The excerpt below is taken from the complete article that appears in the July 2015 issue,
which is available here.

Product Close-Up

Sugar Percussion Stave-Shell Snares

Discreet design, careful construction, and top-shelf tones.

 Although it’s a relative newcomer in the crowded world of custom drum builders, the Santa Cruz–based Sugar Percussion has already earned high praise from top artists like the Black Crowes’ Steve Gorman (“Exactly how drums are supposed to sound, exactly how they’re supposed to feel”) and producer/drummer Eric Valentine (Third Eye Blind, Taking Back Sunday, Nickel Creek). The company specializes in offering fully customizable solid stave-shell drums made to fit each player’s applications.

We were sent three snare drums constructed from different species that range on the density scale from soft (Alaskan yellow cedar) to medium (black cherry) to hard (Macassar ebony). The softer woods are said to enhance the warmth and roundness of tone, while the hardwoods emphasize cut and crack.

Check out video demos of the entire tuning range of each in the videos below, and for more info on these drums, check out the July 2015 issue.

Michael Dawson
 

Alaskan Yellow Cedar

 

Black Cherry

 

Macassar Ebony