An Introduction to Yamaha Snare Drums | Yamaha Snare Drum

Some of the greatest drums and percussion in the world are made by Yamaha Drums, including yamaha snare drums.

Yamaha snare drums are a diverse line of percussion instruments and include the Yamaha wood snare drums, Yamaha metal snare drums, and Yamaha Signature snare drums.

In my long experience and career as a drummer, I have found Yamaha snare drums, especially their signature models, to be some of the most reliable and best sounding snare drums that I have played.

Out of the wide range of Yamaha Snare Drums, you should be able to find one that fits your style, whether you a rock drummer and need a metal snare drum to improve your attack and projection, or you need the increased sensitivity and articulation of a wood snare drum for jazz playing.

Below, I would like to provide descriptions of each Yamaha Snare Drum in greater detail, so that you can better make choices about what you need.

Metal Yamaha Snare Drums are perfect for drummers who need crisp attack and a whole lot of volume. Yamaha Metal Snare Drums include:

Yamaha Brass Snare Drum: These Yamaha Snare Drum models are probably some of the best-sounding brass snare drums that you will find. In my experience, I have found that brass snare drums offer a sweet-sounding high-pitched tone that is great for venue drumming. The Yamaha Brass Snare Drums include the "nouveau" style drum lugs which will increase the projecting qualities of the drum even further.

Yamaha Copper Snare Drum: The Yamaha Copper Snare Drum is now designed with a slightly thicker shell which delivers a more powerful, cutting tone. Copper Snare Drums are known for their dark, warm sonic qualities, and the Yamaha Copper Snare Drum also features the "nouveau" snare drum lugs which minimize contact between the drum shell and the hardware, allowing the drum to resonate freely. This Yamaha Snare Drum has great qualities for jazz drummers.

Yamaha Steel Snare Drum: The Yamaha Steel Snare Drum features a triple-flange snare drum hoop, which gives this steel snare drum a wide open sound with a fast attack and a slightly longer decay, due to the extra resonance of the hoop. Steel Yamaha Snare Drums present a great overall rock drum sound, and are quite affordable, too.

Yamaha Aluminum Snare Drum: My favorite metal Yamaha Snare Drum, the Yamaha Aluminum Snare Drum has a "bright, sharp tone with a decay that's slightly shorter than steel." I personally prefer aluminum to steel because you get a quick attack out of the snare drum, but at the same time more warmth and resonance from it too. The Yamaha Aluminum Snare Drum is perfect for anything from hard-rock music to electronic music.

Wood Yamaha Snare Drums are probably the most popular variety of Yamaha Snare Drum, and are noted for their superb construction and tone. Wood Yamaha Snare Drums include:

Yamaha Vintage-Series Snare Drum: The Yamaha Vintage-Series Snare Drum includes a variety of specifications designed to give this Yamaha Snare Drum a classic sound. These specifications include retro style lugs and hoops, and a slightly deeper shell.

Yamaha Oak Custom Snare Drum: The Yamaha Oak Custom Snare Drum has a slightly lower fundamental pitch, which makes it greater for metal drumming. This Yamaha Snare Drum still offers a great amount of power in the higher register, and you will still be able to cut right above the other instruments in your band.

Yamaha Tour Custom Snare Drum: The Yamaha Tour Custom Snare Drum is part of the Yamaha Tour Custom series and is a slightly lower-end snare drum, however it still sounds pretty good. Tour Custom Drums are made of birch, which give them a lot of projection and power.

Yamaha Stage Custom Snare Drum: The Yamaha Stage Custom Snare Drum is also a member of the Yamaha Stage Custom series, and from personal experience I can tell you that this drum sounds quite good. It has a lot of articulation, which makes it great for jazz playing.

Yamaha MUSASHI Snare Drum: The Yamaha MUSASHI Snare Drum is a piccolo snare drum that is available in both a twelve and thirteen inch model. Piccolo snare drums are great for effects, or even as a primary snare drum sometimes, and the MUSASHI snare drum sounds professional and is quite affordable.

