Big maple fun :)

I've been waiting to hear maple with your construction techniques. This is a nice surprise. You can see why maple is such a classic sound. I especially liked the bigger drums. The floor tom sounds deep and satisfying and the kick drum kicks ass. My ears were just enveloped in warmth and bigness. Very nice.

The rack tom...the Zebrano is much more complex. I wasn't too moved by the maple rack tom. (I have really great headphones too) I'd rather have the Zebrano. The maple sounds "simple" compared to most of your other drums, which have a complexity to them. The maple is simple and honest that hits you in your chest and fills the room with warmth. Less complex but just as satisfying just the same. In a different way altogether. I will say you really bought out the best qualities of the maple. It's especially apparent in the bigger drums.

When do you guys sleep?
 
Good heavens!!!!!!! I just love maple, and this nailed me in my seat!
Thank you :) Maple, but not as you know it ;) ;) ;)

I've been waiting to hear maple with your construction techniques. This is a nice surprise. You can see why maple is such a classic sound. I especially liked the bigger drums. The floor tom sounds deep and satisfying and the kick drum kicks ass. My ears were just enveloped in warmth and bigness. Very nice.

The rack tom...the Zebrano is much more complex. I wasn't too moved by the maple rack tom. (I have really great headphones too) I'd rather have the Zebrano. The maple sounds "simple" compared to most of your other drums, which have a complexity to them. The maple is simple and honest that hits you in your chest and fills the room with warmth. Less complex but just as satisfying just the same. In a different way altogether. I will say you really bought out the best qualities of the maple. It's especially apparent in the bigger drums.

When do you guys sleep?
This is a very perceptive post Larry :) Maple has a big "bump" in the lower mid frequencies of the spectrum. That makes it's tone distinctive, but also a little one dimensional. In larger drums, overtones add flavoursome "side dishes" to the main course, but in smaller drums, not so much. That affect is amplified in this particular construction due to the very dominant fundamental & strong control of higher overtones. There's no dampening here outside of two ply heads on tom batter & the plastic retaining ring on the single ply bass drum batter. That control is all in the construction, & it's there because of Tour series' focus on live stage requirements.

i've mentioned this before about tour series, but I'll mention it again anyhow. This series is inspired by my personal experiences with Sonor Phonics in the 80's. Tour series is what I always wanted my Phonics to sound like. All that power, "bite", & explosive nature, but so much more resonant shell tone involvement & control of higher overtones. Essentially, Phonics on steroids :)

& Yes, Zebrano Tour series much more complexed in the midrange - by design.
 
Great stuff.........they sound like "studio" drums already, without all of the studio tricks.

IMO, I really like your drums with the stands......the rack seems to cover up the beauty of the wood on the kit next to you.

Is this the more "reasonable" line of Guru's?

I think you nailed the old Sonor Phonics sound.
 
That made me smile too! Awesome room-filling audio Andy!

I'll take two ;)
 
I'll echo what the others said..

The set sounds huge. Especially the bass drum - damn!
 
Oh, christ. I'm having a crisis over here. That's just beautiful. It's massaging right into my primitive rock brain. I assume it's G2s on the toms and some persuasion of EMAD on the kick?
Thanks :) Yes, G2 clear over G1 clear for toms, single ply Emad with no foam ring for bass drum batter.

Great stuff.........they sound like "studio" drums already, without all of the studio tricks.

IMO, I really like your drums with the stands......the rack seems to cover up the beauty of the wood on the kit next to you.

Is this the more "reasonable" line of Guru's?

I think you nailed the old Sonor Phonics sound.
Thank you :) This is exactly the purpose of Tour series. Huge tone, but strong overtone control. In other words, ready dialled in for live stage. Inspiration is Phonics, but the resonance profile of these is in a different league :)

Dear sweet lord... ..............
I think he would approve of the thunder & lightning potential of these :)

That made me smile too! Awesome room-filling audio Andy!

I'll take two ;)
"Room filling" is exactly why I'm just happily hitting them & letting those tones wash all over me :)

I'll echo what the others said..

The set sounds huge. Especially the bass drum - damn!
Thank you :) Yes, that wimpy 14" deep bass drum that couldn't possibly produce more bottom end than a 22" x 18" - right! It's all in the design ;)
 
This be why maple is the staple in the shell world.

Any chance of maple staves alternating with poplar/gum, just cuz you can?
 
This be why maple is the staple in the shell world.

Any chance of maple staves alternating with poplar/gum, just cuz you can?

Andy has stated in the past that he prefers to not mix woods. Which doesn't explain the ash/ovangkol drums. So maybe I got that wrong?
 
Any chance of maple staves alternating with poplar/gum, just cuz you can?

Andy has stated in the past that he prefers to not mix woods. Which doesn't explain the ash/ovangkol drums. So maybe I got that wrong?
Guys, the reason I prefer not to mix wood species is that it diminishes the prominence of the fundamental, & that detracts from it's species distinction IMO. In ply construction, it's not such a big deal, because the fundamental attributed to the timber species is already somewhat diminished. TBH, grain direction & mass has by far the bigger affect on the sonic response of a ply shell than timber species ever will.

We do make an exception in our range as Larry points out. We add a small amount of ovangkol to our English ash & beech drums, simply to bring a degree of complexity to the midrange. Both beech & English ash are extremely balanced species.

This be why maple is the staple in the shell world.
Yes, maple has a very pronounced lower midrange "bump" in the spectrum that aids distinction & what's commonly referred to as "warmth". That said, the sheer power of these drums is much more to do with other aspects of the design, allied to the greater resonance from a solid shell. A 10mm thick ply shell is close to sonically dead. Not so a solid shell.

These drums are deliberately short voiced, yet it's the resonance that delivers all that tone. In fact, they're a perfect example of the disconnection between resonance & head sustain. Most won't put highly resonant & focussed in the same sentence, but that's exactly what these drums are. They like being spanked hard, & never choke out dynamically :)
 
I just came to this thread today Andy. Wow!!!! Amazing drums. I'm pretty unsophisticated where is comes to some of the more "exotic" woods used in drums these days; I've always had a fondness for maple drums.

These just sound amazing. So warm and full, I can simply use the word beautiful to as the first adjective for the sound. They sound so big, full and open to me and yet controlled without the slightest choking.

Very well done, from my humble opinion. I want one.
 
I wonder what the same set up would sound like in . . . . No, I can't say it. . . . well . . .perhaps I might ask, no I just couldn't. but I have too . . . . . . . how about purple heart? Gosh, now I said it . . . .
 
They sound so big, full and open to me and yet controlled without the slightest choking.
Thank you Derek, that's what we're shooting for, despite their focussed & controlled nature.

I wonder what the same set up would sound like in . . . . No, I can't say it. . . . well . . .perhaps I might ask, no I just couldn't. but I have too . . . . . . . how about purple heart? Gosh, now I said it . . . .
Hahaha :) That's an easy one, they would sound like - well - maple, only more so if that makes sense. A little brighter, a more pronounced lower midrange "bump", & the same balance of lows.

Maple has the best sound for drums IMHO. I love mine!
Glad to hear it :)

Really love those big, bold sounds. Very nice.
Thank you ;)


Here's a couple of shots of the simple recording setup (different kit, obviously) Two "over shoulder" overheads (Rode NT5's), & a D112 on the bass drum batter head. Run through an A&H Mixwiz 3 (flat channels) & stereo out to the Zoom Q3HD.
 

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