Maple snare drums come in a huge variety of styles. Just about every drum manufacturer makes maple snares in multiple sizes, colors, and quality levels. Well, there’s a very good reason for it. Maple is simply one of the best materials for constructing snare drums. This wood provides a great balance of tone and attack, both which are necessary for a well-rounded snare sound.
We made this list to help you sort through the vast number of maple snare drum options out there. We divvied up the best models into various price ranges, so it’ll be easy to see which ones might fit your budget. While they all have different quality levels, specs, and size options, each one is a good value in its own right. All of them are money well-spent.
On with the list! These are the best maple snare drums, by budget.
*This post includes affiliate product links, through which we may receive a small commission. We take pride in only recommending the products that will help drummers most. Thank you for the support!
Under $300
PDP Concept Black Wax
The PDP Concept Maple Black Wax is our favorite maple snare drum series in a very competitive price range. Despite the difficulty of making a good maple snare drum for under $300, the Black Wax has a lot going for it. We wrote about this series in more detail in our Best Values: Snare Drums Under $300, but here’s the gist – the Black Wax has nice specs and a bunch of size options, especially considering the price.
When it comes to specs, our favorite on this drum is the DW Mag Throw strainer. It’s one of the best snare strainers on the market. DW even uses it on their high-end snare drums. The Mag Throw is robust, smooth, and easy to use. The hoops are 2.3mm thick, which provides a good balance of tone and attack. This model also comes in 6 sizes. They’re not all currently listed on Amazon, but the full array can be seen here.
The Black Wax has a straight-ahead, but versatile, sound. It doesn’t have the warmest tone or widest tuning range when compared to other drums on this list. However, for the price, the sound of a Black Wax is very good.
Keep in mind these drums also don’t ship with high-quality drumheads. You can certainly use the stock heads, but you’ll probably find the sound quality somewhat lacking. After upgrading the heads, the PDP Black Wax comes into its own. It would be a great choice for drummers who want a straightforward maple snare drum without breaking the bank.
Under $500
Yamaha Tour Custom Snare
The Yamaha Tour Custom is a good option for drummers who like their snares with an earthy sound and feel. This drum incudes a lot of classic elements, resulting in a modern-vintage blend. The hoops are 2.3mm Dynahoops, which curve inward. That shape rounds out the tone of rimshots and cross-sticks. The strainer and butt plates have old-school designs that harken back to hardware seen on vintage drums.
Even with those classic touches, the Tour Custom performs up to modern standards. Having 10 lugs per side offsets the loss of articulation that can occur with lighter drums. Dual tensioners are included for fine-tuning the snare wires. This model also comes in some size and color variations. You can get 14×5.5 and 14×6.5 versions, each in 5 very tasteful satin finishes.
Unlike the PDP Concept Maple above, the Yamaha Tour Custom ships with professional drumheads. You’ll get a Coated Ambassador batter head and a Hazy Ambassador resonant head, both by Remo USA. All of these specs and design features make the Tour Custom a good choice if you’re a drummer looking for a warm-sounding snare with a classic look and feel.
Tama SLP G-Maple Snare
The Tama SLP G-Maple snare drum is an eye-catching instrument, with a Kona Mappa Burl veneer and black nickel hardware. Those cosmetics are typically found on costlier drums, but Tama worked them into a sub-$500 model with this SLP. Of course, this snare is more than just good looks. It’s a drum geared for the live stage. With a 13-ply, 11mm-thick shell, the G-Maple gives drummers plenty of attack, volume, and articulation.
Tama uses their standard hardware on this drum, which is both high-quality and durable. The lugs are the Starclassic style and the hoops are 2.3mm triple-flanged. This drum has two tensioners to make snare wire adjustments. Evans USA heads come equipped, as well. The batter head is a Coated G1 and the resonant head is a Snare-Side 300.
Tama’s SLP snare drums are made to have one size and color per model. If you’re not into the Mappa Burl look, this drum might not appeal to you, since there are no other color options. In terms of size, this drum is a 14×6, which is about as versatile as you can get. The thick shell gives the drum a fairly aggressive sound, but the depth and wood type help provide some tonal body. Overall, the SLP G-Maple is a drum that would be a great choice for drummers who want a classy look and a punchy sound.
Under $700
DW Performance Series Snare
DW is known for making great high-end snare drums. Their Collector’s Series snares are among our favorites in the market, but with so many shell, finish, and hardware options, we didn’t include the series on this list. A more predictable price can be found with DW’s Performance Series, however. These drums are made in the same US factory as the Collector’s Series, just with fewer shell, finish, and size options, and some scaled-down specs. The resulting snare is a more affordable, but still professional, DW drum.
