In my early days of drumming (25+ years ago) as a teenager playing a Pearl Export, I put pinstripes on everything, mainly because I didn't know any better. It wouldn't suit my gigging life now, but that relatively cheap snare with pinstripe on top and ambassador on bottom did get a huge sound that was perfect for what was going on musically in the early '90s. Great tutorial, as always.
I've done it a number of times. In a high tuning, I love the presence of the overtones. In a lower tuning, with some muffling, it's great for anything rock-like. I also often cut out towels in the size of the snare and place them on top of the head. Having a clear head underneath seems to give me more attack with a towel on top of it.
I really enjoy the format of your videos. You provide very thoughtful and extensive analysis of the drum sounds covered in each video. One of my favorite youtube channels for sure.
After trying lots of different combos on different snares including an Acrolytes and others, my favorite setup has been a clear black dot on a Pearl Export snare. 🤷🏻♀️
It’s refreshing to finally see somebody do a video about putting clear heads on a snare drum instead of coated heads. Case in point, I have this early 1980s Maxwin by Pearl 5 1/2” X 14” wood shell snare with an adjustable under head dampener. The only head that seems to work for this drum is a 14” Remo Clear Pinstripe head. (or if you’re using Evans drumheads, the EC2) When properly tuned & slightly dampened, this snare drum produces a hard knocking sort of sound which is similar to the sound of the snare drum used by Brian St.Pere of the band Hum on the song “Stars” and on the album, “ You’d Prefer An Astronaut .“ The sound is also similar to the snare used on Stabbing Westward’s ‘Wither, Blister, Burn, & Peel’ album by drummer Andy Kubiszewski. I absolutely love the sound of this drum. When the dampener is off, it Sounds great on any STP track from their Album Core. This negative also works well for 1980s hair metal.
I played in an experimental dub trio similar to De Facto in which I used a cranked metal timbale as my snare with a delay pedal that ran to our sound manipulator's rig and he would control that (as well as a slew of other crazy effects) while we played. It was mostly cross stick and rim shots so it really cut through the heavy bass. I always ran a clear head on that drum because I needed the extra overtones to excite the delay.
@David Calderon well there isn’t to much to AC/DC, ok don’t hate, I hate AC/DCs drummer. ITS LITTERALLY THE SAME BEAT EVERY SONG, and the reason people hate AC/DC is because every song sounds the same, and it’s the drummers fault.
And the reason people love AC/DC is because not every song sounds the same but instead they always rock like motherfuckers! And the band knows that Phil Rudd is a corner stone to that magic. They sound best with him doing his thing. And may I add: Try to play like him! He has the swagger, the stamina and the self control to keep the band and the songs tight.
Hello from the future! After using a 12x8 maple snare for almost a year with a clear g2 head I bought a steel 13x7 snare and oh my, the clear head has so much more presence it's really shocking. Especially at low tunings, the clear heads sound full and have a precise attack with a lot of warmth. I still don't get why they are not as popular as they should be, especially in the studio. I couldn't believe that a 12 snare with a clear head and 30 snare strands had more presence in the mix than a 13 steel shell with a coated head in high tuning.
I've been have certain issues with my 80s 14" x 5.5" Yamaha Recording, a metal shell one (never found out what kind of material it is made of). One day I took an old Pin Stripe and put it on and suddenly it start to sing again! So now that's my snare for a 70s / 80s sound, not too tight, I mostly play it hitting the center, no rim shots. It sounds fantastic! After watching this video I'm gonna try to crank it up to get a more 90s sound. Thanks, guys!
I just put a Black Chrome on my 13x7 TRS Custom Dimension X snare today, and I've gotta say, I couldn't be happier! I pitched it pretty high and it's got a beautiful crack to it, really responsive. I'm gonna be sticking with this one for a while!
Yass! I agree with Cody, the two-ply clear was my favorite of the bunch. Let’s see, the first clear head I saw on a snare was Jonathan Mover’s drum solo on one of the Gary Chaffee tapes (highly recommend!). Later I saw Thomas Pridgen’s Modern Drummer Fest performance in which he used clear heads all around.
When I run out of my regular heads, I use either clear Controlled Sound with top dot or Clear Pinstripe on my piccolo snare drum. it gives lots of options. When you tune it low, it sounds very thick and warm and if you tune it to mid-high (my regular tuning) it gives very balanced attack and perfect ratio between sustain, attack and the presence control when playing with the whole band. great episode, as always!
Getting real Helmet / System of a Down sorta vibes off these sounds, each one sounded great! I tried clear Remo Pinstripe as a batter many years ago as I was sure I'd seen Chad Smith use something similar (pretty sure he uses coated CS X these days), but I got a buttload of wild overtones. I probably just hadn't done a good job of tuning it up tbf! Keen to try again
Just the other day I tried out a Remo Controlled Sound Clear on my brass snare, and I love it! I also really like that drum with the Suede Emperor, which is SORT of like a clear head.
