My 2010 NAMM report

DrumEatDrum

Platinum Member
My NAMM show review

No, this isn’t a picture thread. There are several other excellent threads with pictures
See: http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/search.php?searchid=4388568 for a list.

The theme of this years show was evident: recession!

Least year, I was surprised that with the down economy how well the show was attended and how much was still going on. But last year, a long time sales rep with a major manufacturer did tell me that despite the appearances, business behind the scenes was way down. This year, no one had to tell me business was down, you could see it clear as day.

Premier and Pintech did not even appear, nor did Native Instruments, one of the larger software vendors.

The Pearl booth, which is usually quite large and elaborate, was smaller with a simpler set up. Ddrum in last few years have had their own good sized booths, this year they were sharing space with Dean Guitars. Yamaha drums no longer had their own section; drums were back to being mixed in with the rest of Yamaha’s other instruments. The biggest sign was Avid/Digidesign (the maker of Protools) has a booth a fraction of the size of two years, with no working displays set up. When the industry standard in recording software is scaled back, you know something is wrong!

Pearl: Not only was their booth smaller than in years past, it predominately featured their new e-kits. Very few acoustic kits were on display, which is odd, given that is still there main focus as a manufacture. I talked to a Pearl rep about the new e-kits, and I was told they were not designed to compete with the higher end Roland and Yamaha kits, but to fill the need of people who need the benefits of electronic drums but the look of real drums. I do get the benefits of the having an e-kit laid out like a real kit, as this is an issue I face in my studio all the time. But I can’t say I get why they don’t aim to keep up with the better names in electronic kits.

I didn’t get to actually try the new e-kits, as there was always a line to try them, and everyone who did try them refused to do the right thing and test them out and then the let the next person try them, rather each person insisted on doing a 20 minute drum solo, as if under some illusion a major music big wig would walk by and see all their best “dig me” licks and hire them to tour with a major band on the spot. UG!

From observing the kits being played, either everyone who played them wasn’t very good (which is possible) or the pads made decent drummers appear clunky (also possible). Either way, doesn’t seem like something I’ll be buying soon.

Tama: Their booth didn’t seem any smaller, but they’ve always shared with Ibanez guitars, so it’s not as obvious if there are more or less drums. Drum wise, not much new. They were more focused on reducing prices than new drums. However, starting this year, their cymbals stands will no longer feature wing nuts, but instead will have quick release tops, similar to slipnuts. This is very cool! 20+ years of drumming doesn’t kill a person’s wrists, but 20 years of loosing and tightening wing nuts does.
I hope more manufactures follow their lead.

Ddrum: They had a new Carmine Appice signature kit, a replica of his mid-70’s Ludwig kit. Errr…wait a minute?? Didn’t they have a Carmine Appice Signature kit last year replicating his early 60’s kit? Oye… Why not just buy a Ludwig?

DW: As noted in other threads, they had a new strainer. Very cool. I have two DW snare drums with their 1st strainers, and the things always failed and I replaced them both with basic Ludwig strainers, so I'm a little jealous of the new strainers. Their finishes continue to be some of the coolest and sometimes oddest finishes of the show, but this is nothing new, as DW always is displaying a mix of cool and weird finishes.

Which has become an issue with drums as NAMM. I remember years and years ago, a drum company introduced blue as the new color for the year. At the time, it was a big deal, because no one was offering blue at the time. Now a days, so many companies offer to make you any finish you can think of, and all the majors offer numerous finishes for nearly every line, that it’s just impossible for anyone company to thrill you with a new finish. Just about everything has been done, and if it hasn’t, half a dozen companies will do it for the right price. The differences between companies is getting smaller and smaller every year. Which is maybe the Sonar finishes were so off the wall.

Ludwig may be the exception. They were the only company I noticed to be offering a wide variety of different shells, from walnut to maple, hybrid wood shells, acrylic and steel, they had it all covered. It’s hard to believe how far they’ve come. In the 8 years I worked in various drum stores, I sold maybe two new Ludwig kits, and the company seemed to be left for dead. But now they seem to be on the cutting edge of mixing new products with their classic looks. I got more excited about their booth than anyone else.

I did ask a Ludwig rep about the Element SE series and given they are offered in three retro 60’s colors if the line would be expanded into other retro 60’s colors. I was told there were no plans, but he admitted I was not the first one to ask.

