Your thoughts on Intermediate Kits

On a whim, I just purchased a new set of the Meridian Maple Studioease 5 piece that included the free extra floor tom (making it a six piece, which is what I wanted). I have other vintage drums (Ludwigs 1966 and 1970's) that I have always played so I am interested in seeing how I will like them.
I will tell you that when I bought them on line from Musician's Friend on Thursday there were two different deals going on. When it was all said and done, I paid $590 total, so I don't have a ton of money invested.
I did look through all of the used kits on Guitar Center, local shops and some on ebay. I didn't see anything that I felt was a much better deal than these. I have never played these type drums before so I can not speak to quality; we will see.
 
On a whim, I just purchased a new set of the Meridian Maple Studioease 5 piece that included the free extra floor tom (making it a six piece, which is what I wanted). I have other vintage drums (Ludwigs 1966 and 1970's) that I have always played so I am interested in seeing how I will like them.
I will tell you that when I bought them on line from Musician's Friend on Thursday there were two different deals going on. When it was all said and done, I paid $590 total, so I don't have a ton of money invested.
I did look through all of the used kits on Guitar Center, local shops and some on ebay. I didn't see anything that I felt was a much better deal than these. I have never played these type drums before so I can not speak to quality; we will see.
You got a heck of a deal on those drums. I have Saturn's and love them. Please let us know what you think after you have had them for a while. Congratulations! What colour did you get?
 
And, how do you 'know' they are a pro-level kit? Modern Imprialstars are not, from memory.

I also found:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-197..._Percussion&hash=item3a6e2d77a9#ht_500wt_1180
Basic 1st thing I look for, is 10 lugs on the kick. Now, this goes all the way back to my youth, in the 60's. Ludwig, Rogers, Slingerland ... all their top end drums had 10 lugs per side (per drum head) on a 22" kick. Gretsch round badge the only exception, 8 lugs.​
The 80's Imperialstar, 10 lug ... and let's face it, Stewart Copeland was not gonna play anything "less" than a pro-level kit. The Premier kit you linked (nice drums) 10 lug. I'd buy those, before I took home a Meridian or a 3007 kit. I just landed a Premier "Baron" kit, from 1975. 24, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18. $970 landed.​
And indeed, the "new" Imperialstars are not pro-level. You simply don't get "new" pro-level drums for $600 - $700 dollars. Just ain't gonna happen. About the most affordable pro-level drums, new, were the Yamaha Oak Customs ... for a while you could land those for $1300 - $1500 ... but those days are gone. I don't think you can find them that cheap, new, any more.​
 
Hey Harry. Go look at Trilogy's new Meridian kit in Cobalt Blue, with a hand rubbed lacquer finish, and full accompany of lugs. That thing kicks my old Imperialstars, wrapped in plastics butt. :)
 
You got a heck of a deal on those drums. I have Saturn's and love them. Please let us know what you think after you have had them for a while. Congratulations! What colour did you get?

Thanks, I am looking forward to playing them. I just went with the transparent natural lacquer finish. It looked fine to me plus......they were in stock and ready to ship! Those are an inpressive display of drums you have there! When you gig, how many do you take?
 
Thanks, I am looking forward to playing them. I just went with the transparent natural lacquer finish. It looked fine to me plus......they were in stock and ready to ship! Those are an inpressive display of drums you have there! When you gig, how many do you take?
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Well It really depends of the gig, and how much room there is. I wouldn't want any less than 6 pieces. I have all different sizes, so I can make up whatever I want in Arctic White. I even made a 4 piece Jungle kit out of a 18" floor for bass, snare, 10 tom, 14 floor, that I can take to someone's house to practice with.
 
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Well It really depends of the gig, and how much room there is. I wouldn't want any less than 6 pieces. I have all different sizes, so I can make up whatever I want in Arctic White. I even made a 4 piece Jungle kit out of a 18" floor for bass, snare, 10 tom, 14 floor, that I can take to someone's house to practice with.

Well, not to hijack this and get back into the big vs.small kit debate but.....after experimenting with different configurations over the many years I have been playing, I have settled into a six piece as my preference. I find, whether I am playing motown or pop or harder rock, usually this works fine for me.
 
