Keep or not

I know it's mostly personal preference but I have a pearl forum (are they just renamed pearl exports?) made of poplar. It sounds great I'm wondering is it worth upgrading (if it is an upgrade) to pearl decade maple which are 100% maple shells? Poplar sounds great especially with the set up I have but just wandering what's your experience moving from a biginer set to a mid level drum set? And did you notice the differences? My other question is this.. I've done some research and have not shown up any results..
my kit says pearl forum heat compression shell system what's that mean? And could it be why my kit sounds great?

Heat compression means that the shell was cured with heat in a press during construction. All ply shells are cured in a similar fashion.
The Decade maple drums will sound only slightly different than the poplar.
I suggest that you wait until you have more money saved and move to a pro level kit.

to my ears most mid level kits way excel beginner kits. if you have the dough i would upgrade to the decade, or buy a used pro level kit.

There is most probably a difference in the hardware on the drum, the lugs, tom holders, etc. Those things make a difference too, just like the type of wood that the shell is made of. I like the sound of poplar shells. Peace and goodwill.

opentune said:

to my ears most mid level kits way excel beginner kits. if you have the dough i would upgrade to the decade, or buy a used pro level kit.

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I agree. However, if you scour eBay - you can find loads of Pearl Master kits (used) for as low as $1000. The used market is replete with all kinds of pro gear being blown out. Of course, a Pearl Decade Maple can run you a lot less for a shell pack, but you're not that far away from pro level stuff if you know what you're looking for.

Chadack said:

I know it's mostly personal preference but I have a pearl forum (are they just renamed pearl exports?) made of poplar. It sounds great I'm wondering is it worth upgrading (if it is an upgrade) to pearl decade maple which are 100% maple shells? Poplar sounds great especially with the set up I have but just wandering what's your experience moving from a biginer set to a mid level drum set? And did you notice the differences? My other question is this.. I've done some research and have not shown up any results..
my kit says pearl forum heat compression shell system what's that mean? And could it be why my kit sounds great?

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The Pearl Forum was a step down from the Exports for most of the line's history, but that doesn't make them bad drums. I played a Forum set for six months at a church and never felt that it couldn't do anything I asked of it.

Obviously, a move from this set to maple anything is nominally a step up. But a lot depends on your playing sitch. If you're mostly a hobbyist drummer, far be it from me to tell you you *can't* spend money on drums that make you happy, but playing drums by yourself, you may not notice the difference as much as with other musicians.

I have owned three sets of drums in my life. The first was a Taiwanese stencil kit with cheap everything, a true beginner's set. I moved up from that to a first-generation Yamaha Stage Custom. Big difference, but not just in the way they sounded with the band. They also had a much better tuning range. Then, a few years ago, I picked up a set of vintage Ludwig 3-ply shells. Even better. Just rich, full, vibrant.

The heat compression thing is just a marketing gimmick meant to sound impressive. Most drumshell making involves some kind of heat along the process, and Pearl figured they could spin a bit of ooooh factor out of describing it on the Forum badges.

Thanks for the replyes, yeah Ive been a drummer since 2007 and in a band looking for a better sounding drum kit because we will be gigging and I feel it's time to upgrade.

Chadack said:

Thanks for the replyes, yeah Ive been a drummer since 2007 and in a band looking for a better sounding drum kit because we will be gigging and I feel it's time to upgrade.

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That's fair enough. Go ahead if you feel it's the right thing for you.

I will just say though that at a gig, nobody is going to be able to notice much of a difference in sound (at least, unless you're playing with a decent PA with a good engineer) and upgrading for that reason alone seems a little redundant to me.

I think the Forum kits are good gigging kits. They sound fine and they are solidly built, with fairly bulletproof hardware. As far as I'm concerned, that's what matters when playing out. I'd rather play a sturdy kit I can rely on and not get too worried about getting scratched or marked than a higher-end kit I have to i) worry about and ii) has some delicate mounting system.

BacteriumFendYoke said:

That's fair enough. Go ahead if you feel it's the right thing for you.

I will just say though that at a gig, nobody is going to be able to notice much of a difference in sound (at least, unless you're playing with a decent PA with a good engineer) and upgrading for that reason alone seems a little redundant to me.

