How do you feel about drums made in Taiwan?

Well, I quit spending money years ago. I now play an 80's $40 Jap snare called Mirage, sure it sounds a bit wet but no-one has ever questioned the tone.
 
johnny850413 said:
Hello folks,
I'm a Taiwanese and working in a drum manufacturer in Taiwan.
Sorry for my poor English first, there would have some strange grammar in my post lol.

I started this job as a sales a year ago.
I feel really surprise, because I found so many Taiwan companies are doing the OEM for world famous brand from 80's or earlier.
Like TAMA, DW, Yamaha, SONOR, Sakae etc.. Even Pearl has their own factory in Taiwan.
There are also some Taiwan brand you might know like Dixon and Mapex. (Actually Mapex produce their drums in Mainland China)

I'm a guitarist playing in a semi-pro band and can't play drum.
So I don't really know if drum sounds terrific.
I had seen some guys prefer the USA or Japan made drums more than Taiwan.
I'm wondering how do you guys feel about the drum's quality or craftmanship which made in Taiwan.
The factories here have drum making experience over 20~30 years, and using the same material as USA or Japan factories.
But there isn't any Taiwan brand success like TAMA or DW.
As a Taiwanses, this make me feel really depressed :((
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Hi there Johnny,
People in the industry have known about Taiwanese drum building for a very long time. I own several drum sets that were made in Taiwan over the last 20 years. The quality is very high! As good as anything built anywhere, in my opinion. As you point out, many famous brands have used Taiwan for certain drum lines over the years. And no one questions their quality level. You should be very proud of this positive association.

It takes a lot of marketing to create a new brand that will succeed. High quality, marketing skills, and popular artists all help a brand succeed. I'm not sure there is a need for another brand at this point in time. Dixon is a good example. The drums and hardware are high quality, the sound is wonderful, and now they have a few artists. But in the end, with low visibility and lack of market penetration, will they succeed? No one knows at this point in time. I wish them luck!

Good luck to you as well, please stay positive! The drum industry is a great place to be!
Take care!
 
From around 2003-2011 I exclusively played drums made in Taiwan. I was really happy with the quality, and still own two of the Snares from that era that I use all the time. The reason I switched is because the brand I was endorsing was one of these OEM companies that manufactured drums and parts for other brands. I worked with the USA distribution office directly, and it became clear that the head office in Taiwan was loosing interest in pushing their own brand in favor of selling to others. As my career grew I found myself needing a company with more of a global footprint as anytime I had to get on a plane for a tour I couldn't use my brand of choice as they weren't available in most parts of the world.
 
As far as I know my drums are made in Taiwan. Well, my toms and bass drum.

American compaies will keep their TOTL stuff US made because of history and not selling out all jobs. It's costly though, so they they have to make their money somewhere.

Depending on the brands they have different selling points, but any type of drum can practically be made anywhere. It just isn't.

In general it seems as though QC is better, so itæs not about that.

Now, the drum business is a small business. I'm sure if we look at our other toys plenty of them are made in Taiwan.
 
johnny850413 said:
I had seen some guys prefer the USA or Japan made drums more than Taiwan.
I'm wondering how do you guys feel about the drum's quality or craftmanship which made in Taiwan.
The factories here have drum making experience over 20~30 years, and using the same material as USA or Japan factories.
But there isn't any Taiwan brand success like TAMA or DW.
As a Taiwanses, this make me feel really depressed :((
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Most folks here in the US don't really have a connection to Taiwanese brands, nor a compelling reason to switch.

Dixon does makes a nice kit, but not nice enough for my George Way (An overwhelmingly Taiwanese manufactured kit) to be at risk.
 
trickg said:
So here's a question: if the place of manufacture wasn't on the label, would anyone be able to tell the difference?

Some people get wrapped around the axle about that kind of thing. Personally, if it's made well and functions well, I'm not inclined to care much about where it was made. These days there's not much of a quality gap in manufacturing based on country of manufacture because manufacturing tools, techniques, and equipment are becoming more and more standardized.

Case in point, my main trumpet, a Jupiter 1600i Roger Ingram model - a medium bore trumpet designed for accuracy towards bright, cutting lead and commercial type playing - is made in Taiwan. I didn't buy it based on where it was made - I bought it because the design suits the kind of playing I primarily do, and when I played it, it played well. It also represented a really good value - from a fit and finish perspective, it seems to be made to a higher level than other pro-level horns made here in the USA.
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"Wrapped around the axle"? ? That's a first for me. I shall steal that.
 
It's not the product or where it's made today, for me it's whether the product has planned obsolescence in it's design and manufacture that is more to the point. with that comes bad customer intent and bad for the planet. not just drums, everything.
 
johnny850413 said:
Hello folks,
I'm a Taiwanese and working in a drum manufacturer in Taiwan.
Sorry for my poor English first, there would have some strange grammar in my post lol.

I started this job as a sales a year ago.
I feel really surprise, because I found so many Taiwan companies are doing the OEM for world famous brand from 80's or earlier.
Like TAMA, DW, Yamaha, SONOR, Sakae etc.. Even Pearl has their own factory in Taiwan.
There are also some Taiwan brand you might know like Dixon and Mapex. (Actually Mapex produce their drums in Mainland China)

I'm a guitarist playing in a semi-pro band and can't play drum.
So I don't really know if drum sounds terrific.
I had seen some guys prefer the USA or Japan made drums more than Taiwan.
I'm wondering how do you guys feel about the drum's quality or craftmanship which made in Taiwan.
The factories here have drum making experience over 20~30 years, and using the same material as USA or Japan factories.
But there isn't any Taiwan brand success like TAMA or DW.
As a Taiwanses, this make me feel really depressed :((
Click to expand...
Wow!! Thank you so much for your time and consideration. I just got my first Endorsement with a big company and the drums are made in Taiwan and they are amazing. I have my own company OutlawX and Plan on coming to Taiwan for that reason? To find passionate people like yourself to Maybe start a New Line.
Supraman5x14 said:
No need to be depressed. As you stated so well, many of the major drum companies have built their products in Taiwan for at least 40 years now. I myself have played Pearl products for over 30 years now, and they were made in Taiwan. This includes drums as well as very sturdy Hardware. So if you are concerned that there really isn't a homegrown brand of drums and percussion products, then perhaps you and some friends can get together and start your own Drum Company. ?
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Yes Please. I would be so grateful. Maybe it can be called OutlawX
 

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I feel like many of them look great and sound great with good heads and tuning. No issues in my opinion with playing Made in Taiwan drums.
 
yabut.. who makes Maple/gum shell drum sets? (I know ...a few do)
Who hand hammers B20 cymbals? (I know.. Dream Contacts do)
yet,
not everything comes from "one place"
not quite-yet. maybe never.
Could happen might not.
it's consolidation gone wild not sure that's a good thing
but it's going in that direction-fast.

a Vic Firth MJC4? (only one..; )
 
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For decades on all products, I sought out the Taiwan Chinese version over the mainland Chinese version. For musical instruments, Japanese stuff above that.
That's historically speaking.
 
If it's well built drum that looks and sounds good, I don't care where it's made.
 
I just hate all those oval Made In Taiwan stickers on hoops that are impossible to get off without acetone. And the cheap drum heads.

The drums are fine :)
 
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