DRUMMER CAFE

A lot of factors effect the kind of sound you can get from a snare drum. You have to consider:

1. Shell size and thickness

2. Shell material(s)

3. Hoop material

4. Head type

However, assuming all that is in order (and you're not trying to get a piccolo sound out of a 7x14 steel shell with an Evans Hydraulic for a batter - you might laugh, but I've encountered that once....) there are a few things you can do to add a little crack to your snare sound.

For starters, many folks tend to tune up the batter head when they want more crack. However, I've found that the snare-side head has a huge role to play in generating a high-pitched, piercing snare sound. Try getting the batter head to a tension that you like playing on, and then experiment with tuning the snare side head up and down and you'll see what I mean. That said, once you get the resonant head out of a certain range of the batter head, you'll have to tune the batter up a little to get it back into a range where it resonates with the snare side head.

Long story short - try tightening the snare head, and don't tighten up the snares too much, because you'll just keep the reso head from vibrating and ruin all your hard work.

On your second question - no, you probably won't damage your drums from too much tension, though I have heard of lugs pulling out of the shell from over-tightening. I've never experienced it myself, however. You really shouldn't require the heads to be so tight that they will damage the drum - HOPEFULLY. Exercise common sense and you should be alright....

You will find, however, that heads under a lot of tension tend to wear out and/or break a lot quicker, so be mindful of that. Also, if you are looking to really crank it up, I've heard that some guys will use Kevlar heads designed for marching that are intended to take the added stress of high-tension and high-intensity playing.