I say Merridians. Don't like the Tom mounts on the Sonors.

I agree. That three-point mounting system with the rubber thing touching the drums REALLY STINKS. I have a similar mount on my Gretsch Catalina Jazz kit. It is the only thing I do not like about that kit, and I really dislike it. Besides being a pain to work with, it makes the tom sound worse. Peace asnd goodwill.
 
On a whim, I just purchased a new set of the Meridian Maple Studioease 5 piece that included the free extra floor tom (making it a six piece, which is what I wanted)..


WOW and you did not start a thread about it?? Congrats! definetly let us know how you feel it compares to your vintage kits and if yoou like it or not.
 
WOW and you did not start a thread about it?? Congrats! definetly let us know how you feel it compares to your vintage kits and if yoou like it or not.

Thanks, yea, I wish I had them for tonight!
 
Hey Harry. Go look at Trilogy's new Meridian kit in Cobalt Blue, with a hand rubbed lacquer finish, and full accompany of lugs.
I'd love to. What and/or who is Trilogy ? Provide me a link, perhaps. I just went to the Mapex web site ... and as far as I can tell, Meridian (maple and birch) kicks come with 8 lugs, not 10.​
You yourself, as a Mapex Saturn owner/player, should know the difference between the pro-level lines (Orion and Saturn) and the intermediate level kits (of which the Meridians are) ... If I was gonna buy a Mapex kit, I'd buy a Saturn kit, also. Here's one for $998 ... with free shipping .... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mapex-Satur..._DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27c1d3c566#ht_5262w and it's a six piece kit. Heck of a good deal ... way better deal than spending $700 on a new Meridian kit. Certainly worth splashing the extra cash for ... a pro-level Saturn ... and again, it took me all of 5 minutes on eBay (actually less) to find this deal. They say the kit is B stock. A few scratches/scuffs ... I don't mind. In my world, drums get scratches and scuffs on them. The only "trailer queens" I own ... are my Gretsch round badge ... with five other kits to gig with, I don't see the need to pull the Gretsch kit out of my living room.​
Actually, only two things stop ME from pulling the trigger on these Saturns. 1) I'm hopelessly in love with blondes. To de-wrap a 6 piece Saturn kit ... and refinish it in a natural maple ... is a lot of friggin' work. And 2) My RMV kit basically serves me the same purpose (still need me a kick drum for it) ... as it's a modern, contemporary drum set. AND it's a bit more obscure than a Saturn kit. Obviously. I've been watching eBay for a kick drum to match, for almost a year. But, I have the luxury of being patient and waiting ... after all, I have 5 other kits to play.​
An extra minute on eBay .... and I came up with "another" Saturn kit ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mapex-Satur...ultDomain_0&hash=item2c61cea93e#ht_500wt_1192 $799.99 + $95 shipping ... $894.99 total. Looks like the seller dropped the price, from an original $875. And this is a 6 piece kit also.​
 
