Drum Workshop Worth The Cash?

Fat E,
The pics don't do the finish justice. When I get them set up I will mess with the camera and try to capture the essence.
TCB!
 
O.K...here's another car analogy. LudwigVDC, on another post, showed a 1961 catalog page Ludwig set going for $500+. Lot of money for 1961, you could buy a new car for under $1K. Forward to 2007, a new Chevy Aveo costs $10K. A new DW kit, half that. Now a clean 1961 Luddy today is worth 3-4 times what it was then. Will todays DW kit be worth $15K in 2053? Probably not. DW's, are they worth the cash? Sure they are. And if you score a used kit at a good price, even better. Just don't expect them to go "up" in value.
 
illustrator X said:
Alllllright kids.....just so I can chime in on this post I got my Deedubs (Kidding).
Anyway, I hit a homerun on the finish It's just KILLER and I didn't see it in person till it got to my door. I will chime back in after I get acclimated to my new kit with the final assessment.
Hey like I tell my wife, this is science damn it.
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Beauty! How long did it take them to build the kit? Guitar Center told me anywhere from 8mo. to 2 yrs. so I just bought one of the kits they had in stock...I don't have that kind of patience.

Anyhow, beautiful finish. You'll find yourself staring at them as much as you play them, trust me!
 
harryconway said:
O.K...here's another car analogy. LudwigVDC, on another post, showed a 1961 catalog page Ludwig set going for $500+. Lot of money for 1961, you could buy a new car for under $1K. Forward to 2007, a new Chevy Aveo costs $10K. A new DW kit, half that. Now a clean 1961 Luddy today is worth 3-4 times what it was then. Will todays DW kit be worth $15K in 2053? Probably not. DW's, are they worth the cash? Sure they are. And if you score a used kit at a good price, even better. Just don't expect them to go "up" in value.
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I think you're wrong, frankly. Everything becomes "vintage" at some point. Since these drums are custom made, by hand, and are considered amongst the best on the market today - when they grow to vintage age, they will surely appreciate in value.

20 yrs. from now, my DW kits will still look and sound as fantastic as they do today...and will surely fetch a vintage price. As to how much that is - no one can say for sure.

Don't forget to adjust for inflation...which is a hidden tax that obfuscates the true market value of any product and can give the impression of "appreciation" in value - when in fact the value of money is just depreciating. The U.S. Dollar has lost more than 90% of its original value since 1913.
 
zambizzi said:
Everything becomes "vintage" at some point. - when they grow to vintage age, they will surely appreciate in value.

20 yrs. from now, my DW kits will still look and sound as fantastic as they do today...and will surely fetch a vintage price. As to how much that is - no one can say for sure.
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See, your DW kit will still look and sound fantastic, and so will everyone elses. Very few cats who own $5K drum sets are gonna drill extra holes, re-wrap, rattle-can paint job, etc. their kits. It's part of the attrition of an item that appreciates it's value. Look how many cats on this forum want "new" drums rather than put the same amount of cash into a "gently used" kit. The now 45 year old Ludwig and Gretsch kits will be 90 and fetch even higher collector prices and the DW kits of today will be more plentyful than ever, and therefor not collectable.
 
harryconway said:
See, your DW kit will still look and sound fantastic, and so will everyone elses. Very few cats who own $5K drum sets are gonna drill extra holes, re-wrap, rattle-can paint job, etc. their kits. It's part of the attrition of an item that appreciates it's value. Look how many cats on this forum want "new" drums rather than put the same amount of cash into a "gently used" kit. The now 45 year old Ludwig and Gretsch kits will be 90 and fetch even higher collector prices and the DW kits of today will be more plentyful than ever, and therefor not collectable.
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Well...alright...I guess I was just replying to your original claim - that future vintage DW kits won't appreciate...which I don't agree with.

Obviously something older and more rare...in just as good condition will be more valuable in the collector's market. This is true of anything.
 
I feel it comes down to personal preference. If you want to spend 5k on a drum kit, hey what ever floats your boat! But I feel when you get into all of the top of the line maple kits the only difference is who offers the finish you like and who has the hardware you like. Personally I can't hear much of a difference, obviously the thinner the shell the more resonance you will have. Bascially to each his own!
 