I think the Forum kits are good gigging kits. They sound fine and they are solidly built, with fairly bulletproof hardware. As far as I'm concerned, that's what matters when playing out. I'd rather play a sturdy kit I can rely on and not get too worried about getting scratched or marked than a higher-end kit I have to i) worry about and ii) has some delicate mounting system.

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Part of me definitely agrees with BFY, but of course, I rarely if ever gig my Stage Customs anymore, it's my Ludwigs as often as not. If you decide to buy great-sounding, beautiful drums, why not share them with the world?

I also think that if a set of drums sounds so good as to get you pumped about playing, then it's the set you ought to be performing with, giving you that slight attitudinal edge.

alparrott said:

Part of me definitely agrees with BFY, but of course, I rarely if ever gig my Stage Customs anymore, it's my Ludwigs as often as not. If you decide to buy great-sounding, beautiful drums, why not share them with the world?

I also think that if a set of drums sounds so good as to get you pumped about playing, then it's the set you ought to be performing with, giving you that slight attitudinal edge.

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My recent gigs have been making me think far more about my gear as well as what I've been reading here the past few months. Funny thing is, I was eying a set of used Stage Customs as a replacement for my PDPs. If for no other reason than weight, I'd be ahead of the game. I can't say they will sound any better live, considering the reworking that has been done on my drums already, but PDP/DW stuff is heavy and just carrying them to and fro this past weekend made me really appreciate the light weight aspect of the Stage Customs. The shallower BD would be nice too. My 22x18 BD fits in the car, but with very little wiggle room.

I really like the idea of having a set left set up and another ready to go, but totally get the why leave the nice set at home argument too. Just when I think I got something figured out, threads like this mess me up! LOL!

Hi Chadack and welcome to DW. It would be a step up going to the Decade because you have the hardware from your other kit because the Decade only comes in a shell pack that includes a snare. The shells have a lifetime warranty and for this price range is unheard of. I have tried this kit and like the base drum and mounted toms tuning range's. Floor tom and snare are not bad. The snare with better wires and heads would make a solid or better mid level snare IMO. The Decade also comes in some nice colors. The yellow kit was nice looking and Pearl offers six different finishes and if they are like the yellow, all will be outstanding.

Force3005

Added: http://www.musicradar.com/reviews/drums/pearl-decade-maple-series-drum-kit-646635

force3005 said:

Hi Chadack and welcome to DW. It would be a step up going to the Decade because you have the hardware from your other kit because the Decade only comes in a shell pack that includes a snare. The shells have a lifetime warranty and for this price range is unheard of. I have tried this kit and like the base drum and mounted toms tuning range's. Floor tom and snare are not bad. The snare with better wires and heads would make a solid or better mid level snare IMO. The Decade also comes in some nice colors. The yellow kit was nice looking and Pearl offers six different finishes and if they are like the yellow, all will be outstanding.

Force3005

Added: http://www.musicradar.com/reviews/drums/pearl-decade-maple-series-drum-kit-646635

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I have made a 10$snare sound awesome with very little overtones tuned at high tensions but not choked so a snare isn't a problem for me I have a poplar and maple one very fat sound but tighten the wires and it's a tight rock sound it doesn't have the dip that other wooden snares have I've seen
I just did a bearing edge work on it and this snare sounds better then my the two others I have pearl custom alloy sensitive steel snare and my Joey jordison signature snare ... though not sure if thats of any significants?

If your kit sounds great why are you upgrading?

Only you can decide why you want or need something else.

Are you wanting a different sound? different sizes? different finish? or the status of a different badge on your kit?

When my drums sound good I could care less about any of that stuff.

If you have the money available I'd say this. If you think it will motivate you to play more do it. Or, use it as a reward after logging a specific amount of practice to really get you on the kit .

Like the advice of many drummers on here, my thought is if you're looking to improve your sound and are going to be gigging, buy a used pro kit. I've seen five piece Maple Custom Absolutes going for $1000 or less used, same as Pearl Masters. The beauty of buying used is you get a pro sound but will be less concerned with the inevitable scratches and dings that come with gigging.

I bought an Ayotte kit for $1300 CAD 13 years ago and it was the best value I've gotten on any gear. The same kit would be $6000 plus new.

Above all else though, invest in a pro snare and pro cymbals first and foremost. Mid-level line toms can be tuned to sound great, but cymbals are what they are.