Beginner Snare VS Pro Snare: Can PRO Drummers Hear A Difference?

Can you tell the difference between a cheap snare & a pro snare? Let's find out!
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Drum Beats Online is a website where beginner - advanced rock drummers learn to improve their skill and creativity on the drum set so they can have the confidence to play drums with others! The way I do this is through DBO Academy. Where drummers are put on a success path of transformation that takes them from beginner - to a master drummer. All in a community of positivity, support, and inspiration! If you want to reach your full potential on the drum set, I would HIGHLY recommend joining DBO Academy!

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

How did you do?? Comment your score below! ►Join the DBO Academy waitlist for a surprise! 👉bit.ly/DBOAcademy

[@MehulShaRma]

its definitely A

[@kanwalsingh4950]

A is more expensive

[@clarencejunior3330]

I got one right and one wrong

[@anthonybianco9909]

I had them both right, usually with more expensive snares the over tone is more controlled for studio session quality. Less ring = better recording quality. This can also be heard with the snare Dave Grohl uses in the video "PLAY" where he plays all the different types of instruments. Usually in a studio setting, producers have drummers adjust their snares at lower tuning then what they normally play. Gabe, been a fan for a long time and appreciate all the videos, tips, tricks and positive channel. Keep up the great work!

[@bmckenzie69]

I got the first two right, but they both sounded really good.

[@harrymiree]

*voicemail beep* Hey dude, it’s me again. Guess your phone died; it’s going straight to voicemail now. Anyway, it’s a nice day out, so I thought of you and the THIRTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS YOU OWE ME

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

............................................ I'll send it once you post a new video

[@pastanbacon]

Colab!! Please

[@thepluggy1]

@@DrumBeatsOnline he's got you there Harry!

[@maddrummerhef]

Dayummnnnnnnn called out

[@repsac2002]

i just passed out from the sheer heat in this thread

[@rdavidr]

RIP David Cola's career 😈

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

😂😂😂

[@DavidColaDrums]

I’m taking all your stickers off my fridge

[@elisteinhauer5834]

DavidColaDrums wow that’s next level man, stickers hold relationships together

[@maziu27]

Hello david

[@aditdrummer]

😂😂

[@frodowatt4272]

Gabe: which snare is expensive? Harry: do I get 1,300$?

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

😂😂

[@devinbuchhorn]

LOL out of the box there is NO COMPARISION! The utility does sound better than its price point tho.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

For sure! The quality difference can be heard right away, but with a little tuning, the Utility can sound really awesome!

[@SomeRandomPerson163]

its just was untuned from box lol

[@Quorra.]

when the "cheap" snare is more expensive than your entire kit

[@Romanorum82]

Facts. LOL.

[@GamingDrummer89]

I'm hoping that means you bought a decent kit in used condition rather than a horrible quality kit brand new, lol.

[@danielkuhn4360]

Lmao same

[@dabiun7443]

HAHAHAHAHAH

[@huanqingchen164]

Same... I wish he could talk about how to make a $20 drum to sound as good lololol...

[@AlightingOnAir]

Why is everyone surprised the $200 snare sounds good? It cost $200. Think of something else you own that costs $200. It's probably pretty good quality.

[@t-rizzy208]

Exactly

[@RC32Smiths01]

I am definitely someone who thinks that better gear will give a greater motivation to keep playing. Better gear can mean so many more possibilities, even if it's just the timbre. Awesome work man!

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Of course!

[@RC32Smiths01]

@@DrumBeatsOnline Yeah!

[@Durwood71]

There is certainly some truth to the idea that buying something expensive gives you that "Now I gotta get my money's worth!" motivation, but the fact is, a good drummer can make even a bad kit sound great, and a bad drummer will sound bad no matter how much the kit costs. And if you're just starting out, it will be a long time before you are legitimately limited by even a cheap kit.

[@skulleton]

Better playing will give better motivation than any upgrade, don't forget that ;)

[@ttthemusiclover]

That's right.

