one of the key things is what wood is used. personally, the sound of maple wood is best for me. you may use various types of snares like metal etc but maple wood sounds the best for the toms and kick. i think some of the stage customs are maple. if that's so, it is a better buy than the forum series.
it also depends on the purpose of it. if it's home use, i go for price. if it's live, then maple is a better bet. there are other brands that offer maple wood at affordable prices. pdp is one of them.
Yamaha Stage Custom as in the new ones made of Birch?
If yes, get those. Way better than the Forum. Yamaha's construction and hardware are superior as well.
If you're working on a tighter budget, check out the Buy/Sell. There are good deals to be had. Stagestar, Swingstar, Exports, etc. All decent home practice kits.
In fact, I'm selling off my Export, just haven't had time to snap pictures. All disassembled, cleaned and ready to go!