A Drum DESTROYED My Arms (but I LOVE IT!)

Tama has made some of the most innovative drums that we've seen in the last 30 or 40 years, and this snare is a prime example of them trying to build something unique!

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I've never had a snare drum that made my arms buckle under the weight until today. With 14 plies of birch creating a .71" thick shell, this vintage Tama Heavy Birch snare is a certified BEAST! It might not sound perfect at a lower tuning, but it certainly has a sweet spot in the mid- to high-pitch range. Even with an old, well-worn batter head, this thing sings.

There aren't a lot of snares that really compare to this drum, but this one definitely shares characteristics with a few beloved classics. Just like the thick Sonor Drums shells of the past, you get a very chunky tone out of this wood shell. And paired with the 6.5" depth, this Tama's resonance reminds me of the types of tones that Tomas Haake gets from bell brass snare drums too, especially since he tends to dampen his batter head. Finally, with those timeless diecast hoops, you get everything you'd expect from stuff like Gretsch Drums USA Custom snares, modern high-end snares from Pearl Drums, or something from smaller boutique builders including SJC Custom Drums, Pork Pie Percussion, or a legendary, but smaller output company (specifically with their luxury drum lines) – Yamaha Drums. I hope you get a kick out of this unique little Heavy Birch snare drum, and let me know below if there's another drum you want me to try out here next!

The set featured in this video alongside the snare is a 1987 Yamaha Recording Custom in hot red finish. The sizes include a 22x14" kick drum, 12x8" and 13x9" toms, and a 16x16" floor tom. I've also got Turkish Cymbals going here too – 15" Millennium hats, 20" Meta Crash, 22" Millennium Ride, and a 24" Prototype Special Dry Extra Thin Ride.

Audio was captured with two Universal Audio Apollo x8p interfaces using 1073 preamp modeling. Mics include:

SE Electronics V-Kick (Kick In)
Dr. Alien Smith Alien8 (Kick Out)
Shure Unidyne III SM57 (Snare Top)
Rode NT55 w/ Cardioid Capsule (Snare Top)
Audio-Technica ATM650 (Snare Bottom)
Sennheiser MD-421 (Each Tom)
AKG C414 TLII Pair (Overheads)
Apex 210B Ribbon into Soyuz Launcher (Room)
Shure 588SB (Vocal)

I use Logic Pro X, Waves Audio plugins, and I love the Diet Coke at McDonalds.

And that cool mic cable? It comes from Sorry Cables in LA. – https://www.sorrycables.com/

Questions? I do lessons on drumming, recording drums, social media, and more. Plus, I've been working with drum companies on all sorts of cool stuff. Check out my website!

And you can always find me at [email protected] or hit me up on my other socials.

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