[@sega.milkis]

It's aaalllll a matter of: 1) Head choice 2) Tuning 3) Recording method: mics, placement, mixing However, the shell thickness and material also play huge role))) Hence the price difference

[@roomdog40]

I love how the Nashville session guy asked for the $1300. This video was awesome and I love how you brought my favorite youtube drum guys together.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

❤️❤️

[@goombagang5080]

Personaly I can hear the difference between them, but I prefer the cheapest one! 😅

[@doctajuice]

I'm just finding it hard to justify the difference in price. The cheap one still sounds pretty good likely because it's been tuned well. Try a $75 snare vs that $200 snare and I'm sure you'll notice more of a difference

[@AlightingOnAir]

I agree that the snare doesn't sound $1100 better, but it's not really for us. It's not even really for people who are very good at drums. It's for people who make a living recording drums. People who own this own studios or are professional drummers who have 10 other snares like this of different materials in their studio. To them, this snare sounds like it's worth every penny because it sounds exactly the way it does. It really is an excellent, top tier, snare.

[@nickbutler6750]

Editing in this channel is sick

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

That means a lot thanks Nick!

[@wulfasger9332]

My answer about the expensive one was always the right choice, but i gotta admit, 200$ doesn't sounds bad. We can still hear the quality differences but 200$ one is really not bad at all.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

I couldn't agree more!

[@BxCortez2050]

absolutely

[@marek.p]

What I learned from this video: I can hear the difference between the cheap and expensive snare and yes, the more expensive snare sounds better, BUT there's a 650% price difference and maybe like 10% sound difference (with the same heads and tuning, that is).

[@dbmdrums1105]

Snare A sounds like a Snare having a small bit of the "Tom Tom" resonance. I would always go for snare B.

[@GamingDrummer89]

I got both of those first two right...the giveaway for me was the drier, shorter sound that I've heard more often on lower end snare drums compared to the more complex, vibrant, resonant sound that's usually a feature of snares made of better materials. The last one with the pro drummers was tough, though, and I missed it. :(

[@xtremeblazer3468]

I was so shocked when you said A was more expensive in the first trial because B sounded so much better for me

[@maltes666]

By the flams i found a better

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

That's what this experiment is all about!

[@Eurodrummer666]

I guessed right twice. The expensive snare has more presence but both sounded really good.

[@nathanblackman1063]

I can hear the difference. For a fair comparison, I closed my ears. Man I love the sound of that Pearl Reference Brass snare. Epic Video.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

I'm loving it as well! So glad you liked the video!

[@InBetweenVlogs]

You closed your ears ??? 😱😱😱

[@Xavi.Bateria]

I guessed both Right 👍 what about you?

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Niceee

[@tigerrr1227]

And Pearl thanks you for minimizing their value assessment of their expensive drums since they can be nearly duplicated by drums 1/6 their price.

[@jonthibault5509]

There goes that Pearl endorsement...

[@zellous2928]

I’ve been subbed since 1.2k subs. Cool how far you’ve come haha edit: I’ve been subbed on my other account Chace The Drummer for that long

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Wow, that's seriously amazing! So crazy to think you've been watching for that long! Thanks so much for sticking around!

[@zellous2928]

Drum Beats Online didn’t even seem that long lol

[@RyanOConnorDrums]

Dude how’d you get Harry out of Wyoming for this video

[@St_Mindless]

I bought Chris Adlers signature War Bird snare 🔥🔥🔥 £295

[@GamingDrummer89]

I bought a used one for $275, and that's not the cheapest I've seen them go for.

[@SharpeDrums]

Great video. I have no shame in admitting i liked the cheap snare more....the expensive one has more body...more warmth and sings a bit more, BUT on a personal level i love the brightness of the cheap snare...It has quick attack, quick decay and a naturally higher pitch. I got them wrong on the first clip. With a lower tuning i preferred the more expensive snare because it sung and was way smoother..BUT I still prefer the cheap one because i never tune that low. I always have my snare tuned high. i want my snare to CRACK. I am still using a Dixon 13x4 snare drum that i bought for around 100$ CAD used...Ive recorded with it...played many shows with it....i still LOVE it. And another beautiful part about music...its all personal preference.

