Im starting to look for a marching snare to buy but cant really decide on what. I love Yamaha snares in the fact that I'm just used to them in my marching band. and in my middle school years I've used pearls and they seem to tweak my interest a bit. After thinking i think Yamaha's sound the best for outside marching band.( Just because I think Yamaha sound a lot more powerful than the pearls) so i think pearls sound insane for indoor drum-line or some sorts. What's your intake on the idea?

Bottom line: Personal snares just need to fit YOUR desires, needs, and expectations. You aren't using it in an ensemble, all that matters is how YOU want it to sound, and how YOU want it to look.

I have a 13" SFZ. It sounds good, plays well, requires little maintenance, and takes up little space in my basement. Accordingly, it fits what I need it to do perfectly.

What sound are you looking for? What size are you looking for? Hell, what COLOR are you looking for?

When it comes to personal snares, Pearl and Yamaha make quality product that every local music shop carries (or can easily order) parts for. Dynasty and Premier get a little trickier. So in this sense, all you need to do is figure out which drum you want and look for a deal.

I have had a Pearl snare since I was in middle school. We play Yamahas at MSU, they are really good drums as well. However, if I was going to buy a drum to practice on I would definately get a Premier. They are engineered really well and have an awesome sound quality that you can't get from a Pearl or Yamaha. When it comes to Dynasty.....I wouldn't waste you money on something that will just break.

If you are looking for a personal snare, a 13" would probably be the most convienient. Since you are using it on an individual basis, there really is no need to spend the extra money on a 14" snare. A 13" is nice and light, and would take up less space, obviously.

As far as brands go, all the major marching percussion companies (Pearl, Yamaha, and Dynasty) should meet your needs. I myself have a 13" Pearl FFX and am really happy with it; it has a sturdy build, and was a little cheaper than the other brands' snares. However, you really can't go wrong with a sFZ or a Dynasty snare, both are good companies and wouldn't be so popular if they weren't.

I would not recommend Premier.

I am looking into a new drum and after doing my research i decided to go with the Yamaha MTS series(14"). i really like their sound and the overall design and quality of Yamaha is unmatched.

Really? So the design and quality of a Pearl drum is less than that of a Yamaha? Please oh great and mighty engineer man explain to us the differences and what makes Yamaha better.

If it's a personal use drum, I wouldn't bother with the MTS unit. 6 years ago my current program got new Yamaha drums with the MTS units on them. Two years later I took them off. We didn't use them enough to warrant the extra weight. There also wasn't a noticeable enough difference in sound to make it worth it.



Sorry... spelling error was driving me nuts - units, not unites

i'm not the o great engineer but it is my personal oppinion. i PERSONALLY like the yamahas. im not saying pearls are bad but I like yamahas more. and for a personal drum the mts is cool but a waste of money. agreed

That's odd. I have a Dynasty snare and tenors and I've never had a single problem with either one of them.

If you're buying a drum for personal use and will have it set up at home most of the time then any of the companies discussed here will serve you well.

I'd say Pearl!
Think about it.. They are only a drum making company, they don't make ATVs or brass/woodwind instruments, they only focus on drums/percussion. That's how I see it.
So I would get a Pearl drum.

So, you'd go with a company that makes one type of product great, rather than one that makes a variety of products great?

Easy there professor. Actually, Pearl makes ridiculously good flutes as well. I believe they make a few more instruments for the Asian market as well.

That is a different Pearl company. They are not the same. The Pearl drum company is WAY different. I tried looking up Pearl flutes, not the same company.

Both are owned and maintained by Pearl Musical Instrument Company. Just because they don't mention each other on their sites doesn't mean they aren't owned by the same company.

Also, if they aren't the same company, why does Pearl Flutes have a link to Pearl drums on their website?

Thanks for playing though.

No, it's not.


Yes they are. Exactly the same.


Again, it is not. It is WAY the same.


Look harder. Trust me on this one. It's the same company based out of Japan and marketed through their subsidiary (Pearl Corporation) in the U.S.

The link between Pearl Flutes and Pearl Drums is right on the front page of the web site for each:

At the bottom of the Pearl Flute web page:
"Copyright 2005 Pearl Musical Instrument Co. All Rights Reserved."

