Why this Snare Drum DESTROYS all Pretenders

Find out why this is the greatest snare drum ever made. Why do all other snares COWER in its presence? In future videos, we will go into great depth at how to recreate this sound without selling one of your superfluous organs like I did.
Thanks for checking out Beats And Meats. I'm going to show you how the pros get the best drum sounds on the planet, and then how to get there for WAY LESS MONEY. We'll bust some myths along the way, laugh at everyone who doesn't know what they're talking about, and bring in the experts who have forgotten more than I'll ever know about drums.
Link to my soon to be released drum tuning course: spectreacademy.net/courses/co...
Here's a bunch of links to channels that I love that have awesome drum content:
SpectreSoundStudios / @spectresoundstudios
Spectre Academy spectreacademy.net/
Sounds Like A Drum / @soundslikeadrum
James Payne / @jamespaynedrums
Art of Drumming / @artofdrumming
Kohle Audio Kult / @kohleaudiokult
URM Academy / @urmacademy

[@CharlesWillisBonsai]

I was under the assumption that the Ludwig Supraphonic was on the most records

[@BeatsAndMeats]

The Supraphonic is definitely on the most records, but the Copperphonic wasn’t released until 2016. The Copperphonic sounds so much better than the Supra, it’s not even close… and the 14x8 Copperphonic is indeed the best drum they have ever made.

[@robertdemaree2165]

Black beauty. Coliseum. I have 50s cob.pre serial as good as the Tama have a hammered bronze as good. Tama excellent tho.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@robertdemaree2165 Too zingy, at least for modern recordings. The Pearl Black Beauty clone, I think its the Steve Ferrone signature model, has better hardware, WAY BETTER throwoff, better edges, more consistent manufacturing, looks better, plays better... still can't hold the jockstrap of the Copperphonic

[@Neil-pv8pw]

Ludwig 400 from the 80s onwards was the linn drum

[@gtdrummer6429]

@@BeatsAndMeatsbetter than a Ludwig Black Beauty?

[@BensonStrapple]

I have one of these and can 100% confirm that this is a stunning drum. It simultaneously has the best low end AND top end crack in one drum I've ever heard. I've lusted after this sound for years and this snare delivers in spades!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

It’s ridiculous! And I haven’t even done my normal tweaks to maximize its awesomeness… Have you recorded with it yet? One thing that has come up, which I expected, having other bell brass snares, is that when tracking, afterwards I need to strip silence the kick mics so the snare doesn’t bleed egregiously into them, it’s so loud, but so GLORIOUS!!

[@NintenDub]

How much you pay?when did you get it? I'm.not.too In the know, but I'd have to guess that like 15 years ago, you could get one for like, a grand, maybe a little more.sorta like the price on any high end snare currently, usually like somewhere in the 8-14 range

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@NintenDub $4k for the 40th Anniversary, $4k for the 50th Anniversary, $2200 for the Dialtune, $2k for the Savage 14x8, $1k for the Ludwig, $550 for the Trick Copper Free Floater… keep in mind in 1980, the Terminator cost $3300, which in 2024 money is just over $12k!!!

[@williamperri3437]

@@BeatsAndMeatsyou could get a really nice car in 1980 for 3,300 👀 And I like the Acrolite Snare way better than that Ludwig and the 402 as well but I’m going for a higher pitched drum.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@williamperri3437 14x8 snare drums sound great tuned up really high. They still have a ton of body which makes it sound not so pingy… almost like you have a snare room sample behind it. But the Acrolite is definitely a sound that some people love, which is totally fine! What a boring world it would be if everyone had the exact same snare

[@paulmora2480]

This was an awesome video! Spot on. Going to have to get my hands on one.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

You won’t regret picking one up

[@eyyyd]

saw your post on facebook and wanted to check out your video love the editing!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thank you thank you thank you!!

[@arturofernandez6088]

Great demo!🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼

[@bytornsnowdog1347]

So many variables. It is always a chore to get the sound you need for the setting. For concert, we like the Ludwig. For jamming I always preferred Tama. They are well constructed and deliver a good sound throughout the entire set. Great post!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thanks man! This is a hard rock and metal-focused channel, so everything I do is looked through that lens. I’m really glad you enjoyed the video.

[@nicolaslampreda5332]

Keep it up! New channel but top quality indeed

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thanks man! I really appreciate it!

[@telpusmusic]

great work !

[@Drumsholic]

Tama Terminator i agree, but and the Dialtune sounds very close to this,these two are the greatests!!Nice video man!!

[@AndreiPredoiu]

I SOOO WANT ONE BUT MONEY IS MONEY The second I saw the title I knew what snare it was about Great video btw!!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thanks Andrei! Im glad you liked it. I’m eventually going to do a video on this, but the cheapest way to get very close to this sound is the Gretsch USA Bell Bronze, which is about $1000-1200 Freedom Bucks

[@justhadrums]

They all sound great!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thanks man! It took me a long ass time to figure out how to get snares to sound like this.

[@c3N3q]

To be honest, all those snare drums sound great. I'd be happy with any of them. The ultimate recorded and mixed sound can be influenced by so many things that I'm not sure if this search for THE perfect drum is ever to be finished. I'm going to make my own brass snare. Melt a bit of alu and copper, cast the basic shape in a mold and then CNC machine it to specs. Kudos for the shirt!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

For sure the search is never completed, but I can say with confidence that my snare sound holds up with the best in the world. And that’s good enough for me.

