. And I agree wholeheartedly with your assertion that the player and the tuning process are primarily responsible for the sound of the snare. This applies to the whole kit. I've made cheap drums sound pretty good.
IMO this statement would have to exclude cheap luan wood shells, and harder and heavier metal shells like brass, bronze, copper. Those differ so much in shear volume alone, let alone tone.
also cross sticking should be considered
What about shell density? Would a 20 ply not sound different from a 10 ply or a 7mm from a 10mm?
I always pick drums base on if the hardware will hold on to my beating lol
How about depth of shell? 5 or 6.5 or 8"
Want to say thank you for all the videos you post. Lots of good information!
They sound different to me. But...The aluminum snare was probably not the best choice for a metal snare since aluminum has many similar tones that a wood snare has. The difference I hear is that the Maple snare has more of a warmer attack and the Aluminum has more of a higher bite on attack. A brass or a steel snare would have been a better choice than the aluminum.
Great video and will agree for the most part. But being a drum tech and drum company owner for 25 years i will add that drums can be VERY different. Some have sweet spots in their tuning, some cheap drums are easier to tune than pro-level drums. There's usually a "problem child" drum in a 5,6, or 7 piece kit. One doesn't like to sit well with the others. Bearing edges play a huge roll in sound and tuning. So, just saying, there are so many variables that I've seen through the years but I love our instrument and wouldn't change a thing about them (well maybe haha). Happy drumming 🥁
The book only seems available for delivery in the USA? Do you know how one can purchase it in the UK please?
If you contact him directly he'll work with you to set something up.
@@SoundsLikeADrum Thank you very much. Nice work on the video, as always. Love the content. Keep it up!
I dont think the sound is different enough to matter, but i know i can make both my brass snares much louder than any wood snare I've tried. In my case my band is super loud and we don't mic everyone's stuff up so i needed the brass to be able to cut through the mix. Very solid video though, i loved it
Interesting, my Pearl FF Brass 14x6,5 is not louder than my Sonor Designer Maple 14x6,5 - for sure both are extremely loud and cutting through. I have Steel Snares (Tama Silverstar 80s, Pearl Ian Paiste Model) in 14x6,5 which are a bit less loud. I use same heads (top Remo Ambassador, bottom Remo Diplomat) on all and the biggest difference I noticed is that the Pearl FF Brass is less bright.
I agree with you. As someone once said "It is the drummer not the drum".
Wow! Awesome video! Maybe more warmth with the wood shell. I would pick the wood one if I play with a female singer to not be in her « voice range ».
But probably the acrolite would be good too. Wich one has the G1 on it please?
Cheers!
I can relate to this, as ive trained as an audio engineer, there is definatly a huge difference in how you play, what ever instrument you have, i knew a guitar player and he could have a 200 dollar guitar or a 2000 dollar guitar.. he could make them sing just the same.. with this video i was trying to take on board what you were saying, but i was like nah i can here that acrolyte distincive pang, the pearl had a pang but not the same.. till that very last outro music using the pearl but i swear i heard that acrolyte pang! You didnt mess with the video again did you??
Was one noticably louder than another?
This same experiment was performed with guitar using various woods. The result was the same - identical tones for all of them.
Does this count for toms as well?
@4:50 - that time I heard the metal drum ring out a bit stronger longer duration the wood tone dampened faster it seemed.
The transients sound effectively identical because all you hear in that first impulse are the heads and their tuning - but the decay of the note absolutely differs because different combinations of bearing edge, shell material, hardware, etc will absorb the energy from that hit at different rates across different frequencies. This frequency-dispersive decay causes, for example, brass to lose high frequencies faster than aluminum and have a slight pitch drop as the decay progresses, while aluminum's decay sounds more even in pitch.
So, while the drummer's technique with a single hit absolutely dictates the initial impulse, to what extent can that technique impact the decay? Because even in the first gotcha example, your massive changes to the transient only very slightly altered the decay.
Not for nothing but material and craftmanship really do make a difference. Neither of those snares will sound like my bell bronze.
Really good material (as always). But...
You showed this tuning ...like a Venn diagram, where the two drums sound the same. Does shell material make a difference at extremes? In other words, are different shell materials better at different things?
Thanks! And you seem like you got it in terms of the crossover being the point. All aspects of the drum affect the performance to some degree but we tend to allow the psychological aspect of knowing the details take hold of our perception of what a drum is capable of. A perfect example is the craze that's recently re-emerged for bell brass/bronze snare drums with people spending some serious $$$$ just to check that box without understanding how there are so many details that can and will affect the performance of the instrument regardless of the shell material. We've even heard drummers demoing their new $4k snare drums without a lot of attention being given to the tuning and it is rough! But that's the beauty of this stuff- the drum isn't the art. The drum is the canvas upon which we (the drummers) make the art. WE have the ability to affect the sound far more than the shell, the hoops, the number of lugs, etc.