[@chiefrebelangel817]

200$ is not a cheap snare drum, its a regular price snare drum. You can get suprafonic in that price range ( 200-300$) and we all know what is a suprafonic. It's a must have for every recording studio. 1300$ drum is just exotic, especially for a metal shell drum, 200$ is about the right price for a everyday use drum

[@MechaAkuma]

$200 snare drum is not a beginner level snaredrum. Most beginner can't afford anywhere near $200 on a snaredrum. Most beginner starter drumkits costs $400 *for the whole drumkit* If you wanna try a "Beginner snare" - spend $50 on it. Not $200

[@jim.drum67]

That was very cool. I spotted the expensive drum almost all the time. But I thought the differences were not night and day, the more expensive had more body and it was also a comparison of steel vs. brass. All in all, both drums sounded very good!

[@robsco1249]

Same goes for cymbals... Compare a Ludwig Supraphonic with a Yamaha stage custom steel 14x6,5 snares or Zildjian A custom with Zultan rockbeat or Sonor Armoni. Lots of people buy the name more than the sound.

[@thilo9086]

In my opinion the Mapex Black Panther Sledgehammer is still the best snare! and its like 450!

[@AtTheSourceStudios]

Curious if you modded the Utility with die cast hoops and put same heads on both if they would get closer.

[@zacdrake]

Yes!!

[@lucvincent2020]

With a good drummer a cheap or a expensive snare drum would always sounds amazing !!!

[@RichardMarletta]

first

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

🎊🤘🏽

[@musenbamiguez]

hoops, shell, thickness, numer of lugs, construction... they all play a huge role in here. It's clear on medium tunings, but they get a pass on the low ones; huge gear nerd here tho

[@M123OCT]

Time after time, people have shown that there is very little difference in sound between two identically tuned drums, cheap and expensive. But I still go for high-end drums for so many reasons other than sound - I just love something beautifully made from high quality components. Having said that, I really, really enjoyed having one of the cheapest Gretsch kits, the Catalina Club Jazz. It was a pleasure to play and sounded fantastic. I also like contradicting myself.

[@ryanford5387]

The $200 snare drum is beginner?! That's over double the price of my whole drum kit

[@vtalley2778]

I love whenever Harry shows up in a video cause its good to know he's still kickin

[@dawnlennon3525]

If you're a biginer drummer just get a £30 one because I have mine for over 3 years and it sounds like a snare

[@rjrfletcher2355]

Am I the only one wishing Harry did more videos ?

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

That's every drummers greatest wish

[@Paajanenae]

The 1300$ snare has more definition than the 200$ snare in both tests. The sound stays together very well even in the low tuning. Modern Utility snares are damn good tho, I especially love the 14*8 wooden snare.

[@reto_englert]

I was actually able to hear the sound difference perfectly fine. Even with Tablet speakers but I really enjoyed this video. Was great as usual. I do prefer wood snare drums but I found those Snares sound amazing.

[@lukebourgeois1663]

Whats up with David's candle collection?

[@Wneff7]

A B (edited due to me not knowing you were playing the game twice lol)

[@grunge2012]

The Distance of the Overheads have an impact on the 2 snares. i say use a 1 mic in front of the middle space where the 2 snares meet so you can still capture the cymbals plus the 2 individual snare mics

[@studiodsr]

Exactly. You can definitely hear that snare B is phasey due to the difference in distance from the overhead compared to snare A

[@luketolley6077]

Thanks for this video Gabe! The studio I teach at has been in need of a decent snare drum for a long time, but usually can’t find something that won’t break the bank! That Modern Utility will really help us out, thanks again for showcasing these awesome snares!!

[@frontierlife4456]

100% correct for me. Thanks for the Video

[@gamerh7218]

I go the first one correct and the second one wrong...