[@me_boone]

I prefer a supraphonic. BUT my favorite snare I've ever heard is a pearl 6x14" brass sesitone that I put better hardware and rims on. It does the thing and every other thing anyone can want.

[@me_boone]

Those bell brass tamas are great though.

[@user-yq5od9uj3f]

Nice demo, liked the copperphonic best. And can I just say, no offense to your drumming intended, thank God I'm not your neighbor. LOL!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I have never liked Ludwig snares, too zingy for my taste. But that Copperphonic is incredible. Definitely their crown jewel! As for my neighbors… I’ve done a decent job of knocking down the SPLs to a not too annoying level. There’s only so much you can do without violating a million city building codes 🙁

[@user-yq5od9uj3f]

@@BeatsAndMeats Been there, done that! Years ago a fellow drummer friend of mine built a home from scratch. It was in upstate NY where staying warm was of utmost importance. He did something for insulation that was ahead of it's time and it turns out it was perfect for sound insulation. He built double 2x4 insulated walls with a 4" uninsulated space in between the 2 walls.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Basically he turned his room into a thermos bottle… it works great!

[@frankspikes7858]

You have a nice snare collection. I don't record much so i wouldn't need a really high end snare drum. When I play live I'll use my rogers powertone brass shell from the 60s. I also have a Yamaha stage custom birch kit. The snare is super nasty. Or my modified ludwig vistalite snare. It's loud, bright, and cuts like no other.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Exactly! If you’re not recording regularly, there’s no need for something like this… and I’ve only played a Ludwig Vistalite kick, 22x14 I think, and it sounded killer!

[@ryryssong14]

nice comparison

[@tedfurlo2268]

Now I get it. Great explanation. Great showcase. But I am a 60s guy and I will tell you I like the airiness of the Ludwig. That's what I am conditioned to hear.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Well i certainly can’t criticize you for that!Maybe you should pick up a Copperphonic and enjoy the absolute best that Ludwig has to offer! They only started making them in 2016 so you’ve probably never heard one out in the wild… they’re KILLER sounding drums.

[@tedfurlo2268]

@@BeatsAndMeats I was more referring to being conditioned to listening to the Supraphonic on all 60s-70s recordings. I own and have played a Ludwig Smooth Bronze 6 1/2" x 14" for decades(what's not to Love? super versatile). I'm a little old and not playing enough to warrant a Copperphonic purchase. Drummer Dmitry Kim of NOAPOLOGY would LOVE to own a 50 year anniversary TAMA! maybe I'll start $aving my money to buy him one! You're an exciting player, I'll be checking out more of your content! Thank You, Ted Furlo

[@mikekelly9851]

Rogers Dynasonic snare drum holds the title.

[@musshwins412]

definitely more versatile than these overpriced "one trick" ponies.

[@GamingDrummer89]

Seems like it has all the tone spread of the other Bell Brass ones but without a lot of the ringiness...very punchy and almost sounds pre-EQd and Compressed. I actually liked the sound of the Dialtune the best here, but the Tama 50th's sound is unlike any of the others! Also, never tried out a Copperphonic, but I'd be interested to tune one up in person and try it out! I love my vintage (1976) 14x5 Supraphonic, though, and I can't see myself ever getting rid of it.

[@shadowsymphony1]

Savage bell brass!

[@krashdude1]

I had the original Tama bell brass snare in 1985. It sounded and played great, but I got rid of it because that shell was problematic in that the bottom "resonant side" of the shell's bearing edge was kind of jagged and would tear through my Remo resonant heads....had to switch to Emperor resonant snare side heads, which helped on longevity, but then it did not react the same to ghost strokes. BUT, I wish I hadn't gotten rid of it.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Hindsight is 20/20, but I had the a similar problem with a snare once and I just got the edges fixed. It has an obvious sharp dent in it that was cutting through the head… I think it cost $25 to pay someone to file it.

[@krashdude1]

@@BeatsAndMeats Yep....agreed. I was on the road and didn't have the resources, just had to replace it. Ugh. I think I would up getting a used Black Beauty soon after.

[@BxCortez2050]

that dial tune .....beautiful !!!! OK ..I'm a Drummer and I get it ... but to pay so much money for possibly two people in a room to even notice the difference is a bit crazy to me ,,but I get it ..lol

[@BeatsAndMeats]

It’s for recording… you know pros have $20,000 microphones… $30,000 compressors, $50,000 monitors. A $4000 snare is nothing that big a deal when you’re getting into pro stuff. The prices get completely nuts!

[@ChristianSandviknes]

I have the dialtune black nickel over brass and it is still my favorite drum, even with this video, but that's more to do with convenience than sound - even though the sound is amazing too

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I’m shocked more people don’t have them. They’re fucking great!!