I went with my instincts when I decided to put a clear controlled sound head on my snare I have a Tama Big black steel drum and upgraded the hoops to die cast and put a 42 strand wire with the thicker emporer hazy drumhead and managed to get that 80's thrash metal snare sound I've been wanting
Very interesting stuff... the black chrome was cool, I can dig it. It’s usual to see clear snare heads on acrylic kits, but drummers have used clear snare batters through the years. The black dot seems to have been popular for a time. Neil Peart has used clear heads, idk if he does “usually”. More importantly, I’m happy to find someone else with their snare tilted away from them! I thought I was the only one, but I’m not alone. I first saw this watching old jazz drummers and it instantly made sense to me. Tried it out, and never looked back. Makes rimshots so natural, really suits a traditional grip, and of course looks vintage-cool. Tilted snares ftw!
I used to use an Aquarian Performance II on my DW Collectors 5x14 maple snare. It was the best head for hearing ghost notes live! Consistently the best drum content on youtube. Reminds me of "That Pedal Show".
I just came here because I tried a new snare yesterday but wanted to leave the original head untouched. Since it was a 13" I didn't have an old snare head around so I used a clear, uncoated G2 tom head. The snare wasn't really my thing but I am surprised how much this video here reminds me of that sound and the feel of that head. It might be something to try out on my 14".
David Calderon Absolutely- I recently fell in love with the CS-X. That little extra thickness in the single ply gives it a very “throaty” quality at higher tunings. That drum is something else!
I was just thinking about giving a clear head a try on my snare (Remo CS White dot), and BOOM! I've turned to the 'clear' side thanks to you. LOL You guys are great with your timing (pun intended).
When not using a Evans Hydraulic Black, my go-to clear snare heads are Remo Pinstripe, Remo Emperor or the Evans Hydraulic Glass. I am interested in using the EC2 on my snare.
I'm really glad you did this. I've actually been wondering about using a clear head. Honestly I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone use a clear head on a snare before or at least I didn't notice. Thanks!
Hey that’s cool, I just put a remo black head, white stripe on my DW wood snare just before you put the video out, and I love the sound. No over tone just a nice deep sound . I was going to use it just as a back up snare just in case a bust a head right in the middle of church 😂😂 ( my nightmare ). But I loved it so much , I’m going to use my mapex steel for a back up.
I'm using clear aquarian regulator ii on my 13x5 wooden tama snare and it has it's magic but i can't stop thinking about switching back to one ply coated uv1. It may be the most universal batter snare head and that may be why it's the most used one.
This was an outstanding video. Really need to experiment on my own. I think I saw David Silveria (Korn) using a CLEAR Remo Powerstroke 3 in an old video.
When recording my drums I used a clear evans EC2 on my snare and it just sounded the best on the mics. I don’t use brushes usually so it’s totally fine
I would love it if you did videos on how to get a certain drummer's tone. Sort of the Tom, cymbals, bass drum and snare sound of X drummer. I personally would love one on Roger Taylor, very few videos on him and queen is trending af now. He had one of the most unique sounds, I would personally love it.
I have a black Dixon drum set and only the Rack Toms and the Floor Tom have clear uncoated Pearl pro tone drumheads , while the snare has a white Remo ambassador coated snare batter head , and on a unrelated note I have not 1 BUT 2 Latin Percussion cowbells in my Dixon drumset mounted on my ride cymbal stand via the use of metal clamps with poles to mount cowbells , and a specially designed tambourine without a membrane on that drum clamp.
For me ..I have used a Remo clear pinstripe 2 ply Tom head as a batter head on my snare..it puts out a very cool sound especially if you're into the fat sound..it may not be everyone's choice..but try it sometime and see what you think..
I tried a clear Emperor on my 14x5,5 Black Panther Brass Cat and fell in love. I used this combination in high tuning for gigs with my Slam Death Metal Band for a very long time and love the feeling and the nasty sound of it. Now I've been using a EC2 on album recordings (while using coated tom heads) ;) killer. best thing I ever tried out randomly.
If I am not mistaken, Neil Peart used a clear head on his wooden Slingerland snare in the 1970's, and he was the only drummer I remember from then that did so as a matter of course. But there were many drummers that used smooth white (uncoated) heads on the snare (and toms) back then, which, except for differences in the composition of clear v. smooth white heads, would sound similar to a clear head, possibly.
Phil Collins used a clear snare batter on the live Genesis album Seconds Out which was recorded in 1977. He'd used coated before that period and returned to coated afterwards to the best of my knowledge. I put a clear head on my Gretsch ply snare once but have stuck with a Remo CS Black Dot Coated for the most part since. Maybe it's time to give a clear snare batter another chance!
