Pssst. Don't tell anyone but get an older Sennheiser 432 Profipower, it's a superb snare mic! I was searching for snare mics almost 10 years, always changing around and not beeing completely satisfied. I have now settled on the 431, fits my needs most of the time. Akg 451 can also be cool but that depends on the micing setup and music style. For a traditional setup the 431 is king. Another (even cheaper) option is the AKG C1000. Yes that one that sounds like shit on everything, for some reason it doesn't on snare. My last setup was the C1000 with the Revox 3500 or Beyer 201 taped together, very cool also.