[@johnd3287]

Great video! I believe every drummer has their own idea of what the perfect snare should be. I'm not a cork sniffer, but have played over fifty snare drums from Tama, Pearl free float, Pork Pie, Gretch, Sonor...well you get the picture. Knowing the Tama is amazing, it sounded to high for me. My opinion of course. I believe with different heads, and snares I would get the sound I like. I'm sure every drummer who truly loves their snare would say this snare kills them all. Also, remember, Lars Ulrich used Rick Allen's Black Beauty on Master of Puppets. Keep up the great work!!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

You’re totally right. It was too high. I had the batter head at 311hz. I did that because not all of my snares can handle low tunings and I wanted a tuning where I could make a fair comparison with all of them. I currently have the batter at 261hz and it sounds much better!

[@johnd3287]

@@BeatsAndMeats You get out of them what you put into them, keep up the good work!!

[@johnnybhong]

What hoops are you using on the 40th Dave?

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Bell bronze hoops, the flat, heavy ones.

[@robertcalkjr.8325]

I wish that I could remember the DW snare that I tried back in the '90's. It was the best sounding snare that I've ever heard.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Was it a wood or metal snare?

[@robertcalkjr.8325]

@@BeatsAndMeats Wood. I don't know if it had a metal shell on the inside covered by a wooden shell, but the outside was wood.

[@midinerd]

Cool vid, thanks - "the thing": It's good to know what 'the thing' is. I'd suggest getting the snare recordings under a spectrogram, so you can see the harmonics. Might be able to actually tell you something - and specifically from the microphone recording (not after a mix, or compression, or web presentable-processing type stuffs). You might see exactly what 'the thing' is in a way. the blastbeat stuff was fun btw, nice work there.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

That’s a GREAT idea!!… how good are YOU at reading spectrograms? Cuz I’m not at all.

[@midinerd]

​@@BeatsAndMeats I've used one, once, to look up and visually tell if a bassdrum was happening at triplets or 32nds (at some high speed) - to support someone's verdict on it. That worked - as far as reading the harmonics themselves?? I dunno but I'd be super curious to see if they make any visual patterns that really stick out. You can use it to see a sinewave bank... I used one to see exactly what kind of groundloop feedback a mic setup was getting (europe or US will look different based on the 55/60hz whatever differences). So I'm very curious if you can actually see the secret sauce. everyone should be! :)

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Ah! Now I know what you’re talking about… the waterfall! yes I’ve done that. It’s basically a bit more scooped, and a lot louder. The loudness gives better signal to bleed ratio, so you can process heavier, compress harder, and thus get this beautiful smack.

[@aboutthemetal8783]

The snare drum that Nicko mcbrain had made for him when he went to premier drums in the early/mid 90s is the absolute boss of all the bosses when it comes to a heavy metal snare drum, he's had sonor remake it and sell it as his signature snare drum and when he left and became part of the British drum company he had a remake again with a variation in the way the drum is made ( essentially it's been the same type of drum on every single album from fear of the dark to senjitsu ) Please take a listen to the recordings made of the last tour , I think you might change your mind when you truly hear it .

[@BeatsAndMeats]

What kind of Sonor snare drum was he using?

[@eurosnuke1678]

Curious to know how it would sound with pinstripe head, great video!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

In a live situation… an Ebony Pinstripe sounds incredible… but for recording, I want as bright of an attack as possible, that’s why you need a 1-ply head. I have tracked whole albums with a Clear Pinstripe snare batter head and it sounded cool, but it moves the frequency of the attack down from 8k to 6k… and 6k is dominated by heavy distorted guitars so the snare gets lost easily…

[@eurosnuke1678]

@@BeatsAndMeats thanks for reply! I didnt know this damn

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@eurosnuke1678 I'm going to have to make a video about this... thanks for the idea!!

[@christiansmyth1466]

When you can't afford to spend $15K on one snare drum but you can afford to spend $15K on 6 snare drums. OK, maybe 10K 😀

[@BeatsAndMeats]

This is why God gave us TWO kidneys… so we could sell one and get the most killer snare tone everrrrrrrr

[@cristaples]

I’ve got a savage 6.5” arriving Tuesday. It’s got the cast bronze hoops and tama hardware. Shell is 5mm thick. Will be putting it up against a Dunnett Ti, and all four Ludwig millennium snares with the brass die cast hoops and see how it does. I love the savage snare in this video. The rest are great but that 8” shell is the daddy for me here.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

The guy that I bought the 40th Anniversary from… he had a Savage 14x6.5 5mm shell, and it sounded FUCKING amazing!!! You are going to LOVE it!

[@cristaples]

@@BeatsAndMeats they’re all Duluth shells apparently.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I don’t think Duluth is making shells anymore. I know he occasionally makes a one-off shell for someone who ordered ages ago. And I know he’ll make some hoops from time to time.

[@cristaples]

Mine is secondhand so probably the right age to be from when they were making. I think you can still get a quote for hoops and shell from their website.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Either way, you’re gonna love it man!! If you have any troubles getting it to sound it’s best, let me know and I’ll walk you through it. They’re incredible instruments.

