Make Drum Work . Com Skill through struggle and sacrifice

How To Get A Louder, Fuller Snare Sound - The Rimshot

If you want it, you've got work for it

Getting the sound you really want isn't just a matter of hitting your drums as loud as possible and hoping for the best. You need to learn different techniques to give you the best sound.

In this article, we're not just talking about techniques though. We are going to hack into the actual physics of your snare drum in order to get the best possible sound out of it.

The physics of your snare

Normally when you play your snare, you hit the drum head (also called the drum skin) with the tip of your stick. This makes the drum head flex downwards which in turn pushes the air inside your drum down towards the bottom drum head.

The bottom head flexes downward and pushes the snare wires in the same direction. When they snap back into place they produce a "crack" sound and this is what gives your snare its distinctive sound.

When you play a rimshot not only do you get these sounds occuring but you also make the rim of the drum and the drum itself vibrate. Hence a much fuller sound.

Playing a rimshot

To get this right, you need to hit the snare head (with tip of your stick) and the rim (with the body of your stick) at the same time. You need to either lower your hand slightly from where you would normally play or move your snare into a higher or flatter position.

You will find at first that you will hit either just the drum head or just the rim at first. But over time you'll learn to hit the two simultaneously. You will know you have played a rim shot correctly because it will sound louder and your stick will bounce less. Also, your sticks will get covered in bumps from playing the rim and will eventually start to split and snap in the middle. Cool!

Troubleshooting

Pay attention to what's happening when you practise this because you will find yourself playing either more drum head hits or more rim clicks. The one that you play more of will tell you what you need to do to fix the problem.

• Mostly drum head hits- Your hand is too high, your snare is too low or it is angled towards you too much.
• Mostly rim clicks- Your hand is too low, your snare is too high or your snare is too flat.

Health and safety tip

Make sure you are holding onto your stick really loosely when you play rim shots. When you hit the rim, your stick will bounce a lot less. This means that more energy will be transferred back up the stick and into your arm. This is bad news for the bones in your hand, your wrist and your whole arm in general.

When I first learned this technique I used to get pins and needles in my thumb and a freind of mine used to get a shooting pain in the bottom side of wrist. These are bad signs. You definitely want to avoid this so try letting go of your stick as you play the rim shot then catch it straight after. Read How Your Wrist Works and How To Play Wrist Technique for more details.

This technique isn't something that you will pick up overnight. Like most things worth learning, it will take you some time. But if you want to increase your sound and volume behind the kit then this is the way to do it.

Do you have any questions? Have you noticed rimshots making a difference to your playing? Or maybe you've had some drum injuries you want to share?

Speak your voice below

Alex

---------------------------

Related posts:

1. If Drums Are Planets Then Your Snare Is The Sun Photo credit: chantrybee Your snare is what gives life...
2. How To Play Wrist Technique The human body is not made to play drums...
3. 3 Simple Techniques to Increase the Speed and Quality of your Double Stroke Roll The three techniques I use are: 1. Bounce Starting...
4. How to Set Up Your Bass Drum Pedal - 3 Practical Ways You Can Improve Speed, Power and Sound Photo credit: cod_gabriel When you're setting up your bass...
5. The Most Overlooked Part Of Your Grip I use this phrase a lot but... This changed everything...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

 Print This Post