Hal Blaine used a supra 400 ludalloy not a steel shell. a brass shell compared to a ludalloy shell is warmer and a little darker sounding!

In my opinion, the brass is the one. Many others on this forum would disagree. If possible, you should test drive both and see which is best for you. There is a significant price difference. I got my brass one for $10, but that was a ridiculous deal. Good luck.

Yeah, since I own both, it's a tough call depends on the gig and my mood,as to which one I'll use! broadleaf ,,but on a footnote the maple drum you are addressing is always a great tonal voice in your snare drum arsenal, you need a good wood and metal snare drum or several if possible!

BRASS all the way it's worth the money.

I have the holy grail super Ludwig 1959 COB and to be honest i prefer the standard 400 its far more versatile you cant go wrong at the price

If you do a search on this forum for "Alternatives to Supraphonics" you'll find a recent thread which had quite a lot of responses and contained a lot of useful info. I think that will answer some of your questions. I was wondering about the same sorts of things as you and on the recommendation of a few people, just picked up a 60's Slingerland Krupa Sound King, which is brass. Just waiting for it to arrive. I figured for the same price I could get a near mint Slingerland brass snare or a pitted non-brass Supra. And having played neither drum before, I had no real bias one way or the other. Yes, brass Supras are very desirable and that's definitely reflected in the prices. Not so cheap.

Though I've since played a Supra for the first time the other day (a mid 70's snare which I'm guessing would be a Ludalloy, non-brass shell) and was amazed at what a bright sounding drum it was. Probably the brightest snare I've ever heard. Maybe a bit too bright for my liking.

Oh yeah, I also love a lot of Hal Blaine's stuff.

That's great, thanks everyone for your advice. I realised my 'steel' mistake as soon as i posted it...whoops.. I am relatively new to this vintage game.

It seems a real mixed bag, I guess owning both would be the perfect outcome!! Alas, one step at a time...

Thanks Drummy Drummerson, I'll check out the thread. I've seen a few soundking's for sale on the web, not too pricey either...

So Hal Blaine used a standard 400? That's food for thought...

I think I basically need to find a shop with both, and go try 'em.

Just out of interest, does anyone know the snare mitch mitchell used? I've seen photos of what looks like a 400. His snare sound on the first two hendrix albums is killer!!

Mitch Mitchell used a ludwig 400 Ludalloy supraphonic,