6 Best Copper Snare Drums

Tama Starphonic Copper 14” x 7” Review

The Tama Starphonic Copper is one of the most popular copper snares available. The tones on this drum are incredible, giving you dark and dry sounds that are both powerful and articulate. 

I love the fact that the shell is slightly deeper here, giving you more room to play around in lower tunings. I really enjoy how this snare drum sounds when tuned quite loosely. You get throaty bass tones that still cut through a mix somehow. 

Tama’s die-cast hoops really accentuate rimshots, so you don’t lose any energy at those lower tunings. 

With that said, you get more refined tones when tightening the tension rods. The snare starts to sound a lot punchier at medium and high tunings, but you still get the dark sound. 

The overtones are also surprisingly pleasant here. They add a sense of character to your snare drum strokes if you like an open sound. However, you can easily cut them out by putting a bit of muffling on the batter head. 

I’d say this is the prime example of a good copper snare drum. You can instantly hear the dark and throaty tones that copper shells are known to produce. That’s why the Starphonic Copper is one of my top suggestions. 

I also need to mention how fantastic the Freedom Lugs are on these Starphonic snare drums. They allow you to remove the drumheads without removing the tension rods, making tuning a much quicker process. I wish all snare drums had a design like this. 

Key Features:

• 1.2mm copper shell
• Freedom Lugs
• Linear-Drive throw-off

Ludwig Copper Phonic 14” x 6.5” Review

The biggest thing I always notice when hearing the Ludwig Copper Phonic is how much crack it still has at lower tunings. The punchiness just gets punchier as you tune it higher, but the lower tuning is what I find most impressive.

Because of this, I’d say that this is one of the most versatile copper snare drums around. The darker tones sound fantastic in any style of music, no matter how high or low you’ve tuned the shell. 

I would honestly say that this snare drum comes close to bridging the gap between metal and wood shells. You get the aggressiveness and bite from the metal, but the tonal control seems to be a bit better than what you get from other metal snare drums. 

When playing it in a few different scenarios, I never needed to use much muffling to control the overtones. 

This snare drum also records brilliantly. The rich and growling tones carry beautifully through microphones, with the shell also offering plenty of low-end depth behind each stroke. I’ve regularly heard of studio engineers listing this as a top pick for album work.

I once heard Carter McLean mention how this would be his pick if he were to just choose one snare. He’s someone who pretty much owns every snare drum Ludwig produces, so that speaks to its versatility. 

If you’re looking for a do-it-all snare drum with high-quality tones and premium build quality, this is one of the top options out there. 

Key Features:

• 1.2mm seamless copper shell
• 2.3mm hoops
• Imperial lugs

Tama Star Reserve Copper 14” x 6.5” Review

The Tama Star Reserve Copper has a slightly thicker shell at 1.5mm. With most other copper snares having 1.2mm shells, this particular snare drum has a slight volume boost. 

Pair that with the brass counter hoops, and you get one of the most explosive copper snare drums available. The loud rimshots are the first thing I notice when playing this snare drum, but it’s the pristine tonal quality that I love the most. 

This is truly one of the best snare drums on the market, with the hand hammered shell giving dark, powerful, and striking sounds. 

If you look closely at the shell, you’ll see that the hammering is more spaced out in the middle and less so at the edges. This improves the overall amount of resonance of the snare, and it’s a big reason for the drum having such a great tone. 

The last thing to mention about tone is that the brass hoops also highlight a cross-stick sound. Compared to most of the other snares we’ve looked at, this one has the loudest cross-stick tone. So, it’s excellent for playing powerful ballad beats. 

The luxurious design and tones come at a price, though. This is one of the priciest snare drums you can get. 

I wouldn’t recommend getting this if you’re more than happy with one of the other options we’ve looked at, as the price difference is huge. However, it’s a good option for drummers looking for premium design quality. It’s also just a dream snare for Tama fans. 

Key Features:

• 1.5mm hand-hammered copper shell
• 2.3mm brass hoops
• Linear-drive throw-off

Mapex Black Panther Predator 14” x 6” Review

The Mapex Black Panther is another great option available. Even though it’s a lot more affordable than other copper snares, you get the same throaty and dark tones. 

The only difference I’ve noticed is that the sounds are slightly thinner. That just means that the snare doesn’t sound as full and forceful. That may not be a bad thing for many drummers, though! 

Other metal snare drums tend to produce thinner tones than copper ones, so this snare sounds a bit closer to those. 

It has an amazing tuning range, and it’s thanks to the SONIClear bearing edges. Mapex has a unique design they use for all of their snare drums, and it makes it easy to get great sounds in every tuning. 

I’m also a big fan of the overtones this snare drum produces. They can be aggressive when you strike the snare hard, but that power can be seriously effective in heavy music. It’s why you see so many metal drummers using Mapex snare drums in their setups. 

The rimshot tones are also boosted by Mapex’s Sonic Saver hoops. These sit somewhere between triple-flanged and die-cast hoops. 

The tones aren’t as controlled as what you get from die-cast hoops, but they’re not as open as what triple-flanged hoops produce. I really enjoy that balance, and I think it offers quite a unique sense of playability that you don’t get from other snares.

I highly recommend this snare drum to anyone looking for a copper shell on a budget. 

Key Features:

• 1.2mm copper shell
• SONIClear bearing edges 
• Sonic Saver hoops

Gretsch Black Copper 14” x 6.5” Review

The Gretsch Black Copper is quite a big standout snare drum in the copper range. The first major difference is that it has a 42-strand set of snare wires underneath. 

That’s about double the number of wires you get with every other option we’ve looked at. This makes the snare drum a lot more sensitive to ghost notes and articulate playing. Every soft note is a lot more distinct and precise. 

The snare then has die-cast hoops. These control the tones, but you get a fantastic amount of control and finesse when pairing those with the wires. 

I would highly recommend this snare drum to drummers who love playing intricate snare drum patterns. Think of drummers like Matt Garstka or Matt Halpern. They play intense grooves that are very busy on the snare.

This shell works with you to highlight those quicker notes, whereas they may get lost in the overtones and resonance with other copper snares. 

While the snare would work brilliantly for jazz, the volume alone makes it great for rock or metal. So, it’s a really versatile choice. 

Key Features:

• 1.2mm copper shell 
• Die-cast hoops
• 42-strand snare wires