Thoughts on Mapex?

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

Wanted to get a lesser kit then my Sonor Delite, tried Pearl Reference, Pearl Masters, DW Performers, Yamaha Oak Customs, Tama B/B and M/B Starclassics, and Mapex Saturns.

Mapex took it down, no question. Sound was very appealing.

In the end, I ended up not getting any kit, but my next lower end kit would be a Mapex Saturn one.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

formula428 said:

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In the end, I ended up not getting any kit, but my next lower end kit would be a Mapex Saturn one.

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Really?

Saturns are lower end?

Is this snobbery or am I missing something here?

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

JustJames said:

Really?

Saturns are lower end?

Is this snobbery or am I missing something here?

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The Delites he mentions are about the same price new as a set of References. Saturns, Performers, Live Customs, and B/B Starclassics are all somewhere around $1000 lower if I recall correctly, so "lower end" in this situation is technically correct.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

In the same way that a Ferrari driver calls a Mercedes Benz "lower end".

So, no, not snobbery at all.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

Didn't mean it as snob comment, but compared to Delite, Reference, or Collector's, $1200 is fairly cheap. Nonetheless, the value of those at near-$1000 was impressive. Very impressive.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

Jesus, that's right, a typical set of Saturns lies around $12-1400... what a value.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

On top of blowout prices on the meridian series birch and maple, there are blowout prices on older version saturns too. I wish I had future sight instead of hindsight

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

I like Mapex a lot. I've had a Meridian Maple for a couple years and I think it just sounds awesome.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

They make a wide range of snares, most sounds good!

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

I have a 4-year old Saturn kit (Maple/Walnut) that I gig with 2-3x a week. As others have said, it is a pretty good bang for the buck. The lacquer finish is durable and amazing looking, shines up nice and looks great under the lights. The tom mounts are sturdy and don't add a ton of weight. The Walnut ply's really help with the projection live. I have a burst finish with Black Nickel hardware - real nice.

The Black Panther snares are a good price and quality as well. I'm still on the hunt for an Orion series Birdseye Maple snare. The Blaster series kits seem "boutique" but have a unique sound and are made nice.

I haven't had much in-depth experience with the Falcon pedals or the hardware in general.. nothing super innovative but sturdy. Surprisingly one of the "basic" models of kick pedals felt good to me when I borrowed a pedal at a studio.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

Trip McNealy said:

I haven't had much in-depth experience with the Falcon pedals or the hardware in general.. nothing super innovative but sturdy. Surprisingly one of the "basic" models of kick pedals felt good to me when I borrowed a pedal at a studio.

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I've been itching to try out their Falcon pedals with the strap drive. People seem to like them a lot, and I'm starting to grow a little tired of my 9000s. The Falcon snare stand and cymbal stand seem very well engineered, pulling together a lot of good elements from the best hardware out there.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

I like my Saturns. They're (relatively) inexpensive and have a nice range of tuning and dynamics with a very full albeit bright sound. The kit comes with a good snare drum too. This is the first shell pack I've gotten whose snare drum I didn't ditch. Never do that, by the way. It kills the resale value of the kit.

Re: Thoughs on Mapex?

Played a few kits over the years and they seemed to be very good. I picked up a Mapex Black Panther Pro maple 13" x 6 1/4" snare that sounds fantastic.. and nice maple wood finish as well. Hardware is solid. Nice poppy crack yet woody sound. Looks something like this;