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Step 4Other Ideas
Ok, so you tried the spring or jingle or string or porting ideas (or you didn't) and you're still looking for more. Well, your imagination is the limit here. These are a few basic ideas to get you started.
Grab a rubber band and some tape (electrical tape is the best - strong enough to hold but light enough not to destroy the vibration of the head) and pick a good spot on your snare. Try to find an area that you don't usually strike with a stick but is still close enough to easily reach with your right or left hand. Securely tape down the rubber band and give it a pluck. It isn't much but at least it is a new sound to incorporate.
If you want something melodic and didn't like the spring idea, try crafting a thumb piano. BobsDogHouse has written a good building guide here: thumb piano. I got this idea from watching a video showcasing Glenn Kotche, the Wilco drummer (not my kind of music but a great drummer nonetheless). He has a similar kind of snare that he refers to as a 'prepared snare.' He mounted a small version of BDH's thumb piano (also called a lamellaphone) onto the face of his snare that offers him the chance to throw some melody into the equation.
If you can get your hands on a vibrating mechanism (its up to you where you get it from) and can keep it light yet mountable, applying that to the resonant head of your snare while you play is a good way to get an interesting sound that mimics the response of your snare when the bassist hits that low note that seems to set your snare off.
If all else fails, or if this instructable just didn't inspire you, there are plenty of 'over the counter' accessories that can spruce up your snare. Just go to your local drum shop and see what's available. There are all kinds of mountable brackets and stands to which you can attach a whole bevy of things - cowbells, cymbals, tambourines, wood blocks, scrapers, and all sorts of dampeners to fine tune the sound of your kit. Lots to experiment with.
Grab a rubber band and some tape (electrical tape is the best - strong enough to hold but light enough not to destroy the vibration of the head) and pick a good spot on your snare. Try to find an area that you don't usually strike with a stick but is still close enough to easily reach with your right or left hand. Securely tape down the rubber band and give it a pluck. It isn't much but at least it is a new sound to incorporate.
If you want something melodic and didn't like the spring idea, try crafting a thumb piano. BobsDogHouse has written a good building guide here: thumb piano. I got this idea from watching a video showcasing Glenn Kotche, the Wilco drummer (not my kind of music but a great drummer nonetheless). He has a similar kind of snare that he refers to as a 'prepared snare.' He mounted a small version of BDH's thumb piano (also called a lamellaphone) onto the face of his snare that offers him the chance to throw some melody into the equation.
If you can get your hands on a vibrating mechanism (its up to you where you get it from) and can keep it light yet mountable, applying that to the resonant head of your snare while you play is a good way to get an interesting sound that mimics the response of your snare when the bassist hits that low note that seems to set your snare off.
If all else fails, or if this instructable just didn't inspire you, there are plenty of 'over the counter' accessories that can spruce up your snare. Just go to your local drum shop and see what's available. There are all kinds of mountable brackets and stands to which you can attach a whole bevy of things - cowbells, cymbals, tambourines, wood blocks, scrapers, and all sorts of dampeners to fine tune the sound of your kit. Lots to experiment with.
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