Supra always. The rest are negotiable. Though I would also almost always include a wood snare of one brand or another.

Gone are the days when a session drummer would get 'hired', show up cold, and hear a demo or work up a song on the spot. It was more important then to be prepared for anything, and bringing 3 or 4 (or more) snares to a session wasn't unusual.

However, today, we typically go into the studio knowing what we're going to play, or at least knowing the style or possibly production they're going for. That allows us to choose in advance what will sound best, perhaps just one snare is guaranteed to do the job. Obviously the style governs the snare.

Let's assume a drummer gets called for a session, say 3 tracks, and really has no idea what to expect. No direction at all. I'd think a couple of wood snares (thin & thick-shelled) and a brass shell would cover 99% of the requirements. For depth, I find a 6.5" most versatile. Let EQ and tuning and snare tension adjustments do the rest.

But on that same mystery session, one would also need to decide what kicks, toms, and cymbals to bring. Is there really just one kit that can do it all, any more than there's just one snare? If I did a session and was given no direction in advance, I'd bring two kicks: 20 & 24" kick, assorted toms: 10/12/13/16/18", and maybe 20-30 cymbals of varying weights.

Bermuda

I always bring all of my most-played snares. I have four amazing snare drums, but I have found that a snare that sounds amazing in one room might not sound as good as another in a different studio. And as already stated, some snares "fit" certain songs better than others.

I always bring all of my cymbals if I'm hired to learn/record at one time. If I'm recording with my band, I bring what I know works best for each song.

great feedback as always! I love hearing from you guys. I need to add the 24" kick sometime soon.

COB or Ludalloy version? I'm kind of thinking both versions...

I run into the occasional "the producer doesn't know quite what he wants yet" recording session. They're usually radio spots. The last one I did, I brought a 14x5 DW 10+6, a custom solid red oak 14x6.5, a Rogers Powertone, and a Supra 14x6.5. Ended up using the DW, no big surprise...

I'm thinking 6.5 BB & Supras of both sizes as a start.

I recently recorded, took 4 snares with me

14x7" 40's radio king

14x6.5" Ludwig 402 supra 70's

14x4" 20's Ludwig heavy brass shell

14x5" Ludwig supra 65

For the room we were in the 402 slayed

So that's what we used for all the songs

Supra-Luddaloy-5"

Covers most of your bases.

Dave