worth it?

Meat,you tell him,respectfully,I'm not a drum shop,Im your friend,so don't put me in a position where our friendship is on the line....because YOU failed to plan.This guy is in a working band,that's going to tour,and he dosen't have a drum set?That's like a cabbie,not having a cab.Santa without a sled.....

Bands usually know well in advance, that they are going on tour,because that takes planning,unless it's a last minute ,can you guys jump in ,but you won't be getting paid,but you'll get great exposure BS kind of gig.

This guy made his problem,your problem,and friends don't do that to friends.....lesson learned.

Enjoy your new kit,what ever it turns out to be.....:)

Steve B
 
my friend told me he needed a kit to tour with soon, but I didn't know he meant immediately.

A kit to "tour with"? Tama Imperialstar drums to TOUR WITH? Who is he "touring" with? The Ice-Capades? Some street performers? Something isn't right.
IP52KH6-GXS.jpg
 
A kit to "tour with"? Tama Imperialstar drums to TOUR WITH? Who is he "touring" with? The Ice-Capades? Some street performers? Something isn't right.
IP52KH6-GXS.jpg

Oh come on now. A friend of mine cracked two of his acrylic shells during a tour, due to the constant temperature and humidity changes. He now tours with a CB kit. That way he doesn't have to worry about them. And he's definitely one of the best drummers I know. Just keep on mind, the kit doesn't make the player. If anything, touring with an Imperialstar instead of something nicer could be a good idea
 
A kit to "tour with"? Tama Imperialstar drums to TOUR WITH? Who is he "touring" with? The Ice-Capades? Some street performers? Something isn't right.

That was my first thought too.

But if I was going on tour where there was a possibility of others playing my kit, or I wasn't sure of how well my kit would be handled between gigs, I would probably use a kit like that too. Plus, if it's one of those rock gigs where you're just going to beat the crap out of kit anyway, how much does it matter?
 
A friend of mine cracked two of his acrylic shells during a tour, due to the constant temperature and humidity changes.

Where was he playing? One-nighters in Antarctica followed by a week in Tierra del Fuego?
 
he told me he liked the way they feel and sound. he also said the cymbals remind him of his byzance traditional cymbals.

do you guys think it's worth waiting till namm to buy? think anyone will release any new drums?
 
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I'm gonna drop in with my usual generic advice since it seems that you're ignoring everyone else's advice on the matter.

Yamaha Stage Custom Birch.
 
the only thing I ignored was about keeping the kit which is more of a personal matter. I should have just started a "which drums are better" thread. all tangible knowledge and opinions are taken in and valued highly. I know you guys care and know a lot.

I'll take a look at the stage custom birch drums as well.
 
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I tried to understand the point of this thread... I really did. Oh well.
 
So, how was your day today?
 
I'm not clear from your first post if you will have whatever your friend gives you for your kit AND willing to spend an ADDITIONAL 600 smakkers on top ( in which case what is the total amount you have to spend ?).... or are you just spending $600 ?

I gather from the advice given most people are of the view that selling your kit wont give you enough to buy a kit of better sound quality. I dont know if they are saying so on the basis of you ONLY having $600 or they know what kind of kit you have, and what you will get for it.

I think the manifest frustration shown in this thread is that you have asked for an opinion, people have given it, which on the whole is keep your kit and save for a decent one, and you have seemingly dismissed that advice and have indicated you want to buy a birch kit anyway.

The respone has been I gave you my honest opinion, if you already made your mind up to sell, why ask me "should I sell ?"

Maybee you are right, a better question may have been "whats the best birch kit for $600 (or whatever the amount is) as thats really what you want to hear.

If your wanting vindication that selling your kit is a good move the answer is clearly "NO"

For what its worth I think unless you go for a decent upgrade you will go backwards as the cymbals that come with a kit (even a good kit) are generally basic level ( Sabian b8 / meinl hcs etc) so I think you will go sideways kit wise and backwards cymbal wise.

If your friend has Byzances I am not sure why he wants your cymbals..... I think the only winner in this deal is him.

That being said do what you want to do, but I dont think you are going to get a second lot of advice. people are clearly fed up with giving advice that "people" (including you) dont want to hear.

I dont think I would push the point now, responding with a sigh really does suggest that you dont recognise how pissed off the responders are in having responded to your original question in good faith.

I would go as far as to say if you want decent answers in the future a thank you for those given and an acknowledgement that maybee you phrased the question badly in the first place (ie I WANT to buy a different kit not SHOULD I BUY) may be the way to go. I sure wouldnt push for an answer now...

but thats up to you...
 
he told me he liked the way they feel and sound. he also said the cymbals remind him of his byzance traditional cymbals.

do you guys think it's worth waiting till namm to buy? think anyone will release any new drums?

