ENTIRE PEARL FREE-FLOATING SNARE DRUM RANGE DEMO

All 8 Pearl free floating snares!
All drums had factory heads & had only a little bit of tuning...pretty much straight out of the box onto the kit with no dampening!
14x3.5 Steel
14x3.5 Birch
14x5 Brass
14x5 Maple
14x6.5 Bronze
14x6.5 Maple/Mahogany
14x8 Aluminum
14x8 Mahogany
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Download the full play-along loop packs featuring 20-minute tracks to play along with!
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Pearl Masterworks Studio (maple/gum shells)
Meinl Cymbals
Vic Firth Freestyle 55A sticks
vicfirth.com/american-concept...
Remo coated ambassadors on top of toms
Remo clear ambassadors on bottom of toms
Coated ambassadors on both sides of bass drum
Coated ambassadors on snares
remo.com
Earthworks Microphones
DM20’s on toms & snare
SR25 for OH’s
SR20LS on kick
2x TC20’s for room mics
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Now based in LA, Louie Palmer has played with Mike Stern, Tom Scott, Gary Husband, Luis Conte, Tim Lefebvre, Mitch Forman, Janek Gwizdala, Charles Altura, Ruslan Sirota, Bob Franceschini and many more.
Louie endorses Pearl drums, Meinl cymbals, Promark sticks, Evans heads, Alclair In-ears and sE microphones.

[@christiancanalita6487]

That 14x8 Mahogany is amazing especially at the low tuning for that "splat" tone. Even at the higher tuning it still sounded good.

[@gooderdrums]

Everything sounds so crisp. That 14x3.5 steel is unbelievable while tuned low.

[@calebmahoney5462]

These are all incredible drums. I borrowed a friends bronze 14x6.5 and it was the best snare I have ever played. The most responsive, full sounding drum. Also, the way it felt was unlike anything I’ve ever played. You can get a really tight, fat sound without it choking out, it just sings. Strongly recommend it.

[@CryptoKaiser]

Very nice, Thanks. They all sound very pure.... Just the material without any interfering hardware. Love it

[@doublea7054]

Great demo... Your Crisp playing made every drum sound great at every tuning!

[@BlackDogYogaStudio]

Best snare drum comparison video of all time! Well done, Mr Palmer. I’m going to have to listen again to choose my favorites. You recorded them so well they all sound great!

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Thanks Peter!

[@cinoevil]

I am suprised to say I like the 14x3.5 steel the best. Great Job! You sound fantastic and oh those toms! Thanks

[@SheldonKreger]

They each have a unique voice. I choose.... All of them!

[@Paulswindellsdrummer]

Great comparison and shootouts! I love these snares, great job! 😍

[@yourdrummer2034]

Excellent video. This is useful for anyone looking to add one of these to their rig..

[@wtfill6327]

Amazing Snares, Great Video!!!

[@claudeabraham2347]

They all sound great! I had no idea how great the free floaters can sound!

[@gonzalocor1530]

Incredible sound Louie!

[@aaronraulston6248]

Love the vid!!!!!! The two 6.5” are the only snares you would EVER need!!

[@smashrhythm]

Wow! The steel shell has the best crack’n ping for high tuning. Plus the guitarists will love their new Crippling Tinnitus

[@aaronreeves8376]

Sounds great Louie !!

[@jdpdrums103]

The sound of your kit is amazing !

[@raymondkarlsson9794]

Great demo and sound! Very good drumming all the way. Happy medium is an often used expression and for reasons. The FF snare drums are among the loudest and brightest on the market. As I hear it the 5 inch and medium tuned babies sounds the part, no matter the shell material.

[@strong_voice_of_truth]

I have an old 3.5" brass that I love, so I was surprised that I didn't particularly like it in 5". I liked the steel piccolo, the maple in 5", the bronze 6-1/2, and the deep mahogany. Very nice comparison. Thank you for varying between tensions and using rim shots and not, and keeping the same cadence on the last clips... really helped.

[@SteveHolmesDrums]

Your camera and lighting game is impressive Mr. Bond.

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Thanks Steve!!!

[@carlosleiva2825]

All of them sound great, no exception

[@JeffWald]

Hey Louie, I've already got a 2nd gen brass 6.5 but I watched the whole thing just so I could hear you play! Very nice. Great sound/lighting as well. Subscribed

[@bkezelos]

Great work Louie 👍

[@Yankees121205]

Yes agree on Bronze, but was surprised how much I liked the Mahogany. Also love the maple

[@Chamindrums]

I have a 2 Gen brass piccolo shell and i really love it, i use for almost everything

[@jkben7415]

1st: I like the Maple 5 inch tuned medium and high. 2nd: the bronze 6.5 inch tuned medium. Great playing! Nice demo!