Yamaha: I tried their newest e-drums, with the soft foam pads. I was impressed with the sensitivity. They felt much better than their previous black rubber pads. I could see getting one. One thing that is both a benefit and a draw back is their acoustic drum samples seemed to be all based on Yamaha acoustic drums. Which is great, because Yamaha makes great acoustic drums, from birch to maple to oak. The samples sound great. On the flip side, it’s limiting compared to something like BFD2 software that lets you select from a variety of specific brands of drums. But I suppose that's a very minor nit pick.

The new Tour drums seemed nice. I just wish they used a new name, rather than re-using the name of an older line that was a completely different shell (which is also my biggest gripe with Tama, they’re trying to confuse us older people!)

Premier: Did I mention they didn’t show up? I did ask a prominent endorser what was going on, and this person used the words “don’t know” and “worried.” Not good. I have a Premier Signia kit, and I bought it thinking the company would back it up for years and years to come. And humph….

On the upside, because the majors were going with smaller booths, this left room for the smaller brands to have larger spaces, and brands that would be otherwise hidden downstairs in Hall E (where space is cheaper) to be displayed with the big boys.
Brady and Craviotto seemed to have more kits on display than in years past.

Which leads to:

Cymbals: I didn’t get into details about cymbals, but I did notice the theme was making everything as thin and light as possible. I recall in the late 80s and into the 90s, cymbal manufacturers were thinking about projection, and cutting through the music. Now it seems there is an unspoken contest that whomever makes a cymbal closest to tracing paper wins.

And there were SO many brands. It seems a dozen different companies were all claiming to be “real hand made Turkish cymbals”. And maybe they all are. From what I can tell, they all sounded great and anyone should be proud to own any of them. But how anyone can tell the difference between all the brands is beyond me. I just don’t see how they all sell enough to stay in business.

Speaking of: When Kaman, who owns Toca Percussion, bought LP a few years back, I was wondering how they would run Toca and LP, given the brands are competitors. But at the time, I was told both brands would continue as normal. Since then, Kaman Music was bought by Fender and renamed KMC music group. So, OK Toca still exists, but not much on display. Makes me wonder if Toca has a future.

Some smaller things:

Cymbags are covers that go over individual cymbals. They have a slit, so you put them on your cymbals while they are mounted on a stand. So they can be a dust cover while your cymbals are left up, or finger prints protectors when you take your cymbals in and out of your gig bag. If you have to leave your kit set up in one place for long periods of time, and/or you gig a lot with very shiny cymbals, they would be great to have.

Years ago I tried the Dulist pedal, and thought it was very gimmick-y. This year I tried newest latest version, and I have to say it’s much improved. I don’t think I can call it a gimmick any longer.

There was also a company making foam rubber pads that replace your cymbals felts, which are supposed to improve the sounds of your cymbals. Quite frankly, it was too darn loud at the show to really hear the difference, but I’d be curious to try them in a studio, without all the chaos that is the drum section of the NAMM show.

I know there was more, but I've typed enough for now!!
 
Great stuff.... thanks!

Did you see Drum Tone there? Supposed to be this new contraption with an air tank and mouth piece allowing you to change the pitch of your drums on the fly... via tubes routed under the rims ;) Fun fun.
 
Thanks DrumEatDrum, Your review confirms what I saw when I viewed pics here on DW and also other sources on the net. It is a Sad Day In Drumville!
The Auto show this year was almost the same. Manufacturers just don't have the cash to spend right now on big buck shows of display.
I can't blame them for being cautious. If I was in charge of a drum co, I would be cautious too.

The new Pearl e-kits look like a real dog to me! I checked them out on the web. They're not a great e-kit, and they're not a great acoustic kit! No one is going to pay over $3000 for that kit.
 
Great stuff.... thanks!

Did you see Drum Tone there? Supposed to be this new contraption with an air tank and mouth piece allowing you to change the pitch of your drums on the fly... via tubes routed under the rims ;) Fun fun.

Can't say I saw them.

see i dont understand these new pearl e drums at all. from my perspective if i was ever to get electric drums it would be due to lack of space. so no way would these be viable. also do they make more noise than an electric drum kit ? having full shells must have an effect

I use e-drums to record with because it saves spending thousands on muics and preamps, and cables, and having enough inputs into my DAW. And it's fustrating to work out parts on my acoustic and then set down on my e-kit if it's not set up the same way, with the same spacing.