I wonder how many perfect vintage Ludwig snares are left.
They’re out there, keep looking if that’s what you want.
The wonderful thing about the Acrolite is that there are a million of them and Ludwig is still making them today in the exact same way and with the same machines as they always have.
The biggest difference is the ring. The Acrolite is higher pitched and more prominent. I was really confused when you did the earlier “comparison” because they truly did sound the same (because they were!), but for the real comparison I noticed a difference. That said if you muffle the ringing the difference will be less pronounced.
Does this extend to the toms?! Should I not buy the most expensive wood kit and just get a stage custom?
That depends, is sound the only thing you care about, or do you also want a specific finish, exotic veneer, better hardware, etc.? In all honesty, sound is barely a consideration for me, because I know that, barring any defects, I can get a great sound out of any kit, and any differences in sound will be small.
This. Is. Perfect. Buy your drums for the look! If you want a lacquer finish, then the type of wood only matters for the grain style you like. If you are getting wraps don’t worry about the specie. Acrylic is fine then. If you like the look of metal, then get metal. Weight and stability might matter as well as far as extreme sizes. Heads, sticks and hits is what makes your sound pre-tuning. The same is true of guitars. Strings, pickups and nut/bridge construction is it. Body material makes no difference.
As someone that owns over 30 snare drums, the aluminum does sound like wood drums. Same for carbon steel drums. But brass, bronze, and copper do sound different. Quite a bit different once you get to 6” plus depth.
Now once the music cranks up, not really noticeable
Edit: my bamboo Yamaha drum sounds distinctively different than either. They don’t make them anymore so I’m glad I kept it.
As far as the acrolite vs Yamaha aluminum recording custom, it doesn’t make a difference
Over 30 snare drums ! Do you have a Snare drum addiction problem ?
@@johng7265 yes, and cymbals. It’s a disease
I may sound like an idiot, but I feel like there was definitely a difference although subtle at times. In general I thought the wood snare was a bit tighter sounding. Someone else commented that Aluminum is closer to wood than other metals. That's always been my impression as well. It would be interesting to see these comparisons expanded to other woods and metals. It's unfortunate there wasn't a blind test with all the talk of being visually tricked. Either way you got both snares to sound great!
What mic were you using on the snare?
Our signal chain is detailed in the video description.
@@SoundsLikeADrum I just noticed that? Thank you!
I've been around drums for 60+ years. I could hear a very slight difference, but I could not tell which drum was which without the visual. Any difference I heard could have been any number of other variables. Cheers! 🙂
I will admit, I’ve seen a video on CZcams where a guy was playing a stainless steel kit and it sounded just as warm and wonderful as any wood kit BUT I am CERTAIN that my acrylic snare drum has less sustain than my other snare drums. Could that really ONLY be head selection and tuning?
I use no dampening of any kind, other than that built into the head.
I see that, despite the folk law, that bearing edges make no discernible difference to sound but what about construction? Does shell thickness also have no discernible input to drum sound?
In listening to these snare samples, I can often precisely identify whether it's a metal or wood snare in most takes. To my ears, the metal snare seems to have a slightly higher pitch and more overtones. Conversely, the wood snare appears a bit drier and less resonant. While in a mix, one might achieve a similar sound from both snares, I believe in a live setting, there's a subtle but noticeable difference between them. Nonetheless, I concur with your view that the drummer's technique is the key factor influencing the sound
I hear a subtle difference. Put a frequency counter on it. Attack from the wood is deeper to my ears. The metal attack is slightly drier and focused in upper mids.
Great video. I have always suspected that this was the case... Of the things that affect the sound of the snare: heads, tuning, snare wires, bearing edge shape, snare bed profile, depth, etc., I always believed that shell material was the least contributing factor. After all, it's the heads that are vibrating, not the shell. As long as the shell is rigid and the bearing edge is true, the heads will do what they do.
Same size, depth and caractheristics. Aluminium, which is a soft metal vs. hard maple and cast hoops - very close at the first 'sight'. But. The difference is obvious by ears. The acro has it's mellow tone and the hard maple is more brighter, more consistent, musical w more volume and wider frequency range. Different dynamics as well. So to my ears the sound is not the same. Great video though. Thanks!🙏
He Speaketh The Truth
I WIIIIIIIIIIIIIILLL SAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY that through the bad speakers on my computer monitor, when you played the "straight pocket groove"--the Acrolite's resonance made it through the speakers and gave the drum apparently more sustain.
The Pearl drum had a dryer sound to it--that is, the resonance sounded like it was literally turned down in post.
Prior to that I thought they sounded the same.
**Edit!** When you started playing the Police-type groove, you deffo made the pearl sound more like the Acrolite.... looks like you hit it closer to the rim?