[@joegarcia4756]

I just received my Maple Freefloat 14 x 5 snare from the early 90's and topped it with the Evans Coated Hybrid. Man this is the absolute best sounding snare ever .

[@MatthiasKnorrMusic]

Great demo Louie! My favorites are - Bubinga (low tuning) Bronze (medium tuning) Bronze, Maple & Birch (high tuning)

[@TheInditribe]

just bought the bronze 6.5 partly due to this video. Thx Appreciate the comparisons

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Great choice!

[@ambroulard]

I love the free floaters-. I have a maple 6.5 x 14 and a 3 1/2 x 14-- The larger drum is amazing and has a very sensitive aspect to it that I’ve found in no other snare outside of a concert drum--

[@adriannott4596]

I have the 14x8 Aluminium FF and I love it at medium/high tuning.

[@sda5150]

Likewise... So much punch at medium tuning.. same tuning on a 5.5 I'd have to moon gel the hell outta it.. this sounds great straight up!

[@lifestyleeaventuras8311]

The best review on snare drums every Yt

[@raymondkarlsson9794]

I had a few FF snare drums in the late ’80s. Never thought they were sensitive with the die-cast rims so I changed to triple flanged and it felt and sounded warmer. Mine were maple and brass.

[@GamingDrummer89]

Funny, I bought a used FF (14x6.5, Maple Shell) off of Ebay back in 2014 and it already had Superhoops on it instead of the expected Mastercast ones. Wondering if that was a modification made by the previous owner or if they ever came standard with the flanged ones.

[@alejandrofichetti9466]

Nice groove!

[@RyanUybengkee]

i enjoyed the shootout. nice review! helps in choosing the shell i love to hear. Making it easier to buy

[@julianmatiasmancuso7516]

Louie, you have some particular hand for tuning snare drums. In all your videos the sound of the snare drum is just amazing. As Weckl tune like no one drums, your touch for the snare drum is unique also!

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Thanks!

[@kadenfletcher9814]

14x 8 mahogany great tuning range plus. The copper was also really awesome.

[@fhadlydrumholic6129]

I Love the 14x6,5 bronze.. I love the way they sound.. 😍

[@anthonyjm5605]

Excellent showcase. I think the Mahogany is my next snare for certain. But I will have to make a big decision as far as the size. That 14x8 is gorgeous.

[@vires-et-honore]

I'd be hard pressed to choose but I do like the Brass and the Bronze. Awesome video!

[@scotturban54]

Great playing man

[@markward3730]

Nice. Thank you for that.

[@gravitydrums1391]

I LUUV those snare drums.

[@LegendaryMike]

Great Demo

[@watevz221]

Audio mix is brilliant chief 👌

[@sergiotorres4233]

I bought a brass 14x3,5, I have to wait for a few months till arrive!

[@iRideuWatch]

Excellent video. Love all the snares but those cymbals! What are they? Especially that crash!

[@peterjsmcleod3341]

I always favour the 14x6.5 steel free floater in the studio! We always try out around 9 snares and we always come back to it!!

[@dwightlewis3876]

Your rudiments are just crisp and clean.....👍

[@fabioreynoso4747]

Amo ese snare!!!!❤❤

[@TheLyonkoke]

The bronze one at high tunning has this amazing clean crack that reminds me of joey jordison. Incredible

[@drummuffin1688]

The steel one sounds perfect at high!

[@davidsuprenant893]

Great comparison, I would of preferred the bottom head to not be as tight but that's my preference. One of my old favorites was the 6-1/2×14 brass.pearl don't make it anymore. Wish I still had it. Probably one of the best sounding snares I owned back in the day.Pearl drums are fine instruments at a fair price.

[@BlackDogYogaStudio]

On second listen I like the metal drums the best. Steel, Brass, Bronze, Aluminum.

[@sda5150]

I have the 14 x 8 Aluminium.. crazy good.. Esp at mid tuning.. sounds huuuggggeeee

[@giuseppemiele1658]

A beautifull snare drum

[@jerekp]

Pearl FFS - my favorite snares.

