First of all, how can we recognize the Best Snare Drum Head? Well, we need to understand a high-quality snare drum head is an integral part of any good drum kit. When struck, it produces a percussion beat and a sharp sound. It is often used in many orchestras, parades, marching bands, and many other types of musical beats.
It basically belongs to the percussion type of instruments, which produces a staccato type of noise when struck on the head. Some stiff wires are held together, which each other under the skin of the drums. These types of drums are typically played by using drum sticks or even routes for different types of beats.
It is an extremely versatile type of instrument due to its response. The softest of the strokes can produce quite audible sounds. Similarly, you can generate complex rhythms from it as well.
A snare drum head usually comes from a drum that used to be with a flute initially. This drum was called a tabor, which later on matured into a snare kit. Different sizes allow for different types of snare drums like a backbeat type is used in concerts while marching bands use a front beat style.
A snare drum head is made of two heads, which are made up of plastics and a rattle of metal attached to the bottom called snares. The top is the batter head, which is stricken by the drummer, and the lower head is the snare head. Both of the heads have tension in them due to a tension road, which helps to produce a specific beat and rhythm when stricken with a stick.
There are different brands and varieties of snare drum heads that can be produced the best sound. Let us review the best variations that we’ve tried in our long experience of playing.
7 Best Snare Drum Heads For Any Type Of Drummer
1. Remo KS0614-00 Snare Drum Head
Remo is an extremely famous brand when it comes to snare drum heads, which has been leading the world in creating synthetic drumheads for the past 60 years. They help you to expand your potential with their instruments, by which you can create better and big sounds.
Top Features
Remo black max snare batter heads are one of the most popular snare drum heads that can be used for places where you need a better sound quality. Case in point, like marching bands, indoor drumming, or even drum corps. These heads are actually made with Technora aramid fiber construction, and also Duralock with a countertop that is perfect for withstanding any high tensions. These heads are softer to play when struck with a stick and will produce a very sharp tone.
Pros:
- Has technora aramid fiber technology.
- Perfect for hight tension playing.
- A perfect softer hand feel.
- Produces a crisp and bright rhythm.
- Kevlar is added to the bottom of the head, which is why it lasts longer than any other heads currently available in the market.
- Brings out all the ghost notes and also gives a sharp contrast to your drum heads.
Cons:
- Since the hand feels is quite soft, it might feel somewhat loose to the drummer. Means, you have to have a proper grip, or else you can lose it while playing, which might not be able to give you the required tone.
- If you do not like a crisp noise, then it is not for you.
2. Remo Ambassador Coated Snare Drum Head
Remo is an extremely famous brand, which has been leading the world in creating synthetic drumheads for the past 60 years. They help you to expand your potential with their instruments, by which you can create better and big sounds.
Pros:
- There are two types of snare drum heads available from this brand: Ambassador coated and Ambassador Clear.
- Ambassador clear is made with 1-ply-10mil clear film snare drum head, which is available in sizes from 6 to 40 inches. It is a perfect choice for tom, bass, and resonance. It is one of the famous brands for Tom’s resonant head.
- Ambassador Coated drum heads are a trendy drum head which allows for the more sustained and controlled type of sounds. It is also made with 1ply 10mil snare drum head and can be found in sizes like 6 to 40 inches.
- The diameter for both the heads is of 14 inches, which is perfect for playing the snare drums.
- This drum head produces a very warm and open sound, which is great to play.
- Not only can you use this drum head for recording any song, but you can also use it to play live in any concerts. The sound can be easily adjusted and played in both types of settings.
- The tom batter allows it to be more resonant, thus making your drum set a better choice.
Cons:
- The metal collar on this snare drum head, which is around the perimeter, is lighter as compared to other brands. This might cause difficulty in tuning it, and your tone will be affected severely.
- When you tune these heads, you might hear a cracking sound. While some may be okay with this, it can create problems for you while tuning. Not once you will have to re-tune it multiple times to get the job done, which is quite a hassle.
- The lower part of the snare drum head is a little textured, and the head might not be able to grab the edges properly. This will cause damage to the tone of your melody.
- The plastic film that is on top is quite different, which means that some tunes will be out of sync and maybe not so musical.
3. Evans EC Reverse Snare Drum Head
Evans level 360 drum sets are manufactured in the USA and are generally considered high-quality snare drum heads. It includes revolutionary 360 level technology in all of its drum sets. Proper contact is guaranteed between the drum shell and the drum head, which ensures that appropriate vibration is transferred from one drum head to the other. It is also easier to install and fit in your current drum kit. The head of a drum is vital to provide quality sound, and it ensures that. It is a perfect blend of quality and stability bound together.