[@brianrubin4263]

I know when Dave Abruzzesse played with pearl jam he used Brady snare drums

[@petarpavasovic6333]

Brother why didn't you just put coated Ambassador on it? It would have sounded 100x better

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Hey Petar! Coated Ambassadors do indeed sound great. But they don’t last even 10 minutes with the way I play. I’m not SUPER accurate in where I hit my snare. It’s something I’m working on everyday. Also, I use Danny Carey signature sticks, which are basically 5Bs but with a reverse taper at the back of the stick. Ambassadors don’t stand a chance. So I just end up with dents all over the head. I use clear heads because they have more attack than coated heads. The coating shaves off a bit of low end and high end. The black dot is just to add more durability to the head and it does focus the sound quite a bit. A Controlled Sound is just an Ambassador with the black dot.

[@peterbowman5750]

Couldnt afford the Tama Bell Brass but just got the Gretsch USA Bell Brass instead. Beast on its own.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Those Gretsch snares sound so effing good!!!

[@scottsmith2764]

How much for the trick snare ?

[@BeatsAndMeats]

$750 and it comes with a Humes and Berg Enduro Pro hard case.

[@morokeiboethia6749]

I don't know much about drums but I see (or better yet hear) what you're talking about. Even hearing it through a recording that is streamed over youtube you can still hear it. Thats very interesting about how the oversized shell i assume puts a higher tension on the drum head and yes according to physics that would alter the vibrations. Just curious how much larger of a diameter does it have compared to the other models? How hard would it be to try to duplicate it now that you have one?

[@BeatsAndMeats]

A “normal” 14 inch shell is 352mm in diameter. This shell is 355mm in diameter. As the story goes, the original shell manufacturer confused the outside diameter for the inside diameter. The shell is 3mm thick… so this makes sense. The weird thing is that those OG 1980 shells weren’t very consistent or uniform or precise. The one “Terminator” varied in thickness throughout the shell, and Tama has tried to copy it as closely as possible, with modern casting techniques.

[@morokeiboethia6749]

@@BeatsAndMeats Wow! so it essentially became the best snare by accident?? Yeah I guess "Terminator" would be a better name to sell it by than "Accidental Perfections" Thats crazy

[@morokeiboethia6749]

@@BeatsAndMeats wow im not great with metric measurements so I had to convert that to 3mm difference to english and that converts to 1.89/16ths Thats a sh*tload larger tbh. I can believe you could even get the head on that

[@morokeiboethia6749]

*cant

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@morokeiboethia6749 A total accident that nobody noticed for about 10 years.

[@hectorjcm800]

It's a cool drum. Hearing it over KZbin, to me it just doesn't live up to the hype. Maybe in person or in a higher fidelity medium i'd hear some other stuff and think different, but recorded as it is, to me it's just another flavor for a deep snare. It doesn't really "terminate" the others, but it's a cool drum nonetheless. It's always a great thing to find your perfect tool, congrats!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thanks man! The thing about it is that it doesn’t start sounding thin in a full mix. You can pile on as many instruments as you want and it still sounds big. But I agree, deep snares always slay for me!

[@hectorjcm800]

@@BeatsAndMeats excellent, that's an important factor! And to be fair, judging a drum just because how does it sound recorded over KZbin would not be OK. I can imagine that such a drum surely sounds killer in a live setting. I used to play in a band with a drummer who owned a 14x8 Yamaha brass snare from the 80s and we used to call it the "amp killer". It was my first experience with a deep snare, and also the first with a brass made one. We also had the reference of the Nevermind snare, and that day I was in love! I also own a 14x8 myself, a very important tool in the arsenal and my most recorded snare (I own a recording studio). Congrats again and thank you for the video!!

[@asztalosmate7395]

The daddy of all snare drums

[@BeatsAndMeats]

The Mack Daddy of all snare drums!

[@asztalosmate7395]

That’s even better😂

[@mhikemars9334]

My Ludwig snare does not cower in its presence.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Let’s hear it! Which one do you have?

[@dutchschaefer4983]

I would say the black beauty is more commonly used.

[@thedatabody]

Tama 40th is my jam.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

It’s such a BEAUTIFUL freaking snare!!!

[@DavidKrautscheid]

You need to put the remo cybermax on these snares and they will sound much greater than they have ever sounded

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I have no idea what that is but I’m gonna look it up right now.

[@DavidKrautscheid]

@@BeatsAndMeats Its a marching head usually used in the scottish bagpipe music made out of technora fiber. Normally this head is tuned pretty high on special made snaredrums but it works on drumset snares aswell. I use this head since years cause i love the gunshot like rimshot sound this hesd produces. Its a great head when you want the ultimate agressive snare sound

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@DavidKrautscheid Well now I HAVE to try it!

[@DavidKrautscheid]

@@BeatsAndMeats yeah! i always wanted to put this head on a bronze snare cause i think the rimshots will sound like a gunshot but i never have the money to buy a bronze snare. Maybe soon it is possible.

[@aggelossamaras7849]

i bought a 200 euro snare and i m kinda proud of how its sounds!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

That’s a big win if you can make it sound awesome!