[@oobernoober7617]

HOLY SHIT I GOT 3 FOR 3, does this mean I win something. I kinda wanna sell my yamaha and get a new snare. I wasted almost $600 for my yamaha and after 3 years of playing it I realized after I saw other snares that this wasn't the one for me, I tuned to how I liked and still it sounded bad. I just want a nice SJC snare for less, probably $400 at most

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Nicceee! You get a virtual high five! ✋🏽

[@oobernoober7617]

@@DrumBeatsOnline thanks, oh and the snares were kinda obvious, brass or strong metal snares have more reverb to them while light metal or wood snares have a lighter ring and more attack. ✋✋✋✋

[@waldiludwikowski697]

To me it is the drummer who makes a snare sound cheap or expensive, beginner or pro... in you case both sounded pro...

[@femkewesteneng]

I got all of them right, but I have to say... those sounds are pretty close. Really cool how good the 200 dollar snare sounded, I didn't expect that. Awesome video!!

[@bardownedits9718]

Honestly the $200 snare sounded better

[@Shrihan708]

Gabe is the man . Drum Beats Online is the place to go for drummers anytime . He inspired and motivated me to get me start my own youtube channel.Great video as always🔥🔥.You can check it out if you are interested.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

That’s so amazing! I’m honored to have inspired you in any way! Thanks for the kind words my friend!

[@Shrihan708]

Thank you so much sir , love from India

[@devinbennett2997]

I love the sound of the pearl reference. Me personally I would rather save up and get the more expensive one, im not a huge fan of my snare, not even sure what brand it is or anything but I can never get a decent sound that I want out of it. I think for the cheaper price I would love to have the cheaper snare and like you said, spend some time really getting that sound out of it.

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

These are great thoughts Devin! Well stay tuned because you may get a chance to win the Utility as a DBO Academy member!

[@devinbennett2997]

@@DrumBeatsOnline oh sweet. Speaking of DBO, I hadn't had much time to practice on the kit lately, with the whole family home is really hard. But I have been putting in hours of practice pad exercises everyday.

[@Avexer]

IDK how, but I got them both right. It can really be heard even on a KZbin video. The more expensive one has many nice overtones, so the sound is really more saturated. I'm not sure if I could pass the test "$800 vs $1000" though, but this one is really easy.

[@EBb697]

Also what drum throne or seat do you use?

[@3stann78]

both are great snares, but for the 200$ is already good sounding snare, just save the 1100$ to buy other drum stuffs!

[@eghardvisser5764]

First

[@k_fips3518]

I’m jealous, I have that exact same snare (The Pearl Utility) and mine sounds terrible compared to this 😂

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Follow some of the tips at the end of the video!

[@k_fips3518]

Drum Beats Online I indeed have mate haha, think I simply need a new head as mines a bit too battered 😬

[@Xavi.Bateria]

No wonder why Harry won, he had inears on! 🤣

[@DrumBeatsOnline]

Yes but once we started he realized he didn't have them setup right so it was just coming out of his computer speakers haha

[@Xavi.Bateria]

@@DrumBeatsOnline no way! that must be a lie. when you put inears, you immediately would know if they are working or not. LIES LOL 🤣

[@lucaswedderburn]

I’m a beginner drummer, this was very helpful. Definitely going for a budget kit for my first acoustic kit. Price won’t matter in my early stages, I just want to get my skills up before anything else.

[@beneditzz4074]

Hi gabe whatsup bro

[@TheCreativityofGOD]

I was able to guess all three correctly. But what was really surprising to me was that I liked the tone of both since they’re both Pearl. I’m not usually a fan of Pearl, but I might need to give them a second look.

[@bakijozsi2482]

Definitely hearing the difference between the two, the fact that only the Reference snare is equipped with cast hoops it’s a dead giveaway.

