Bo Eder
Platinum Member
Last week in another thread I said I was getting some lightweight hardware for my Zep kit. Well I have it all now and wanted to report in about it. I had used Yamaha hardware in the past (the old 7-series from the late 80s) and was impressed with it then. But this time around I got:
(2) SS-740 snare stands
(2) CS-650 straight cymbal stands
The 740 hi hat
The FP9500C bass drum pedal
And Yamaha's lightweight throne I found used for $40. It can be seen here:
http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-DS550U-DS-550U-Adjustable-Cushion/dp/B006G3LKTA
I got the stuff pretty cheap (even for new) so I couldn't resist getting all new stuff to replace my aging Tama stuff. And now that I've been playing it for the last couple of days, here's my thoughts:
Yamaha just seems to engineer stuff right. I hate to say it (risking sounding like a fanboy) but everything Yamaha does is engineered right. I'm not saying it's better than the other big manufacturers, but we've all seen general hardware from third party companies that just isn't up to snuff. You can't say that about this stuff. Every wing nut works, nothing is loose. The attention to detail, even on this low-line stuff is well thought-out. The snare stands are just that. Lightweight and sturdy, nothing is wasted in the design. And they use rubber tips on the basket, so my rack tom rings just fine in it.
The cymbal stands are quite nice. The legs open up pretty wide. Ironically, these actually weigh less than say, Gibraltars' flat-based straight cymbal stands. And they are more stable since they actually have tripod-like legs. I had an issue with flat-based cymbal stands since I needed the stability (not from playing, but from people moving around me and grabbing stuff to help move it) so I can't do flat-based hardware for safety reasons (having my 17" thin crash take a dump was not a fun experience).
The hi-hat stand is smooth and quiet. Yamaha does this thing with the three legs - usually, the legs would form a triangle if you looked at the three points on the floor, but in this case, it's more like a square, with the pedal being one part of the square. I think they did this to accommodate players with double pedals, but the whole stand is incredibly sturdy regardless, so you wouldn't have to worry about that being an issue.
I talked about the 9500C pedal in another thread, and in a word, I think the pedal is awesome. I did note that the Yamaha stock beater is lighter than other offerings out there, so if you like the feel of the pedal, just pick up another Yamaha beater for a spare. As soon as you try another beater, it will throw the action off a bit causing you to have to readjust the whole pedal again. I had gotten used to the DW two-sided beater on my Tama Camco pedal but when I put the same beater in the Yamaha, it was much too heavy.
The most impressive piece though, is that throne! It's cheap, and it's light. But I set it up, put the memory lock where it should be and tightened it up and it works great. When you fold the legs out, there's no wingnut to tighten it at the bottom. So that is free to move a bit. But once it was set, it didn't budge. This thoroughly impressed me. For years I've had that DW9000-series throne base with a Roc-n-Soc top and as much as I loved it, I didn't like hauling it around! The throne itself in my trap case made up about 30-pounds of it. Yes, I agree you need good support. But I think you can achieve it with less weight. And I found out I could.
In fact, all this hardware is so light, it all fits in my ONE trapcase! (I was splitting it between my trap case and a hardware bag). And the one trapcase has to get loaded into a pickup truck when I go out so anywhere I can save my back from the lifting is worth it. And since the hardware is of smaller diameters, it's a match for my vintage Ludwig Zep kit - you don't see the usual "chrome forest" - and I like that.
The stuff works great, and is light. Am I impressed? Heck yeah!
(2) SS-740 snare stands
(2) CS-650 straight cymbal stands
The 740 hi hat
The FP9500C bass drum pedal
And Yamaha's lightweight throne I found used for $40. It can be seen here:
http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-DS550U-DS-550U-Adjustable-Cushion/dp/B006G3LKTA
I got the stuff pretty cheap (even for new) so I couldn't resist getting all new stuff to replace my aging Tama stuff. And now that I've been playing it for the last couple of days, here's my thoughts:
Yamaha just seems to engineer stuff right. I hate to say it (risking sounding like a fanboy) but everything Yamaha does is engineered right. I'm not saying it's better than the other big manufacturers, but we've all seen general hardware from third party companies that just isn't up to snuff. You can't say that about this stuff. Every wing nut works, nothing is loose. The attention to detail, even on this low-line stuff is well thought-out. The snare stands are just that. Lightweight and sturdy, nothing is wasted in the design. And they use rubber tips on the basket, so my rack tom rings just fine in it.
The cymbal stands are quite nice. The legs open up pretty wide. Ironically, these actually weigh less than say, Gibraltars' flat-based straight cymbal stands. And they are more stable since they actually have tripod-like legs. I had an issue with flat-based cymbal stands since I needed the stability (not from playing, but from people moving around me and grabbing stuff to help move it) so I can't do flat-based hardware for safety reasons (having my 17" thin crash take a dump was not a fun experience).
The hi-hat stand is smooth and quiet. Yamaha does this thing with the three legs - usually, the legs would form a triangle if you looked at the three points on the floor, but in this case, it's more like a square, with the pedal being one part of the square. I think they did this to accommodate players with double pedals, but the whole stand is incredibly sturdy regardless, so you wouldn't have to worry about that being an issue.
I talked about the 9500C pedal in another thread, and in a word, I think the pedal is awesome. I did note that the Yamaha stock beater is lighter than other offerings out there, so if you like the feel of the pedal, just pick up another Yamaha beater for a spare. As soon as you try another beater, it will throw the action off a bit causing you to have to readjust the whole pedal again. I had gotten used to the DW two-sided beater on my Tama Camco pedal but when I put the same beater in the Yamaha, it was much too heavy.
The most impressive piece though, is that throne! It's cheap, and it's light. But I set it up, put the memory lock where it should be and tightened it up and it works great. When you fold the legs out, there's no wingnut to tighten it at the bottom. So that is free to move a bit. But once it was set, it didn't budge. This thoroughly impressed me. For years I've had that DW9000-series throne base with a Roc-n-Soc top and as much as I loved it, I didn't like hauling it around! The throne itself in my trap case made up about 30-pounds of it. Yes, I agree you need good support. But I think you can achieve it with less weight. And I found out I could.
In fact, all this hardware is so light, it all fits in my ONE trapcase! (I was splitting it between my trap case and a hardware bag). And the one trapcase has to get loaded into a pickup truck when I go out so anywhere I can save my back from the lifting is worth it. And since the hardware is of smaller diameters, it's a match for my vintage Ludwig Zep kit - you don't see the usual "chrome forest" - and I like that.
The stuff works great, and is light. Am I impressed? Heck yeah!