[@ludwigdrummer7802]

Great video. The 50th anniversary TAMA definitely sounded the best. I don't know if anyone has brought it up yet, but the Tama Rosewood 14x6 and 1/2 from the early to mid-80s would be my pic for the best sounding snare drum ever. Listen to "Diver Down" or "Fair Warning" by Van Halen. That is probably tied for best sounding snare I ever heard in my life. The other is the snare sound from "Physical Graffiti". I agree that your Tama sounds better than an LM 402 (except Bonham), but there was something about the recording of Physical Graffiti that made the 402 sound the best I ever heard it sound. I know they recorded in a farmhouse in the countryside in England. Maybe it was just the acoustics . Chad Smith admitted he used a Ludwig Supraphonic on "Blood Sugar Sex Magic". The one he used was from the '70s. I only throw that in there not for my preference but many people think it was an iconic sound. I like the sound but just not a super fan. The last snare drum sound that I truly love is from "Ghost in the Machine" (1981). Of course the snare drum that Stewart Copeland used on that record can't be bought by anyone. It's a one-of-a-kind although, Tama tried to reverse engineer it years ago and make a Stewart Copeland signature.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

So much of it depends on how fast the song is, and how much other shenanigans is happening in the song. A song like “Under The Bridge” doesn’t need an atom bomb of a snare and has tons of room for a big verby room sound. But imagine the Enter Sandman snare on a Police record, hahaha!!

[@ludwigdrummer7802]

See if you can get your hands on a Tama Rosewood 14 x 6.5 I would love to hear it with your setup.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@ludwigdrummer7802 I've heard they're pretty great! HOWEVER... I've only heard one wood snare that I really liked... a 13x6.5 Yamaha Musashi... for reasons I can't explain, I really like oak drums... makes no sense to me at all.

[@ringocastillo4720]

You can record with a Dixon and sound better than any snare if you've got got the right recording equipment, sound engineer,drummer who can hit right and a really good producer

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Absolutely!!! Drum tones are “one weird trick to sound great” but rather it’s 50 different small things that all add up. But if you already have all those wonderful things, a better snare will sound… better!

[@johnaquino5055]

what no Gretsch bell brass?

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Trust me. If I had one, it’d be on here. That thing is such a stellar drum!

[@georgeoffenberger1262]

Rock9 snare everyday of the week.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

What’s a Rock 9?

[@gavatron1980]

Cant you just rent a real vintage one for the recording you're doing? The had one in the studio I just recorded at, just totally random, wasn't even expecting it 😅

[@BeatsAndMeats]

You sure can!! That’s a great option if you don’t want to spend such a huge amount all at once.

[@marcusdance5068]

I've got a Tama bell brass snare 14×6.5 1980 mint condition very played had since 1983 . Time to sell at right price. From UK

[@krusher74]

You can buy a mastercraft wood snare from the early 80's add a custom bronze shell and you have a $15K terminator for less than $1500

[@BeatsAndMeats]

A friend of mine has one of the dark red Mastercraft snares from 1982? And it sounds awesome! But it sounds NOTHING like a bell brass snare. It doesn’t have the 8k bump and the low end isn’t even in the same zip code. In the Snare Top mic, they remarkably sound similar, but in the Overheads and especially in the Room mics, there’s no comparison. One thing those old 80s Mastercraft snares have is that the original die cast hoops were made of iron that was chrome-plated… really really cool sounding, but good luck finding one of those.

[@atillakandemir6439]

Hype

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Thank you for your incredible contribution to the conversation! Would you like to lighten the rest of us idiots with more pearls of wisdom?

[@mrnegronis]

I am skeptical of the oversized shell. It's 2mm of material. How much of a difference could it make? Another guy posted a video about his new bell brass and he said he's having wire sensitivity problems. I would guess the oversizing could be the issue. Another thing to note is Tama is not using a sand casted shell on these new versions. They are made on an automated machine called a centrifuge. It probably costs the shell maker less money to make them that way (outsourced) which is counter intuitive to economic theory. According to laisse faire capitalism, if a company's overhead is lower, they should pass that savings on to the customer. Yet the final cost of the 2024 bell brass is double what they were 10 years ago.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

There’s a lot of wrong statements here, so I’ll address them one by one: It’s a 3mm difference. Legend has it the original shell makers confused the outside diameter for the inside diameter, and the shell is 3mm thick. Even when comparing one OG 1980 Tama BB to another, the bigger ones sound better. Wire sensitivity: like I said, the shell is oversized and if you’re using a Remo reso head and that head isn’t very round (And Remo sucks at quality control) I could see how he’s having a problem. Also, the extended snare wires are different and require more adjusting when first setting them up. Yes these are centrifugal cast shells, which cost MORE than sandcasting, but centrifugal casting is more consistent. Tama tried both and said that the centrifugal shells sounded better. Ali from Guven Bronze in Turkey made a big ass post as to why centrifugal casting costs more, and we all thought it was cheaper until he educated us. In 1980, the Tama BB snares cost $3499, which in today’s money is almost $14,000. So it’s actually a screamin deal.

