Well I was perusing a catalog I just got and discovered these - I'm not sure how long they've been available, but Yamaha makes a few small steel-shell snares with YESS mount that are much less expensive.
SD-2055: 10 x 5.5 snare
SD-2240: 12 x 4 snare
SD-2255: 12 x 5.5 snare
According to yamahadrums.com, only the 12 x 4 comes with the YESS mount, but the catalog I received (Interstate Music) says all three come with it.
Anyway it looks like each can be had, new, in the $125-150 ballpark. I'd bet that 12 x 5.5 in particular really projects with brushes, and any of them would be good for someone needing more volume and/or versatility than the 8" provides.
