Maple or Birch?

You lack the tuning and playing skills to both recognize and capitalize upon the very subtle difference between maple and birch. The idiot who suggested comparing Starclassics to Masters in order to "hear the difference" is well...an idiot. You will not hear the differnce between maple and birch, rather...Tama Starclassics and Pearl Masters. The only way to objectively compare the two woods, it to have two otherwise identically crafted shells filled with identical hardware and heads, tensioned both as closely as possible to the same pitch, and then again with each shell tensioned to it's 'optimum' pitch.

You want to know the difference? Fine.

BOOOOM
BOoOM

Your money will be better spent if you compare other factors like hardware design, functionality, and asthetics...bearing edges...finish...customer-service...politics.
 
Lol, thanks man you always seem to put your useless but somtimes helpful 2 sense in. I actually might not get a new kit at all as it seems, some dude might be selling me a Yamaha stage custom for pretty cheap. Anyone like those?
 
bubbagump said:
They are mahogany drums.... not my favorite. Mahogany is kind of a boomy (not in a good way) wood IMO.
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Great...another idiot.

For someone in your position, Yamaha Stage Customs are a very good choice.
They record well, the shells are true, the hardware is solid, and the finishes decent. Now, being used it'll be that much cheaper...that's the way to go.

Unless the set is in some way screwed up...like out-of-round shells, or a custom hot pink paint job, this seems like a pretty obvious choice.

And what the fuck are all these green dots showing up on my control panel???
 
I went drum hunting a few weeks ago, tried out a bunch of different sets and ended up getting a Gretch birch set and couldn't be happier. The important thing is to please your own ear because you are the one that will be living with the decision.
 
TheBigGiantHead said:
Great...another idiot.

For someone in your position, Yamaha Stage Customs are a very good choice.
They record well, the shells are true, the hardware is solid, and the finishes decent. Now, being used it'll be that much cheaper...that's the way to go.

Unless the set is in some way screwed up...like out-of-round shells, or a custom hot pink paint job, this seems like a pretty obvious choice.

And what the fuck are all these green dots showing up on my control panel???
Click to expand...

If we are going just on sound quality, they are boomy and mushy sounding to me. I don't like the attack or ring on a mahogany drum (or guitar for that matter). Now build quality, the Stage Customs are indeed everything you mentioned. At their price point, they are indeed very well built and a great value. However, you'll find their bearing edges are not nearly as nice as the edges you find on the Recording or Maple Custom. Back to his original question, he was comparing the sound of the woods, not the hardware. Phillipine mahogany (aka, lauan) does not finish like a harder less porous wood does and splinters... therefore sharp edges and nicer finishing of the shells is very difficult and why when a maker wants to use Phillipine mahogany (Phillipine mahogany is not mahogany but a name given to various filler woods) to save cash yet make the finish of the drum look better they often use an outer and sometimes inner ply of a harder wood (Beech, Birch, Basswood, Falkata etc.) which will sand better. All that to say, the Stage Customs are not a true mahogany, have a rounder bearing edge, and do not tune liek the higher end Yamaha drums. They use Phillipine Mahogany which is a porous filler wood and I find it to be boomy. :p
 
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Whatever you guys dont seem to like thebiggianthead but he has given the best advice in this forum. Half the guys that read this forum are salesmen anyways so why dont you just listen to them.

I think that the poster was taliking about playing metal ? If you are playing metal with 5Bs or whatever big sticks then get a set with thick shells that does not suck. Probably a yamaha recrding set or one of those big tamas.

Basically get a good set first and pick the woods out later from the good sets available in your price range. Birch sets have more attack. But a crummy birch set is going to suck more than a good maple set and vice versa.

If I was playing metal or some loud music and I needed a drumset that could cut through a wall of guitars and record well I would be looking at some used sonor kit. Those kits have thick shells and thick shells are what you need if you are really going to smash them. On thinner shells the shell will kind of overload and there will be less dynamics available to you although the sound might be sweeter.

So get a good set of drums with thick shells that are quality drums (not begginer line) and be done with it.

IMO it is laughable to laud the particular characteristics of one wood or another without also talking about hoops (stamped or cast) bearing edges, heads and what style you are going to play.

But I am an asshole and I laugh alot at the lamers. YMMV.
 
Another perspective!

I forgot who but someone in this forum hit the nail on the head! BUDGET! Really it all has to do with what you can afford and the style of music that you play. Plus I think the someone else mentioned hardware and this is certainly an important point.

Your trying to go after a certain sound but that isn't easy to accomplish. I still say a mid range set of drums, with good heads and tuned properly, will sound better than a top notch kit that isn't tuned well. Get something middle of the road and experiment with tuning.
 
Don't think anybody actually answered your question about the kit so I'll throw in my 2 cents. Gavin plays Sonor SQ2 drums. Very nice, very expensive. They are "Canadian" Rock Maple! (there is a difference) He uses coated Emporer batters and clear Ambassador reso's on his toms. Powerstroke3 clear batter goes on his base drum. His snare is also an SQ2 however it is 6 ply Birch. Again coated Emp batter or occasionally Pinstripe. His snare reso is a hazy ambassador.
 
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