[@mrnegronis]

@@BeatsAndMeats I'm copying verbatim from Tama's website: "A significant, but little known fact of the original Mastercraft Bell Brass is the shell's exact 14" (355mm) diameter. As modern shells are usually 2mm smaller in diameter (to accommodate different drumhead manufacturers) the Bell Brass' extra size contributes to its magnificent and massive tone." My point was to illustrate that a person will likely have to use an oversized head in order to seat it properly. So if you have one of these drums, you'll probably need to use Evan 360 or Aquarian to get the head tuned properly. Whereas if it was slightly undersized you could fit anything without a problem including the poorly made Remos. Centrifuge debate: I understand the centrifuge is more consistent and probably makes better shells without risking structural failure. I was trying to argue the idea that it may form the shells almost too perfectly; the end result being a generification in terms of sound. However, that could be relative and subjective. Head choice will most likely be a key ingredient to these drums to dial in the tone as well as to seat properly. If Guven told you it costs more to centrifuge, then I have no reason to disbelieve him. I was going on the idea that sand casting is labor intensive and requires expertise in the process. I do not mean to imply that a centrifuge is child's play and any person can operate it. However, the centrifuge is a more automated process which probably makes more shells in less time with less failure; thus increasing productivity. So from that end, they are probably saving money just in terms of reducing or even eliminating waste. I'm curious where you got the information that the 1980 bell brass were $3499? I haven't been able to find any price lists from that time. I saw old catalogues on Tama's site but they do not include prices. I did not mean to start a war here. If you're happy with your drum, that is all that matters. I am a fan of bell brass/bronze drums and also a fan of Tama; otherwise I would not have cared enough to comment. I would like to get one at some point just to try it but $4000 is not in my budget. Cheers.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@mrnegronis If you have a Facebook account, you know that the best thing about FB is the groups. You can learn everything there is to know about literally any subject you can imagine. Theres a group called Tama Bell Brass And Other Heavy Shell Snares. There are guys on there who have so much free time on their hands, that they've learned everything there is to know about these snares... alloy composition, they've laser-measured their snares, build 3D models in CAD, scanned old catalogs, LEARNED TO READ Japanese, etc etc. Anyways, all the OG 1980 Tama BB shells are slightly different, but they're all around 2-3mm bigger than a regular size snare. Sonor infamously make their shells smaller than normal to make the head always seat perfectly flat. In other words, theres more variety from manufacturer to manufacturer than most people would intuitively think. (Side note: Mapex actually makes most drums for most manufacturers. A detail that no one advertises.) As for centrifuge vs sand casting... what you stated is exactly what we all thought! When we heard that they were gonna be centrifugal cast, we we're like "Oh man these drums are gonna sound like ass!" And then the guys who had OG 1980 Tama BBs got the new ones and immediately reported that the had the secret sauce! In that same FB group, someone has a scan of the original ad for the 1980 that includes the price. If you join and ask someone, they will post it for you. Cheers!

[@gregoryvlchek269]

You said that the diameter of the drum is slightly larger, but you didn't say by how much. Honestly, I don't buy for one second that an extremely-minute increase in size, which is just enough to make the head fit a bit more snuggly and allegedly make seating time longer is the key to its supposed sound superiority. Also, the fit of assorted snare head brands and models could and probably would be slightly different, too. But, it doesn't appear that you tested whether that would factor into your assertion. You seemed to ONLY use what looks like a Remo Clear Black Dot head. Further, the sound of the snare would obviously change using different tunings of the top and bottom heads. Again, you didn't indicate whether you tested that either. Lastly, you don't know if any of the above factors played a part in the sound of the drum on the multiple recordings you cited on which it was supposedly used. You're simply claiming that it's the best snare to be used to get the sound of those recordings. Respectfully, I can't find any reason to lend any legitimacy or credibility to your claim of the superiority of the snare. Thanks.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Finally SOMEBODY is asking the right questions!!! Props to you kind sir, I will answer all of your questions. 1) The shell is 3mm larger than normal. The company making the shells back then mixed up the outside diameter for the inside diameter, and the shell is 3mm thick, so the shell is 3mm wider than it should have been. 2) 3mm is a MASSIVE fucking difference when your talking about shell construction, much the same way that a 6mm thick shell will sound COMPLETELY different from a 3mm shell. Especially when you're talking about how the bearing edge is going to seat on the head. Think of it this way, if your snare has just a 1/16" inch flat spot on the bearing edge, it will sound like complete and total ASS and you'll think your snare just sucks, when in reality, the bearing edge is damaged and needs to be fixed. This happened to the Trick shell that I put in the Pearl Free Floater, it sounded like garbage when I first got it. I emailed Trick and the owner of the company had me ship it to his house and he re-welded the shell and recut the edges and now it sounds great! 3) Yes indeed, snare head brands do fit differently, but the biggest factor is actually quality control. Remo has absolutely fucking terrible dogshit quality control, and I'd say 1 in every 7 Remo heads are unusable. Thats why I cant buy them online, I have to go to the damn Guitar Center and inspect every single head that I want to buy. I used the Remo Controlled Sound Clear on all the snares because its easy to tune and for some reason, the welds on the collar are more consistent than any other head Remo makes. 4) I DO know literally every single thing about those factors mentioned above. I have tried almost every snare head ever made on each of my snare drums except of course on the snare that I just unboxed right in front of you. It would've made for the most boring video in history if I demo'd 17 different snare heads on 6 different snare drums. I know precisely what snare heads work on heavy metal shells and which do not. The 2nd best head to use on a heavy shell snare is the Evans Genera Dry. The 3rd best is a Remo P77 with the muffling ring cut out from the head. The 4th best head is the Aquarian Triple Threat. The 5th best head is the Evans Power Center Reverse Dot. The 6th best head is the Evans EC Reverse Dot. 5) All that being said.. which did you like best? Keep in mind that I tuned all the drums to 311.1hz on the batter (quite high) and 432hz on the snare side head. This is because some of my snares sound like ass at lower tunings and I wanted to do a fair comparison, eliminating as many variables as possible. 261.6hz on the batter is my preferred tuning. 6) Ross Garfield, the owner of Drum Doctors, who owns the actual Terminator, said that he has owned 7 of the 1980 Tama Bell Brass snares and that they all sounded different, but the ones that had the widest circumference, were the hardest to tune and also sounded the best.