I love the Remo Controlled Dot Clear as a batter on my steel 14"×5.5" snare for low pitched tuning. I combine it with a very thin reso called Hazzy Snare Side for a bit of contrast regarding articulation. Try it out. I know you're gonna love it.
I found a clear head on my snare in my crappy recording room, with a mic on the SIDE of the shell made a big difference. Again...crappy room, I had a big problem with bleed of the other drums in the mic and lack of snap...the clear head provided snap...the side mic provided less bleed and the clear head also made the wires more prevalent in the mix rather than a lack of them...I needed a punchy good overall snare tone without bleed of a crappy room sound and the toms.
Troy Wright uses a PS black dot clear for his snare batter and it is a full on assault. He is very dynamic, but also hits hard sometimes and it's incredible.
Yay! Any time someone mentions clear snare heads the forums descend upon them with noodle lashes, wailing 'how could you ever give up brushes'. And I don't know anyone who actually uses their brushes at all.
@@SoundsLikeADrum I sometimes do that to innocent videos simply so that the new weaponized TH-cam algorithms won't spam me with stuff I don't want recommended to my kid. (But not here of course.)
I’ve been using ‘snare designed’ heads on my big 13/14” rack toms if i’m playing 2 up, just to rein them in from sustaining over my floor without having to kill the fundamental with gels.
I once tuned my toms to E,A,D,G with a digital tuner. It took a long time but sounded amazing. Does this actually have a practical application or was it just a cool idea? Try it out!
Tuning to specific pitches is certainly an option and can be great for recalling a general intervallic relationship between the drums. As we’ve covered in the past, since the batter and reso pitches work together to create an altogether different pitch from the drum as a whole, it’s possible to end up with the same pitches but different character based on the relationship between the batter and reso heads. If you’re looking for a reliable means of tonal recall that still accounts for the space you’re using your drums in (which may change if you’re gigging, recording, etc), we recommend getting the pitches of the batter heads noted and then adjusting the resos to establish the character of the drum. Cheers! -Ben
I feel like there’s a “drummers can’t keep time” joke that’s bound to be made in reference to “dropping a video every tues at 1230 EST like clockwork”. Anybody? Bueller?
I have used a clear uncoated head on my Tama bubinga 6.5 x 14 Omni time since I got the drum years ago. I tried a bunch of heads and that head gets the sound I want. Typically I keep a second snare left of hi hat stand, either Tama G-maple 8 x 14 or a 5.5 x 14 Pearl Reference. Both Tama’s have uncoated heads. The Pearl has coated head. That drum sounds good no matter what you do with it.
It's nice option for effect (second) snare, but it's not good option for main snare PS. Could U make a video about tuning a 22" bass drum for open sound with coated/calftone batter and calftone reso?
I find it tricky to get a nice snare wire response with thicker/ or double ply snare batters. Have you guys had the same trouble? I feel like it’s tricky to find the sweet spot and that I’m choking the drum
+soundslikeadrum *Clear heads as snare batters tend to be brighter than their coated counterparts.* Not tested were the EVANS®/D'Addario® TT14G1 (10mil) and TT14G14 (14 mil). Although partial to equal weight heads for both sides of toms and kicks (e.g. BnnEC2S top/TTnnEC2S bottom on racks and floors), I tend to favor coated heads for snare and tom batters for mitigation of stage-lighting glare.
Are any particular snare drums suited better than others, with the clear batter head. Is wood or metal better..? Any difference between top and bottom tuning.
All I had left in the "at hand brand new" heads was an Evans UV red hydraulic. Sounds pretty decent on my 14"×6.5" tbh. No brushes though so probably not a "gigging" head choice for me. Very fat while controlling most of the excess overtones.
I have a topic for you, how does different head thickness affect the rebound? I have heard Buddy Rich preferred remo diplomat heads and so did a lot of players from yesteryear. I just saw Deep Purple and was looking up what heads Ian Paice uses, and he still just uses Remo Ambassadors on everything even though he is a hard hitting player and is known for playing a lot of fast licks. He's in his 70s by the way and still touring and sounding fantastic!!!🤘😝🤘
That's a good one, especially because it's not really just about the thickness as much as it is about the general flexibility + mass. This will be an aspect that we address in our upcoming comparison series when we talk drumheads. Cheers! -Ben
On every snare I’ve owned I’ve had to use coated heads on the batter side with clear on the bottom...but your snare sounds great with that first head. I tried a two ply with ok sound but the stick bounce sucked.
Neil Peart used a clear black dot on his snares until I believe 2008 Edit: it was when he got his dw kits he stopped using CLEAR black dots, in 1994 I think
I realise you're not sponsored by Remo but is there a way to show the tonal characteristics of black dots on tom batters. They seemed to have a characteristic 'tone" on toms like a focused note. Steve Smith has used them and of course Bonham. Tony Williams used them but I thought his drum sound wasn't that good for such an amazing drummer.
