Switched my gigging kit from Pearl to PDP

Larry

"Uncle Larry"
My 6 piece band decided it had run it's course so it kind of broke up...which leaves me an extra kit. I kept a kit at their rehearsal space... a nice PDP CX kit in WMP I got off CL for $125.00 (steal)

So now that the band is no more, I decided to try gigging the PDP kit. They replaced the Pearl kit you see in my avatar.

I'm very glad I did. The PDP's have a thinner shell. I was growing weary of the 7.5 mm Pearl shell. Very well built shell, a breeze to tune, but too thick for my tastes in toms. They sounded too tubby to me on the recording.

The PDP's.... they just sound better on stage to me, nicer tone, and they also record better. The build quality on the PDP's surprised me. Perfect edges. Plus they are lighter to carry, hey I'll take all the advantages I can get. So I'm real happy with the PDP's. I actually like the tone better than my DW's.

I guess the moral of this story is my PDP kit sounds better onstage and in the audience than my Pearls and DW's. I guess I'll have to change my avi.
 
I've seen that PDP in WMP around here for sale used. Hanging floor tom?
Its a really nice looking kit too.
Interesting the adjectives we use for drums, cymbals and sounds.....' thin', 'tubby', 'clangy','dark'
When somebody says their drums sound 'tubby' I know exactly what they are referring to, the sound of those 5 gallon plastic pails.
 
Yes hanging floor tom. I don't know that PDP makes a 3 legged floor tom. If so I may get one. My Pearl had a 16" hanging floor tom, the PDP has a 14" hanging tom. I would have preferred a 16, but the 14 seems to be working out just fine.

For mid line drums, I rank PDP above Pearl as far as tone goes. The PDP's sound more badass.
 
I LOVE my PDP CX's (same color). I've had them since around 2004(?) I'm constantly getting compliments on the sound from other musicians, audience, and sound guys. The only problem I've ever had was the hihat pedal broke, so I upgraded from the 800-series to the heavy-duty 900-series.
 
Larry, they offered a 7x8 rack tom and a 14x16 (legged) floor tom as add-ons. It took me forever to find the floor tom. There seems to be quite a few available in blue onyx, but the white ones are practically non-existant.
 
Oh I love the blue onyx wrap. Reminds me of Ludwigs sky blue pearl, one of my favorite finishes. Thanks for the info on the floor tom. I will be on the lookout for one. I prefer legs on my floor tom, but hanging ones work fine.

I like the 32 TPI tuning rods. The 14" floor has almost too much sustain in some rooms. I do like that quality. Bottom line, it's just a more satisfying tone to me, by a lot.
 
Cool that you're happy Larry without spending more cash :) Why not fit legs to your 14" hanging tom? They're cheap enough.

Hmm I hadn't considered that. Good idea, but TBH, If I'm going to put any energy into it, I'd just look for the 16. The 14 isn't all that deep, it's more like a big rack tom than a floor. It's fine as is. I guess I'm on the lookout for a 16, but really I could be happy with the kit as it is.
 
Hmm I hadn't considered that. Good idea, but TBH, If I'm going to put any energy into it, I'd just look for the 16. The 14 isn't all that deep, it's more like a big rack tom than a floor. It's fine as is. I guess I'm on the lookout for a 16, but really I could be happy with the kit as it is.
Fair call :) Are you selling the Pearl?
 
Fair call :) Are you selling the Pearl?

I'm donating the Pearls. I wanted to make sure I was happy the the PDP's before giving the Pearls away. Last night was only the 2nd gig with the PDP's and now I'm secure with the fact that I much prefer them over the Pearls. I'm on the lookout for a worthy student to donate the Pearls too, I don't want to just give them to a school where they will be tortured and abused.
 
