Starclassic or Neusonic?

Agreed, but it does seem Tama is more geared towards rock/metal. They have a superb lineup (like Pearl), but I do notice more heavy hitters playing Tama. Pearl has its share as well. Just an observation...
Adam Deitch - Lettuce, The Adam Deitch quartet. I recommend Egyptian Secrets from the latter.
See what a pocket player does with Tama.
 
we are talking about the W/B kit. OP mentioned it. Now if we’re talking starclassic maple or walnut then that’s another story. they are higher end drums and no longer in the mid range. But we’re not talking about them. and yes, pearl masters are mid range drums, no way to sugar coat it.

Star, Masterworks, SQ2, USA Custom, Legacy, PHX, Collectors all boutique, all not considered, all meant to sell other high end, midrange kits. They’ll put their best on stage with a name you recognize in a band you like to sell you a midrange or high end where the money is made. I’m sure they love their lineups, but it’s a business first and foremost.
 
Adam Deitch - Lettuce, The Adam Deitch quartet. I recommend Egyptian Secrets from the latter.
See what a pocket player does with Tama.

Along with another guy rocking a Pearl or Gretsch in the same genre and the thrasher not rocking a Pearl or Gretsch, but banging on a Tama...
 
I currently own a Renown, a Design, and a Pearl DMP. I love Ludwig, but the Starclassics are phenomenal. Question: is the Tama worth another $300-$400 over the Neusonic (Ludwig changed the spurs on the new releases)?

StarClassics are a standard mass kit. These compete with pretty much every other standard weight kit.

Neusonics are a low-mass kit. They compete with other low-mass kits by GeorgeWay, INDe, and Pearl's fiberglass offerings.

Before you begin ranking kits based on preference, you might want to decide whether you want a standard mass kit or a low mass kit, and then begin comparing your options.
 
StarClassics are a standard mass kit. These compete with pretty much every other standard weight kit.

Neusonics are a low-mass kit. They compete with other low-mass kits by GeorgeWay, INDe, and Pearl's fiberglass offerings.

Before you begin ranking kits based on preference, you might want to decide whether you want a standard mass kit or a low mass kit, and then begin comparing your options.
After the bass drum legs change I'm not sure if it's really a low mass kit... It's got the Classic Maple spurs. Also 2.3mm hoops, not so "low mass" tom mounts.. the lugs and shells are pretty thin though. I don't think it's particularly light nor heavy.
 
Will you want to add drums later? Best I can tell that Neusonic is only available in those 3 piece sets with no additional drums in the line.
 
After the bass drum legs change I'm not sure if it's really a low mass kit...

Indeed... I don't think that Ludwig knows anymore either.

It's fair to say that the Neusonic is a bit heavier than competing low-mass kits and lighter than competing standard-mass kits. Akin to what Pearl does with their fiberglass offering.

Personally, if I wanted a modern low-mass kit, I'd be calling Josh.
 
Indeed... I don't think that Ludwig knows anymore either.

It's fair to say that the Neusonic is a bit heavier than competing low-mass kits and lighter than competing standard-mass kits. Akin to what Pearl does with their fiberglass offering.

Personally, if I wanted a modern low-mass kit, I'd be calling Josh.
I’d like to try a George Way drum one day, they look great. wish they imported some to europe
 
OK: so one day I'm at guitar center listening to all the kids play every set in the drum room (kinda buggy) BUT..another kid decides to play the neusonics...best sounding kit (to my ears) in the store...i mean NOTICEABLE...warm...punchy...bottom end.
 
OK: so one day I'm at guitar center listening to all the kids play every set in the drum room (kinda buggy) BUT..another kid decides to play the neusonics...best sounding kit (to my ears) in the store...i mean NOTICEABLE...warm...punchy...bottom end.
Wish my guitar center had... well, stock.
 
QC is what matters and Tama does an excellent job of that in all their factories.

Being a long time automotive and equipment technician, I have an aversion to things made in the US as they tend to lack QC.
Almost everything I've repaired that has recall issues or build flaws was made in the US.
I started as Ford factory trained tech and fixed things like the front bumpers falling off the F-150 because they used a speed clip to hold it on and used the wrong size, the steering lines cross threaded into the worm gear, the leaking gaskets all over the 4.0. When I went to Toyota it got marginally better and I say marginally because the Toyotas built in the US had a lot of NVH complaints and poor QC versus their Japanese manufactured versions.

Don’t forget those two piece spark plugs shooting out the heads like a cannon lol, and the never changing shitty design of the leaking third brake light ?. Although I’ve gotta say my 2011 5.0 F150 XLT SCREW has been almost problem free sans the never ending sync issues requiring me to pull the fuse to reset and the blend door actuator that ford wanted to charge a grand to replace ?. Said the whole dash had to come out . A $45 part , YouTube and 3 hours in my driveway and it got done . I’ve since done 6 others in under an hour ( center one behind and below audio stack) it’s a known issue .