I was also wondering about snare as tom (kinda "Sput" style and some other guys), especially when you do not have monstrous 14*gazillion snare =) but more like 14*6,5, how to tune it as kinda floor tom/aux deep snare. I know u have another episode for fat snare sounds, but here application is a bit different.
We hear you! We're saving more of the comparison elements for a dedicated series of comparison videos in an effort to consolidate information and keep the presentation focused. Thanks for watching! -Ben
I use an Evans ebony coated hydraulic on my snare. As such, I don’t need any Moon Gel/Drum Dots etc. the oil kills the ring and overtone just like I like. When I tell drummers I use this, I’m told I’m crazy. Yet it works great for me. Isn’t that the point?
I think it must be said - (nothing to do with Drums {or is it?}) you seem like a really fickn nice humble human dude. You would be great to work with :)
Would this work better on a wood or metal snare...or equal. Why would there have been a big set against using these heads, by a lot of drummers. They certainly sound fine here.
You could use them on any shell material you like if the sound meets your needs. Snare heads have consistently been coated heads for as long as synthetic drumheads have been in existence largely due to brush compatibility but then they simply became the standard regardless of style. The coating tends to mellow out some brighter heads but that’s not always the desired tone.
Have you ever tried a clear/uncoated snare batter? Which drumhead did you use?
Clear controlled sound thanks to Troy Wright! Sounded like a pistol hahaha
Clear g2 on my tama g maple. It kills! Love the feel and rebound and I tune this snare pretty high.
In my early days of drumming (25+ years ago) as a teenager playing a Pearl Export, I put pinstripes on everything, mainly because I didn't know any better. It wouldn't suit my gigging life now, but that relatively cheap snare with pinstripe on top and ambassador on bottom did get a huge sound that was perfect for what was going on musically in the early '90s. Great tutorial, as always.
Clear black dot on my dunnet 2n bronze. Also a clear pinstripe on my 14x4 Montineri maple. Thing absolutely rips. Who would’ve thunk it!!!
I've done it a number of times. In a high tuning, I love the presence of the overtones. In a lower tuning, with some muffling, it's great for anything rock-like. I also often cut out towels in the size of the snare and place them on top of the head. Having a clear head underneath seems to give me more attack with a towel on top of it.
I love clear snare heads! They sound so bright and cutting, it's brilliant for cutting through a dense, heavy mix.
Sounds Like a Drum is cranking out some of the best content on TH-cam.
That means an awful lot to us. Thank you for the kind words! -Ben
Finally someone decided to do a video on this!
Right, I always wondered why this was such a touchy subject. I'm a drummer so I happen to like both but people made this a whole topic smh.
Thomas Pridgen used clear heads on cooper snare drum in Mars Volta with this iconic acrylic DW drums 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥😍❤️
YEAHP G2s ONLY BOY 😂
The golden 80's standard was Remo CS with a deep (8x14") snare. It is still an awesome combination.
Tony Williams used all black dots on his yellow gretsch kit in the 80s and I’m pretty sure the snare batter side also 👍🏼
Surprisingly he had a rock sound from his kit. I saw him play in Boston and his floor toms sounded like cannons.
I always thought clear snare heads were meant to have a more ringy snare compared to coated heads. Definitely love both heads tho.
I really enjoy the format of your videos. You provide very thoughtful and extensive analysis of the drum sounds covered in each video. One of my favorite youtube channels for sure.
You’ll always have a friend wearing big red shoes!
And kicking out killer drum info!
Thanks guys!
JF
After trying lots of different combos on different snares including an Acrolytes and others, my favorite setup has been a clear black dot on a Pearl Export snare. 🤷🏻♀️
Cheap date 😂 but yeah great it’s not always the pricey drums that sound best . I actually prefer my sensitone steel to a supraphonic I had
It’s refreshing to finally see somebody do a video about putting clear heads on a snare drum instead of coated heads. Case in point, I have this early 1980s Maxwin by Pearl 5 1/2” X 14” wood shell snare with an adjustable under head dampener. The only head that seems to work for this drum is a 14” Remo Clear Pinstripe head. (or if you’re using Evans drumheads, the EC2) When properly tuned & slightly dampened, this snare drum produces a hard knocking sort of sound which is similar to the sound of the snare drum used by Brian St.Pere of the band Hum on the song “Stars” and on the album, “ You’d Prefer An Astronaut .“ The sound is also similar to the snare used on Stabbing Westward’s ‘Wither, Blister, Burn, & Peel’ album by drummer Andy Kubiszewski. I absolutely love the sound of this drum. When the dampener is off, it Sounds great on any STP track from their Album Core. This negative also works well for 1980s hair metal.
I really appreciate you giving specific genres, groups, and contexts in which these more exotic and unique options could be used
Fell in love with the black chrome ima purchase that one when I get my 13x7 snare.
Hi.
