Your honest critique...

V

Vandalay

Member
Of the major drum manufactures,..and not just "make them cheaper"..

Ludwig: The black oyster wrap is easily their most popular finish, problem is, that its only available in the classic maple which will cost at least $2k. how about a less pricey option? like maybe the same wrap in the Neusonic?

Pearl: Their product line seems confusing at times, especially when you get into "Masters" territory. the "Complete" the "Reserve" & the "Music city classic" all seem to blur together.

Gretsch: Love the sizes on the "Brooklyn bop", but the price tag just seems a bit much, how about doing similar sizes in the Catalina line?

Yamaha: Would love to see an alternate version of the stage classic bop with an "18 kick

Tama; I've been vocal about their finishes in the past, especially with the Starclassic BW, would love to see a "natural" walnut finish..the "Club jam" was a good idea, but the knock on that kit seems to be the floor tom is too shallow, a "13x9 would be better. also a 16-10-13 bop kit would be a nice addition

DW; Too expensive!! (ok so I lied)

Your thoughts?
 
larryace

larryace

"Uncle Larry"
I'm glad all the majors are here and do what they do. No complaints, we're lucky that we can take them for granted

I like getting deeper into the whole drum acquiring thing by going custom, but that's really just a purely personal indulgence, not a necessity.

Kits from the major manufacturers sound pretty much as good as a drum is gonna get, just with different subtleties.

It's so good that finish and hardware is a bigger concern

Drum builds are at such a high level now. And there's always custom. It's never been better.
 
TK-421

TK-421

Senior Member
Vandalay said:
Yamaha: Would love to see an alternate version of the stage classic bop with an "18 kick
Click to expand...
What the hell is a stage classic bop? Do you mean Stage Custom? If so, they already make a bop version of that kit with an 18" bass drum. I should know, because I own one.
 
Drumprof

Drumprof

Member
Yamaha: Open up the Tour Custom line with
add-ons like you do with the Stage Custom.
18 bd’s / an all maple bop shell pack.

14 and 16 Ft’s available so we can have a 20 inch kick shell pack and add a 16.

Maybe an 8 inch Tom and 24 inch bass drum.

And for heavens sake, get back to some more appealing finishes. Many people purchase by what they like seeing (sound and build are not the issue, you got that in spades)
You would sell more drums!
 
Chunkaway

Chunkaway

Silver Member
Vandalay said:
Of the major drum manufactures,..and not just "make them cheaper"..

Ludwig: The black oyster wrap is easily their most popular finish, problem is, that its only available in the classic maple which will cost at least $2k. how about a less pricey option? like maybe the same wrap in the Neusonic?

Pearl: Their product line seems confusing at times, especially when you get into "Masters" territory. the "Complete" the "Reserve" & the "Music city classic" all seem to blur together.

Gretsch: Love the sizes on the "Brooklyn bop", but the price tag just seems a bit much, how about doing similar sizes in the Catalina line?

Yamaha: Would love to see an alternate version of the stage classic bop with an "18 kick

Tama; I've been vocal about their finishes in the past, especially with the Starclassic BW, would love to see a "natural" walnut finish..the "Club jam" was a good idea, but the knock on that kit seems to be the floor tom is too shallow, a "13x9 would be better. also a 16-10-13 bop kit would be a nice addition

DW; Too expensive!! (ok so I lied)

Your thoughts?
Click to expand...


Ludwig: I wish Ludwig would stop harkening to their past with everything they do. I mean, I LOVE their vintage drums, but I'd like to see them push forward with more custom options (finishes) or something like that. Everything in their line-up (with the exception of the lower level stuff) seems to have a recent push toward vintage.

Yamaha: Make some drums that have a unique, distinctive tone. Every Yamaha I play sounds absolutely neutral. They are the Toyotas of drums. Everything is reliable, but nothing stands out. They hit it out of the park with the Club Customs. They had a unique sound and look. I wish they would do more of that.

Pearl: I do not know. Nothing they make captures my attention these days. That's probably because their product lines are so confusing.

Gretsch: Make the cost of your USA Customs more reasonable and more unique. The Brooklyns have a very similar sound and yet they are significantly cheaper. The only reason to buy the USA Customs is because of the name/heritage.

Tama: You know, I respect Tama, but I'm just not a huge fan of diecast hoops. They aren't my thing. That means that many of their lines are ones I wouldn't even consider. I do really like some of their finish options and different wood combinations.
 
cbphoto

cbphoto

Gold Member
Vandalay said:
Tama; I've been vocal about their finishes in the past, especially with the Starclassic BW, would love to see a "natural" walnut finish..the "Club jam" was a good idea, but the knock on that kit seems to be the floor tom is too shallow, a "13x9 would be better. also a 16-10-13 bop kit would be a nice addition
Click to expand...
Some may not know this, but if the drum size is listed in their product page, it can be ordered (a 16"x12" Starclassic maple bass is MAB1612[M/Z]). The bummer is, even with China production, it's still a "6-month wait" for anything not off the shelf (quotes 'cuz it's never the same duration). In addition, you can order a custom Starclassic kit from the Japanese shop, which has alternative colors available that are not available from the China shop.

From my basic observations, the weak link in any custom order is the drum shop. They wait to place an order to accumulate additional products for a better deal, thus delaying the order or, worse, making an incomplete order. Or they botch the detailed parts list and order chrome hardware instead of black nickel. Stupid stuff that ruins the experience for the buyer.
 
wildbill

wildbill

Platinum Member
Chunkaway said:
Ludwig: I wish Ludwig would stop harkening to their past with everything they do. I mean, I LOVE their vintage drums, but I'd like to see them push forward with more custom options (finishes) or something like that. Everything in their line-up (with the exception of the lower level stuff) seems to have a recent push toward vintage....
Click to expand...

Have you browsed the Ludwig finishes available?
Just the Classic Maple line has 37 different finishes you can get (click the 'finishes' tab on the link).:
www.ludwig-drums.com

Classic Maple

A Custom Solution for the Discerning Player
www.ludwig-drums.com www.ludwig-drums.com

The only thing I'd like to see extra from Ludwig is 10/12/14/20 'off the shelf' Downbeat kits.
As it is now, you can get 12/14/20, but are stuck with trying to get that extra tom.

And I'm with Drumprof on the maple Tour Custom bop kit, or an add-on 8 lug, 18" bass drum for a reasonable price.
 
Chunkaway

Chunkaway

Silver Member
wildbill said:
Have you browsed the Ludwig finishes available?
Just the Classic Maple line has 37 different finishes you can get (click the 'finishes' tab on the link).:
www.ludwig-drums.com

Classic Maple

A Custom Solution for the Discerning Player
www.ludwig-drums.com www.ludwig-drums.com

The only thing I'd like to see extra from Ludwig is 10/12/14/20 'off the shelf' Downbeat kits.
As it is now, you can get 12/14/20, but are stuck with trying to get that extra tom.

And I'm with Drumprof on the maple Tour Custom bop kit, or an add-on 8 lug, 18" bass drum for a reasonable price.
Click to expand...

I have looked at their site. Most of their finishes have been options for 40-50 years. It would be nice if they offered more custom options.
 
toonamike

toonamike

Member
Chunkaway said:
I have looked at their site. Most of their finishes have been options for 40-50 years. It would be nice if they offered more custom options.
Click to expand...
They can paint custom finishes. Check with a dealer.

I'm pretty sure you can also have custom wrap sent from a supplier to Ludwig for application on whatever drum you order, excluding the NeuSonic series. The NeuSonic finish is actually a shell ply.
 
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