Sleishman Drums

drummingman

Gold Member
I have been doing alot of research on Sleishman drums lately. I am seriously considering buying one of their sets as my next kit.

Does anybody here play Sleishman drums? What do you think of them and their tuning system?
 
I don't play them, but I have tried them, & they're good drums. I personally subscribe to the sonic & tuning benefits of free floating drums. They're not for everyone, especially those that value the flexibility of being able to tune top & bottom heads independently, but unless that's you, I wouldn't let that put you off. My personal preference is to tune top & bottom heads the same, & a free floating system just makes that easier. The benefits of not having a ton of hardware bolted to the shell are worthwhile too, but that relies on the quality of the shell to realise that benefit.

You may also wish to look at Wacd drums superb free floating lug design. Gary's a great guy & will help you out.

Good luck, & I don't think you can go wrong which ever way you go.
 
Being a radial player I had been thinking of purchasing a set due to the fact that they have no hardware attached directly to the shells as well but I like my reso head tuned a bit higher than my batter head and because you cannot tune the heads different from each other on the Sleishman drums I decided against the purchase.
 
Being a radial player I had been thinking of purchasing a set due to the fact that they have no hardware attached directly to the shells as well but I like my reso head tuned a bit higher than my batter head and because you cannot tune the heads different from each other on the Sleishman drums I decided against the purchase.
You would also notice quite a difference between the shell resonance on the Sleishman & the Radials.
 
I always tune my top and bottom heads the same, so the Sleishman tuning system is perfect for me. If I had the money I would buy one of their sets right now.
 
It has just occurred to me that even tough the head itself would be tensioned the same for them to sound the same you would need the same heads on the top and bottom and any inconsistencies between heads would change the pitch as well, also after doing a tap test and fine tuning one side you would not be able to fine tune the other side without changing the first one, Is this correct or am I missing something.
 
It has just occurred to me that even tough the head itself would be tensioned the same for them to sound the same you would need the same heads on the top and bottom and any inconsistencies between heads would change the pitch as well, also after doing a tap test and fine tuning one side you would not be able to fine tune the other side without changing the first one, Is this correct or am I missing something.
It's true that maintaining exactly the same head pitch between batter & reso requires a similar mass head, but even with dissimilar heads, the Sleishman & Wacd systems work well enough in the real world. Heads with significant unevenness however are an issue, but they're an issue to normal tensioning systems too.
 
I have emailed Sleishman Australia twice to ask questions about their drums and have not heard back from them. I find this to be odd.
 
I played a set of these last night (pub gig) and they sounded awesome. The owner said they were blackwood (I think) but that's all I got to ask him before he had to go on, I sent the guy an email to find out more. The skins were rooted but they still played really sustained deep notes.
 
I have been playing Sleishman drums since 2000 and have had three different kits in that time.

I would be happy to answer any questions that you would like to post, but in general I will say the following:
The Sleishman system works exactly the way they say it does.
The drums sound better than any other kit I've ever played, including the top end drums from Pearl, Tama, Gretsch, DW etc
The drums are easier to tune and easier to detect if out of tune than other drums
They tune from one side only and the heads do respond together to tension changes
You do have to get used to the different way of changing heads, but it's not a big deal
The drums do have a very wide tuning rang and multiple sweet spots
They are louder than other drums and speak more clearly and musically
If you buy a kit you will never go back to other drums
Very little opportunity to play them in the US means that they remain a mystery to most drummers.
 
If I may interject something about the people who wouldn't buy it since they tune the same.

This only really applies if the top and bottom head are the same type of ply construction and thickness, such as having Remo Coated Ambassadors as both heads. If you want different tuning schemes, you just have to play around with the head choice to get the sound you want.

For example, if you want the bottom head to be tighter, use a head that is less thick as the top head. For an example, if you have a 10mil single ply on top, use a 7mil single ply on the bottom. Due to less thickness, the 7mil will be put under more tension (and therefore a higher pitch, in theory) than the 10mil.

Just giving my 2 cents. I already am sold on getting a Sleishman custom kit, and have been for a while, since they are so easy to tune, and more than anything, I can get surprisingly good low-end on all of them. Which is a must since I plan on a small kit (18" kick, 8", 10", 14" toms).

... I'm not so sure on buying a snare drum from them just yet: I tune by feel for that. It all depends on if they can construct a snare that has little to no sympathetic vibrations, while maintaining the sensitivity that they claim to have.
 
Looks like Sleishman is working on getting some better distribution here in the U.S. Their website shows something coming from nashville in that direction. I'm curious to see what because I have been looking at these drums for awhile now and would consider actually purchasing one if they can get something going over here.
 
I'm really interested in Sleishman drums but they won't get back to me. Are they not very good at answering emails?
 
Now that we have the tune-bot it could be interesting if someone could tune the top head to be in tune with itself and then measure if the bottom head is in tune with itself.
I suspect that drumheads are too inconsistent to guarantee that.
 
I'm really interested in Sleishman drums but they won't get back to me. Are they not very good at answering emails?

Why not call? Or Drum centre of Portsmouth sells their snares, maybe you can get in touch through them.
 
I just bought a set of Omega Series Fusion size drums from
a very nice guy off of Craigslist. It is the 4th Set I have owned
and I can clearly say that they are the nicest most natural and
full sounding drums I have ever played. I would recommend you
trying them if you can and that you will be impressed. I was in
contacted by the new distributer called "Mothertone" in Nashville.
They are still setting up their distribution with Sleishman and should be
getting them out to stores soon. The double pedal they make is also
a very unique design. Love these drums man.
 
There have been delays, especially in the US, but if you can get one you surely should, I've got 2
A funk 8/10/12/14 with a 20 BD
A rock 10/12/14/16 with a 22 bd

They are phenomenal, and surely not heavy as some guys suggest...
I won't trade them for the world. They're also very few for sale around the world....

Being a radial player I had been thinking of purchasing a set due to the fact that they have no hardware attached directly to the shells as well but I like my reso head tuned a bit higher than my batter head and because you cannot tune the heads different from each other on the Sleishman drums I decided against the purchase.

I'm sorry but this is not really an argument is it ? Did you actually played on them ?
The pitch you are looking for can be achieved by using different or same heads....
What you have missed is help and guidance, not hardware...

I hop you'll try them and then reply...

Why not call? Or Drum centre of Portsmouth sells their snares, maybe you can get in touch through them.

Have you tried on facebook ?
 
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Did you think of Guru drums???? Undrilled shell with the option to tune diferent batter and reso
 
How much does a set of Guru drums run anyway? They look absolutely AMAZING! Which usually translates to absolutely out of my price range.
 
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