Bolero:why can't my system reproduce snare well?

Which recording is it, and how familiar are you with this particular recording?

I have multiple copies of various orchestral works, many done with minimal miking. You get a realistic soundstage that way, but you're at the mercy of the venue's acoustics and the engineer's microphone placement when it comes to hearing certain details the way you expect them to be. One, for example, is the Overture to the Nutcracker Suite. In some recordings I can distinctly hear the triangle that accentuates the melody at times, and on other recordings it's so faint I wouldn't know it was there if I didn't specifically listen for it.

Do you have other recordings that you know to have well-recorded snare drum? For classical music, one pretty good example would be the crescendo toward the end of Debussy's Nocturne, "Fetes".

Here is an extended and detailed Stereophile review of the ML SL3's. Notice the amps the reviewer chose, which include Conrad-Johnson Premiers Eleven and Twelve plus a couple of Krells and a Plinius. Maybe you can gain a little insight from the review about characteristics of the SL3s, setup, placement, and best matching amplification. Toward the end of the review he gave the SL3s high marks for reproduction of orchestral percussion.

Did you read the Stereophile Review linke in my previous post? On page 4, Wes Phillips takes about 1/2 page to describe and lament how difficult it was to get ideal placement for these speakers.

Since they are dipoles, I can see where placement could create a self-cancellation effect and cause certain frequency ranges or overtone patterns to recede or disappear.

Here's a Bolero to consider: Jesus' Lopez-Cobos conducting the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra on Telarc. I haven't heard it but the review I read seems like the highest recommendatino possible.

The review was written by Bert Whyte, co-founder and recording engineer for Everest Recordings. His review recalled when he heard the New York Phil play Bolero and it gave him goosebumps and raised the hair on the nape of his neck. After that early experience, he heard Bolero played several times, but never had that physical reaction again until he played the Telarc/Lopez-Cobos/Cin'ti Symphony Orch. rendition on his home stereo.

Telarc recorded symphonies with three omnidirectional microphones, and Cincinnati's Music Hall (where it was recorded) is one of the best acoustical venues in the US. Here it is.

I've carefully read through this thread and still don't know which performance and recording (other than that it's vinyl) of Bolero the OP is listening to. I have a few recordings of Bolero and might be able to do a comparison if I have the one in question (but so far unmentioned).

I do have that recording on a "Great Performances" reissue. I have
several LPs from the CBS Great Performances series and have always been
satisfied with the sound quality and mastering. I just played it, paying particular
attention to overall instrumental balance and tone and clarity of the snare drum
in particular. On this pressing I found the the snare drum to sound exemplary for
classical concert snare--clean, full-bodied, dry (i.e., no discernible shell ringing),
with good body and tonal balance. It primarily emanates from the right channel.
I've played drums for 50 years and have played a myriad of snare drums
including a few professional orchestral snares, and the sound on this recording
is right on the money, and easy to hear on my pressing on my system.

Since the snare sound primarily comes from one channel, you may want to check
the L-R balance to make sure your channels are balanced. Also, good
reproduction of snare drum relies on phase coherence. I listen through
Magneplanar 1.7s, and while they're pretty inexpensive in this crowd, they *are*
phase-coherent, devoid of cabinet noise and resonances, and have excellent
transient response throughout the frequency range. Since your speakers combine
a dynamic woofer for the fundamentals with dipole panels for the overtones of a
snare drum, it could be speaker location relative to the room that is causing
some sort of null in your listening position.

You already mentioned you got some improvement with some cable changes.
Might I suggest you try some Transparent cabling? Their little black boxes seem
to help keep phase relationships and tonal balance where it belongs. I've heard
Transparent cabling in some delicately picky high end setups, always with good
results. I'm talking Wilson Alexandria XL/Alexia/Sasha spkrs, D'Agostino/Audio
Research/VTL electronics, and SME/DPS+Lyra turntable setups.

The recording is fine. Snare drum is clear and distinct, neither overdone nor recessed