This shell was died black with india ink. I usually die drums all over to make a good looking drum inside. The drum is sealed inside and has a more cosmetic finish outside. Finishing the interior with a shiny layered finish makes the drum too bright and “pingy”.
A wood shell (maple) ply snare with carbon fibre finish.
Two recent restoration projects on old Ludwig Acrolite snares. The gray one was in pretty good shape. It simply received new hardware and poilished bearing edges. The blue one received a new paintjob and a lot of sanding and filling to hide scratches. This shell was a bit rough, but now it sounds great!
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Walnut is a darker sounding wood and can sound choked a bit or dull. That was my response to the die cast rims on the 14 x 5. With the 2.3mm rims the drum still has a dark “bark” and more high-end cut. These are great drums for blues and jazz. I also like walnut on 12″ and 13″ drums. Especially 12″ snares where the high notes combines with the low walnut tone to make a very cutting drum. One of my favorites in all of my snares is my 1″ thick 12×5.5 walnut stave. It is great for funk, punk, or any situation where cutting through a mix is important. I used a very similar drum in the studio and on the road with Frankenfinger with excellent results. I’m a big fan of 12″ snares. The key is to buy a good one. These cheap ones from the “major” manufacturers suck. They are not able for use as a primary snare. They are “effect” drums. Ply drums and metal drums make poor 12″ snares (except Brady ply drums!). A 12″ snare should be a stave and hopefully a walnut, jarrah, or even a mahogany one. They should also be 5″ deep or deeper. If you are looking for a 12″ snare, trust me, don’t buy one of these cheapo snares. It will sit in its case or be sold on Ebay at a loss.
In experimenting with different rims on 14″ snare drums, I have found a few intersting facts. My Jarrah drum was nice, but maybe a bit high-pitched. By adding die-cast rims to it, it became lower and punchier. It is often said that die cast rims choke a drum, but I don’t find that to be the case. Gretsch drums use die cast rims and they have a wonderful, full tone. On most every snare I have tried them on, the die cast rims improve the sound. But, my walnut snare sounds a bit too dry. It might possibly sound better with a triple flanged 2.3mm standard rim. We’ll see. In the meantime, most snares of Jarrah, Maple, Birch, Zebra etc. sound better with Die cast. For the walnut… we will see..
Jarrah sounds good too.
In working on the current snare (pictures tomorrow) I have realised that Jarrah is damn loud. I’ve given myself a headache today just playing this drum! The Jarrah drums might not be a good choice for heavy players unless they really need to cut through a very loud band. But, it is great for getting a big sound and cut when you don’t want lay into the drum. For players who don’t hit as hard, or would like to save their hands and let the drum do the work, Jarrah might be a good choice. In playing this drum, I can get really good, loud, punchy sounds with minimal effort. Ghost notes and press rolls are very expressive loud as well. If you are a lighter player, and need more cut, this could be the wood your drum should be made of. If you hit hard and play rimshots, this drum might disable your bandmates and hurt the audience. Maybe a walnt stave would be a better choice.
Due to a ridiculous price increase from my previous badge supplier, I have changed badges. Most people might not notice the change, it is subtle. Drums built after August 1rst will have the new badge (the one below) and a few older badges have been saved for matching drums for previous customers. If you are ordering a drum to match an older Comptone kit, please specify the earlier badge.
I am making a drum to duplicate the appearance and performance of on of my favorite drums. I get requests for a demo/rental Brady snare in a deeper 14″ snare. I have a couple, but I am hesitant to send out my Brady snares as some aren’t replaceable. So, I have a nearly completed 14×6 Jarrah drum in the works. It is 1/2″ thick instead of 3/8″ like Brady block drums to make the drum more focused and studio-friendly. I am using tube lugs but the ones I am using are smaller than the more bulky Brady lugs. I am also using the Nickel strainer like the Brady snares use but my drum will sell for $500. The Brady sells for twice that. Buy two from me and have a spare for touring. Pictures of me finishing this drum up will be posted soon.
