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Resonant Head on Snare

Started by GreyStreet41, January 12, 2003, 11:42 PM

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GreyStreet41

How often do you recommend replacing it?

Mark Schlipper

im not one of those cats that can replace heads every week or anything, so i go as needed.  i treat my snare like a tom when i tune it.  so if it still has a good tone with the wires off as well as on, then i leave it.  resonants stretch and wear with use, just not as quickly or drastically.

Mister Acrolite

Keep an eye on the bottom snare head - sometimes the places where the snare wires are welded to the end pieces can be kind of rough, and can eventually wear a hole in the head. Similarly, the straps or cords holding the snares against the head can produce some wear and tear on the head, particularly at the part of the head that is in contact with the bearing edge of the drum.

Use a top quality head, not some cheap Taiwanese head that may have been on the drum when you bought it.

And keep an eye for the head getting stretched out. If the top surface of the bottom hoop is almost parallel to the surface of the head itself, that head is pretty badly stretched.

Ratamatatt

Whenever you want to experiment with a different sound.   8)

jaged05

When your snare starts sounding sour, you know it's time.  If you play alot, like a little bit every day, I would go once a year or so.  If you record alot, I would change it a little more often.  If this doesn't apply, you can hold off for quite a while.

Jay

felix

Like a tom reso...every six months whether it needs it or not if you want the "best" sound.

jokerjkny

Quote from: Mister Acrolite on January 13, 2003, 09:37 AM
Keep an eye on the bottom snare head - sometimes the places where the snare wires are welded to the end pieces can be kind of rough, and can eventually wear a hole in the head. Similarly, the straps or cords holding the snares against the head can produce some wear and tear on the head, particularly at the part of the head that is in contact with the bearing edge of the drum.

Use a top quality head, not some cheap Taiwanese head that may have been on the drum when you bought it.

And keep an eye for the head getting stretched out. If the top surface of the bottom hoop is almost parallel to the surface of the head itself, that head is pretty badly stretched.

Aquarian makes the Hi-Performance bottom snare head that has pads where the snare joints rest.

Scheming Demon

When it breaks.  Probably not the best philosophy but I have a spare ready just in case.  

I've never really noticed a bad sound from a worn snare side head, like I do with the batter side.  Even when I replace it with a new head it sounds the same as when the old one was whole.

Either I'm deaf, cheap or both.

MikeZ

I replace the bottom head just about every time I change the top head - which is usually every 3 to 6 months depending on use. Bottom heads are thin and less expensive than tops so it's no biggie to do it at the same time.

I figure if I'm taking the time to change the top, I might as well take off the bottom, wipe down the shell, lugs and hoops, oil the tension rods and check the snare wires.

After all, when you change your cars oil, you usually also change the filter, check the tire pressure, fill the washer fluid, etc..

I just consider it regular maintenance on my gear which I've spent a lot of money on and want to keep in prime condition.