drum shells

A

anpangman92

New member
hey i got a few questions. i've been playing on maple all my life and i've never heard birch drums. are they really that dark and warm? i'm thinking of getting either a tama starclassic or gretsch set(but not sure which one to look at), anyone care to give some advice? also, what do you guys mean by "ear fatigue"? i've always played drums and my ears have never felt tired.
 
maple all ur life? woooooo.....tht sounds pretty gd man. u sure u dunno wat brich sounds like? honestly i can't bloody tell the diff, but according to wat i've read, birch has a quicker attack and decay, their more focused. their a somewat softer wood than maple. some people describe them as naturally EQed and some engineers prefer maple than birch in the studio because of this. steve gadd made the birch recording custom very popular in the 80's and yamaha claims is the most bought drumset of all time. man i love the starclassic man! i think the die cast rims give it a very focused sound, grestch i dunno man but hey i'm sure if ur cute the auntie at ranking wld give u a go. on the drumset i mean hehehe
 
me? i'm only thirteen. maybe she might. :lol: how much do starclassics cost? are they any cheaper than DWs? i heard that a DW 6 piece with hardware's about 6k. my budget for starclassics are about there too.
 
You're only 13 and you have budget of $6k for drums?!? You're one blessed dude!

Can I be your friend? Or can I be your dad's friend?? Hahaha!!!
 
ahha. i've started playing drums since i was 5. been playing on a tama swingstar back when i was 6. been saving and asking for a better drumset since i was 8 but never got down to actually buying it. go figure. i saved for about 5 years hardcore. waddya expect my friend? haha. oh yeah blurred. that kinda helps, but not much. i never tried recording. i don't know what EQed sounds or what is actually is. HAHA.
 
Hmmm... impressive! My Ludwig Super Classic Custom, bought in the US also doesn't cost as much as the Starclassic. Rock on dude, have fun with the new set!
 
yeah, but what i need to know is the price range. anyone knows how much it's gonna cost for a starclassic with iron cobras? =) help much appreciated.

bebop:it seems like you've been all around the world buying gear SIS(corrected that). istanbul, the states. woot. i wish i had the chance to go on a gear buying tour. i wouldn't mind picking up an OCDP acrylic if i drop by the states long enough. =)
 
a Starclassic is NOWHERE near as expensive as a DW..
6k is prob not enuf for a DW, but shd be more than enuf for a Starclassic.
Birch is GENERALLY cheaper than maple too...

I have a maple kit, but i now wish i had bought a birch kit, as my taste is more to the birch sound...
 
hmm that's good to hear that starclassics are cheaper. 6K is enough. the lady at ranking quoted me 6K for a satin series complete with hardware. 6 piece, 2 boom stands, dw 5000 series double pedal and hihat pedal with a throne. maybe cause i'm younger than most buyers are. haha. it's a workshop series, lower end, not the collectors.
 
Haha! One day my friend you will have the chance to travel and buy stuff I'm sure. I wasn't even playing drums yet when I was your age.

Important thing about the purchase of drum is where they're made and QC'd (quality control). Since Tama is Japanese, it's of course better that the drums are made there. It used to be that you couldn't get good stuff from Taiwan, but I think that their manufacturing quality has somewhat improved and grown. But I still have serious doubts about stuff made in mainland China. Sometimes we can buy good drum shells, but the metal parts are seriously flawed. Eg, the part can look like it's chromed on this outside, but zinc on the inside. Zinc is really soft metal and breaks very easily. Things like Bass Drum spurs (legs) should not be made of zinc, cuz they have to withstand a heavy load and much vibration. So when the price is cheaper, check extremely thoroughly.

By the way my friend... I'm a sis, not a bro! Hahaha!! :wink:
 
Wow. This is a great subject. Something I know a lot about, so hold on I might bore you.

I used to work in a music store in Australia and I have also played Nothing but birch drums for 15 years. In my shop we were both a Tama and Gretsch dealer. Prices of drumsets are similar in dollars to Singapore but are a little cheaper here.

Both of the drums you mentioned are great sounding drums. It is true that Maple drums are "dark and warm" but I have found that birch has more attack and focus but also projects its sound a lot further, being louder. Personally regardless of the price, I prefer Birch.(remember sound is a personal thing neither is better or worse)

Tama Starclassic drums are AWESOME. Die cast hoops, great colours, brilliant hardware etc, etc. Made in Japan and sound great. Try out a 22 x 18 kick drum and tell me it is not one of the best sounding kicks you've heard. (sorry I'm now dribbling from the side of my mouth, haha)

The Gretsch Catalina Birch kit is fantastic. Very cool classic look, Great sound, good hardware (Gibraltar). Made in China, BUT still great quality. And about half the price of the Tama.

Tama have just released the Superstar which I currently own which is made in China but has close to All the features of the Starclassic, eg: Birch shells (outer ply is Basswood, for looks), die cast hoops, star cast mounts and they look, feel and sound great. And half the price of a Starclassic.

If you have any more questions, just ask. I'm happy to help a fellow drummer.
 
WOOT hot drummer chick. you can be my friend ANYTIME. ahha. =) oh yeah boogie thanks. hmm then i suppose i'd get a tama then. i'm currently playing a swingstar. not a bad kit. it kinda lasted me the past 7 years! kinda rusted and scratched. I like the performer birch black and red sparkle. In australia if i'm not wrong the exchange ratio of sing to aussie is about 1.27 : 1. IF i'm not wrong. gretsch is made in china? that kinda sucks. i always held gretsch in high regard, thinking they were great and all. HAHA. i'd probably get the starclassic, OR, if i'd burn a few more grand i'd get a DW. depends on how much i'm letting old faithful go and how much my mom's gonna let me burn. ;)
 
The exchange rate is right, but what I mean is things that cost $100 AUS in Australia tend to cost $100 SIN in Singapore regardless of exchange rate. Its just that I have found Singapore to be a little cheaper, especially with hardware.
 
OIOI watch what you say. WE'RE NOT CHEAP OK> :lol: yeah ok thanks alot boogie. i go check it out. =) i'm not sure bout the tone, but i'll go check it out at sweelee or something. hope they don't give me crappy quotes again.
 
haha yeah that works fine. just say the prices here are better! haha. solves all the problems. how come you're in australia and you come to a singaporean forum?
 
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