Performance Series snare drums have a 10-ply maple shell and 10 centered lugs. The hardware is very reliable. This drum uses one of our favorite snare strainers, the DW Mag Throw, and 2.3mm hoops. Unlike DW’s Collector’s Series, the 3P butt plate isn’t included on the Performance Series. That’s something that can be upgraded later, of course. This model also only comes in 14-inch diameters, although 5.5, 6.5, and 8-inch depths are available. Various finish types will affect the selling price, as well.
DW includes one of our favorite batter heads with the Performance Series snares. You’ll get a USA-made Remo Coated Controlled Sound, which has a nice balance of focus, attack, tone, and durability. The resonant head is a Remo Hazy Ambassador. All in all, between the shell, hardware, heads, and overall build quality, these are very well-made and versatile drums. We really like the 5.5-inch depth for ultimate versatility, but the 6.5 and 8-inch depths are great options if you’re looking for a bigger sound.
Ludwig Classic Maple Snare
When drummers think of Ludwig snares, most think of the legendary Supraphonic or Black Beauty. Those are fantastic metal drums, but Ludwig’s Classic Maple should not be overlooked by players who prefer a wood shell. Classic Maples have hit their stride in the past decade, and the snare drums are a great choice for drummers who want a super-versatile drum with a lot of options.
The base of the Classic Maple is a 7-ply maple shell, which provides balanced tone and attack. Then, it’s all about options. If you want something truly unique, you can choose everything from finish to strainer type, and from butt plate to hoop type. Otherwise, you can get Ludwig’s well-thought-out standard specs. They’re the specs we prefer, including 2.3mm hoops, the fantastic P88 strainer, and a wrap finish. Those standard options will give you a well-rounded drum, keep your costs reasonable, and will typically have shorter shipping times.
Classic Maple snares come with Ludwig’s Weather Master heads. They’re not our preferred heads, but some players really like them. In terms of sizes, these snares comes in 3 varieties – 14×5, 14×6.5, and 14×8. One of those will usually give the player the sound they’re looking for. When you throw in the options Ludwig offers and the USA build, Classic Maple snares could be a great choice for just about any drummer.
Tama Starphonic Maple Snare
The Tama 14×6 Starphonic Maple snare is a drum unlike any other. Tama thought outside the box with the Starphonic line, incorporating some of the more interesting design features you’ll see on any drum from any company. Most of the innovations are geared towards functionality, but others impact the drum’s sound. Of course, with its Mappa Burl veneer, this drum is also beautiful to look at.
Tama uses a unique hoop and claw system on the Starphonic line. With tension rods partially loosened, the claws can tilt outward. This allows the hoop to be removed without removing tension rods from the lugs. Head changes are faster, while the lightweight hoop design creates a warmer overall tone.
Changing snare-side heads is also easy with a Starphonic snare. Rather than removing and resetting the wires, you can simply detach the butt plate with the wires attached. Since it can be difficult to position snare wires properly, this detachable butt plate is a handy feature.
Overall, the combination of hoop design and a 6-ply maple shell creates a warm tone, working especially well at low and medium volumes. It’s not ideal for very aggressive situations, but it thrives at creating a rich, fat backbeat and giving drummers a soft feel. It’s a great choice for players who want a warm tone and like sophisticated design features.
Under $1000
Pearl Music City Solid Maple
Solid shell snare drums are often thought of as the pinnacle of snare drum design. By using a single ply of wood, sound can flow naturally through the drum, from initial attack through the final bit of resonance. Pearl upped their already-strong snare drum game with this Music City Solid Snare series. Most of the company’s solid shell snares sell for over $1000, but the standard maple pictured above still sneaks under that threshold at the time of writing.
Much of the high cost of solid snares is due to the difficulty of construction. It requires great woodworking skills and high-quality materials. Pearl uses an 8mm steam-bent maple ply as its foundation, then adds two reinforcement rings for strength. Holes are drilled, a wax finish is applied by hand, and hardware is installed.
Pearl made smart choices when it came to the included hardware, using medium-weight hoops and small swivel lugs. You might think for the high price, die-cast hoops and beefy lugs would be expected, but we like Pearl’s decisions here. Both the hoops and lugs allow the solid shell to breathe as much as possible. After all, the shell should be the focus of a well-made single-ply snare.
The resulting drum is quite impressive. Articulate, warm, and dynamic, and with a ton of versatility. Like we mentioned before, you can get Pearl’s solid snares in more expensive versions. They come in several wood types, two sizes, and with multiple inlay options. However, if you’re mainly going after a superb and versatile snare drum sound, you can’t go wrong with Pearl’s straight-ahead solid-shell maple.
Wrap-Up
Those are our picks for the best maple snare drums, by budget. Because maple is such a great wood for snare drums, most drummers should consider having something like this in their collection. Hopefully, the information we provided helped you narrow down your options to a model that fits your budget and musical needs!
By Peter Treuden – About the Author
Need a new case for your snare drum? Check out our favorite type with In-Depth: Ahead Armor Drum Cases!