Truth drums or SJC?

I have saved my money now for the last few month and finaly have enuff money to buy one of these but i can't decide which one is best.
I know these kits are really pricey so i want to get my moneys worth
anyone have one?
which one shoiuld i buy
thanks


If I were you at this point in the game...

I'd be more worried about who is going to be around when you need help say 6 years from now.

I'd go with a bigger brand that has established itself and will be here for a long time.
 
Another good method of seeing (hearing) what you really want, just go to some local shows and see what everyone is playin, ask if you can hit there drums for a bit. .. Im sure alot of them would be more than happy to answer questions you may have. . .
 
If you want a truly custom kit(ply config resale and all) get a Pearl Masterworks. Honestly companies like SJC Shine Trust ect ect only offer custom paint jobs. that's the sad part, you pay say 1200$ for a bass drum that's a 75$ Keller shell 200$ in hardware 100 in heads and then like another 925$ for a badge and a paint job. i think not.
 
I personally own two SJC kits and three of their snare drums. Honestly, I have never had better customer service or better sounding drums. Before these kits i played on a Tama Warlord bubinga snare and a pearl masters. I wouldn't go back.

SJC treated me better than anyone else has, and they worked with me to design the kit of my dreams. When my band went on tour, they helped me design a kit that would be more durable on the road. When I needed different sounds in the studio, SJC helped me get the tone I needed with the snare drums that I have purchased from them.

I'm sick of people talking bad about these companies. Until you have had these drums on stage and heard the sound you get in the studio, please don't call them over rated. A gimmik? maybe to some, but Personally, I like having a drum kit that no one else in the entire world has. Kind of makes me feel a bit special. So before you bad mouth these companies, play one of their kits. I promise you that you will never feel the same once you own one.

just my $0.02

-Matt
 
The risk of buying from a "Keller-sheller" is definitely future support....if you are new to the DIY business.

If, on the other hand, you buy a Truth or SJC kit, and something goes pear-shaped after the company goes under or whatever, there will still be a way to get that stuff fixed and/or matched by someone else with as much savvy in the boutique drum biz. Much of that stuff is supplied by someone, and a little poking around the internet will find most of them. Precision Drum co., Drum Foundry, Drummaker.com and Jamminsam are good places to start.

If SJC or Truth drums do it for you, then support their efforts and get a kit. I don't know what Francois charges for a Unix kit, but I'll bet whatever it is it's worth it. I've seen some of his work around the web and on ghostnote.net, and he knows what he's doing.
 
I love it when someone asks, "Which brand should I choose, A or B?" and half the responses are "Brand C".

To the original question - SJC offers WAY more finish choices than Truth, and their kits seem to hold their value better.
 
Im with matt986, untill you jump on one there kits you never know. . .just remember all the big boys had to start somewhere too. . .I believe DW used Keller for a while to start off. . .I had Truth make me a all walnut kit with round over edges and i have never been more in love with a kit in all my life. . .and thats my $0.02. . and put that together you now have $0.04. . dont spend it all at once. . .
 
i don't buy acoustic kits anymore, but if i did i think the only company i'd buy from would be unix. their stave kits are hot. of course buying snares is another matter.. ;)
 
All i know is that if i had the $$$ id get brady drums
 
Seriously

Jacked-up

Cost
 
Hello men

Just a quick note to let you all know I now make my drums in Maple, Birch and Ash. I also have different exotic plys over maple shells. Some of thise are Satin Walnut, Curly Maple, Fiddleback Eucalyptus, Sapeli Pommele, Tulip with more coming.

A quick FYI

B
 
Wow, those Unix drums are truly works of art. How much is say a 5 piece shellpack with holes drilled and hardware provided? It truly is easy to install lugs and assemble your drums yourself, wouldn't you guys agree? I will be another one to say how much I love my now gone Starclassic performers with the chrome Starcast mounts. I got to do a side by side playing comparison versus Pearl masters, DW, and a few others. I fell in love and to be honest, if I did have the extra $1000 or more to buy the others, I don't think I would have.
 
Wow, those Unix drums are truly works of art. How much is say a 5 piece shellpack with holes drilled and hardware provided?

i'm not sure exactly what the prices are for a 5 piece kit right now (i haven't spoken to him in years), but they really weren't that bad a few years ago. you can e-mail him or find him on these forums, he responds relatively quickly!
 
Idk why everyone hates on the keller kits. They sound amazing, both sjc and truth. When you are choosing between the 2 i would defenatly go with sjc though. They sound more full than Truth kits. Also sjc has the best customer service I have ever delt with and are cheaper than Truth. When i talked to Truth about making a custom kit it was almost twice as much as the same kit i wanted to order from sjc. When I asked them if there was anything they could do about the price they pretty much told me no because we are the best custom drum company and are kits are worth the extra money. So that kinda pissed me off. Defenatly Sjc
 
SJC is just plain odd: they make drums for gimmicks, not playing IMO...

...Because they're ordered by the customers. They don't mass produce drums (obviously) so each one will be different because each one is built to certain parameters set by the buyer. The buyer has the money and the imagination, so they go wild with both. That's what i'd do.

SJC are famous for having the most ridiculous finishes or the best in the world, depending on your take on it. I'd love to have an SJC with lights, gun turrets and a spinning front head design that can hypnotize people. I believe that's the essence of a custom kit. To have whatever you want build onto/into whatever shell size, material and finish.

Agreed, companies like C&C, Brady, Pork Pie, KD Drums based here in England, Kumu Drums and others are generally thought of as being higher quality. Either through the construction and assembly of the drums or the fact that they may make the shells themselves. Either way, i think that a custom kit is hindered only by your imagination and the depth of your pockets. And if you're going custom, you obviously have enough money, so you may as well get your moneys worth and order that ridiculous kit you've dreamed of as a kid.

xoxo
 
Don't know if anyone has made this point yet as i can't be bothered to read this whole thing. But from what i've read so far a lot of people are saying truth and sjc both use keller shells so both of them must sound the same. WRONG!!!!. What you're not taking into account here is that everything and i mean EVERYTHING in the shell effects the sound of the drum. everything being the size, the edges, what sort of wood(s) you're useing, differen't shaped sound holes (you can do this with custom drums) and even the patern of the grain. What this means is basically if you had 2 drums that on the outside looked exactly the same, we'll say two 10x7" 6 ply maple toms they will not sound the same due mainly to the grain as every tree in the world is differen't no tree has the same grain, no drum will sound exactly the same
Thats my 2c
 
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