Things you would improve in a Mapex Armory Shellset

veecharlie

veecharlie

Senior Member
Hey guys,

So I got the kit, lovely and love it. I don't think I would improve anything on it, literally every detail they have covered it. But I wonder if other people think the contrary. Is there anything you would improve on this kit?79989821_826974651068018_1556715685323735040_n.jpg
Attempt for an artistic impression of my kit. lol.
 
I think you get as much as you can get for your money with that model. I have a different tona preferrence, so my brand of choice would be different, but that's irrelevant. It's your kit, so you're the one who's supposed to like it.

Every brand has a good kit in that price range these days. Not perfect, but it's amazing what you can get for your money these days. These kits are better than pro kits decades ago.

I've considered putting die cast hoops on my Catalina, but never got around to it.

A different snare would probably be nice and you've mentioned that yourself. It's understandable that that's one of the places they get the savings, though there are many nice snares from e.g. Pearl and Tama available. for a pretty low price.
 
I wonder how the Armory-maple/birch compare with all birch Mars-the all birch are a bit cheaper? The Armory is an upgrade from Mars isn't it? I think you have to try different heads and tunings to really give a new kit a chance-you got to fiddle with it. If it doesn't respond to your fiddling then time to get a new fiddle.
 
Odd-Arne Oseberg said:
I think you get as much as you can get for your money with that model. I have a different tona preferrence, so my brand of choice would be different, but that's irrelevant. It's your kit, so you're the one who's supposed to like it.

Every brand has a good kit in that price range these days. Not perfect, but it's amazing what you can get for your money these days. These kits are better than pro kits decades ago.

I've considered putting die cast hoops on my Catalina, but never got around to it.

A different snare would probably be nice and you've mentioned that yourself. It's understandable that that's one of the places they get the savings, though there are many nice snares from e.g. Pearl and Tama available. for a pretty low price.
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I only chose the armory because I could not really wait and buy a masters. It would take me twice as long to pay right now, and that was not really my goal. Tried to get something used but.. not really nice options so I went to the store and bought the armory. Definitively agree forme too, not my personal tone preference but it can sound ok.
 
GetAgrippa said:
I wonder how the Armory-maple/birch compare with all birch Mars-the all birch are a bit cheaper? The Armory is an upgrade from Mars isn't it? I think you have to try different heads and tunings to really give a new kit a chance-you got to fiddle with it. If it doesn't respond to your fiddling then time to get a new fiddle.
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definitively a lot of upgrades in terms of hardware, but I also wonder the tonal difference.. maple and birch is a VERY weird mix. I have the impression my ears get tricked every time with one wood or the other, warm but dry at the same time. weird!
 
Only change I'd possibly make is the tom holders. I'm a big Yamaha fan. And the Mapex design would simply clamp onto my Yamaha stands, so that's an easy mix. But I'm also not a huge fan of the L arm, so I'd have to play on these for a while, and decide whether to use the L arms or switch them out with my Yamaha/RIMS combo.
 
If you simply want to spend some money and get some optional sound possibilities, fit it with die cast hoops. I did that with my new Slingerland kit, and I love them.

Note that I said sound "possibilities," as improvement is always in the ears of the beholder.

GeeDeeEmm
 
The only thing I would change would be the finishes. Something more traditional.

The current lineup of finishes are a little too bright or "youthful" for my taste.
 
I had the bearing edges re-cut on my Meridian kit's toms because a few of them weren't perfect. It really helped clean up the tone of the toms so I was even more satisfied with them after that.

I'd also try some different heads. I'm sure there's a head combo that might push the warm but dry tone you're hearing now in a more pleasing direction.
 
Winston_Wolf said:
I had the bearing edges re-cut on my Meridian kit's toms because a few of them weren't perfect. It really helped clean up the tone of the toms so I was even more satisfied with them after that.

I'd also try some different heads. I'm sure there's a head combo that might push the warm but dry tone you're hearing now in a more pleasing direction.
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I have been thinking the same! The snare was the first sight that the bearing edges may not be perfect.. so I will definitively check them out. Curious how they are actually...

As for the heads, putting some coated emperors on top and ambassadors on the bottom. I still have another set of pinstripes and ambassador batters to use to experiment. So far I like the coated the most with this kit, it keeps the warmth.
 
Change the heads. My son has an Armory. Their base head is really crummy and ours broke. At a minimum put a patch on it. One of the ones recommended here is the one we got and my son said it plays much better. Eventually we'll switch them all out.

Also, swap out the snare. When we got ours, still may, Mapex gave you a choice of snares. If you go on the website its as easily as emailing them and shipping the kit one back.
 
If everything allows, and it works well, I'd take all the gaskets off from under the lugs.

Nothing soft should be on the drum shell. I feel that all the vibrations present in all the lugs should be transferred to the shell with no insulators in between. So everything can vibrate as one complete system.

You could lacquer the insides for more brightness if you like that.

Air suspension feet on your floor toms if you have legged floor toms.

These are things I do to drums that don't sing to their full potential, or if I want to optimize them, which I usually want to do.
 
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drummom said:
Change the heads. My son has an Armory. Their base head is really crummy and ours broke. At a minimum put a patch on it. One of the ones recommended here is the one we got and my son said it plays much better. Eventually we'll switch them all out.

Also, swap out the snare. When we got ours, still may, Mapex gave you a choice of snares. If you go on the website its as easily as emailing them and shipping the kit one back.
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yea heads are the first thing I always change on a new kit. Putting emperors coated and ambassadors on the bottom, that did make a huge difference
 
larryace said:
If everything allows, and it works well, I'd take all the gaskets off from under the lugs.

Nothing soft should be on the drum shell. I feel that all the vibrations present in all the lugs should be transferred to the shell with no insulators in between. So everything can vibrate as one complete system.

You could lacquer the insides for more brightness if you like that.

Air suspension feet on your floor toms if you have legged floor toms.

These are things I do to drums that don't sing to their full potential, or if I want to optimize them, which I usually want to do.
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I think that is a valid point. And a matter of preference as well. I personally don't want any type of contact between hardware and the shells, so that's another reason why I got sold the armory lol.
 
I've got the 6 piece rock Armoury. The snare is kind of crummy, but I've put an Evans Hydraulic and a Puresound 24 snare wire on to kill off the really unpleasant steel overtones. The Toms sound great down-tuned, but it wasn't until i put EC2s (G2 with the inbuilt dampening rings) that I was happy with the pitch.
I have never got the kick to sound quite right, but i haven't yet changed the skin on that, other than to put the stock coated reso on the batter side and replace the reso with a ported no-name thing.

For me, I'd like more attack from the kit, but I am looking to upgrade to a Yamaha Live Custom Hybrid Oak, so that might tell you everything you need to know about me.
 
Generally, I switch all the skins except the front bass drum skin. I cut a hole in it. I take off all the plastic washers, and gaskets as well, if possible. I put air feet on the floor tom, a pure sound snappy or at least material ribbon instead of the crappy plastic strap.
 
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