Versatile Wood??

[smoney22]

Hey, right now I'm trying to decide what wood I'm going to go with for my new set. I need something that's good for everything from Jazz to Metal. I was thinking about Birch, but is that a bit too bright for Jazz? Any help would be appreciated.

[Class A Drummer]

I think but im not sure that maple has a warmer over tone, and birch has a bit more of a punchy sound. I persoanlly would go with maple. I have a maple set and it is great for hard rock, and jazz (gotta love the warm sound).

As far as i know, you can really use any type of wood you want in any genre of music. That includes using a bonham replica in a jazz song.

[rhydianjlewis]

I don't think you need to worry too much about wood type for styles of music. It won't make enough difference when compared to heads. You could make a birch kit sound good for jazz or metal dependent on your choice of heads.

However, maple has a reputation for being the 'best' (or most balanced overall) wood for dums, so a maple kit will do you well for any genre. However, a birch kit will work almost as well for jazz, and mabye better for rock/metal (brighter, more attack?).

Birch is generally cheaper though.

[Ben Tormey]

Birch has more high end, slightly less low end. Maple has a more even tone. If versatility is what you're after then I guess you'd choose Maple.

[harryconway]

Type of drum head selection is going to influence your sound way more than maple vs. birch. Buy whatever kit "you" think sounds good, and make that "your sound".