Now this is a very good question. But the answer is personal.

For me the penny dropped when i was around 11 or 12. I attended saturday morning classical orchestra sessions every week. I can't remember the duration, but it was one part section training then one part orchestra rehearsal. Our Percussion lecturer/teacher was an old school ex pro. When it came to Snare Drum he absolutely insisted that we ALWAYS place the snare on the stand with the release mech in the same place. Every Time!!! READ MY LIPS EVERY TIME! (that was him.)

Why? Because the snares were always disengaged when you weren't playing because of snare buzz. You then count maybe 200 bars or whatever before an important roll or passage then slip them on without having to hunt, execute the moment then slip them off. Move to the next thing.

Now heres the thing. He encouraged us to have the snare mech on the left side because a, it was easy for trad players and b, (at 6 o'clock) you wouldn't get caught up in your clothing fumbling around and then missing that moment that took 80 or 90 other players of the orchestra to build to.

c, as a righty kit player I can engage/disengage with ease with my left hand while still riding or filling on toms with my right.

So there it is, the left side it is around 9 o'clock.

Phew.

Throwoff at 9:00, always. Well, since 1965 anyway.

Righty, traditional.

strainer at 3. don't know why. just seems natural.

Strainer at 3 and butt at 9. I find the opposite leads to errant disengagement of snares with left hand. To combat that, once upon a time, I used to put the strainer at 12. Had to be cautious not to induce tom rash though.

I gave it up after messing up a setup for Max Roach one time. Rental drums, and the rental guy came in an didn't know how to set them up. He was a bass player. Go figure!

So I did everything according to a picture I had with me for an autograph; except the strainer. It ended up at 12. As he was playing, I noticed he was searching for the strainer, which he eventually found. He was such a nice guy that when I apologized after the show, he was totally gracious about it. I was relieved.

I ended playing in a band for two years with the bass player. We used to laugh about it from time to time. Always strainer at 3 now.

geckobeats is spot on Yes Sir. While playing in a standing position for orchestral and concert band work, the throwoff has to be on the left (I prefer 8 o'clock) so that the left hand can disengage the snares while still playing with your right hand. HOWEVER... seated behind a kit, I prefer the 6 o'clock position to make the throwoff equally accessible to either hand (and in 46 years of playing, my zipper has never gotten caught on the strainer).

Mike

Throwoff at 10:00, butt at 4. I occasionally squeeze my legs together, and my legs don't hit the butt at those positions, and they are readily accessible like the concert player post above.

I have played strainer at 9 butt at 3 for all my life but recently (like last week) have switched to the 6 and 12 position just for the reasons stated above.

The only thing about it I don't like is that my micro adjustable butt is now pretty close to hitting my mounted tom.

LoLoLoLo

Srainer at 5 and butt at 11 works for me. Out of the way of my legs and easy to adjust tension if necessary. I never turn off the snares, unless the bass player is tuning up. guitar2

Another reason I switched to the 5-11 position..

In the 70's we were doing mainly "Black Tie" gigs.. the 3-9 position I used back then.. all of my trousers (which were mostly part of Tailor made suits), would develop premature furry worn patches on the inside knee.. caused by the butt plates..

Not to mention regular bruising on my bony knee..

Cheers

John

Throw off between 4 and 5. As long as it is on my middle to lower right and never at 6. I fiddle with my snare's tension a lot in different acoustical environments. I like them between medium tight and loose. You can just tell when it gets that full sound as you tighten them up from loose.