The 2 ply clear was wining - until that black one showed up! I think that's the type of sound I am looking for from my snare - thanks 🤘😎🤘
I played in an experimental dub trio similar to De Facto in which I used a cranked metal timbale as my snare with a delay pedal that ran to our sound manipulator's rig and he would control that (as well as a slew of other crazy effects) while we played. It was mostly cross stick and rim shots so it really cut through the heavy bass. I always ran a clear head on that drum because I needed the extra overtones to excite the delay.
btw, Phil Rudd likes clear heads on the snare and a lot of AC/DC tunes have been recordedlike that
@David Calderon well there isn’t to much to AC/DC, ok don’t hate, I hate AC/DCs drummer. ITS LITTERALLY THE SAME BEAT EVERY SONG, and the reason people hate AC/DC is because every song sounds the same, and it’s the drummers fault.
@@sidneylacroix204 most of times less is better... pay attenttion to the details
@@agustinhocoelho4246 details? U mean like ghost notes? No he doesn’t play ghosts.
And the reason people love AC/DC is because not every song sounds the same but instead they always rock like motherfuckers! And the band knows that Phil Rudd is a corner stone to that magic. They sound best with him doing his thing. And may I add: Try to play like him! He has the swagger, the stamina and the self control to keep the band and the songs tight.
The people like AC DC because Phil Rudd play hard and tight
Hello from the future! After using a 12x8 maple snare for almost a year with a clear g2 head I bought a steel 13x7 snare and oh my, the clear head has so much more presence it's really shocking. Especially at low tunings, the clear heads sound full and have a precise attack with a lot of warmth. I still don't get why they are not as popular as they should be, especially in the studio. I couldn't believe that a 12 snare with a clear head and 30 snare strands had more presence in the mix than a 13 steel shell with a coated head in high tuning.
I've been have certain issues with my 80s 14" x 5.5" Yamaha Recording, a metal shell one (never found out what kind of material it is made of). One day I took an old Pin Stripe and put it on and suddenly it start to sing again! So now that's my snare for a 70s / 80s sound, not too tight, I mostly play it hitting the center, no rim shots. It sounds fantastic! After watching this video I'm gonna try to crank it up to get a more 90s sound. Thanks, guys!
Oh my God this is exactly what I've been trying to find good videos on for like a week! Thank you!
I just put a Black Chrome on my 13x7 TRS Custom Dimension X snare today, and I've gotta say, I couldn't be happier! I pitched it pretty high and it's got a beautiful crack to it, really responsive. I'm gonna be sticking with this one for a while!
Yass! I agree with Cody, the two-ply clear was my favorite of the bunch. Let’s see, the first clear head I saw on a snare was Jonathan Mover’s drum solo on one of the Gary Chaffee tapes (highly recommend!). Later I saw Thomas Pridgen’s Modern Drummer Fest performance in which he used clear heads all around.
Thomas lang did that
Thx for the video on this topic!
This channel is still golden
When I run out of my regular heads, I use either clear Controlled Sound with top dot or Clear Pinstripe on my piccolo snare drum. it gives lots of options. When you tune it low, it sounds very thick and warm and if you tune it to mid-high (my regular tuning) it gives very balanced attack and perfect ratio between sustain, attack and the presence control when playing with the whole band.
great episode, as always!
Getting real Helmet / System of a Down sorta vibes off these sounds, each one sounded great!
I tried clear Remo Pinstripe as a batter many years ago as I was sure I'd seen Chad Smith use something similar (pretty sure he uses coated CS X these days), but I got a buttload of wild overtones. I probably just hadn't done a good job of tuning it up tbf! Keen to try again
Just the other day I tried out a Remo Controlled Sound Clear on my brass snare, and I love it! I also really like that drum with the Suede Emperor, which is SORT of like a clear head.
Evans g2!! This vid make me change my snare batter head. Thanks for the video.
That drum is incredibly bright anyway, brighter and more cutting than a lot of metal drums I've played.
Bubinga drums are truly their own thing.
@@Jono_ the bearing edge is incredibly sharp and right on the center birch ply.
9:39 was ready to hear “Fortune Faded” guitar intro 🤙🤙. Solid video, just what I was looking for.
I went with my instincts when I decided to put a clear controlled sound head on my snare I have a Tama Big black steel drum and upgraded the hoops to die cast and put a 42 strand wire with the thicker emporer hazy drumhead and managed to get that 80's thrash metal snare sound I've been wanting
Very interesting stuff... the black chrome was cool, I can dig it. It’s usual to see clear snare heads on acrylic kits, but drummers have used clear snare batters through the years. The black dot seems to have been popular for a time. Neil Peart has used clear heads, idk if he does “usually”. More importantly, I’m happy to find someone else with their snare tilted away from them! I thought I was the only one, but I’m not alone. I first saw this watching old jazz drummers and it instantly made sense to me. Tried it out, and never looked back. Makes rimshots so natural, really suits a traditional grip, and of course looks vintage-cool. Tilted snares ftw!
