Drum Shells

Any drummer knows that the snare drum is one of the principal instruments in his or her drum kit. Not only is it the most-played-on drum in the set, but it also has the important job of cutting through the noise and chaos of any stage show so that everybody from the other band members to the audience can clearly discern the beat. With the literally thousands of snare drums available on the market today, selecting a suitable drum for your particular needs can be a daunting task, but it is significantly easier when you keep the following three attributes in mind: Diameter, Depth, and Shell Material. While there are certainly other factors that can make a difference, nailing down these three should get you over 80% of the way there.

Drum building doesn't have to be hard. Drum building doesn't require crazy tools. Drum building doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Now repeat these three things to yourself in the mirror and get crackin' on your new drum set already!

There are dozens, perhaps hundreds, of different kinds of drums existing in the world today. Rather like a Dr. Seuss book, there are tall ones, short ones, fat ones, skinny ones, loud ones, soft ones, light ones, heavy ones...you name it, the world of drums has it. But perhaps you find certain kind of drum music more moving than others. Perhaps you prefer the crisp sound of the snare; or maybe the resounding boom of the odaiko speaks to you; or perhaps the upbeat resonance of the bongos suits your taste. If you find yourself drawn to drums that sound a certain way, then it can be useful to know what factors of drum construction affect the instruments' sound.