"Poplar is only about 540-650 on the janka hardness scale compare to maple which is 1480. It's not quite as soft as basswood or lauan, but definitely no match for maple.

Poplar was what the studios were using back before birch became all the vogue. It isn't uncommon to see a Tama Imperialstar in pristine shape because it spent 30 years in a studio.

I can't remember what those were made of, but I had one. I seem to remember "select straight grained hardwood." It was something like poplar or mahogany, but definitely not maple. I know people who raved about the kits and recorded with them, including Stewart Copeland and possibly Simon Phillips.

Back then it was the sound, not the wood or the "RIMS" system."

Thats because those Imperialstars were made out of luan,AKA Phillipine mahogany,.....not poplar,and were 9 plys thick 8-9 mm shells.The Imperialstars you ....had ,are basicly a reissue of a name,not an exact copy of 70's-80's vintage Imperialstars,which are nothing like the current ones.Copeland,DeVitto,and Phillips played 70's 80's vintage Imperialstars.They were TOTALLY different drums than yours.

Back in the late 70's early 80's,Tama Superstars(birch) were top of the line,followed by Imperialstars,which were played by many pros at the time.If you like that sound,then you need to buy some USED vintage Imperialstars,because the current ones,just won't sound the same.....no matter what you do .

Steve B
 
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the only thing I ignored was about keeping the kit which is more of a personal matter. I should have just started a "which drums are better" thread. all tangible knowledge and opinions are taken in and valued highly.. I know you guys know and care a lot.

And if you did,it would have turned into a fiasco ,right from the giddy up.There is no better,just different.We have tried to tell you this ad infinitum Meat,but you just circle back to it anyway.Just ask anyone here...PM them,if you want.

There is no better at a certain price poine,just DIFFERENT.And different ,is where your ears come in.NOT opinion.Better is NOT tangable,it's opinion......So I could say,my 90's vintage Tama rockstars,sound way better than a Tama starclassic maple or bubinga birch kit..

Does that make them better....or just different?Certainly the build quality,materials,finish,hardware, in fact,every feature is of better quality,but if they sound better to my ears,that dosen't MAKE them better........got it?

Steve B
 
Where was he playing? One-nighters in Antarctica followed by a week in Tierra del Fuego?

It was a winter tour that had them driving through the Rockys (I told them that was a bad idea). Some days were 40 below zero with the windchill. Coming straight out of the cold into climate controlled environments over and over for about 3 weeks certainly takes a toll.
 
So, how was your day today?

could be better lol.

what would you guys suggest me getting that wouldn't be a slight upgrade? would the catalina ash do it?

my buddy is keeping my drums and cymbals in his trailer so he doesn't have to move his in and out of his place. I hope they can withstand the weather.
 
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could be better lol.

tamadrm, I was doing some research about wood types and drums and I see that poplar actually has a very warm tone to it. the pearl export is made from poplar and asian "mahogany." I was listening to some birch drums online and they didn't sound as dynamic as poplar drums to me. is that odd? am I wrong? some companies mix birch and basswood to get an even warmer tone. an even better mix is birch and bubinga. why don't they use poplar in high end kits? I'm going to go to a music store later to see if they have any birch kits on display.

what would you guys suggest me getting that wouldn't be a slight upgrade? would the catalina ash do it?

my buddy is keeping my drums and cymbals in his trailer so he doesn't have to move his in and out of his place. I hope they can withstand the weather.

They do use poplar in high end kits.In fact,from the late 40's into the 80's some top end American ply drums, used poplar in their ply layups.Some of the best shells Ludwig ever made in the 60's ,70's were maple/poplar/mahogany ....mahogany/poplar/mahogany or maple/poplar/maple.The poplar ply,being the thickest.The same for Slingerland.Gretsch uses maple/gum wood,which is similar to poplar.

The current Ludwig Legacy line is maple/poplar/maple,and they are top of the line US made Ludwig drums,that cost thousands of bucks.

Asian mahogany or AKA Phillipine mahogany or luan.Luan is the same stuff used in hollow core doors,in your house.That outer skin is luan.

As far as kits,Gretsch catalinas are good solid kits.So are Silverstars,Ludwig club dates,or elements,Yamaha stage custom,Mapex mydentities,Saturns.It all depends on your buget..Buy used if you can,and you'll get more bang for the buck,but spend at least one third of the money on cymbals.

Steve B
 
If price is not an issue, and you have time to wait, I would go with some DW birch shells. You could also consider Some Mapex Saturns, as they had a run of Birch/Walnut, which is a great combo. This is my opinion.
 
DW...over priced ,and over hyped,and over 6 times the cost of a Silverstar or Yamaha stage custom birch set.The OP is a hobby player,why make that kind of investment

Steve B
 
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