So in that regard, I totally get why they're mounted on real drums.

But that's about where my "getting it" ends.
 
Thanks DrumEatDrum, Your review confirms what I saw when I viewed pics here on DW and also other sources on the net. It is a Sad Day In Drumville!
The Auto show this year was almost the same. Manufacturers just don't have the cash to spend right now on big buck shows of display.
I can't blame them for being cautious. If I was in charge of a drum co, I would be cautious too.

The new Pearl e-kits look like a real dog to me! I checked them out on the web. They're not a great e-kit, and they're not a great acoustic kit! No one is going to pay over $3000 for that kit.

You're welcome. Yes, it was kind of sad. But it makes total sense that everyone would be cutting back. No point in making drums that no one is buying.

As for Pearl, yeah, I wonder about this. I've yet to hear of a positive review other than from Pearl themselves. We'll see.

The one they do have going for them is it's $3,300 or so for a 5pc set up with a rack and cymbals, which is roughly 1/2 of the top of the line Roland and significantly less than the nicer Yamaha e-kits. I can the church market jumping at the Pearl kit to control volume over an acoustic, while saving money over a Roland.
But for the working drummer or a guy in a home studio, I'm not as sure.
 
see i dont understand these new pearl e drums at all. from my perspective if i was ever to get electric drums it would be due to lack of space. so no way would these be viable. also do they make more noise than an electric drum kit ? having full shells must have an effect

While I don't see the ePro from Pearl having much of an impact in the eDrum community, there is definitely a huge market in electronic drums for reasons other than space.

It goes without saying that the number one benefit of eDrums is the noise reduction. Clearly there are many other benefits as well including recording, practicing, less replaceable parts (heads, etc), no tuning, built in metronomes and play along loops, adjustable sounds, etc.

I'm sure the neighbors can appreciate the endless practice hours you put in on a vDrum prior to showcasing it on the acoustics. Trying to nail a shoddy groove/chops or messy rudiments will not go very far with your neighbors - if you can nail them first on a vDrum kit then take it to the acoustics you will prevent some of the hassle and the neighbors might actually enjoy some good playing. And, of course, the ability to play anytime of day and night on vDrums (although you will still have problems if you are in an apartment).

I have a Roland TD-12 and a Pearl Masters acoustic and I couldn't pick which one I would be able to let go of if I had to choose (I can play the Roland more often and easier to record and play along.... but I choose to play the acoustic whenever I can cause after all its an acoustic ;).
 
Ddrum in last few years have had their own good sized booths, this year they were sharing space with Dean Guitars.

Tama: Their booth didn’t seem any smaller, but they’ve always shared with Ibanez guitars, so it’s not as obvious if there are more or less drums. However, starting this year, their cymbals stands will no longer feature wing nuts, but instead will have quick release tops, similar to slipnuts.

ddrum and Dean are part of Armadillo Enterprises. Tama and Ibanez are both subsidiaries of Hoshino.

Pretty cool, re: cymbal stand tops. Nobody got photos?? And DED- did you get any info on the new pedal line and/or the discontinuation of the Iron Cobras?
 
ddrum and Dean are part of Armadillo Enterprises.
True, but the last few years they've had separate booths. DDrum was very scaled back this year compared to the last two.

Tama and Ibanez are both subsidiaries of Hoshino.
Yup. Which is why they always share one huge booth.

Pretty cool, re: cymbal stand tops. Nobody got photos?? And DED- did you get any info on the new pedal line and/or the discontinuation of the Iron Cobras?

Any rumors about the Iron Cobra's going away are false for now. They were displaying a full line of Iron Cobra's, with three different cam options, and a Jr version. No mention of anything that would replace them. They upgraded their lower end pedal that comes with the Imperialstar kits, but that's not one the same level of the cobras.
 
toca and lp are competitors but also like brother and sister to a degree. i interned at LP over the summer and i assisted with both companies. i was at the namm show this year and im very proud of both LP & Toca, their new products, endorsers, etc.

what i love about the LP booth is whereas drumming (drum kit playing) within the other booths is somewhat closed off and very showy, whenever people stopped by LP it would start a communal jam session. this type of comradarie (very common among drummers) shone the brightest at NAMM at this booth.
 
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