I used to use an Aquarian Performance II on my DW Collectors 5x14 maple snare. It was the best head for hearing ghost notes live!
Consistently the best drum content on youtube. Reminds me of "That Pedal Show".
I just came here because I tried a new snare yesterday but wanted to leave the original head untouched. Since it was a 13" I didn't have an old snare head around so I used a clear, uncoated G2 tom head. The snare wasn't really my thing but I am surprised how much this video here reminds me of that sound and the feel of that head. It might be something to try out on my 14".
Clear Controlled Sound on my Ludwig 402 Supra. Sounds great in any tuning. I really only use coated heads for studio & brush work.
David Calderon
Absolutely- I recently fell in love with the CS-X. That little extra thickness in the single ply gives it a very “throaty” quality at higher tunings. That drum is something else!
I have a really nice supra phonic but I wanna find a really good head that fits my style but I can’t find one
The Evans Clear Hydraulic is one of my all time favorite heads to use on snares
I starting using one on a 13" brass snare a few years ago as a random experiment and ended up loving the tone.
I was just thinking about giving a clear head a try on my snare (Remo CS White dot), and BOOM! I've turned to the 'clear' side thanks to you. LOL
You guys are great with your timing (pun intended).
When not using a Evans Hydraulic Black, my go-to clear snare heads are Remo Pinstripe, Remo Emperor or the Evans Hydraulic Glass. I am interested in using the EC2 on my snare.
I'm really glad you did this. I've actually been wondering about using a clear head. Honestly I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone use a clear head on a snare before or at least I didn't notice. Thanks!
Hey that’s cool, I just put a remo black head, white stripe on my DW wood snare just before you put the video out, and I love the sound. No over tone just a nice deep sound . I was going to use it just as a back up snare just in case a bust a head right in the middle of church 😂😂 ( my nightmare ). But I loved it so much , I’m going to use my mapex steel for a back up.
I'm using clear aquarian regulator ii on my 13x5 wooden tama snare and it has it's magic but i can't stop thinking about switching back to one ply coated uv1. It may be the most universal batter snare head and that may be why it's the most used one.
You guys are the best.Keep up the great work.!!!
don't really use black chrome but it sure sounded great at that tuning. loved that punch it brought
This was an outstanding video. Really need to experiment on my own. I think I saw David Silveria (Korn) using a CLEAR Remo Powerstroke 3 in an old video.
When recording my drums I used a clear evans EC2 on my snare and it just sounded the best on the mics. I don’t use brushes usually so it’s totally fine
I've used clear pinstrips on my LM400. I always thought of it as an industrial sound.
I would love it if you did videos on how to get a certain drummer's tone. Sort of the Tom, cymbals, bass drum and snare sound of X drummer.
I personally would love one on Roger Taylor, very few videos on him and queen is trending af now. He had one of the most unique sounds, I would personally love it.
The best part of a clear snare batter is you can see Cody’s face in it while he demos it
Like drumming on a mirror...
I have a black Dixon drum set and only the Rack Toms and the Floor Tom have clear uncoated Pearl pro tone drumheads , while the snare has a white Remo ambassador coated snare batter head , and on a unrelated note I have not 1 BUT 2 Latin Percussion cowbells in my Dixon drumset mounted on my ride cymbal stand via the use of metal clamps with poles to mount cowbells , and a specially designed tambourine without a membrane on that drum clamp.
another very informative video. keep up the good work. you save me a lot of time, by simply listening.
I know Neil Peart used black dots on his snare from the early days into the 80s! Awesome snare sounds from those years too!
This was the first video that I watched from this channel. Subscribed already! Greetings from Brazil!😛😛⚡⚡🇧🇷🇧🇷
I tried Remo controled sound black dot clear on a Piccolo metal snare and sounds awesome!!!!
G2 was my favorite too. Reminded me of the one headlight snare sound
That's my snare, I use a remo coated dot though. The way you describe the drum is how I would describe that drum in general.
As soon as you went to the G2 it instantly sounded like the snare in Midlife Crisis by Faith no more! 6:31
Clear Remo Pinstripe on my 12”x7” Brady Sheoak, same as Larry Mullen jr. The sound of Achtung Baby/Zooropa. You get a right whack off it.
For me ..I have used a Remo clear pinstripe 2 ply Tom head as a batter head on my snare..it puts out a very cool sound especially if you're into the fat sound..it may not be everyone's choice..but try it sometime and see what you think..
Love this thank you going to experiment for tonites practice!
I tried a clear Emperor on my 14x5,5 Black Panther Brass Cat and fell in love. I used this combination in high tuning for gigs with my Slam Death Metal Band for a very long time and love the feeling and the nasty sound of it.
