Gretsch Drums Catalina Ash Fusion Shell Pack with Free 8″ Tom

The Catalina Ash Fusion Gretsch Shell Pack is designed with power in mind for the drum player who is looking for full, penetrating tones and solid overall features. Ash wood produces a lively drum tone that projects a clear, cutting sound. The snare quickly reacts with an aggressive tone that bites with authority and the UV gloss finish fully reveal the visually striking ash wood grain pattern throughout the drum set. Other features include pro tom holders, heavy 2.5 triple-flanged hoops, die-cast bass drum claws, telescopic spurs, and the GTS tom suspension system. Cymbals and hardware sold separately.

Gretsch Drums Catalina Ash Fusion Shell Pack with Free 8″ Tom Features:

* Toms are equipped with Pro tom holders that feature ball/socket style for multi-angle positioning and stable GTS suspension systems
* Ash formula shells with 45 degree bearing edges and natural interiors
* 6-ply toms, 7-ply bass drum, and 9-ply snare drum
* Free 8″ x 7″ tom included
* 2.5mm triple-flanged hoops come standard on the toms and snare

Sizes:
* 22″ x 18″ bass drum
* 8″ x 7″ free tom
* 10″ x 8″ tom
* 12″ x 9″ tom
* 14″ x 14″ floor tom
* 5″ x 14″ snare drum
* Cymbals and hardware sold separatley

Rating:
I love the Gretsch Catalinas. They’re constructed well and their sound is unique. This is a great drum set for the entry level drummer or the drummer who is a little strapped for cash. Great hardware and the finish is beautiful. They’ve put in a lot of high quality features for a set that’s priced so low.

Pacific Drums Maple Snare with Wood Hoops

The Pacific Drums by DW Maple Snare with Wood Hoops features an all-maple shell with maple hoops and chromeplated brass tube lugs. 14″ x 5-1/2″.

Rating:
Super cool maple snare drum with maple wooden hoops. Quality construction from the makers of DW and it’s at a great price. The lines almost look vintage with the tube-style lugs. Great for all types of music genres including Jazz and rock. Definitely a cool maple shell snare drum to check out.

Cympad Optimizer: Standard 40mm size for use on top or bottom side of cymbal bell.

Cympad Moderator: 50, 60, 70, 80, 90mm sizes for sound adjustment. Used on bottom side of cymbal bell.

Cympad Optimizer: Hi-hat application.

Cympads – Cympad Optimizer and Cympad Moderator cymbal pads

Some product description from Cympad’s website:

Cympad optimizes your cymbal sound!
CYMPAD is an incredible, affordable and easy to use system for optimizing the sound and performance of virtually all cymbal sizes, types and brands. Cympad is specially designed and made from premium-grade cellular foam to simply and effectively protect your cymbals and control your sound. When using Cympad, traditional felts are replaced. Cympads are Available in six popular sizes and recommended for any drumming style or situation.

A sound investment
* Cympad’s exclusive design enhances and controls cymbal sound.
* Isolates cymbal vibration from the cymbal stand
* Reduces both volume and unwanted overtones
* Moderates sustain and increases articulation

Small size, big difference
Available in incremental sizes, Cympad is versatile and adjustable— providing a spectrum of dampening effects (from open to optimum) without tape, gum or adhesive pads in a wide range of rehearsal, recording and performance applications.

* Live Sound (Concerts, Clubs, Casuals)
* Home and Studio Recording
* Band Rehearsal and Individual Practice
* Teaching Studios

Foam is better than felt
Cympad foam cymbal washers have been carefully developed to outperform and outlast conventional felt washers while offering drummers a host of advantages.

* Conforms to cymbal shape and size
* Extends cymbal life and prevents breakage
* Outlasts standard felt washers
* Consistent size, thickness and density

More and more of the today’s top professional drummers rely on Cympad. So, if you want your cymbals to perform at their peak, just remember that behind every great sounding cymbal there’s a Cympad.

Application:
There are various Cympad sizes available and each optimize your cymbal sound:
* The Cympad Moderator (50, 60, 70, 80, 90mm) with dampening effect is mounted on the bottom side of the cymbal cup to control sound.
* The Cympad Optimizer (40mm) is used like a traditional cymbal washer

Rating:
I have to say, these are great…and they work. I’ve replaced all of the felt washers on my personal drum set with these. Here’s my personal application and how Cympads have helped: My favorite genre of drum playing is Jazz. I keep time with a Sabian HHX evolution 20″ ride cymbal and have always felt the cymbal has a little too much “punch” and emits louder, long washing overtones when you get into a fast swing pattern. Don’t get me wrong, I love this cymbal, but have always wanted to tone it down a bit while playing fast patterns and cut out some of the wash…Basically make it a little “drier” in sound. Cympads have fit the bill. I put some of these bad boys on, played around with the different sizes to get just the right sound and…viola, instant dry….There’s a wide variety of sizes of Cympads to get just the right sound out of your cymbals. It’s like finally having adjustability for your cymbals…How they work: The “Cympad Moderators” normally go on the under side of the bell and basically act as an “adjusting” pad–they come in various sizes. The “Cympad Optimizer” is a standard 40mm pad that normally goes on the top of the cymbal bell (Basically used like a standard pad. Can be used on top and bottom). However, I’ve been trying both in various places to get just the right sound I want. The various combinations make it easy to set up, test and play around with. They even have a hi-hat kit as well. Definitely worth giving some a try.

Remo 5-Piece Rock ProPack Review
The Remo 5-Piece Rock ProPack includes 12″, 13″, 16″ Pinstripe tom heads, 22″ Powerstroke bass head, and a 14″ Coated Ambassador snare head.