Back to the question . Get the Starclassic!
 
we are talking about the W/B kit. OP mentioned it. Now if we’re talking starclassic maple or walnut then that’s another story. they are higher end drums and no longer in the mid range. But we’re not talking about them. and yes, pearl masters are mid range drums, no way to sugar coat it.
If you say so... :rolleyes:

?
 
Agreed, but it does seem Tama is more geared towards rock/metal. They have a superb lineup (like Pearl), but I do notice more heavy hitters playing Tama. Pearl has its share as well. Just an observation...
Every brand has and wants to have drummers from varying genres, in order to sell drums to a maximum possible audience. That said of course, Tama has rock and pop and metal drummers in their portfolio. But then, they also have Peter Erskine, Billy Cobham, Ulysses Owens Jr., Rafael Batata, Simon Phillips, Morten Lund and some more well known jazzers under contract. Same with Mapex where you find guys like Adler and Hamilton among others... It's business.
 
I think the neusonics sound great

I’m just not a Tama fan unless it’s the star Series. I’m to point where I just want drums that are manufacturer where the headquarters of the company. And my last experience with Tama was bad, and getting the issue sorted was also a pain the butt.

But with the Ludwig kit, when I had an issue, I talked to someone directly and had the issue resolved the 2 days later,

Ludwig all the way
 
I love the sound of the Neusonics, but wish the hardware was better and the finishes were a little more exciting. They are the definition of plain.

I'd totally get the Starclassic W/B. Even though they cost more, you're getting much more for your money.

@Fritz Frigursson, as for American made drums, I wish I could say they are better than other countries, I really do. But if I'm being honest, that's just not the case anymore. Sure there are exceptions, but overall I'd say that Japan and Taiwan are better at QC and selling the best drums for the money.

It's not because Americans aren't capable of producing better products...it's because the price of doing business in America is so much higher than China or Taiwan. Everything costs more here, the drum parts, the labor, the unions, the HR departments, the rent, the utilities, the mountain of regulations and government taxes...it's insane. Not to mention the exchange rates.

If you gave both the USA and Taiwan a goal of making a $1000 drum kit, Taiwan could do it for hundreds less using identical materials. That's essentially why USA-made drums cost more, although I wish it wasn't so.
 
I have a question for those that have stated their origin of manufacture preference: do you apply that to every thing you buy, or does it only matter when it's drums?
Also, those against China manufacturing: do you patently avoid anything from China, or again, is it just drums?
 
Tama Starclassic or a Ludwig-tricky-NeueName-from-marketing. After evaluation of the sonics, you’re left with hardware. It’s a no-brainer to those of us who have dealt with lousy hardware design and manufacture.

F43A81F8-8604-4C60-A843-6FE7B0BA0A43.jpeg301F7EDF-18AA-499F-AB46-8F6526A95DBB.jpeg
 
OK: so one day I'm at guitar center listening to all the kids play every set in the drum room (kinda buggy) BUT..another kid decides to play the neusonics...best sounding kit (to my ears) in the store...i mean NOTICEABLE...warm...punchy...bottom end.

First, it's amazing that ANY kit at GC sounds good! With the exception of the Hollywood store - where there are pros in the department who keep the drums sounding their best - GC staff is not known for their ability/desire to tune.

Re the sound, the Neusonics sound WAY better than they should, being at the bottom (price-wise) of the US-made Ludwig lines. It is common to equate quality and sound with price, but Ludwig has bucked that trend with the Keystones and now the Neusonics. They did the same back in 1968 with the Standard series. I've used Classic Maple and Keystones on tour and in the studio, and look forward to moving 'down' to my Neusonics when the gigs resume and on the next tour.

The Starclassics sound good. i don't think the OP would be disappointed with either. For me, the Neusonics make the sound *I* hear in my head when I imagine drums being played.

From a practical standpoint, the Tama's will probably fetch more of their original value than the Neusonics, due to that perception of inexpensive US-made drums (or that someone may think the Ludwig's are made in China to keep the price down.) It's too bad people don't listen with their ears, but that's how it is. So if resale is a consideration at all, the OP should choose Tama. But he'll always be thinking "wow, those Ludwig's sure sounded great..."

_drum__Neusonics.jpg

Note: Those are the original Signet spurs on the kick, Ludwig has now changed to the beefier Elite flip-down spurs on all new Neusonics. This is my 'local' kit and they're fine for bars & clubs, but my 24" touring kick will have the new spurs! :)
 
Tama Starclassic or a Ludwig-tricky-NeueName-from-marketing. After evaluation of the sonics, you’re left with hardware. It’s a no-brainer to those of us who have dealt with lousy hardware design and manufacture.

View attachment 101265View attachment 101266
Where'd you find these pics? These finishes are not currently on the Tama website.
 
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