Now I've been using a EC2 on album recordings (while using coated tom heads) ;) killer.
best thing I ever tried out randomly.
I had the same snare...best head I found was the clear black dot.
If I am not mistaken, Neil Peart used a clear head on his wooden Slingerland snare in the 1970's, and he was the only drummer I remember from then that did so as a matter of course. But there were many drummers that used smooth white (uncoated) heads on the snare (and toms) back then, which, except for differences in the composition of clear v. smooth white heads, would sound similar to a clear head, possibly.
I like clear heads on metal snares
You are inspiring olso thanks for what you do for us drummer👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🤘🏻🤘🏻🥁🥁🥁🇨🇦🇨🇦
That snare sounds great!
Phil Collins used a clear snare batter on the live Genesis album Seconds Out which was recorded in 1977. He'd used coated before that period and returned to coated afterwards to the best of my knowledge. I put a clear head on my Gretsch ply snare once but have stuck with a Remo CS Black Dot Coated for the most part since. Maybe it's time to give a clear snare batter another chance!
I love the Remo Controlled Dot Clear as a batter on my steel 14"×5.5" snare for low pitched tuning. I combine it with a very thin reso called Hazzy Snare Side for a bit of contrast regarding articulation. Try it out. I know you're gonna love it.
Oh yes, we're quite familiar!
I found a clear head on my snare in my crappy recording room, with a mic on the SIDE of the shell made a big difference. Again...crappy room, I had a big problem with bleed of the other drums in the mic and lack of snap...the clear head provided snap...the side mic provided less bleed and the clear head also made the wires more prevalent in the mix rather than a lack of them...I needed a punchy good overall snare tone without bleed of a crappy room sound and the toms.
INSTANT 3rd wave ska. most of those guys were using overtuned steel snares and piccolo's. this can turn a regular drum into that. so cool
Troy Wright uses a PS black dot clear for his snare batter and it is a full on assault. He is very dynamic, but also hits hard sometimes and it's incredible.
How much of that do you think is dependent on the uncoated snare head?
@@SoundsLikeADrum 33% Him, 33% Snare & 33% Un-coated Head :)
Think Zildjian has a video with Eric Harland, he was using an Evans Blue Hydraulic on the snare. Sounded great!
I use clear Emperors on a couple of my snares.
Yay! Any time someone mentions clear snare heads the forums descend upon them with noodle lashes, wailing 'how could you ever give up brushes'. And I don't know anyone who actually uses their brushes at all.
That's where we assume most of those thumbs down come from. That and the keyboard warriors just looking for drum cover vids. 🤷🏼♂️
@@SoundsLikeADrum I sometimes do that to innocent videos simply so that the new weaponized TH-cam algorithms won't spam me with stuff I don't want recommended to my kid. (But not here of course.)
I’ve been using ‘snare designed’ heads on my big 13/14” rack toms if i’m playing 2 up, just to rein them in from sustaining over my floor without having to kill the fundamental with gels.
I once tuned my toms to E,A,D,G with a digital tuner. It took a long time but sounded amazing. Does this actually have a practical application or was it just a cool idea? Try it out!
Tuning to specific pitches is certainly an option and can be great for recalling a general intervallic relationship between the drums. As we’ve covered in the past, since the batter and reso pitches work together to create an altogether different pitch from the drum as a whole, it’s possible to end up with the same pitches but different character based on the relationship between the batter and reso heads. If you’re looking for a reliable means of tonal recall that still accounts for the space you’re using your drums in (which may change if you’re gigging, recording, etc), we recommend getting the pitches of the batter heads noted and then adjusting the resos to establish the character of the drum. Cheers! -Ben
I dont’t really do clear snare batters but I have those black chrome heads as batters on all my toms
Hell yeah Tim Alexander.
I feel like there’s a “drummers can’t keep time” joke that’s bound to be made in reference to “dropping a video every tues at 1230 EST like clockwork”. Anybody? Bueller?
Haha! And yet, you could set your watch to our episode releases...
Sounds Like A Drum haha. Breaking stereotypes and busting myths since 2018.
It's probably not even them doing it live though, I bet their uploads are pre programmed into a computer. ;)
Drummer's reflection is better in the two ply :)
Hahahaha, for real! It's like a mirror and you can see yourself with your sticks crossed and flying! Super cool!
I have used a clear uncoated head on my Tama bubinga 6.5 x 14 Omni time since I got the drum years ago. I tried a bunch of heads and that head gets the sound I want. Typically I keep a second snare left of hi hat stand, either Tama G-maple 8 x 14 or a 5.5 x 14 Pearl Reference. Both Tama’s have uncoated heads. The Pearl has coated head. That drum sounds good no matter what you do with it.
I’m using an Aquarian Hi-Energy Clear on my 7x13 brass snare!
It's nice option for effect (second) snare, but it's not good option for main snare
PS. Could U make a video about tuning a 22" bass drum for open sound with coated/calftone batter and calftone reso?