[@pascalmeier9651]

Thanks for the good comparison of the snares! Question: I‘ve got a 13 x 3.5 Inch Maple and a 14 x 5 Inch Brass Free Floater - both from the 80s or 90s (2nd generation with the round tubes and the „pseudo parallel“ strainers). When I got the 3.5 one, I noticed that it has the „overlength“ snare wires mounted ( I guess the Pearl S025 stock wires). The 5 Inch has got a „normal“ 14 Inch snare wire, where the wires are sounding very „indirect“ or for sure not so clear as the s025 on the 3.5 one. I want to get new different wires for the 5“ one: Do the 15“ from puresound fit for the length ? I guess normal 14 wires will get the same problem with the indirect wire sound. Puresound has also got special „vintage“ ones for free floaters - but there „twice the price“. I dont want to get the S025 again that i can quickly switch the wires when i want- puresound has some great stuff for that. Thanks and greets

[@patrickwoods2583]

Tough choice! All snares sounded much better in the Medium to High tunings. I'd say the Maple/Mahogany was my favorite, then the regular Maple. But the Bronze was just as sweet!!! None were bad. The deep snares were great but seem cumbersome to add to the kit. You need a special snare stand that will go low enough... or raise your throne and floor tom(s) a lot higher. The first snare I ever bought was the free-floating chrome/steel snare - but a 6.5" depth. I got sooo many compliments from sound techs on that snare.

[@thehappygocurmudgeon5283]

That’s funny about you playing your dad’s World Series drums. I have a World Series set with a 14x5 maple free floating snare drum. I just happily passed that set down to my daughter who started playing percussion in her school band.

[@joanbighorn9778]

I may save up to get a cable hi-hat set up, that looks like the perfect place to have them.

[@cj_ssfsm]

I'll take all of them. Thanks🙂

[@JonathanFosa]

Damn bro, you sure can play! Allot of Dennis Chambers influences I hear! Great job!

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Jonathan Fosa Thanks! Appreciate it!

[@tryharder249]

A de Maple/Mahogany é linda mas a de Bronze também não deixa por menos 👌🤘

[@DZNTZ]

I’ve got the 3.5” steel and 3.5” Maple, and the 6.5” clear acrylic. The acrylic is dry and cracking, nice fat booosh of a snare sound, looks awesome. I dig the 3.5” steel too, nice tight pingy pop to it, great snare response, super articulate. The maple is... maple.

[@Monsterdrumma]

Do they make acrylic 5”’s for this drum do you know?

[@DZNTZ]

Jo-Jo Moceri drums They do, a 5” shell goes for about $120. Drum Center Portsmouth has a couple colors in stock (tangerine and ruby), and I’m sure they’d get you any color you like. Just FYI - when they say 5” or 6.5”, they mean that’s what the full height of the drum will be with the shell in the chassis. So a 5” shell for a FF isn’t a full 5” by itself - but it makes for a 5” drum when placed in the FF. Just putting that out there!

[@HamptonGuitars]

This Pearl free-floating snare design always seemed to me like a clumsier way to duplicate the classic Rogers dynasonic snare bridge, but if it is easier to set up and deal with than that Rogers bridge, I am all for it!!

[@AkiyuAM]

5:28 nailed that snare tuning from korn self titled

[@lorenzmuller3542]

3.5" brass all the way!

[@Fresh_I.S.C.]

favorite has to be the phosphorus bronze (only because i own one) followed very closely by the 8x14 mahogany

[@phillamoore157]

That medium tuned Bronze sounds spectacular. What's really cool about this system is getting custom wood shells to fit it. I wish Pearl offered different thicknesses in the depth, though. Seems like it jumps from piccolo-depths straight to 6.5+. Please correct me if I"m wrong on that.

[@solefaction1367]

Am I weird for thinking that the shallower-depth drums sounded better at the low tuning, while the deeper drums sounded better at the higher tuning? Probably the opposite of what I was expecting.... That being said, that 14x8 Aluminum sounded great everywhere!

[@hugorezende199]

nice to hear this comment. I tend to think like that too. Super low tunned deep drums are too much "wobling" sound and high tuned shalow snares are sometimes too thin on the pitch, it lacks some heavyness

[@matthewpaluch777]

As always Louie you never disappoint! Which shell was your favorite?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Think it's close between 5" brass and 6.5" bronze. 3.5 Steel also.

[@AustinPetDetective]

What is the best snare wire size for 14x 6.5 ?

[@Djentstructer]

I think the birch one was killer!