[@zippyxp3466]

I all of them wrong

[@presbarkeep]

I got them both right (honestly), the higher tuning was easier to pick out the differences than the lower tuning. The snare wires one the cheaper snare sounded buzzier than the expensive one, and the expensive one sounded more beefy, probably because of the die cast hoops..? Back when I played, and I changed from the 2.3mm flanged hoops to the die cast hoops i couldn't believe how much a difference it made in the sound. The type of heads and tuning also play a huge role in the drum's sound. Also, with good microphones and mixing, you can make any drum sound great.. as long as its tuned :) Cool video!

[@ZombieFarmboy666]

The more expensive snare definitely sounded amazing, but the $200 one sounded pretty great, too

[@mavrickloewen1543]

Dude those are like my 2 fav snares ever the reference being my fav probably!! (Btw u can still see the gold when u blur the reference snare lol)

[@eeshangupta3328]

Hey more rudiments pls 👉👈

[@doultonduck6534]

I gots them all right! Lets Go Harry!! Team Pro. lol jk! I spotted them by the sounds. The cheaper sounded "weaker while the expensive one ALWAYS more 'durable' if you will. Even in the high tuning the expensive drum had a nice crack and the $200 didnt have that same sound. I suppose in a way, I have experience with this LOL. I have a Yamaha 80's 8000 Power tour kit with the matching snare. INCREDIBLE snare I love it. and as my side snare I have a 5000 series Yamaha. Still pretty good but I can tell the differences between the cheaper and more expensive. Thanks Gabe! That was fun! And those drums sound Fantastic!!

[@KillSchwill]

I got both right. But just because the Reference Brass was brighter? Or had a slightly more open sound which I like. Doesn't mean it sounded better though. I have a $500 SJC custom, $500 OCDP, and $180 Porkpie Little Squealer. None of them sound better than another IMO. They are all different dimensions some with vent holes and I just use them in different applications or for different styles of music. But I like all them equally the same. So for any drummer on a budget, don't believe you are missing out by not having thousands to spend on a kit. 90% of a drums sound comes from heads and tuning. Just get what you can afford.

[@paulysci925]

80% of it is heads and tuning but some are expensive and not good and some cheap are good. 20% is nuances. I’m convinced I can make anything sound decent but I can only make a “good” snare whether it’s cheap or expensive sound immaculate. In other words price has little to do with tonality although you’ll have better luck most of the time above the $500 threshold new or above the $300 threshold for used when it comes to overall tuning ranges.🤷‍♂️ it’s really a wash, basically you gotta know what you’re looking at and what you’re doing and that comes from tuning and listening experience 😉😂 it’s not really the drum most times it’s the tuning but there are drums with micro “sweet spots “ and drums with mega “sweet spots” where they sound optimal

[@therealandrewlund]

I had no doubt that my boy Harry would smoke the competition. The $1300 snare sounds nice, but I don't think you need to spend that much to get those features.. My brass black panther sounds amazing, has 10 lugs, has nice hardware. I'm just missing the cast hoops.. I'll bet a $300 snare vs $2k would be more interesting, in that you could fool even more people.

[@albitcapinigro1107]

Put a die cast hoop on the modern utility snare then do the comparison.

[@munton5150]

When you process the crap out of it and add a bunch or room sound, similar. It takes all the life out of the sound- like blurring the image so yes you can make them sound similar. But, with a well-recorded and engineered track, you would hear the difference. Also the Reference brass has an incredible feel, incredible tuning range, and cuts through generally better. But yeah I can make my Pearl Sensitone steel sound pretty damned amazing and they are both great drums even though a major price gap. You make a great point here which is that is that with modern production, you can make a cheaper drummer sound similar. But the feel will never be the same. My Reference brass feels amazing and makes me play with more confidence. In the end, even my guitar player can notice the difference. Good news here is a good player can make a well-made steel snare sound great- and they can afford a cheaper drum like this. But- are major studios using the modern utility snare? I doubt it.

