Yamaha Stage Custom Nouveau - Q's!

[groove meister]

Im considering upgrading my current kit to the Yamaha stage custom nouveau!
I have a few questions, hopefully some people out there have answers? Maybe if you own the kit or whatever!
Well i was considering getting the kit in a Cranberry red lacquer, i think that means the outer ply will be made of birch. The matte finishes have the outer ply made from oak... what would the difference in sound be like between the matte & lacquer finishes?
Id love comment from people who have/have played the kit in the different finishes!

Thanks guys!

[Les Ismore]

I'm guessing you haven't seen the matte finish in person yet, it really doesn't look as good as the lacquer. The grain of the wood on the matte finish is actually sticking out, its not smooth and it makes the set look cheap IMO. The matte looks dull and lifeless to me. I've not played a matte finish set yet, though I can't imagine there would be a noticeable difference in the sound between the two, well... not enough to make you want to choose the matte finish anyway.

[groove meister]

Hey there, nah ive never seen the matte finish in real life! But thanks very much for that piece of information man, because asides from maybe a minor sound difference, i was very interested in which one would be better visually! I think you'd be right on that, if seen pic's of the matte versions that looked quite cheap

[Drummer Karl]

there won`t be a big difference in sound. Mostly they use those different outer plies of wood because of buisness, just looks different.
okay, of course there will be a minimal difference in sound, oak sounds "louder" and brighter. and birch is also such a bright wood, but has more warmth than oak. but as I said, there won`t be this huge difference in sound. I would choose oak as the outer ply, looks so awesome!

Karl

[Les Ismore]

Heres what i think is the prettiest finish for SCN

[groove meister]

^^^ im in love! Man, i really want this finish.. anyone got more pics of this finish?

[Les Ismore]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-Stage-Custom-Advantage-Nouveau-Red-Drum-Set-5pce_W0QQitemZ290019747859QQcmdZViewItem

[photon]

I have the Cranberry Red lacquer finish myself and I love it....the matte finishes on the SC just don't cut it for me.

[rendezvous_drummer]

I love the Yamaha Stage Custom kits, my favorite finish is the red cranberry and the fade brown amber

[Drum-Head]

I love the Yamaha Stage Custom kits, but I love the Matte Raven Black finish. IMO, it's the nicest finish other than the natural finish.

I share your opinion, I've got the "Natural High Gloss" finish on mine - my favorite!

[aceman]

Drummer Carl is right, There won't be any difference in tone being the oak and birch are outer plys which are there strictly for cosmetic purposes. ( different wood grains). I have a stage custom with regular chrome lugs in fade saphire blue and love the kit to death. I also have a Maple custom absolute with nouveau lugs in close to the same color that your looking at with the stage customs. I really wish I HAD NOT gotten the nouveau lugs now on the MCA's. they look great but the more I change the heads the more irritating it gets with lugs hanging and dangeling everywhere and trying to line them all up at once. What a headache at times! Either way you go you'll love the stage customs. the high and mid tones are outstanding and with g2 coated over g1's they sound unbelievable...good luck!

[thumper]

I just bought a set of Stage Custom Nouveaus with the matte black oak finish, and I like the low maintenance required to keep them looking good. A little Pledge furniture polish keeps the dust off, and I love the subtle look of the wood grain. (It has different hues under various lights-see pic)
I used to own a plastic wrapped set of Tama Stagestars, and they were a real PITA to keep clean. I'm not missing the waxing, and/or Brasso applications before each gig ;)
I'm not certain if the same effort is required to maintain a birch-polished finish, but I know that if I do (god forbid) get a scratch on one of my drums, it won't be nearly as noticeable as on a gloss finished kit. (no offense to anyone!)

[Drummer30]

I have the black matte and love it, the scratches just need a little black marker and their gone. Don't forget though to talk to a couple different stores' sales reps because some places will be able to get you a finish that isn't directly in the cataloge of colours. I had the option of rydeen colours and a couple others but went matte instead of laquer. Your choice though, it really comes down to if shiny or solid colour is your style.

[thumper]

My kit was a previous rental, so the price was substantially lower than brand new. I was about to buy a Pearl ELX in ruby fade (Beautiful finish!), but I noticed the YSCN's at the same time. A good friend of mine (a drum instructor) plays the SC Advantage with the gloss cranberry finish, and he swears by Stage Customs, so that helped me make up my mind. Also, I asked a few guys who worked in the store what their honest opinion was concerning sound, quality, etc, and they both said they would choose the Yamahas. (One of them owns the exact same kit). As the Pearl ELX kit was about $100 more, I took their advice to heart and am so happy that I did!

[murphinelli]

Tip: If ya'll ever break a plastic/composite lug....which I did the first day I had my set...bought it used from ebay....call up Yamaha parts and they'll send you some new ones for free (these are "under warranty"). I talked with the head dude there and he stated that some of the early sets had some inferior lugs. Since then they have changed the manufacturer. Another A+ for Yamaha customer service.

I haven't broken another lug, but have plenty of spares just in case.

[GarrettEvans]

I just bought a SC Fusion used for what I think was a steal...$500. It must be a couple years old, or it a split lug, because the lugs are the standard type we all grew up with. I really fell in love with the sound, especially when the heads were tuned really loose.

I sold my Pearl DLX (1986) kit to recoup...the shells on that were HUGE! The eighties crack me up...smallest tom a 12" up to the giant 18" floor. I loved that kit, I had it for damn near 20 years...it was just to big for what I needed.

I hope the Yamaha keeps it's value as long.