Thanks guys. You did great. I've got all I need on this one. Ludwig-Dude - YOU are amazing. You are spot on very nearly 100% of the time. I sent you a PM. I would love to sit and chew the fat with you one day. Nicely done. Later!Michael
PM received. If you're ever in NH we could sit and have a beer and chew the fat about drums, music, whatever.....Cool Dude
Who cares what the point is you are making it is a dead horse,and very unimportant to the free thinking world ,lol Drmmers will play, and use whatever snare they want to it is all personel choice, their is NO best just like their is no best player it is all subjective and personel. the question you should have is ,what snare do you play and do YOU think it is any good. I play a Supra 402. what do you play? do you like it? have you ever recorded your snare? any rattles,squeaks when recording? did the sound engineer like it? all the rest does not matter and i could care less. who cares about the numbers? i mean really who cares it is a sales pitch a marketing ploy and it works cause it got you hooked. lol it is like the argument of Ford verses Chevy. play what you like ,like what you play, and enjoy the music and the ride,the rest is unimportant!
Ummm....both Ford and Chevy suck! Mopar or no car! (despite the current financial meltdown of said company....LOL!)
I wouldn't begin to have an opinion on the sound of this snare because I have not heard one. What I do have an opinion on is recording. I have done my share of studio work & for the most part the engineer has often wanted oil heads or some kind of dampening device on the drum & then attenuate the sound from the board. I know that for much of the sixties we were in mono & there wasn't the kind of production that they had a little later but to think that they didn't attenuate the sound of the drum is probably wrong. How can you determine the quality of one instrument opposed to another when a studio recording is not a virgin representation of that sound?
I wouldn't begin to have an opinion on the sound of this snare because I have not heard one. What I do have an opinion on is recording. I have done my share of studio work & for the most part the engineer has often wanted oil heads or some kind of dampening device on the drum & then attenuate the sound from the board. I know that for much of the sixties we were in mono & there wasn't the kind of production that they had a little later but to think that they didn't attenuate the sound of the drum is probably wrong. How can you determine the quality of one instrument opposed to another when a studio recording is not a virgin representation of that sound?
What recording WOULD be a virgin representation of the sound? That's actually a GOOD thing to know that a Supra is SOOO versatile that MANY sounds have been recorded starting with a Supra.
By the way, if you've EVER listened to the radio, you have most definitely heard a Supra on SOMETHING!!
I wonder if there's some sort of list of hits recorded on a Supra?? It of course wouldn't be comprehensive, but I'll bet it would STILL be quite a list.
Seriously GREAT snare. I've recorded with several and can attest to their versatility. My current favorite snare - Custom Remo snare I had made for my son. Totally sweet snare with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle graphics on it. That thing does it all. BUT, I have yet to get my Ludwig Super Classic and my Gene Krupa Sound King up and running. When they are poppin', who knows...
I just read through this whole thread for the first time.
mcjnic, I'll go against the grain here, and agree with you in some respects.
The "most recorded snare" thing gets annoying as a sales pitch. Kind of like seeing Bonham and Ringo's names associated with everything, it just gets old. It makes you want to use anything else, just to be unique!
One of the main reasons cited for the Supra being the most recorded drum is Hal Blaine's EXTENSIVE, and I do mean extensive, list of recordings. What people fail to realize is that while Hal did often use Supras throughout his long career, he also often used the chrome over brass snare that came with his '62 Blue Sparkle set...this drum was a Super, not a Supra. A lot of those Hal Blaine 60's hits were done on a brass snare drum...different sound and feel.
I think part of the reason the Supra was so popular with recording engineers was not so much its ability to sound good, but rather its inability to sound bad. A good snare drum sound is a good snare drum sound...most people cannot tell them apart in a blindfold test. However, most snare drums are somewhat of a challenge to get sounding good, but a Supraphonic or Acrolite will often sound good no matter what...beat heads, out of tune, etc, and they still get "that" sound.
But I'm with you, I wouldn't mind if I never heard or read "most recorded snare drum" ever again!
Amen and Amen. I put this thread up so I could gather some data for one of my classes. It was a very successful lesson. I'm honestly not nearly as passionate about this as I typed. Again, I needed the data. I DO feel that the marketing it is overstated, but I really do think the snare is quite the little jobber. I've liked 'em throughout the years. I don't believe for a second that they are the "best" snare made. I don't think there is one. But, dang! They are pretty sweet. A favorite snare will change throughout the years. Mine has. I can remember when I SWORE by my Premier wood/metal snare. That thing was amazing. It was a wooden snare with a chromed brass outer shell. I played that one ... until another snare became my fave. I've had MANY MANY MANY favorite snares throughout the years. I have a strong feeling that my Krupa will slide into that spot before long. I haven't put a stick on it yet, but something about it is pulling at me. The beds look amazing. The weight of it feels good. I don't even have heads on it, but I can tell it's going to be magic. So many things to hit...
like seeing Bonham and Ringo's names associated with everything, it just gets old.
I think we should start associating everything with Benny Benjamin, Uriel Jones, or Al Jackson Jr. What do you think? Excited
At least it would be a change of pace from Bonham this, and Ringo that.....
By the way, if you've EVER listened to the radio, you have most definitely heard a Supra on SOMETHING!!
You misunderstood what I was saying. What I was trying to communicate is that I haven't heard a Supra on a kit live in a situation that would allow me to hear how it sounds on its own. In many recording situations it wouldn't matter if you were playing a cardboard box by the time the engineer gets done with it it will sound the way he wants it to sound. I don't think you can evaluate the true sound of a drum in that way.