[@gregoryvlchek269]

@@BeatsAndMeats, thank you for responding and for the detailed clarification. Take care and God bless. 🤘

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@gregoryvlchek269 No, thank YOU for using your brain and leaving a thoughtful comment! It is sincerely appreciated!

[@gregoryvlchek269]

@@BeatsAndMeats, thank you for the compliment. Oh and, by the way, personally, I think that the best recorded snare sound I ever heard is Lars' snare on "Sad But True" from the 'Black Album'. Holy shit! Producer, Bob Rock is a genius!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Yeah Sad But True is as good as it gets. Avenged Sevenfold “Shepherd of Fire” is really great too! You should definitely check it out.

[@paulsartorello836]

You’re wrong!!🥁🤨the402 was the best. The copper/bronze/ brass snare drums are darker sounding. Aluminum all the way!!!🥁🥁😃

[@BeatsAndMeats]

The cool thing about aluminum is that it is its own thing. I have a 14x8 aluminum shell that I can put in that Pearl Free Floater basket. When I was using it, it has been his enormous fundamental note without much high end in the attack. But I was much worse at tuning back then. Maybe I should revisit that shell and see what I can do with it.

[@ludwigdrummer7802]

Also see if you can get a Ludwig Black beauty 14x16.5 from the '70s.

[@paulsartorello836]

@@ludwigdrummer7802 I have a super sensitive black beauty from the 70s.. still darker sounding than aluminum!

[@thatdudekyle5690]

I mean, there is no right or wrong answer it’s subjective lol

[@seanmcdonnell2971]

Cant go wrong with a black beauty

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Black Beauty is the only Ludwig snare drum that I just don’t like.

[@stevewarfel5788]

Rogers dynasonic!!!!l

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I have never ever played a Dynasonic. Is yours steel or wood?

[@gumby3057]

No matter what you use, if your sound man sucks and is too lazy to mic you properly for a gig, you're screwed.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I bring my own mics to shows. Clip them on my drums backstage. Saves setup time and lets the sound guy spend more time making it sound good.

[@RGX-kl7zy]

I am glad your snare search has come to end. I was watching a video where Ross Garfield (kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYememWheMRknrM) said he did his modification series to the drum (he redid the edges, silenced the insides of the lugs, Gretsch die cast hoops, et cetera unknown) and Drum Center of Portsmouth where Shane said that dismantled their original Tama Bell Brass snare drum, took it entirely apart, and then took out the calipers out and measured everything. So here is my question since it has been marketed as the return of 'The Terminator': Did Tama recreate Ross's Terminator or another Tame Bell Brass snare?

[@BeatsAndMeats]

That’s exactly what they did. They made an exact copy of HIS snare. It was unique and not at all what they had originally intended in 1980

[@mikkeykottak]

Good review except the playing part. That was an interesting beat to try them on 🤨 Plus didn’t really dig the mix. Sure it sounds 100x better in person.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Oh I am absolutely NOT a mix engineer, that’s just my recording template… as far as the playing… It drives me up the wall when people demo these beastly snares and then hit them with their purse for 10 minutes… so when I demo a snare, it’s blastbeats only Baby! Especially with a drum like this, it’s meant to be beaten like it stole something! Thank you for watching!

[@mikkeykottak]

@@BeatsAndMeats yeah 100% agree with that. That snare needs to be beaten at absolute top volume to sing. But I would’ve grooved something like Sad but true. Either way though. We get the gist🤘🏼

[@krusher74]

@@BeatsAndMeats You didnt play a blast beat, blasts are 16ths on the snare.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@krusher74 I got my first “AKSHUALLY” comment! This is a watershed moment for my channel!! Anyways… you are correct in that some blastbeats, like Gravity Blasts, have 16ths on the snare, but most are 8th notes on the snare, with either 8th or 16th notes on the kick. I play a variation of a Bomb Blast… which I affectionately refer to as a Freedom Blast… which is 1/4 note on the China, 1/8th notes on the snare, and 1/16th notes on the kicks, the China/kick/snare all start right on the 1. 66Samus has a video called “Different Types of Blastbeats.” Check it out! I can never remember the names of them so I’m constantly referring to that video.

[@mikkeykottak]

@@BeatsAndMeats blast beats are just such trash in general though. :)

[@KeithHomel]

$4k? Yikes.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Yikes indeed! It’s like any other stupidly expensive piece of gear though… if you’re doing it for a living AND it makes you money, well then it’s not so bad. There’s plenty of vocal mics that are well over $10k.

