New Set: DW Frequent Flyer

yammyfan

yammyfan

Senior Member
These Frequent Flyers were on sale at my local drum shop so I decided to jump on them. I have heard them live before and they sounded sensational.

I'm not usually a fan of fades or bursts but I really like this Tobacco burst lacquer. It's really well done. The smaller turret lugs are especially appropriate on this set.

I imagine that most people are familiar with this decade-old model but the sizes are 20 x 12 bass drum, 14 x 11 floor tom, 12 x 8 rack tom and 14 x 5 snare drum, for those who are curious. Despite their relatively diminutive sizes, the drums sound big. The kick drum is quite beefy.

The snare drum might be the best drum in the bunch. It's very sensitive and has a nice crisp smack. I'm still rocking the factory heads on the snare so it has more to give, I'm sure.

I replaced the factory batter heads on the toms with clear Emperors and threw a Powerstroke P3 on the bass drum. The kit sounds as great as I remember. The toms sing and sustain for days. I'll have to dampen them most of the time, for sure.

This kit will fit the bill in those situations where space is tight and during those times that I don't feel like schlepping a full size set. I plan to leave these in cases most of the time, ready to go.

Anyway, figured I'd share a few photos and some observations. I have been thinking about picking up a set ever since I heard them played live a couple of years ago. Really glad that I did.

Thanks for checking 'em out!

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yammyfan said:
These Frequent Flyers were on sale at my local drum shop so I decided to jump on them. I have heard them live before and they sounded sensational.

I'm not usually a fan of fades or bursts but I really like this Tobacco burst lacquer. It's really well done, I feel. The smaller turret lugs are especially appropriate on this set.

I imagine that most people are familiar with this decade-old model but the sizes are 20 x 12 bass drum, 14 x 11 floor tom, 12 x 8 rack tom and 14 x 5 snare drum, for those who are curious. Despite their relatively diminutive sizes, the drums sound big. The kick drum is quite beefy.

The snare drum might be the best drum in the bunch. It's very sensitive and has a nice crisp smack. I'm still rocking the factory heads on the snare so it has more to give, I'm sure.

I replaced the factory batter heads on the toms with clear Emperors and threw a Powerstroke P3 on the bass drum. The kit sounds as great as I remember. The toms sing and sustain for days. I'll have to dampen them most of the time, for sure.

This kit will fit the bill in those situations where space is tight and during those times that I don't feel like schlepping a full size set. I plan to leave these in cases most of the time, ready to go.

Anyway, figured I'd share a few photos and some observations. I have been thinking about picking up a set ever since I heard them played live a couple of years ago. Really glad that I did.

Thanks for checking 'em out!

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Beauitful finish. It looks just like glass.
 
Nice! May they give you years of musical joy. Peace and goodwill.
 
Bo Eder said:
I like those. I still want one in that aqua metallic color.
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Just looked it up. Aqua metallic is really nice.
force3005 said:
Beauitful finish. It looks just like glass.
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Thanks! I have a piano black set also and I think that the tobacco bust is a hair better.
Drumolator said:
Nice! May they give you years of musical joy. Peace and goodwill.
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Thanks! I needed another set like a hole in the head but the price was right and I knew for sure that they sounded good.
 
I had a FF kit in a kinda rare WMP finish. I got it so cheap I sold it for a profit. Was a great sounding kit and easy to transport.
 
Rattlin' Bones said:
I had a FF kit in a kinda rare WMP finish. I got it so cheap I sold it for a profit. Was a great sounding kit and easy to transport.
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I ordered a FF in that WMP finish when they first came out. However, the kit was on backorder for so long that I finally had to cancel the order. I wish they still offered that finish, and others, since the options are so limited today.
 
Looks great! After a few weeks with it, do you mind chiming back in and let us know what you think of the kick drum and what heads you’re using?
 
I was very interested in building a kind of shell bank with a standard DW Design + a Frequent Flyer, I like the concept and find it efficient to keep a reasonable diameter (20) and cut the depth, rather than going 18x14".
Never heard bad words about the DW Design apart from forgettable stock drumheads. Interesting you said that the snare was a good surprise in the bunch.

The wood grain is beautiful on your drums !
 
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Congratulations in coming over to DW.
 
PorkPieGuy said:
Looks great! After a few weeks with it, do you mind chiming back in and let us know what you think of the kick drum and what heads you’re using?
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Gladly :)

I can tell you now that the kick drum sounds tremendous and I haven't done anything to it other than install a clear PS3 on the batter side. I haven't cut a port in the resonant head yet because I am hesitant to mess up it's great sound, though a port would be more convenient since I like to mic my kick drum and snare. Bass drum is nice and thumpy as-is.

I'll stick with clear Emperors on the toms for now but might change to coated heads eventually. I love what coated heads did for my Renowns.
 
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Tamaefx said:
I was very interested in building a kind of shell bank with a standard DW Design + a Frequent Flyer, I like the concept and find it efficient to keep a reasonable diameter (20) and cut the depth, rather than going 18x14".
Never heard bad words about the DW Design apart from forgettable stock drumheads. Interesting you said that the snare was a good surprise in the bunch.

The wood grain is beautiful on your drums !
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Thanks, amigo. The finish is really nicely done on these.

The Design Series is a great way to get into the DW world. Not super premium like the Collector's Series but they have all of the essential DW features like North American maple shells, an effective ply layup, True Pitch tension rods and STM mounts. Most importantly, they sound great.

It's true that the factory heads are forgettable, but most of us swap out factory heads anyway. No biggie.

The bundled snare is really good. 10 ply maple, good wires, a MAG throw-off and 3.0mm hoops. Hard to go wrong there. Still, the biggest surprise for me.

I say go for it if you're thinking of putting together a shell bank. I might grab a 16" floor tom for my set. Let us know what you think of them if you go for it.
 
The more I play this kit, the better I like it. Kick has a nice thump, toms are full and resonant and the snare is good enough to be sold all on its own. Really great little snare. Can't wait to gig with this kit :)
 
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