At the bottom of the Pearl Drum web page:
"©1995 - 2005 Pearl Musical Instrument. Pearl Drums USA. All rights reserved."

There's also the Wikipedia page on the Pearl Musical Instrument Company:
"The Pearl Musical Instrument Company (Paru Gakki Seizo Kabushiki-gaisha) is a world leader in the manufacturing of percussion equipment... It also makes flutes, taiko drums and cymbals."

Last but not least, Pearl's Japanese web site shows both percussion equipment and flutes (along with equipment options from partners like Sabian and Remo).

The argument against Yamaha because they make multiple products is ridiculous. If someone was to offer you a choice between a Mazda and a Mercedes, would you pick the Mazda because they only make cars? (Daimler, in addition to making cars under the Mercedes-Benz name, makes aerospace components, trucks, buses, construction equipment, and other items.)

sorry..

Okay so Pearl makes drums and flutes? That just seems wierd think about it, Drums..... flutes? What do they really have in common.
Anyway back on topic, I would rule Dynasty out for to reasons. 1. They are about $100 more than Pearl and Yamaha.
2. I personaly don't like the sound of Dynasty as much as Pearl.

On the whole, Dynasty drums are typically LESS expensive than Pearl or Yamaha. When talking strictly about 14" snare drums, prices are competitive among the three, as shown in the examples below from various web sites. (When prices varied by color, the lowest price is listed.)

Woodwind & Brasswind (wwbw.com):

Dynasty DFX14: $384.99
Pearl FFX-1412: $399.99
Yamaha MS-9214: $399.99

Taylor Music (1800usaband.com):

Dynasty DFX14: $377.00
Pearl FFX-1412: $411.00

Steve Weiss (steveweissmusic.com):

Dynasty DFX14: $380.00
Pearl FFX-1412: $405.00
Yamaha MS-9214: $450.00



That's a perfectly valid opinion.

Then for yahmaha think about it, drums, trumpets, motorcycles. That's worse than drums and flutes. back on topic.

I think i personal drum is best at 13 inches, its not as loud and it meets all the needs of an at home marching snare drummer. As for brands I lean a bit to Pearl, but Yamaha is great too, stay away from Premier, and as for Dynasty, they have the best tenors, but they're snares aren't that great. Give Dynasty a few years and they could have Pearl and yahmaha beat.

I own two Pearl snares and a set of free floater Premier Quints that were used by Blue Star in the late 90's...we are actually endorsed by Yamaha....so....I would say that they are all good products each in their own way.

The one great thing about pearls though, is that they have maple shells, which sounds better and also lasts longer...but if you take care of your birch Yamaha shell and don't keep a kevlar bottom head on it all the time, then it will last also...

Premier pwn! I lover my tenors, and I lover they way their drums sound...I wish more corps used them, like they were back in the '90s (Phantom).

A fife is a type of flute, and I think fife & drum corps have been around a few centuries longer than drum & bugle corps.

why does everyone have to be putting Dynasty down, i have a Dynasty snare and i love it!!! i am not saying you cant have your own oppinions but just give them a chance before comming to any speculations. i used to be the same way but then i played on one and i loved it. basicly i am just saying dont put Dynasty down because that is what you heard and even after you had a first hand experience then feel free to state your oppinion.

My opinion is not based off speculation.....I teach at a school that is outfitted with Dynasty. they purchased the drums almost 2 years ago and they are already having problems. I will make a list for you:

1. the snare systems are poorly designed and can come loose
2. the shells have a tendency to crack and/or wharp
3. the snare rims crack and also the powder coating chips off very quickly (much quickly than
Yamaha's)
4. the top snare system is also poorly designed and is much more complicated than Yamaha's and
Premier's.
5. lastly, for some reason lugs and screws are constantly coming loose which is very
frustrating.

that is fine i was just saying a lot of people just specculate sry if i sounded harsh

I think my problem with Dynasty drums is that peoples experienced with them is so varied. They seem inconsistent, it does happen with Pearl and Yamaha but not nearly as much. It seems like a crap shout when you get a Dynasty drum. I rather stick with something thats maybe few dollars more but I know is built like a tank and sounds incredible. just my opinion though.

