.

I have read birch are designed for studio work. I play live acoustic and in my own practice space mostly. I have tried Tama Granstars and I really didn't like how much attack they had and felt like they lacked body, but those are REALLY thick drums.
they do like studio work, but ive teched for peopel who have birch drums live and they work well :) could also look into beech and mahogany? :) yeah thick shells have a higher fundamental pitch ive found.
 
The DW Performance lacks just a bit of the midrange warmth and resonance, but you should try one out if possible. DW Maple/Mahogany hybrid fits your criteria to a T.
Also another vote to try the Ludwig Legacy Mahogany as well.

Disclaimer: I am not a DW Fanboi!
 
For metal, there's always Stainless Steel.... Muahahahahahahahaha!
 
Are Pearl Reference drums worth a go? They have mixed in Mahogany and round over edges with the bigger diameter drums? The Reference are thicker than the Reference Pure but I have read Reference Pure are more for recording and small gigs, so I would go with Reference.
you seemed pretty determined on that particular kit, you should just get that
 
No I’m not set on anything. If you read the whole thread you’ll notice those particular drums include a number of things that have been suggested to me. This is why I brought them up. I’m open to any suggestions.
honestly any drum can sound like any drum. Every drum is resonant, every drum can sound "warm" with the right heads and muffling and every drum is projecting. It's a matter of hardware preference, tiny sound differences and most importantly appearance that are the biggest differences. Just buy any drum you like and you will like it. if you are after a particular sound then get some mics and a DAW because processing and effects are the biggest sound alterers, not drum material or how "projecting" and "warm" the kit is.
 
I have read birch are designed for studio work. I play live acoustic and in my own practice space mostly. I have tried Tama Granstars and I really didn't like how much attack they had and felt like they lacked body, but those are REALLY thick drums.
Yes birch is focused and cutting aka pre-eq’d, which is quite the opposite of what your after.

Any heavy ply maple kit would suit your warm, resonant, projection needs.
 
Another option would be Sonor, SQ1 is not very customizable but you could get SQ2 and make a custom birch drum set, you can also select other wood, shell types, and shell thickness, finish, hardware. I have included the link to both of those drum lines.

Sonor SQ1
Sonor SQ2
 
What I am after:
- projecting
- warm
- resonant
- low fundamental
- large diameters
Everything is great here...except projection generally means thick shells. Which counters the warmth/resonance/requirement. Warm, resonant, low fundamental...large diameter thin shells will give you all of this. But projection too? If you play unmiced, thicker shells will offer more "cut" If you play miced then absolutely thin FTW

TBH I don't know that there's that much volume difference between thick and thin shells. Maybe certain frequencies will be accentuated, but overall decibels (not perceived volume) IMO are not too far from each other. Perceived volume will normally go to the thicker shell for most perceived volume. Which doesn't necessarily mean it's louder on a decibel meter.

The less mass something has, the lower fundamental it will have, fact. So right there thin shells have less mass and generally a lower fundamental. Thicker shell, more mass, higher fundamental. Lug/hardware weight comes into play here as well
 
Everything is great here...except projection generally means thick shells. Which counters the warmth/resonance/requirement. Warm, resonant, low fundamental...large diameter thin shells will give you all of this. But projection too? If you play unmiced, thicker shells will offer more "cut" If you play miced then absolutely thin FTW

TBH I don't know that there's that much volume difference between thick and thin shells. Maybe certain frequencies will be accentuated, but overall decibels (not perceived volume) IMO are not too far from each other. Perceived volume will normally go to the thicker shell for most perceived volume. Which doesn't necessarily mean it's louder on a decibel meter.

The less mass something has, the lower fundamental it will have, fact. So right there thin shells have less mass and generally a lower fundamental. Thicker shell, more mass, higher fundamental. Lug/hardware weight comes into play here as well
Hi Uncle Larry I did want to add that sensitivity would be at stake the more plies added.

It’s known that more plies give more projection, which is why increased plies were popular in the 80s and 90s amongst arena rockers, ala Ludwig Coliseum 10 ply and Eric Singer snare 😉.

Thin shells are more sensitive/responsive and less projection generally.

7247B822-4278-45F8-B250-D4AAECEFDC30.png
Source: http://www.drumarchive.com/Pearl/PearlMWGUIDE2.pdf
 
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DW Design Series might fit the bill nicely. Shells are slightly thicker than the Performance and Collectors Series drums and they project really well. All North American maple, graduated triple flanged hoops. Great all-around drum kits.
 
Strange, you think Ludwig Classic Maple toms have too much attack?

Avoiding kits that have die-cast hoops is a real bummer. Some of the best-sounding kits have die-cast hoops, like the USA Custom, Tama Star Walnut, and Tama Walnut/Birch.

I've always thought DW drums sound good tuned mid to low, so a Performance Series might be a good choice for you.
 
Is there anything to their HVLT shells for being any extra lower in fundamental than other shells of the same thickness? Just curious.
I'm not certain what the ply orientation does for the drums but the Design Series do low tuning well. They project wonderfully and produce a thunderous, open sound. You need to replace the stock heads to achieve this but that's standard practice for the majority of buyers anyway.
 
There in lines the real question of this thread: how much louder are thicker shells vs thinner shells? Perhaps it’s only a mere fraction.
I'm going with not a big volume difference between thick and thin shells. It's based on nothing, except my gut feeling.

This test would make a GREAT episode of "Sounds like a drum". Then maybe we can get a real definitive answer. With a Db meter.

Ransen you raise a good point. I was kind of disregarding that aspect due to the fact that this kit is for metal, which I'm assuming isn't heavily dependant on sensitivity. Maybe I'm off there.
 
They are what I grew up with (80’s and 90’s drums). The thinner drums of today just sound wimpy to my ears.
I'm certainly not one to comment on drums, but I think that observation is something that applies to "stuff" in general

I think it was Keith Code (motorcycle racer) who put it as "good handling is predictable handling"

I'm a diver by trade and when students ask me about my fins, I tell them the technicals, but then I'm honest that it's my opinion b/c I've been diving the same fin type for abt 40 years so I know exactly how they handle so it feels to me like they "handle better" - I know what each little flick does

and even the stuff we are exposed to during our formative years just "feels right" even if we didn't use that specifically..."now THIS is what they are supposed to sound/feel/handle like"

synthesizers, delays, etc do that too
 
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