[@theprinceoffreshair]

I have a 13x7 pork pie brass snare and man this thing cracks like a supraphonic, it was definitely worth the money. I got a deal on it at a thrift store for pretty cheap. So to answer someone's question if you can get good sound for cheap, YES YOU CAN!!

[@maxsignori7660]

2:37 that's the whole point: you need to be able to bring any snare to a high level sound. A badly tuned 1300$ snare will still sound bad. I've seen a lot of drummers that have no idea how to properly tune / set up a snare drum, and I have the impression that this is partly fault of bad teachers. You can't play an out of tune guitar, but you can still play an out of tune drum (if you don't realize it sounds bad). Plus, the added experience required to know how to set up a snare to get a certain sound in a recording or amplified live gig.

[@jimpemberton]

From a sound tech standpoint, I wonder how different they sound mixed independently by the same tech. In an acoustic or jazz group, it will be mixed more naturally, but with pop or rock will be more processed and controlled. The more processed application, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it's not going to matter as much: the fine differences will be lost in the processing.

[@harsh5139]

Two of those "lower end" snare cost the same as my entire drum kit. F.

[@AirmanKolberg]

I got both right, but the first one I wasn't 100% sure. Wow, not too big a difference for that price difference, but you're paying for that LITTLE extra touch, for those who feel they need (or just want) it.

[@ZeBubba]

That low tuned cheapo didn't really even sound like a snare, just a mushy mess. A good present crack was missing on both tunings. Picking the expensive ones was easier than I would've thought. Cheers!

[@SomeRandomPerson163]

I have Sonor force 3005 steel - realy cheap 14x5.5 snare drum with 10 lugs. Your video is another proof I don't need to invest more in "high end" snares lol.

[@moezarella1347]

Yeah the Utility sounds great I bought it 4 months ago and still really like it

[@TeamGun]

Yeah I got them both correct, been playing drums since I was 12 for 24 years. If I’d gotten it wrong, I’d have been pretty disappointed in myself lol.

[@mattdrewdrums]

Paying $1300 for a snare is ridiculous. I got a used 5x14 Gretsch Brass Hammered snare for around $250 and it sounds incredible.

[@ryan2stix]

I rock a Yamaha Musashi oak snare...like $250, Evans dry skin tuned high and it kills. Get what works for you, not what will break your bank

[@SomeRandomPerson163]

In blind test I can hear the difference. BUT I can't say which sound is "better", they both sounds great. So no significant reason to pay over than 1k$ if you not rich af

[@vw4ld]

WOW got all of them right (waiting for my US$1,300 lol). Both snares sounds great, but the Reference is in another level for sure

[@el_tomato]

I knew how to recognize both snare drum but not because of the price but because i knew bell brass was supposed to sound fuller than steel. Hard to do a fair comparison between different shell materials!

[@heeeeeey2818]

I got them all right

[@AlexRaptakis]

Pearl Reference Brass is my dream snare, too bad it's now around 1800 USD now...

[@eyeless9882]

Both are way too damn expensive lol what kind of beginner spends 200 on a snare. That’s almost as much as a decent bass drum

[@alexsdstudios6580]

Don't know how they could fail, it was PRETTY obvious... Btw, the cheap one doesn't sound that bad

[@venndexofficial]

just remember... a good drum set doesn't make a good drummer..... A good drummer knows how to use any drum set...

[@midizengm]

I did right where was more expensive (almost :). But I definately can say price difference is too much.

[@CK-pd7bf]

Got them both right

[@ianferreiraian]

Excellent content. By the way, which camera is used? Incredible capture and editing job.

[@serpentstudios7768]

Tuning the snare drum, to sound the way you want it to. It'll end up sounding very good.

[@sathvikgaddam7876]

Man love your videos I’ve learned so much from you

[@dragocat1]

Didn't spend 1300 on all my snares combined. Ludwig Supra 6.5 inch. Aluminum. Sligerland RADIOKING! 5.5 inch solid Maple. Chicago badge. Slingerland steel 5 inch.Niles badge. ALL from pawn shops! LOOK AROUND!