The Wires: Snare Drum Series
- Dexter Verrill
- Apr 8, 2016
- 4 min read
What is the defining element of the snare drum? What does the snare drum have that every other drum doesn't have?
The wires.
From my own exploration and experience, the sound of the snare is greatly effected but the tension of the snare wires, as well as other factors, no matter the overall tone or pitch of the snare.
Today, I want to talk about the set-up of the wires.
There are three main parts to the entire set-up:
The first is the strainer. You may also hear this as the clamp, the throw-off, or the clutch. This is the mechanical device on the side of the drum where you may increase or decrease the tension of your snare wires, but mostly to "turn off" the snare wires. The ability to temporarily separate the wires from the drum allows the snare drum to sound more like a short tom (usually good for the beginning of solos or a good ol' Latin feel).
On this device is a rod in the middle that spins or turns to the right or left. When turned to the right, the snare tension is increased, giving the drum more snap and less buzz from the wires. This setting is preferred for marching, is often used in hip-hop, and is great for rock drumming (including the heavy stuff). When the snare is tuned to a lower pitch, the overall sound of the snare will sound quick, dead, and more like a thud. When tuned to a higher pitch, the snare will ring. And with the ring comes a little extra buzz. Though the ring causes the snare to vibrate intensely, the buzz from the wires is still short in comparison to a lower tension of the wires.
If the rod is turned to the left, this will loosen the tension of the wires, creating much more buzz in a deep, wavy tone--in my personal opinion, loosening the snare wires too much while the snare is tuned high is a sound that really can't be used for anything. With that said, be cautious with low tension wires. It's possible you may not impress many people. However, when the snare is tuned lower (not too low, you may have something that sounds like thrown trash), you can produce a fat, echoed drum which can be used for slower and more acoustic oriented music.
Note: Anything I consider "too high" or "too low" may or may not be that way for you. This series is about finding YOUR unique voice concerning your snare drum choices. I would encourage you to consider the style of music you play when selecting your sound (or narrowing it down), but experiment with the different parts we are discussing here.
The second part is the obvious one: the wires themselves. This consists of the plastic or cloth strips connecting the wires to the strainer and the butt plate (I will talk a littler more about this next). The wires come in different lengths (based on the size of your snare drum), and have various amounts of snare wires, typically from 10-20 wires. Those with less wires tend to have thicker wires, and those with more tend to have thinner wires. If the wire group consisted of one wire, there would not be much of a buzz or snap to make an effective snare. Therefore, the group which has less wires will have more tone in comparison to snap or buzz while the group with more wires will carry more snap or buzz in comparison to tone. The snap or buzz is dependent on your choice of high or low tension of the snare wires.
The third part of the set-up is the butt plate. This is the bolt-tightened clamp that is attached on the opposite side of the strainer. The plastic or cloth strips are clamped by the butt plate as well as the strainer on the other side. The strainer's clamp is similar to that of the butt plate in how it holds the plastic or cloth strip (bolt-tightened). The difference, however, is that the strainer pulls the wires closer to the drum while the butt-plate remains in its position, keeping the wires from slipping towards the strainer when "turned on", or falling off completely.
My hope for this post was to explain to you the different parts of the snare wires and how they work together to help create your sound. Experiment with the tension of the snare wires and explore it even more when tuning your snare. Find what works for you. Share it in the comments.
I would be happy to know what your sound is.
If you have questions about this post (or anything), leave a comments, email me at dexter.verrill@gmail.com, or use the contact form on the website, STIX Drum Lessons.
Did you enjoy this post? There are others in this series, find them here: Snare Drum Series.
Cheers,
The Instructor
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