What is the difference between a hand hammered snare drum and a smooth finish snare drum?

Answer 1

A metal snare drum is generally constructed of a rolled piece of steel, aluminum, brass or bronze and welded at the seam. The manufacturer may also add indentations in the material to strengthen the shell and for aesthetic purposes. The main difference between a smooth and hammered shell is before the material is cut, rolled into shape and welded, the material is 'hammered'. This process is usually accomplished by use of an industrial hammering process that adds the distinctive look of hammered metal. The hammering process does affect the tone, or sound, of the drum. Usually the hammering process causes the drum to produce a 'dry', or less brittle tone. Just as cymbals are hammered into shape and hammered by hand or machine in order to produce certain tones, the hammered shelled drum will produce a distinctive tone when compared with non-hammered shelled drums. Many would describe a hammered shelled snare drum as having a 'warmer tone'. Many manufacturer's claim that the hammering process lowers the fundamental tone of the metal shell, moving the the tone closer to the tone of a wood shell drum.