Most of the old synthetic drum heads did not fit so well into the drum shell. Evans has solved this problem and allows for a better response without compromising the sound of drum heads.
Pros:
- Easy to fit and tune according to your needs
- A steeper collar design allows the contact to be much more equal and be balanced with the drum shell.
- Extended range of tuning.
- Balanced contact to provide quality of sound.
- A wider range to adjust the tones increases the response of the sounds as well.
- A roll-over hoop gives enough stability so that the performance is not disturbed.
- Two plies are used in the drum heads: An outer 10ply and inner 7ply on the drum heads.
- Edge control technology allows removing any overtones that can ruin the quality.
- Single-ply version is also available, which has a reverse dot and also a double-ply without any reverse dots.
- You can also adjust the tones without worrying it to become too high or too low.
- It fits perfectly with whatever brand of drums and snares you choose to use along.
- A great drum head for playing rock genre music due to its double-ply feature.
- Get rids of unwanted dead or overtones.
- Perfect for playing with Evans tom heads.
- All of these drums are made and manufactured in the USA.
Cons:
- If you like deep sounds, then only buy this later. You might even lose some high-end sounds. It is also not for people who want to play jazz or similar genres.
4. Ludwig Snare Drum Head LW6113R
Ludwig has been able to produce many drum kits and their parts for over 100 years and they have produced a great snare drum head with the LW6113R. They started their products in Chicago, and now they are an essential name in the music industry.
Pros:
- These snare drum heads are newly designed by adding weather master technology to it.
- These snare heads offer a fantastic and stable sound.
- You can use these snare heads for not just one, but any genre and sound varieties.
- Marching bands, jazz, rock, or any other that you like, you can play it all with this drum head.
- There are also many other varieties added to it like you can get coated heads or clear, silver dot or power collar.
- All of these are slightly different than each other in the manner of their usage and the sounds that they offer to the drummer.
- Most of the drum heads have this major disadvantage that while playing, they may become loose or even come out. This can significantly disturb your tune and also the drummer who is playing. To ensure this from not happening, this snare drum head is made with a mechanical headlock system that prevents that from happening.
Cons:
- Not all types are as good as the other. The silver dot is the only one that is worth investing in it, as compared to the others.
5. Remo FA051600 Snare Drum Head
Remo is an extremely famous brand, which has been leading the world in creating synthetic drumheads for the past 60 years. They help you to expand your potential with their instruments, by which you can create better and big sounds. This snare drum head is an excellent choice for beginners and advanced drummers alike.
Pros:
- Remo snare drum heads offer a classic look and high-quality sounds.
- This set offers many sizes ranging from 6 to 40 inches, which you can choose according to your needs.
- A 1ply of 10mil film is laminated with a 3-mil polyspun fiber. This drum head can be used efficiently for concerts, outdoor, orchestra, etc.
- You can easily use it with sticks, mallets, or even brushes.
- It is highly preferred to be used for outdoor purposes.
- The snare and tom are one of the most popular to be used around the world.
- It gives off a full-range and warm tone, with a high resonance as well.
- When you strike and play it, you will experience the smoothness and warmth of yourself.
Cons:
- Since it is better for outdoor use, it might be limited for people wanting to record or play jazz type of genre on it.
What Snare Drum Heads Should I Use?
The more you read about different and new heads, the more confused you might be. The straight answer to ask yourself is the type of genre you will be playing most. First, pick the genre you will be performing most and then research which heads are suitable for playing such kind of music.
Also, if you have previously used any drum heads, then think about your experience with them and how was it. Were they smooth to play and easy to use? Did they cause any problems, or were you satisfied with them? Based on that, you will be able to decide much better and easier about your future purchases.
What Snare Drum Heads For Rock?
As snare drum heads are used a lot in rock music, you might be wondering which ones are the best to use. The best you can do it get a coated and a 2-ply version of the snare drum head for this particular genre that you will be playing.
There are many such brands that make both clear and coated versions, like Remo ambassador snare drum head. You can easily choose the coated one as it sounds better for rock music. Another option is to try out Remo Emperor X coated snare drum head, which is also fantastic for such type of music.
According to Remo themselves, this drum head is one of the most durable and robust heads, which is perfect for playing rock music as it requires a lot of impacts, and it might even get damaged or weathered out. So better is to get a brand or a type that is a lot easier in use and safer. both are also very good if you are just a beginner.