I'm donating the Pearls. I wanted to make sure I was happy the the PDP's before giving the Pearls away. Last night was only the 2nd gig with the PDP's and now I'm secure with the fact that I much prefer them over the Pearls. I'm on the lookout for a worthy student to donate the Pearls too, I don't want to just give them to a school where they will be tortured and abused.
A most noble path to take Larry. Kudos to you, & I'm a great believer in karma :)
 
Always had the problem of PDP losing the tuning due to poor lugs. Not sure if you have the same problem, but be aware that this happened with all PDP kits I played
 
Always had the problem of PDP losing the tuning due to poor lugs. Not sure if you have the same problem, but be aware that this happened with all PDP kits I played

Do you tune your drums low? If drums are tuned low....low tuned drums go out way quicker. Are you saying that other brands with 24 TPI rods stay in tune for you better?

I only have 6 gig hours on the PDP's as of today so I can't really speak from experience yet. Due to the nature of the music I play, and the rooms I play in, I don't see an issue with de-tuning, especially with the 32 TPI rods. I don't do a ton of tom work anyway. Plus I don't have to hit really hard at my gigs. But more importantly, I tune my toms on the high side.

I've heard some negatives about the lugs....I guess really heavy handed playing would expose any weaknesses, I doubt I will encounter any. Ive taken the lugs off and they aren't light. They seem more than up to the task. If I do experience de-tuning I will post something about it here. My DW's used to stay in tune amazingly well. The DW's, and now my PDP's... live in my van when not being used, and you know how hot and cold they can get in summer and winter. So that will test the PDP's tuning retention.
 
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PDP's are under appreciated kits. I heard one played at a local Greek food festival and was really impressed. I wonder how much oversight DW company has over their production. But that won't stop a seller from advertising "PDP Drums for sale Made By DW"... which is a stretch..

I
 
I like my Pacific SX snare quite a bit. Peace and goodwill.
 
I keep mine tuned fairly low, and I very rarely have to re-tune. Mine live in my car too. They spent half their life in York, PA and now they're in Balto, MD. No worries.
 
Yes hanging floor tom. I don't know that PDP makes a 3 legged floor tom. If so I may get one. My Pearl had a 16" hanging floor tom, the PDP has a 14" hanging tom. I would have preferred a 16, but the 14 seems to be working out just fine.

For mid line drums, I rank PDP above Pearl as far as tone goes. The PDP's sound more badass.

Larry,

I think you can find legged floor toms if you're lucky. I bought my FS birch shell pack for $200 (new) at Best Buy when they were blowing out their musical instruments. I always got annoyed with the hanging floor tom.

Got super lucky a while later when they dug out half of a shell pack for which there was no mate. Box 2 of 2 and no 1 in sight. FS series, same color as mine, had a 14"x14" floor tom just like mine except with legs. I waited until it went on sale (who else was going to buy half a kit?) and got my tom sans heads for $105. Came with a snare, a whole bag of tension rods, and a dual tom mount for the kick as well (currently craigslisting the snare).

They are out there.
 
Larry,

I think you can find legged floor toms if you're lucky. I bought my FS birch shell pack for $200 (new) at Best Buy when they were blowing out their musical instruments. I always got annoyed with the hanging floor tom.

Got super lucky a while later when they dug out half of a shell pack for which there was no mate. Box 2 of 2 and no 1 in sight. FS series, same color as mine, had a 14"x14" floor tom just like mine except with legs. I waited until it went on sale (who else was going to buy half a kit?) and got my tom sans heads for $105. Came with a snare, a whole bag of tension rods, and a dual tom mount for the kick as well (currently craigslisting the snare).

They are out there.

Great price, smart buying strategy too. I love birch I think more than maple. Well now that I know they're out there, I'll be on the lookout, thanks for the info Soupcan lol. Cool name.

For those with hanging floor toms:

If, for whatever reason, your hanging floor tom is bouncing a bit, fit one floor tom leg/bracket at 180 degrees to the hanging mount. Problem solved :)

That's thinking outside of the box.
 
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