Another 'x kit' vs 'x kit' thread!

darknessdude16

darknessdude16

Senior Member
Hi all!

Everytime I think i've decided on a new kit I change my mind, out of my choice I love the sound of all of them so its just based on price really and what everyone else thinks. After i've written this out it may help me to decide as I can see it all written out.

Just to let you know i'm basically after 10", 12" and 14" OR 16" toms (depth doesn't matter too much to me) and a bass of around 18" deep x "22 and the snare that comes with it doesn't matter because I plan on buying a different snare. One other thing to mention is that I may want to add an 8" tom at some point or have the possibility of adding other toms...

I should also point out that I play Rock/Metal and the kit would need to be appropriate for my playing and heavy-ish hitting.

So from my options I have the following:

Option 1: Sonor Force 3007 Kit (10", 12", 14", 22" with 400 Series Hardware): £749

Option 2: Tama Hyperdrive SL Custom (10", 12", 16", 22" with Roadpro Hardware): £699

Option 3: Mapex Pro M Maple (8", 10", 12", 14" 22" and 750 Series Hardware): £715

Option 4: Yamaha Tour Custom (10", 12", 14", 22" NO Hardware): £669

Okay so there we have it. I know it shouldn't really matter but I would like a nice finish on the kit and I i've found a finish on all the kits that I like with the exception of the Yamaha's, they have some finishes but they're not amazing also I dont believe that there is the option for additional toms on the Yamaha's even through special order from Yamaha.

I feel that for me the Mapex Pro M's would be the most cost effective whilst giving me what I want, they'd give me all the sizes I want plus the added bonus of the extra 8" tom. They come with hardware and I love the finishes. What does everyone think about the Mapex Kit?

What does everyone else think about these kits? Sorry to be like this but please dont suggest any other kits, these are my options and I want to narrow myself down from these kits that are available.

I know alot of you out there have these kits so let me know what your views are?

Many thanks

Yours

Adam x
 
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Sonor Force, 3007 Stage 3, Sizes 22, 10, 12, 16. I was an inch away from ordreing when I found my Gretsch. I love them.
 
Maybe we could collectively develop a 'forum sticky" that has this years drum kit playoffs.

It would be a double-elimination chart much like college sports. And then, the two best kits, regardless of price would be champion. That, or 3 charts:

Entry level, intermediate and high end.

Beginner:
Round 1! Yamaha rydeen vs Sonor 503

Intermediate:
Mapex pro m vs PDP

High end:
DW vs Pearl Reference

May the best kit win!
 
You realize you are opening a big ole can of worms here
Hmmm.gif
 
i'll take some of those worms!
best bang for the buck is easily the Mapex Pro M - you get great hardware included, the 8" rack tom like you want and - these drums sound tremendous - just play'em! - you'll see ; )
but that said - if you are willing to spend the extra money on hardware, the Yamaha's are every bit as good a drum as they make, really...
those are my picks, but in the end whatever sounds, looks and feels good to you is what counts, just be sure to play everything you consider before buying!
good hunting man!
 
rmandelbaum said:
You realize you are opening a big ole can of worms here
Hmmm.gif
Click to expand...

Rats! You discovered my transparent attempt at devolving this forum into another PDF :p

I guess I am just sick of questions like this (and about pedals). I was being sarcastic through semi-constructive means.

It won't happen again. ;)
 
I have experience with the kits you have mentioned. I practice on a Superstar (non hyperdrive) and it is a suprizingly good set of drums. Deep, punchy sound with plenty of attack and a wide tuning range thanks to the die-cast hoops. I know you said you don't care about depth (I tend not to either), but in the case of the hyper toms, I would make sure you play on them first if you havent already as they will sound a bit different for lack of a better word. I wouldnt buy them for this reason. The Pro M has a great thin shell maple sound with great finishes and hardware. The Sonor is a nice kit with a great mounting system. Warm punchy maple sound, had a lot of attack when I played them with the stock heads. The last kit I will comment on is the Tour Custom. I'll let it be known that I am a Yamaha guy and every kit I have owned has been made by them. That said, the owner of my local 5 star shop with whom I have a very good relationship with told me the best way to sell a Rydeen (Yamaha begginner kit) is to play it next to a Tour Custom. I dont know if its the 60 degree edges or if the stock heads are just not compatible with the shells (I'm really searching here), but they just didnt sound very good to my ears or his. The finishes arent that great either in my opinion. So I say Pro M or Sonor. Can't go wrong with either one, pick a finish and go have some fun.
 
I can't speak intelligently about the kits you mentioned as I have never owned those brands, but I still have 2 opinions... stay away from the hyper drive shells (I'm basing this on the fact that they are less than the standard depth, and for rock I'm pretty sure you're not gonna be satisfied with the shallower shells) and also I think that if you are only running 1 floor tom that you should try and get a 16 with whatever set you choose. 14's just don't have that low end meat you need for rock. I personally like the 8 10 12 16 intervals, I think they work great together.
 
Some good points in there guys, i'll have to consider some of the stuff.

Has anyone else got experience with these kits?

Adam
 
If I had to choose between these, I'd buy the tama for the 16" tom. 14" toms really don't go as deep and rumbly as 16" toms. You can make a big drum sound smaller, but you can't make a small drum sound bigger.

gruntersdad's advice was great too: the sonor force 3007 in 10-12-16 configuration.

I just got back from a weekend of gigging with a 10-12-16 configuration and I loved it.
 
I can say the Mapex Pro-M kit does sound nice (and they have good deals with free toms and thing like that).

The Tama kit sounds good too, but the shorter toms would be cool if you had other drums to use if the short depths didn't work for a particular situation.
As your only kit, I'd want to be really sure before buying one--even though they sound nice.

The Yamaha Stage customs look really nice, and have a more professional look than before, but just tapping them in the shop, it seemed like they'd sound a little thin, but that could be the heads that are on it.
With nice Remo or Evans heads on them, they may sound real good.

I have no experience with the Sonor kit.

Someone mentioned the Gretsch (Renowns?), but another kit to check out is the Ludwig Centennial.

Really nice finishes, good shell pack configs, and a nice price for an all North American Maple shell (same as that's used in the Classic Maple series). Veryreasonable pricing on additional drums if you wanted to add on in the future.

Good kit hunting!
 
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