Yamaha Live Custom Oak - opinions?

A

art5

Member
Hi all,
any of you (esp you Yamaha lovers) have had experience with the new Live Custom oak kit?
I've been reading great reviews on websites but would like to know more from you guys; my options with Yamaha are now very limited especially now a lot of lines have been discontinued & very hard to find.

My current kit is DW performance series, love it, but want to branch out to Yamaha. I am already a fan of Yamaha hardware - absolutely love everything about it.

Thank you all
 
Hi Art,

I've been gigging a Live Custom kit pretty regularly since last spring and I like it a lot. To my ears, these deliver the attack, projection and "meatiness" of oak without being too harsh.

I was lucky enough to score a great deal on a kit Dave Weckl played at last year's PASIC so the "bang for your buck" factor has been especially high on these.

 
I have the Absolute custom oak (also the birch). Great sounding for sure. Got a closeout deal from local GC last year. Couldn't pass it up, especially made in Japan. But, the live kits, even though built in china, are still up to Yamaha standards....
 
I've just bought a yamaha oak custom, tried to date it. HHZ serial, so December 2011?

22, 16, 12, 10. No snare, mint condition.

I'm doing to put some vintage coated emperor skins on.

What were these kits new price wise ? Uk pounds. These are made in japan shells.

Thanks
 
I can't believe more drums aren't made of oak, or that more people don't use them.
 
Last edited:
Oak love since 2007!

1558517_10205234536162566_2845927962707822649_n.jpg
 
MusiQmaN said:
Steve Jordan on the Live Oak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b97bMh-tGI

I love both the new as the older Oak.
Click to expand...
Wes, I just had to go & check out the James Brown performance Steve mentions in this video. Really - something very special!

Grunt, Oak is inherently bright with a clean low end. That's subject to construction, that can either subdue or enhance certain properties to a degree. Then there's head choices & tuning of course, but oak will always occupy the brighter cleaner end of the delivery scale. In solid shell forms, that's even more pronounced, & makes it more of a specific requirement in that sector of drums.
 
How much is an oak custom kit new?
 
keep it simple said:
Grunt, Oak is inherently bright with a clean low end. That's subject to construction, that can either subdue or enhance certain properties to a degree. Then there's head choices & tuning of course, but oak will always occupy the brighter cleaner end of the delivery scale. In solid shell forms, that's even more pronounced, & makes it more of a specific requirement in that sector of drums.
Click to expand...

Ah, that's the word: "Clean." Thanks Andy.

I find that these drums have worked really well for the "back beat" gigs I do (e.g., rock, pop, blues) and depending on the venue, deliver well sans microphones (or using Glyn Johns method as in the picture). For jazz, it's still the maple drums (well, sometimes a birch kick drum).

With the exception of a couple of stave snares, I've never played/heard solid oak shells. I reckon those would really deliver on what oak is all about.
 
Thegshow said:
How much is an oak custom kit new?
Click to expand...

The Oak Customs (along with all of the other Japanese made lines) are no longer being made, since Yamaha pulled out of Japan over a year ago. The current Oak offering is the Live Custom, which is made in China. As Grunt stated, they start at about $1600 for 3 piece.
 
scorch whammin said:
The PHX are still made in Japan....
Click to expand...

Right, they weren't (aren't) made by Sakae. I guess I should have been more specific to say 'the Sakae lines are no longer made.'
 
After selling off my Oak Customs last November and picking up a set of DW Performance I am now back to the Oak's. I liked the DW but was not blown away. I missed the bass drum mounting and the great Yamaha hardware and sound. I traded the DW's in for a brand new Live Oak and very happy that I did. They are very well made, sound and look great too.
 
Last edited:
I bought a set of Live Customs last July 2014. Amazing kit! So much so that I am switching over everything to Yamaha! Plan this year is to buy an AMH in Vintage Natural. 10-12-14-16-20 and snare.


PHX drums are made in the Yamaha factory in Hamamastu. Three craftsmen make all of the drums, I think. Three.

Oh here's a pic:
 

Attachments

  • LC1.jpeg
    LC1.jpeg
    303.7 KB · Views: 3,398
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top