[@danielschroder6678]

Half into the video, and I expect the real deal to "do the thing" for you. Ah, okay, it's the 50s reissue. However, I dare you to get someone else to tune them all the same, sit back in a room with a blindfold, and then pick out the one you THINK is the 50th reissue. Do this at three different tuning ranges, low, medium, high. I bet 95:5 that you will fail two or three times.

[@danielschroder6678]

...provided that you use the same snare wires, that is. ^^ Get 8 times the same cheapo wires and try with those. I guranatee to you that your eyes, your confirmation bias and the sunken cost fallacy (with regards to time invested into this journey, not necessarily money) will make more difference in how you percieve the sound than the actual physical sound differences. Yes, I hear that they are different, but what I'm saying is that if aomeone else tunes them (and soes so well), and if you can't look, you will probably not be able to even pick it out.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I think you’re absolutely correct... except for the Dialtune snare. That thing is quite the pain generator. Part of the journey was to see “Well how good can this possibly get.” As it turns out, I was pretty damn close beforehand. And now I can safely lay it to rest knowing that there is no magical better thing out there.

[@oshikiri999]

Those clear dots don't do the thing lmao

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Yes they do

[@jonahseago]

with all the money you spent on all those snares. surely you wouldve just been able to spend the 15k on the one????? or was it more like a trial run to the last best one

[@BeatsAndMeats]

I bought one snare a year for 6 years. I was a lot poorer when I started haha! They all still don’t quite add up to $15k… but back then it was, and still is, pretty much impossible to find an original Terminator for sale. Back then they were only going for $5-7k… so I guess the joke IS on me ahhhhhhh!!! STUPID STUPID STUPID!!!!

[@musshwins412]

Just buy a Ludwig COB 5x14 and you can mimic all of these snare sounds. None of these snares are worth the money he has paid. NONE OF THEM. LOL

[@BeatsAndMeats]

No it can’t. Not even close. The COB snares sound totally fine. And if you like “fine,” then that’s a snare you can use. The bigger COB snares do what I want a lot better than a tiny 5x14. Copperphonic still beats the brakes off of them though. But I like the COB better than the Black Beauty

[@musshwins412]

@@BeatsAndMeats your snares are a one trick pony. you pay for a single sound. Ludwig 60's era 5x14 will cover jazz - metal and everything else. a good one goes for about 1k. Your biggest mistake is using a CS Black Dot batter on your snare for recording. There is no way it sounds better than a coated 10 mil single ply head. If you like that ONE sound, fine over pay. I prefer a more versatile snare.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@@musshwins412 You are absolutely right! I even said that at the end of the video. I want one snare to do one thing… really really well. If I wanted a versatile snare, which i absolutely do NOT, I’d get a brand new 14x6.5 Supraphonic. As for the head choice, A CS Black Dot is a 10mil head, it’s just clear instead of coated, because clear heads have more 8-10khz in the transient attack and that’s the sound I was going for. Coated heads shave off some low end, and some high end in the attack, which gives it a characteristically “warmer” sound. I can’t play a regular ass coated Ambassador because i just destroy those heads too quickly… which sucks because i really like how they sound. So the CS Dot is just an Ambassador with the dot there to keep me from demolishing them in one take.

[@musshwins412]

@@BeatsAndMeats i recommend aquarian tc. i found the build of the coated head to be superior to a coated ambassador and just as tunable. snare is a very personal sound and as i have grown as a musician i have found versatility to be a huge factor. your sound is not wrong, it is your sound. How much can you do with that sound is the real question.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

@musshwins412 Aquarian’s coating is really super durable! Their heads are also WAY more consistent than Remo… Remo has terrible quality control. And come to think of it… I’ve never tried the regular ass Aquarian Texture Coated before. I’ve used the Triple Threat, the Focus-X, and the Studio-X. The Regulator is my favorite kick reso ever.

[@RonaldvanEldijk]

Buy a new shirt!

[@BeatsAndMeats]

No

[@MrE1981]

I think you're full of it. They all just sound slightly different, none drastically better than the other. Even those differences come down to preference. Your claim that the 1 is objectively the best is preposterous. Plus that snare head ruins the comparison anyway, sounds plasticky and thin.

[@BeatsAndMeats]

You’re totally right! It absolutely comes down to preference. In a full death metal mix, the differences do become more apparent though… this was the very first day that I had it, and I had to pick a tuning that worked with each one of the snares… and what head do you think I should have used?

[@gijsvanleeuwen6525]

No offense but they all sound choked and over processed

[@BeatsAndMeats]

The processing on the drums is for a full mix with music. Since I’m not a mix engineer and don’t want to be a mix engineer, I just kept everything the same as I would have it in a full mix with guitars and bass and some vocalist screaming his head off haha. And when you’re playing music at pretty fast tempos, you can’t just have the drums ringing for 3 seconds each. It just doesn’t work in context.

[@ronbaker8383]

I have many snare drums. My main snare I use ddrum journeyman it rocks

[@sonortubelug3853]

I had a 70’s Supraphonic. Hammered copper. But I sold it like a cunt. Probably worth about 2 grand now

[@BeatsAndMeats]

Dammmmmmmnn… I bet that thing sounded incredible!!

[@ronbaker8383]

Ludwig are a joke. Tama rockstars rule

[@user-bw2gt2nj5v]

Debatable