Yamaha Maple Custom Absolute Snare Drum: The Yamaha Maple Custom Absolute Snare Drum is definitely the most popular Yamaha Snare drum, and for good reason because it sounds really good. It has a warm tone to it and a lot of body, due to the maple that is used in its drum shell.

Yamaha LOUD Snare Drum: The Yamaha LOUD Snare Drum uses Oak in its drum shell which gives it a massive volume and short decay time. This Yamaha Snare drum is heavily favored by rock drummers, and is definitely and up-and-comer in the snare drum world.

Yamaha Sensitive Snare Drum: The Yamaha Sensitive Snare Drum is favored by jazz drummers for pretty much the opposite reasons as the LOUD snare drum is favored by rock drummers. The LOUD snare drum has a sensitive dynamic range and a crispness to its sound which makes it perfect for jazz applications and jazz drumming.

The Yamaha Signature Snare Drums each feature distinctive tones and designs, and have been engineered by some of the world's greatest drummers. Yamaha Signature Snare Drums include:

Mike Bordin Snare Drum: The Mike Bordin Snare features a huge two millimeter thick copper snare which gives this Yamaha Snare Drum a tone that is both powerful and dry. The Mike Bordin Snare is also hand-hammered on the bottom half only, which gives it even darker tonal characteristics.

Jimmy Chamberlain Snare Drum: The Jimmy Chamberlain Snare Drum has a tone that is both warm, and cutting. It is able to achieve such diverse tonal characteristics through the use of a steel snare drum shell, and a satin chrome finish. The Jimmy Chamberlain snare also features aluminum die cast hoops, which help you get your snare drum more precisely in tune.

Ndugu Chancler Snare Drum: The Ndugu Chancler Snare Drum is my favorite Yamaha Snare Drum, and not just because he has a cool name. The Ndugu Chancler snare features a triple flange hoop which allows for very loud volume playing, while staying remarkably well in tune. At the same time, out of all the Yamaha Snare Drums, the Ndugu Chancler Snare displays an incredible dynamic range.

Billy Cobham Snare Drum: The Billy Cobham Snare Drum is a classic maple snare drum with a fat hoop that delivers a warm, natural sounding tone. Because of the extra width of the snare drum's hoop, The Billy Cobham snare is capable of delivering powerful rim shots, and the is a perfect snare drum for jazz.

Sonny Emory Snare Drum: A unique snare drum, the Sonny Emory Snare Drum features beech wood, which has a beautiful grain and delivers a hard, fat tone. The Sonny Emory Snare features a zinc die cast hoop, which has a sharp attack and decay, and contributes to this snare drum's brilliant tone.

Anton Fig Snare Drum: The Anton Fig Snare Drum is a beautiful snare drum with black finished shell. This all-maple snare features fat hoops just like the Billy Cobham snare. Also, The Anton Fig snare features Hi-Carbon steel wire snares which give the Anton Fig snare a harder attack and a lot of tone.

Steve Gadd Snare Drum: The Steve Gadd Snare Drum is the most popular Yamaha Signature Snare Drum, and is one of three models designed by Steve Gadd. The Steve Gadd snare features a 1.2 millimeter nickel-plated steel shell which basically gives this Yamaha Snare Drum a lot of power and response. Also, the Steve Gadd snare comes with thirty-five degree bearing edges, which fatten up its sound for better rock drumming response.

David Garibaldi Snare Drum: The David Garibaldi Snare Drum is an excellent sound brass snare drum with a fast decay. Most brass snare drums have the problem of becoming "muddy" when they are played too fast, however the David Garibaldi Snare has a slightly thicker shell which decreases the decay time. Additionally, the David Garibaldi snare features a plastic spacer between the hardware and the shell which opens up the drum sound and gives this Yamaha Snare Drum quite a bit more depth than most brass snare drums.