The 13"x7" kapur was able to tune convincingly low in comparison to the 14"圆1⁄2" maple which didn't quite offer the same fatness that you might hope for. The maple has more of a brightness to it and is a little more open while the kapur is slightly dryer and a little lower pitched. They are all surprisingly versatile in terms of tuning but are most content tuned up nice and high, creating that perfect mixture of tight snap with breathability in their sound. The thing that all three review snares have in common (and we would wager the other three too) is that they all possess that modern 'snap' that we so crave from our snare drums. Moving on to the sound the great news is, these drums sound absolutely fantastic. The steel drum is without a typical polished metal finish but instead exhibits a fairly dull matte grey almost giving the impression of a painted finish rather than a metallic one. The wood grains are subtle but there on closer inspection.
The maple exhibits its characteristic orangey-yellow colour and the lesser-used kapur wood has a much darker, brown shade. If you're into natural wood finishes then the wooden shells shouldn't disappoint. So much so that we thought it wise to purchase one of them for our own collection!Īesthetically, they might not be much to write home about but nevertheless they are attractive drums. We're pleased to report that first impressions were excellent in all departments.īefore learning the price of these snares we were completely convinced that their retail price would be coming in considerably higher than it later transpired. Over the course of a couple of weeks, these snares accompanied us to most of our gigs and a couple of studio sessions. Interestingly, despite the difference in specification, each drum retails at the identical price of £155. The small 10" steel snare also features a built-in tom mount and is supplied with Tama's MC69 ball-joint clamp for easy attachment almost anywhere on the kit. The 10"x51⁄2" instead comes with a regular triple-flanged hoop and the 14"圆1⁄2" steel has a 'Steel Mighty' hoop. The majority of the snares are supplied with Tama's new Sound Arc hoops - a 2.3mm inward curved steel hoop that was originally specially designed for its SLP snares. "All three of these snares have the ability to tune really tight without showing any signs of choking out."