My experience with recent Dynasty drums -- one drum corps and two high schools -- is actually pretty consistent. They do require more attention than Pearl or Yamaha, but I figure that's to be expected since they have more screws, nuts, & bolts that can vibrate loose. (The next time I do a tear-down, maybe I'll try some Loc-Tite.)

If price is no concern, they're still my third choice behind Pearl and Yamaha, but it's not a distant third. They are decent drums, and when you take price into account, it's hard to fault anyone for going with Dynasty.

with Dynasty (correct me if im wrong) it seemes like theres more pressure on the shell than with Yamaha and Pearl because the metal bering edge is attached to the shell where as for Pearl (and i assume Yamaha because they have mosty the smae parts again correct me if im wrong) the metal berinf edge rests on top of the shell and is supported by the long double sided lug castings (for lack of technical terms) so all the pressure is on the metal bars that connect the two sides (i could be very wrong but this is just what i observed by putting my Pearl together)

but Dynasty does have a good sound

If there's any extra tension on the shell from the top head, it's negligible. Whether we're talking about Dynasty, Pearl, Yamaha, etc., the metal edge ring takes all the tension of the top head. Dynasty's design uses three screws to keep the tension ring from falling off the drum, but they don't transmit any head tension to the shell.

Stress from the bottom head is applied to the shell differently, though, because Dynasty uses lugs for the bottom head instead of a "cage" of tension posts. I've personally never seen a Dynasty snare shell fail at the bottom, so I can't say that their design is any worse than the approach taken by the other drum companies.

oh cool well ther goes my resevationas about getting a Dynasty

thanks for the clear up

I think we're on the 8th or 9th season of having Yamaha snares. They're great. The finish looks like new and the rims are a bit scratched from wear and tear. Take care of your equipment and it will take care of you.

my school uses Yamaha their alright but the pearls we used to have were amazing. i never played on a Dynasty, i heard bad things about them i want to try one out before i make any decisions on if their good or not

How dare you think for yourself?! ;-)

I thought I was supposed to use whatever the blue devils have.



The reality of being a player is that you won't notice much difference in the drum itself. Things like sticks and heads are much more important to you in that position.

As a staff member that must tune, maintain and possibly modify the drum to suit the needs of the ensemble, brand preference becomes a much bigger issue.

I've played on Yamaha and Pearl snares. Between those two, I definitely would go with the Yamaha snare.

my line currently uses a mix between Yamaha and Pearl.
we got new Yamaha drums my rookie year. but since then we've grown and we don't really have the funds to buy new ones. so we've had to use our old ones. after playin on the Pearl snare and the Yamaha i definately like Yamaha better.

and u know now that i think about it the tenors i use are Ludwig

I like Pearl.


But, I own a Remo Legato from 1993, and it sounds most excellent.



It's all about the sound you desire. Dynasty drums work more for the tighter, high end, BD sound. Pearls have more meat, but they are not as high pitched or dry.

so just a quick question to add to this one (so i dont get thread denied by an admin)
I'm trying to convince our bd to buy new drums (im a snare drummer that why i put it here) but whats the difference in quality/sound/price between the Pearl carbonplys and the Yamaha SFZs?

well carbonplys are A LOT more expensive, but from what I've heard, worth it. in sound, i have no idea, though you can't go wrong with either of them.

Pearl Championship drums are generally less expensive than Yamaha SFZ/Field-Corps drums, which are less expensive than Pearl Carbonply drums. Even though the prices will generally be higher than quoted prices, you can look at Steve Weiss' web site to get an idea of the cost differences between models.

If you're just looking at snare prices, it breaks down like this:

14" Pearl Championship: $405
14" Yamaha SFZ: $450
14" Pearl Carbonply: $495

My personal observations are a little different: I've never had or heard 1st hand of any problems with the strainers, snare cable assmebly, shells or breaking rims. I've seen nuts and bolts and lugs come loose on every brand at one time or another.

I will definitely agree that the upper snare assembly on the DXFT sucks -- totally not worth it. The powder coat does also appear to be a bit more fragile than Yamaha's, though not extremely so.

*My* only real complaint is that whatever alloy Dynasty uses on their tension rods is prone to rust at the drop of a hat -- if the drums get rained on, make sure you dry the rods ASAP! It's probably worth the money to just replace all of them on a given drum if any widespread corrosion appears on its rods.