Would You Spend The Money Custom Absolute??

Witterings

Silver Member
At the moment due to the recession etc I really don't want to be spending a lot of money on a drum set BUT about 2 months ago there were quite a few Yamaha Custom Absolutes being sold as Ex display models from drum stores - not sure if they've been through some sort of upgrade - for around £1400.
I can get my hands on an Ex demo one for £1000 but timing / expense just isn't great, do you think I'd be mad not to.
I currently have a Mapex M Birch kit which I'm not unhappy with and wonder if I'd really be able to tell much of a difference or not and so whether it's really worth it ???
This link is the exact same spec as the one I'm looking at including colour, it's shell pack only no hardware or snare although I already have a Black Panther.
http://www.wembleydrumcentre.com/Ca...olute-American-Sizes-Kit---Cherrywood-JMA2F04

HAVE EDITED Sorry it's not exactly the same spec it's Birch Custom Absolute not a Maple as per the link!!!

Any input greatly appreciated !!!!
 
good kit but honestly I doubt you will hear a difference. Birch is Birch..I would not do it but thats just me.
 
Absolutely.

I played on a M Birch for a few years. Then upgraded to yamaha maple custom absolute. Night and day difference. The yamaha tunes up so much easier to a much more pleasing tone.

I just read that it's still going to be the birch kit. Depending on how much cash you have floating around I would still do it. Mapex makes great kits, but yamaha's quality is really hovering around top of the market. Intermediate kit=/=professional kit.
 
good kit but honestly I doubt you will hear a difference. Birch is Birch..I would not do it but thats just me.

These kits are totally different from a quality, construction, and tone standpoint... Yamaha's high end offerings are simply fantastic tubs - I think the price difference is certainly worth it.

Birch may be birch, but there are a multitude of other factors to consider including the bearing edges, hardware, finish work and overall tone / sound. The wood choice is not the only and maybe not even the most important factor.
 
not all birch is equal and not all maple is equal.

From my experience in the millwork industry you get what you pay for.

The kind of birch tree, it's age, were and how you cut the veneer from that tree are only a few of the reasons that make a huge difference in the quality of wood.

go Yamaha
 
Funny, we were having this same type of discussion with Larryace - who is discovering he may not need a high-end kit for the things he does - and he does play out alot, more than I do anyway.

I just got done explaining how I look at it:

You're paying for the quality for the drums to handle any given situation. In my case, it's not the playing situations I'm concerned about. Any drumset will be able to do that, given the proper tuning and good heads.

The situations you're buying all this quality for is how you transport them, how much abuse are they going to see when you're not playing them? That kind of thing. A pro kit has to be able to sit on a stage that goes from cold (if you're playing outside) to 100-degree heat instantly when they turn the lights on. And they have to sound good doing it. How well are they going to travel? If it's going to live in a truck bouncing along the roads, you want to be able to open the cases and not have to put it back together! The finish is definitely supposed to last. And the shells need to stay round and it has to sound good (as I already said). It might get rained on, beer spilled on, spit on. The singer might want to stand on the bass drum and do a backflip off of it - it has to stand up to all that.

That's why you spend the money. Every pro level kit will do that and sound good. Every mid-level kit can be made to sound good - and it will likely last you your whole career if you yourself are transporting them around and they are not abused. I like a nice pro kit as much as the next guy, and if this a really good deal, I'd go for it.

But if you do get it, I suggest you take them out and play 'em! They're not meant to be living in a museum!
 
If that's the kit you've had your eye on and truly want, I say go for it. You seem like you've done your research and seem confident in your potential purchase. I just ordered a custom Ludwig legacy Classic in Black Glass Glitter, and I don't think I could've spent the money any better. If it's the kit of your dreams, go for it.
 
Happy B'day to me - the Eagle has landed, in fact I think it's the next 6 B'days and Xmas's all rolled into today so I'll just have to remind myself of that when there's nothing in my stocking on 25th December.
Managed to get it set up and had a bit of time to play on it this morning before going off to work a bit later than usual.
First impressions I must admit are very positive, I play mainly pop / rock and like a reasonably lowish and compressed sound. Out of the box they're tuned slightly higher than my Mapex at the moment but they sound as though they're tuned that much lower as it's a much richer fuller sound - there's also a lot more ressonance which again despite them being tuned higher doesn't have that slightly twangy edge to it.
Think I'm going to love this kit which is bad news for the local drum store as I think I'll be off the market for many years !!!!!!!!
The Mrs also got me Tommy Igoe's Groove Essentials and Mother In Law has just gone right up the scale with Hands For A Lifetime - - - - Happy Days !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I see a lot of drummers using and gigging M birch kits and they sound very good especially for the money.But the Yammy will hold it's value better,and will last many years.
 
Congrats, however you've posted you got a new kit and haven't posted pics?????? You know it's like some sort of unwritten rule you're supposed to post pics for us to drool over!!!
 
Congrats, however you've posted you got a new kit and haven't posted pics?????? You know it's like some sort of unwritten rule you're supposed to post pics for us to drool over!!!

No, I'm pretty sure that rule is written down here somewhere. ;-)
 
OK I'm getting a message here :)
I'll borrow the Mrs camera and get some, actually I think I'm rehearsing with a band who need someone to depp for them tomorrow evening so will see if I can do then as they're facing a wall at home which isn't the best for piccies !!!
Watch this space !!!
 
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