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I'd love to. What and/or who is Trilogy ? Provide me a link, perhaps. I just went to the Mapex web site ... and as far as I can tell, Meridian (maple and birch) kicks come with 8 lugs, not 10.​
You yourself, as a Mapex Saturn owner/player, should know the difference between the pro-level lines (Orion and Saturn) and the intermediate level kits (of which the Meridians are) ... If I was gonna buy a Mapex kit, I'd buy a Saturn kit, also. Here's one for $998 ... with free shipping .... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mapex-Satur..._DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27c1d3c566#ht_5262w and it's a six piece kit. Heck of a good deal ... way better deal than spending $700 on a new Meridian kit. Certainly worth splashing the extra cash for ... a pro-level Saturn ... and again, it took me all of 5 minutes on eBay (actually less) to find this deal. They say the kit is B stock. A few scratches/scuffs ... I don't mind. In my world, drums get scratches and scuffs on them. The only "trailer queens" I own ... are my Gretsch round badge ... with five other kits to gig with, I don't see the need to pull the Gretsch kit out of my living room.​
Actually, only two things stop ME from pulling the trigger on these Saturns. 1) I'm hopelessly in love with blondes. To de-wrap a 6 piece Saturn kit ... and refinish it in a natural maple ... is a lot of friggin' work. And 2) My RMV kit basically serves me the same purpose (still need me a kick drum for it) ... as it's a modern, contemporary drum set. AND it's a bit more obscure than a Saturn kit. Obviously. I've been watching eBay for a kick drum to match, for almost a year. But, I have the luxury of being patient and waiting ... after all, I have 5 other kits to play.​
Sorry Harry. It is a new kit in the Show me your Mapex thread. It is a very nice finish. You are right, it is only 8 lugs. I know they left some of the lugs off the Meridian Birch compared to the Maple. I think on the snare, and the floors. Probably not a big issue on a bass considering most of us don't put much tension on them in the first place. You won't have to unwrap a Saturn Harry, buy you will have to scrape the lacquer and paint off. Myself I am not a fan of natural, but I know many people are. A little too bland for me. The finish on that kit at Drummersuperstore is also very nice. Lots of pizazz. That finish was my introduction to Mapex for the first time. You can't have blonds all the time. Live a little bit Harry. :) That is a painted on finish though. It is also B stock, so there might be some cosmetic issues. If you are interested I could ask my Buddy Brad there to find out what is wrong with it. :)
 
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I totally did not see the thing about the lugs.

As sticks mentioned, it doesn't matter as much on the bass. But the toms and snare.

I'll start looking at Saturns as a good option, although the finishes linked above..are ugly in my opinion.

And, unfortunately, those two Saturns that were linked..seem to be the only ones under $1200..

The search continues!
 
Now I'm a bit lost.

It seems like the Saturns are a bit out of my price range. I feel I have pretty acute hearing, not that of a professional, but enough to differentiate. I can tune guitars to pretty much any tuning by ear.

But, I don't feel that my playing ability justifies such an expensive kit. However, I don't want to be stuck with another, "POS" Beginner bopper..I'd like draw out rich tones and be able to have some flexibility with my tuning palate

I was starting to look at the Tama Silverstars again, but realized they have the low count lugs as well.

Balls!
 
Now I'm a bit lost.

It seems like the Saturns are a bit out of my price range. I feel I have pretty acute hearing, not that of a professional, but enough to differentiate. I can tune guitars to pretty much any tuning by ear.

But, I don't feel that my playing ability justifies such an expensive kit. However, I don't want to be stuck with another, "POS" Beginner bopper..I'd like draw out rich tones and be able to have some flexibility with my tuning palate

I was starting to look at the Tama Silverstars again, but realized they have the low count lugs as well.

Balls!

Well, in that case, I would definitely recommend a kit that has sturdy hoops meaning 2.3mm or better. Stuff like the Silverstars and maybe Meridians keep the costs low because of what we call value engineering. That's why they have 1.5mm hoops for instance.
 
Me thinks you might have Champagne taste on a beer budget. Plus I don't think you know what you want. Better wait a bit till you figure it out. Unless of course you want us to pick for you. :)
 
Me thinks you might have Champagne taste on a beer budget. Plus I don't think you know what you want. Better wait a bit till you figure it out. Unless of course you want us to pick for you. :)

I totally hear ya! The thing is, I really don't mind dropping this money now, as I really need a new kit.

My current Pearl 5-Piece has dents and chunks out of the bearing edges..but after spending countless hours on tuning, I actually got them sounding half decent. The bass especially. But, it is quite limited.

And, although I don't have a great idea of what I want. I do know the few specifics:

Extra lugs/quality
6-piece
Nice finish :)

And yes, I am right there with ya on the Champagne/Beer analogy.

Someone just find me the perfect kit, dammit!

Haha
 
I had to do a fire sale on a pro kit several years ago. I was suddenly in a huge money crunch and all but gave them away. It literally makes me sick thinking back on it.
So I say look at used and you will find a deal. It may be unbelievable.

If you just can't stand the thought of used my vote would be Yamaha Stage Custom Birch.
 
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