Remo 14" CS Coated Black Dot Snare

I absolutely love the controlled sound head and use it on almost all of my snares, from a 14"x6.5" Supraphonic (aluminium) to a 13"x6" Mapex (walnut) to a 14"x5.5" Premier (birch) to a 14"x6.5" WorldMax (brass).

I find that for about 80% of snare drums it's in the sweet spot between lively and dead. Not as bright and ringy as an ambassador or G1 can be, but not too dead like a pinstripe or emperor can be either. The CS also gives you a really fat sound when you play in the centre of the head — perfect for rock and pop live and in the studio. Since it's still single ply at the edges you can get the press roll feeling and ghost notes that are missing from a 2-ply head, and the "reggae rimshot" sound is still there too.

The only downside of the Controlled Sound is that the centre dot feels a little less 'bouncy' than the single-ply edges, and this means the rebound isn't consistent all over the head. I find I get used to it quite quickly, but it's worth bearing in mind if you're playing very soft music or like a highly responsive feel, or you're used to a G1/Ambassador.

But don't let that discourage you — the Controlled Sound is so good that it's now the head I try first on a new drum. Most of the time, it's all I need.

The REMO Control Dot is a well engineered head, designed to have a killer 'fat' spot within the 'dot' area. At the edge of the dot the head produces a less-fat, and cleaner/brighter sound. As you get closer to the edge you get a timbale-like sound, making this a versatile head if you're likely to play (let's say) rock, latin, and jazz at the same gig. The head also produces a great rim-click, and has plenty of volume overall. The head really has, to be tuned well to get any kind of satisfying sound, otherwise it's a bit ring-y. Tune the bottom (of your snare) head to 'A' while the batter head is removed from the drum. Make sure you get a clean 'A' at each lug-point (worth the effort), then put on the batter head, tuning correctly to a 'C', or higher if you want. Mess around with the snare tension, and before you know it, your snare will sound better than ever. This is not a conventional head, and it does take getting used to the different sounds, but a sweeter rim-shot you've never heard ... my guitar players even noticed. Remember, the key is in the tuning ... snare side, than batter. Have fun, it's a great head!

I needed a controlled sound for my snare, and as the snare's "CS" refers, it was delivered what was promised. Being a heavy hitter drummer,I expected the head would snap in about a month or two (Regarding my experience with Ambassador Coated heads) . After about 5 months, I am still with the same batter head. Very easy to tune in my (somewhat) old maxtone snare. Even after all the drum stick marks in the head, it still looks astonishing. The only complaint I have, is that I don't live next to thomann to get this head more often, for this amazing price. (About 22? in my local music store). Thank you thomann, and remo for an amazing product.