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How Drum Brand Choices Impact Your Sound

Choosing the right drum kit can make or break your sound. This article explores how different drum brands, woods, mounting systems, and even tom sizes influence your tone.

By Magesh MageshContributing Author

I've always said you should listen with your ears NOT your eyes. What I mean by this is, it's easy for your opinion to get swayed by a famous brand.

Usually, a brand gets a great reputation by creating a great product. On the other side of the spectrum, there are great products that might not be popular due to tiny advertising budgets.

As a session musician, I got to play every drum brand in every type of situation. I want to talk about how your overall sound is affected by the kind of drums you play.

Mounting systems

 A drum's sound is heavily influenced by the tone it creates when played. Higher-end kits have a mounting system that lets the drum ring freely. What this means is there are no screws drilled into the actual drum. A tom will be suspended by the amount to give a maximum amount of resonance. This has a great impact on the sound of a drumkit.

Mapex drums sound incredible and are extremely tough. This Mapex evolution has this system. 

Mapex Saturn Evolution LE - MBB see price

Maple wood

Usually, drums that have a warm sound are made from Maple. The good news is it's not just for the top-of-the-range drum kits! Even mid-range kits can be made from this wood. Maple wood gives the toms a nice low end without sounding too 'boomy'.

The mid tones on the snare are also good for depth.

Sonor drums are usually known for being top-of-the-range kits. Check out this Sonor kit made from maple at a great price! 

Sonor AQ2 Bop Set RWH see price

What does ply mean for drum kits?

Ply means how many times the wood has been wrapped around itself. It creates the thickness of the drum. A drum with an excessive amount of ply can make it sound loud, although it can also lose resonance.

I always thought Gretsch made awesome-sounding drums. This club kit is great for live gigs and the studio. It is 7ply, which means it has a great tone. 

Gretsch Catalina Club Studio - SWG '14 see price

Bass drum depth

 A standard drum kit has a bass drum that is 22 inches high and 16 inches deep. I like the DW brand because they often have drum kits with unusual depths. Having a bass drum with a deeper bass drum will affect your sound dramatically.

This kit is 22 inches high and 18 inches deep. The extra 2 inches make it a lot deeper, almost like playing with a subwoofer! 

DW Performance Std. Black Sparkle see price

Birch Wood

Drumkits made from birch wood are brighter sounding than maple. They have a punchy sound without losing any of the bottom end.

Yamaha makes a lot of their drumkits from birch. I played a Yamaha recording custom on a studio session recently which sounded incredible. I used it to record some pop tunes and some rock tunes the next day.

This stage custom is also made from birch wood. 

Yamaha Stage Custom Standard -RB'14 see price

Ludwig's drums were always associated with rock music. Probably because they were used by drummers like Alex Van Halen, John Bonham of Led Zeppelin, and Neil Peart of Rush. I always found this brand interesting because of their unusual tom sizes.

A standard drumkit has toms sized 10, 12, and 14 for the floor tom. This kit is sized 13 and 16 with no middle tom! The bass drum is extra large in diameter at 24 inches yet extra shallow at 14 inches.

This brand has its own sound.

Ludwig Classic Maple Rock Black Oy. see price

I had a sponsorship with Tama for nearly a decade. They make drum kits that sound great for virtually all styles of music. They were one of the first companies to use a rare African wood called 'Bubinga' which made the drums sing.

Tama is one of the only brands that I felt even their entry-level kits sounded amazing. 

Tama Club Jam Vintage Bundle -CCM see price

In conclusion, I would say that the right brand of drums will heavily influence your overall sound. It is important for you to physically go to a music store to check these out. Don't just listen to someone play one of these kits on YouTube!

You will know straight away what sounds good to you when you play it. Also, please take into consideration the type of wood, size of toms/bass drums, and mounting systems as they will impact your sound on the drums.

About Magesh Magesh

Magesh is a musician and producer who has worked with Rihanna, Lionel Richie, Ricky Martin, Chris Brown, The Pussy Cat Dolls, Nelly Furtado, and Vernon Reid of Living Colour. He released an instructional drumming DVD called "Unique Beats" where he mixed the drum kit with electronics and Indian hand percussion. He recently moved from Australia to the UK to explore new musical opportunities.
Website: mageshdrumteacher.co.uk

Contact Magesh Magesh at magesh.magesh7@gmail.com

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