I find it tricky to get a nice snare wire response with thicker/ or double ply snare batters. Have you guys had the same trouble? I feel like it’s tricky to find the sweet spot and that I’m choking the drum
I have that snare. My favorite.
Nice! What's your go-to drumhead configuration for it?
UV1 batter, and clear Evans clear snare side. Yes, it does crack!!!!
My only complaint about you guys is that you make everything sound great. And, maybe, that I wish I had stock in Evans. :)
Could I use tom batter heads on the snare? I purchased EC2 heads (10 years ago) for a 14" tom....
Absolutely! Technically the Black Chrome that we used in this episode is a tom head but that didn't stop us. Cheers! -Ben
+soundslikeadrum *Clear heads as snare batters tend to be brighter than their coated counterparts.* Not tested were the EVANS®/D'Addario® TT14G1 (10mil) and TT14G14 (14 mil). Although partial to equal weight heads for both sides of toms and kicks (e.g. BnnEC2S top/TTnnEC2S bottom on racks and floors), I tend to favor coated heads for snare and tom batters for mitigation of stage-lighting glare.
Both sound good. How does the smt feel compared to the P3? Does it have the same air rebound the p3s tend to have?
Are any particular snare drums suited better than others, with the clear batter head.
Is wood or metal better..?
Any difference between top and bottom tuning.
Did ben work at the main Evans facility in Farmingdale? It’s not far from me.
All I had left in the "at hand brand new" heads was an Evans UV red hydraulic. Sounds pretty decent on my 14"×6.5" tbh.
No brushes though so probably not a "gigging" head choice for me. Very fat while controlling most of the excess overtones.
I have a topic for you, how does different head thickness affect the rebound? I have heard Buddy Rich preferred remo diplomat heads and so did a lot of players from yesteryear.
I just saw Deep Purple and was looking up what heads Ian Paice uses, and he still just uses Remo Ambassadors on everything even though he is a hard hitting player and is known for playing a lot of fast licks. He's in his 70s by the way and still touring and sounding fantastic!!!🤘😝🤘
That's a good one, especially because it's not really just about the thickness as much as it is about the general flexibility + mass. This will be an aspect that we address in our upcoming comparison series when we talk drumheads. Cheers! -Ben
Brain Mantia on the Videoplasty VHS uses a clear head on his snare. That was the first time I ever saw something like that.
Me too!! :) -Cody
Sounds Like A Drum woo hoo! Yah as I watched this vid I heard you mentioned Primus! Rock on!
On every snare I’ve owned I’ve had to use coated heads on the batter side with clear on the bottom...but your snare sounds great with that first head. I tried a two ply with ok sound but the stick bounce sucked.
I believe Alex Van Halen used clears or clear CS type heads sometimes.
Neil Peart used a clear black dot on his snares until I believe 2008
Edit: it was when he got his dw kits he stopped using CLEAR black dots, in 1994 I think
I realise you're not sponsored by Remo but is there a way to show the tonal characteristics of black dots on tom batters. They seemed to have a characteristic 'tone" on toms like a focused note. Steve Smith has used them and of course Bonham. Tony Williams used them but I thought his drum sound wasn't that good for such an amazing drummer.
That's certainly a possibility for our upcoming comparison series. Cheers! -Ben
I was also wondering about snare as tom (kinda "Sput" style and some other guys), especially when you do not have monstrous 14*gazillion snare =) but more like 14*6,5, how to tune it as kinda floor tom/aux deep snare. I know u have another episode for fat snare sounds, but here application is a bit different.
Little bit of Eagle Eye Cherry - Save Tonight in it... but that was probbably a picollo snare...
Would have been interesting to hear an A/B comparison between coated and clear heads. Awesome video nonetheless!
We hear you! We're saving more of the comparison elements for a dedicated series of comparison videos in an effort to consolidate information and keep the presentation focused. Thanks for watching! -Ben
@@SoundsLikeADrum That sounds amazing, can't wait!
I use an Evans ebony coated hydraulic on my snare. As such, I don’t need any Moon Gel/Drum Dots etc. the oil kills the ring and overtone just like I like.
When I tell drummers I use this, I’m told I’m crazy. Yet it works great for me. Isn’t that the point?
If it serves the musical context/meets your desired sound, that's what counts. Cheers!
I think it must be said - (nothing to do with Drums {or is it?}) you seem like a really fickn nice humble human dude. You would be great to work with :)
Would this work better on a wood or metal snare...or equal.
Why would there have been a big set against using these heads, by a lot of drummers.
They certainly sound fine here.
You could use them on any shell material you like if the sound meets your needs. Snare heads have consistently been coated heads for as long as synthetic drumheads have been in existence largely due to brush compatibility but then they simply became the standard regardless of style. The coating tends to mellow out some brighter heads but that’s not always the desired tone.