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Die-cast hoops add focus to the sound but are where the drums diverge from the usual Brady formula

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Some collaborations are easy to predict, although few would have forecast the coupling of Dixon and Brady. While both companies are respected in their own right, they occupy different territories within the drum-making world: Brady is renowned for its beautiful handmade drums while Dixon has a solid reputation for producing dependable hardware and drums.

Dixon has been making concerted efforts lately to reposition itself higher up in the marketplace, launching, among other things, its exotic-shelled high-end Artisan series in 2007. In the light of these new developments, a Brady-influenced snare drum underlines Dixon's aspirations to be a contender further up the ladder.

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You're probably wondering how a big company like Dixon has managed to achieve a close association with a fiercely independent brand like Brady. Well, as the cliché goes, it's a small world, and the president of Dixon (Joseph Chen) has a friendship with Chris Brady that stretches back over 25 years. Joseph has always been a supporter of Brady drums, and when he asked Chris Brady to help design some new Dixon snares the answer was an immediate 'Yes'.

"What makes it an appealing proposition to the drum-maker is its hardness. Much harder than birch or maple, it also leaves walnut, cherry and even oak behind".

The drums that have been created bear a close resemblance to kosher Brady drums. However, they aren't copies of Brady drums made by Dixon – they are Dixon drums that have been designed by Chris Brady. This is an important distinction, as Dixon are not in the business of trying to replicate Brady's labour-intensive manufacturing process; rather this is an attempt to produce high quality snare drums that share some of the features that make Brady drums so special, at reasonable prices.

There are three snare drums available, in sizes of 14"x6½", 14"x5½" and 13"x6". The chosen shell material for the drums is rose gum, an indigenous Australian hardwood. While you'd expect Chris Brady to suggest an Australian wood, Dixon was keen for these drums to offer an alternative wood to the existing Dixon range of snares, which is predominantly maple-shelled. Rose gum is an attractive wood, varying in colour from pink to redish brown.

What makes it an appealing proposition to the drum-maker is its hardness. Much harder than birch or maple, it also leaves walnut, cherry and even oak behind. Only ash and that trusty Brady staple, jarrah, are denser.

The shells are all 5.4mm thick and made up of nine plies. Inside they are sanded to a smooth finish and the 45-degree bearing edges are accurately cut. Externally, the shells are finished in a choice of two lacquers that, in reality, offers three options: self explanatory Natural Lacquer (14"x5½"), or Natural Burst Lacquer, which is a light-to-dark fade with the order of the bands differing between the drums (the 14"x6½" is dark/light/dark while the 13"x6" is light/dark/light).