[@Ms74Biker]

Nice video! Bronze is the best for my ears, but maple and steal also very good sounding snares. I think, bronze is very loud drum.

[@pharcydebug]

they sound fantastic, have pearl discontinued these?

[@tryharder249]

Maple/Mahogany !!!!

[@andreasjonsson8075]

The 5x14 copper was the best and still are. I have never heard anything like it. 200% tone, sensitivity, and 300% volume

[@nicolasvega2658]

the phosphor bronze is astounding

[@pyroeuropa]

Very nice video! The playing was as great as these snares. How high is the resonant head tuned? For the low tuning the mahagony was the right thing and the steel one was suprisingly good. My favorite one was the bronze and i think that bronze is the new brass.

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Thanks! Bottom head wasn't changed - always have it almost table-top tight & adjust top head for pitch.

[@PG-yh5mk]

Hi Louie, csn you share your setup recording wise? I see you use Earthworks and SM57 on Snare, what about the audio interface and software / pre amps?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

I use an Apogee Symphony MKII and Audient 800 peamps...that goes into Logic where I add some slate plugins.

[@ArtemGubanovRus]

I ve got here 5 14 'piccolo' brass - it cuts , but Im in love with lil ones 3,5 steel and also I love fckn birch all sizes, I love the aluminum one but isnt it too much?

[@JazzyJonas]

For whatever reason, I liked the shallow drums tuned low and the deeper drums tuned high.

[@stevedirocco1]

What is the bottom resonant head tuned like if you were to take a tunebat to it would you say it was 400 hurts or in the neighborhood of 350?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

No idea...have all the bottom heads almost table-top tight then adjust top head for pitch

[@af7119]

What is your cymbal setup in this video?

[@Stu.6]

Aluminum for me!!

[@shadow-lv3my]

Holy shit that’s a bright ass kit at the beginning… impressive on how bright that is

[@suneetemadsen7389]

Nice video! I have a 1st. Gen 6 1/2 steel version which i am currently restoring. Coated ambassador on the batter an hazy on the snare side. May I ask what pitch do you tune for in low mid and high? 160hz low? 180hz mid and 200hz high? Btw. My favorite is that 6 1/2 bronze mid tune. Cheers

[@louiepalmerdrums]

No idea...bottom head is almost table-top tight (but not choked) and top head is wherever I want it for pitch and feel.

[@MacAudio74]

Aaaah man! They all sound so good, but personally I prefer the higher tuning of all the snare compared to mid and low tunings. It’s free floating it’s a tough ask choosing 1 favourite sound. Great video thanks. BTW, what top/bottom drum heads were you using.

[@cliffhellums3138]

For the deep fat sound that Mahogany was a dream, very impressive! Great shoot out video Louie, keep it up brother!

[@alhudson]

Bronze High Tuning = Musical Ecstasy

[@STEELFACEJOINTHEFAMILYTODAY]

For the 3.5, I'm not very partial to either. I like both equally. For the 5, definitely the brass, the 6.5 I like the bronze and for the 8 I like the mahogany.

[@bisonsandlizards9136]

What about tico torres signature series?(aluminum)

[@raylombardo4186]

What happened to demonstrating the Maple 3.5 x 14 FF ?

[@davideisenhardt9939]

May I have the cymbals set up for this demo please?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

14" Byzance Dark hats, 20" Byzance Traditional crash on left, 23" Byzance Traditional Medium ride, 22" Byzance Jazz Medium ride

[@Amberseal]

Awesome demonstration, man. Really. I very much like the Bronze and Mahogany ones but can these snares withstand hard and intense playing? Can heavy hitters use them to play Death Metal? 🤔

[@EWDrums]

You and Holmes in room, 2 kits, 2 espressos.

[@Joshstix95]

That bronze 14 x 6.5 high tuning might be one of the best snares I’ve ever heard . Could you imagine playing that at a gospel gig . By the way what mics and audio interface do you use 🔥🔥🔥💯

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Earthworks mics and Apogee interface with Audient preamps.

[@Joshstix95]

@@louiepalmerdrums is apogee better than focusrite ?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

@@Joshstix95 yes but depends on budget & purpose

[@Joshstix95]

@@louiepalmerdrums right thanks for the reply man 💯

[@davidsuprenant893]

The finish on your kit is beautiful. Is that black limba masterworks?

[@louiepalmerdrums]

Yes! It's for sale if you're interested!

[@mattchase2112]

I own the 14x8 aluminum. It's the most versatile, richest snare in my arsenal