Is it a High-End or Mid Kit?

Daphfz

Senior Member
Hey guys i own a 7piece black Pearl BLX drum kit, its 40 years old, shells are in perfect conditon. I was just wondering if it would be considered a Pro kit or a mid kit? this has been on my mind for some time, because it sounds fantastic, many people have told me that it sounds much better then the mapex orion, and i myself have never heard the mapex orion series, but i think its a pro kit. so can anyone help me out?
 
Does it really matter? I mean seriously....this isn't the first time I have heard talk about whether someone owns a pro or mid range kit, do people feel they play better if told they had a Pro A kit?


To the OP......yes it was considered a Pro kit back then
 
well i did a little investigation and from what i can gather the pearl blx was a precursor to the masters series and was one of pearls flagship lines at the time so i guess it would be a high end kit.
 
Nope it dont really matter because i love the sound, even if it aint a pro kit by todays standards, this is the best kit i've ever played and i'll be playing it for atleast 20years more :). Its about 40yrs old, give or a take a year lol, its 5th hand :).
And "tomtom", pearl DID make drums under the name Pearl then lol, look it up or ring em :). heres some pics:
 

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40years old!? From 1969? Did Pearl make drums under the Pearl name back then? A BLX? ... hardly.

Where did this attack come from? Pearl is like the largest drum manufacturer on planet earth, don't you think they have a rich history like your precious Gretsch?
They've been making Pearls since the fifties.
Anyway, BLX'es were top of the line, lacquered 6-ply Birch (MLX were Maple). They used superhoops instead of the regular triple-flange.
I think like Peter Criss from KISS used a blx in like the early 70's, which would make it more than thirty years old.
 
Are the skins 40 years old too?

; )

Go on, treat your faithful kit to some new skins - it'll love you for it, and reward you with beautiful sound!!!
 
Where did this attack come from?
Not really so much an attack, but come on. Pearl was founded by Katsumi Yanagisawa, who began manufacturing music stands in Sumida, Tokyo on April 2, 1946. In 1950 Katsumi shifted his focus to the manufacturing of drums and named his company "Pearl Industry, Ltd."

By 1953, the company's name had changed to "Pearl Musical Instrument Company," and manufacturing had expanded to include drum kits, marching drums, timpani, Latin percussion instruments, cymbals, stands, and accessories.

Katsumi's eldest son, Mitsuo, joined Pearl in 1957 and formed a division to export Pearl products worldwide. To meet increasing worldwide demand for drum kits following the advent of Rock and Roll music, in 1961 Pearl built a 15,000 sq ft (1,400 m2) factory in Chiba, Japan to produce inexpensive drum kits which bore the brand names of over thirty distributors like Maxwin, CB-700, Crest, Revelle, Revere, Lyra, Majestic, Whitehall, Apollo, Toreador, Roxy, and Coronet.[1]

In 1965, Mitsuo formulated a long-range plan to bring Pearl to the forefront of the percussion industry. Under this plan, Pearl would 1) develop new products with quality equal to or better than products offered by established brand name companies; 2) install the latest automated machinery in the China factory to increase production; 3) establish a sister factory in Taiwan; and 4) establish a worldwide sales and service network.

As part of this plan, Pearl introduced their first professional drum kit, the "President Series," in 1966, and in 1973, the Pearl Musical Instrument Company of Taiwan became operational. You can find this, and more, here : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Drums As far as Kiss and Pearl, the first Kiss album was in 1974......as far as these drums being pro-grade. Yes, they are. As far as them being 40 years old. I seriously doubt that.
 
as far as these drums being pro-grade. Yes, they are. As far as them being 40 years old. I seriously doubt that.


Yeah, after seeing the pics, if i had to guesstimate the hardware looks like it's from the mid-eighties at the earliest, but i'm no Pearl historian. My guess is twenty five years old.
 
Nope it dont really matter because i love the sound, even if it aint a pro kit by todays standards, this is the best kit i've ever played and i'll be playing it for atleast 20years more :). Its about 40yrs old, give or a take a year lol, its 5th hand :).
And "tomtom", pearl DID make drums under the name Pearl then lol, look it up or ring em :). heres some pics:


And that is what it is all about!
 
Lol the hardware has been changed out a few times on them :), i was told the orgianal kit was bought as a shell pack, but hey u knows wat to believe, its like chinese whispers lol. Thanks for ur help. and How do i reach the left pedal? I just do :p lol
 
awesome kit!

I don't know about 40 years old though... probably less... maybe it's from the 1970's? I'm no historian either, but that's my guess.
 
give or take a year i said lol, so either 38 or 39yrs old :)
 
I had a BLX kit in white. The BLX range were from the mid eighties, they were Pearls high end birch kit (the MLX being it's maple brother). From what I remember it was an excellent kit.

Mark
 
That seems interesting as it has 70's badges
 
This style BLX kit was introduced in 1983, this style of badge was used throughout the 70's eighties and into the 90's.

Mark
 
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