I do use them on several snares. I like the sound as it is a little drier and generally less overall actual "snare" sound. Whether it really helps with sympathetic vibration, I can't really say for sure but with less actual wire on the head it should. Whether the gap in the middle is a huge help, I could not say.

Matt, I agree with tnsquint in that it is a much drier snare sound and tightens up the overall drum sound, which is great if you're not into over dampening the top head. They give a slightly more focused stick sound and more definition of the individual strokes. The amount of sympathetic buzz is greatly reduced from the traditional 16 strand wires, but I doubt anything would stop snare buzz in the situation you described, other than using cable or gut type snares. There's no sympathetic buzz with those, at all.Or you could slide a dollar bill under your existing snare wires to knock down the buzz, but it doesn't sound so hot...

Attached are some pictures of a custom-built snare drum from 2010. The shell was cut down from a 14" tom to a 4.5" depth by Precision Drum. The tech I used for most of my drum work installed Yamaha-style snare beds. First tried the drum with Ambassador weight heads and "normal" 20-strand wires. Talk about buzzing and snarey!!!

After lots of experimentation, I settled on an Evans Genera Dry batter and Hazy 300 reso... along with Equalizer wires. This was the PERFECT combination for this build! I thought it would be extremely dry, but it was anything but. It seemed to have something to do with the shell depth, edges and beds. Sure spent allot of $$ to find the perfect combination for this shell! Still, it was perfect... and I should have kept it for my collection! CryBaby

That us a very pretty drum. I have used the Genera Dry HD heads on occasion and they can certainly be the ticket depending on what you want to accomplish. Yours is a good example of the "fickleness" of dealing with drums:

You would think the combination of a Genera Dry batter, less snare wire and due cast rims would really dry out the sound. Apparently not on this drum.

You're absolutely correct about the "fickleness" of drums! What you think should work on certain drums just doesn't! Yes, I did try a normal set of wires with the Genera Dry batter and it still just didn't sound right. The Equalizer wires, and Genera Dry batter, brought out the best in this shell!

Mark