Remo 5-Piece Rock ProPack also Includes a FALAM patch.

Rating:
Remo pinstripe heads are the classic, trusted drum head for rock style drumming. I’ve used these heads when playing in rock bands and they sound great. They give a great, punchy low end sound with short sustain and hold up very well to hard playing. A definite winner of a drum head in my book.

Pearl Reference 5-Piece Fusion Shell Pack Review

This shell pack includes a 22″ x 18″ kick drum, 10″ x 8″ and 12″ x 9″ rack toms, and 14″ x 11″ and 16″ x 13″ floor toms.

Pearl’s Reference Series: These are drums with a rich inner beauty crafted by the artful blending of the finest birch, maple, and African mahogany. Each drum is individually engineered to deliver tonal perfection.

The mission behind the Pearl Reference Series is a complete set of individually engineered, incredible-sounding drums.

To fully understand the Pearl Reference Series, you must understand that the desired tonal characteristics of a 10″ tom are completely different than that of a 22″ bass drum. Thus, to use the same material in both drums would result in a compromise.

The Shells
Pearl Reference Series drums use a combination of task-specific bearing edges and three time-proven woods: birch, maple, and African mahogany. Using maple as a sole material has long been the traditional choice for shells and for good reason. Maple provides smooth, well-balanced tone that is perfect for a 12″ tom. Subsequently, all Reference Series 12″ toms are composed of six plies of maple, the only single-wood shell in the series. The 10″ and 8″ toms receive four plies of maple with two inner plies of birch for cut and attack. For maximum response, all 13″ and smaller toms have rounded 45° bearing edges.

Beginning with the 13″ and larger toms, mahogany is added to the inner plies to increase the lower frequencies and accentuate the warmth of the maple. The 14″ toms and larger begin using fully rounded bearing edges for even more shell contact. 18″ and 20″ bass drums use four inner plies of mahogany with two outer plies of maple. As the size of the bass drums increase, so does the amount of mahogany. The 22″ and 24″ bass drums incorporate an amazing six inner plies of mahogany surrounded by two outer plies of maple for the ultimate in solid responsive bass frequencies.

With Pearl Reference, it’s not about compromise; it’s about every drum in your kit performing at its optimal capacity.

The Hardware The same tireless pursuit of perfection that goes into Pearl’s legendary drums is found in its hardware. This hardware was designed to maximize the sound of your drums. Pearl hardware has set a high standard for strength, durability, and innovation.

Lug design
Bridge-style lugs and floor tom brackets provide maximum resonance with minimal shell contact. Pearl’s revolutionary BRL lugs assure the ultimate in head seating and tuning integrity. The unique swivel function allows the tension rods to align perfectly into the lugs so there’s no lateral pressure against the hoops, thus assuring maximum resonance and sustain.

Bass drum claw hook
Pearl’s kick drum claws incorporate rubber hoop isolators for scratch prevention on lacquered hoops, to provide evenly distributed clamping force for consistent tuning. The key bolts are recessed for snag-free fit in carrying cases and to eliminate accidental detuning.

Floor tom leg brackets with air-suspended rubber tips
Full height adjustment with Pearl’s built in memory lock keeps floor tom positioning perfectly set. Pearls’ patented Air Suspension Rubber Tip allows your floor tom to rest on a cushion of air. These large rubber feet prevent premature sound decay from floor contact. Floor toms never had it so good.

OptiMount suspension system
The OptiMount Suspension System provides tom mounting with zero shell contact for ultimate resonance. By attaching to the tension bolts via isolated rubber bushings the shell is allowed to float which, in turn, allows it to sing to its fullest capabilities.

MasterCast die-cast hoop
Pearls’ die-cast hoops offer state-of-the-art head seating and tuning capabilities thanks to its structural strength and precision manufacturing technique. The MasterCast Hoop system prevents binding and allows the shell to resonate to its absolute fullest potential.

Bass drum spur
Pearls’ telescoping spurs feature rubber or spike tips for maximum traction control. The high-grip rubber tip can be retracted to allow a recessed spike to be exposed for maximum bite on carpeted surfaces.

Stainless steel suspension rods and bolts
Pearl’s stainless steel tension rods are machined from a single piece of stainless steel to the most exacting tolerances in the industry. They feature super smooth and precise tensioning with absolutely no play. Each is matched with a precision-machined brass swivel nut for ultra-precise performance.

Cymbals, stands, and kick pedal not included.

Pearl Reference 5-Piece Fusion Shell Pack Features:

* Drum sizes include:
* 22″ x 18″ kick drum
* 10″ x 8″ and 12″ x 9″ rack toms
* 14″ x 11″ and 16″ x 13″ floor toms

5-Piece Fusion Shell Pack features:
* BRL bridge lugs with swivel function
* LB-200 bridge floor tom leg brackets
* LG-200 floor tom legs
* SP-300 spurs
* MasterCast die cast hoops
* Aluminum OptiMount tom holders
* Stainless steel tension rods
* Molded rubber gaskets
* Remo coated “JP” Ambassador tom batters
* Remo coated “JP” Powerstroke3 kick drum heads
* Cymbals, stands, and kick pedal not included.

Rating:
One of Pearl’s flagship drum sets…Beautiful finish and beautiful sound. A lot of engineering went into this drum set line up. I’m very impressed how Pearl has designed each part of the drum set from ground up, focusing on each individual tonal range for each drum. Shells are beautifully crafted and Pearl hardware, lugs, etc., are very well thought out. I’m a big fan of the optimount system as well. Isolates the individual drum for great sound. This set is a winner.