Fat Elvis said:
basically it all comes down to personal preference. Many will say their drums sound just as good.... even some will say their drums sound better. For some -- including me -- its sort of like this:

I drive a porsche. I always wanted one, i have dreamed about it since i was a kid. I am lucky enough to own one. Many people share this dream. Now suburu makes a fast ass car -- it can beat my car. It has well over 300 hp and all wheel drive. It is also less than 1/2 the price of my car new. Apples to apples, you can say that the suburu is better -- its faster, grips the road better, etc.

No kid is going to sleep dreaming of owning a suburu.

There is something to be said for the porsche name, its quality, its mystery and its exclusivity. Its got a great design, great performance, a great name - no matter what suburu produces, it will never approach it. Many would agree the same can be said for DW.

food for thought. By the way, i also play a DW. :)
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OMG GREAT RESPONSE!!!!
 
harryconway said:
It's part of the attrition of an item that appreciates it's value.
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It is also hard to know the future and I like what you said about the attrition. But let's say that something happens at DW to shake everything up and the drums are not just the same as they are right now. This is what happenend at many of the vintage drum companies - Rogers, Slingerland (the 1980s pretty much wiped Slingerland out in my opinion). would it be what would make the DW kits being made before my hypothetical "shake up" be more collectable? All of the sudden, the DW kit isn't what it once was, much like a gretsch, rogers or slingerland kit.


Mike

http://www.mikemccraw.com
http://www.dominoretroplate.com

http://www.youtube.com/drummermikemccraw
http://www.myspace.com/drummermikemccraw
 
zambizzi said:
Beauty! How long did it take them to build the kit? Guitar Center told me anywhere from 8mo. to 2 yrs. so I just bought one of the kits they had in stock...I don't have that kind of patience.

GC is full of crap. The wait is 5-6 months tops, they where just hard selling you a kit.
My DW kit experience went down sort of crazy, and worked out PERFECTLY. I had my special order in for about 6 weeks, and I happen to say hey to my former drum dealer in Texas. I knew he dealt DW, but I am in PA and DW has the 200 mile rule. Well he started only dealing in Yamaha and no longer was a DW dealer so he had about 10 kits in stock and one of them was almost my exact order. Sure I didn't get a matching snare, but I went from getting 50% off list and the price was about 5k to the in stock kit (with no wait) for 4K. The only bad part of the deal I had to pay a 200.00 penalty for cancelling my order, it wasn't DW it was my local drum dealer that stuck that to me. He kept stringing me along about the order being cancelled so I sort of bribed him since I didn't wan't to miss the other kit.

I am still getting them set up and tuning them, but I love what I hear so far. Explosive and dynamic.
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...It would take a team of forensic accountants to figure out what exactly I paid for my collection of dubs, and the forest of chrome that supports them.

I have three and a half kits, consisting of some used, and some new. Two of the sets are complete, one is a collection of new and used, with the half dubs being a bit of a Frankenkit.

I am happy with my drums, so I would have to say that they were a good value, and worth the investment.

I am also looking at downsizing by getting rid of a kit, and donating the frankenkit to my sons junior high school next year.

If that happens, I can't guarantee that I won't buy another DW kit if a good enough deal comes my way.

Barry
 
illustrator X said:
zambizzi said:
Beauty! How long did it take them to build the kit? Guitar Center told me anywhere from 8mo. to 2 yrs. so I just bought one of the kits they had in stock...I don't have that kind of patience.

GC is full of crap. The wait is 5-6 months tops, they where just hard selling you a kit.
My DW kit experience went down sort of crazy, and worked out PERFECTLY. I had my special order in for about 6 weeks, and I happen to say hey to my former drum dealer in Texas. I knew he dealt DW, but I am in PA and DW has the 200 mile rule. Well he started only dealing in Yamaha and no longer was a DW dealer so he had about 10 kits in stock and one of them was almost my exact order. Sure I didn't get a matching snare, but I went from getting 50% off list and the price was about 5k to the in stock kit (with no wait) for 4K. The only bad part of the deal I had to pay a 200.00 penalty for cancelling my order, it wasn't DW it was my local drum dealer that stuck that to me. He kept stringing me along about the order being cancelled so I sort of bribed him since I didn't wan't to miss the other kit.

I am still getting them set up and tuning them, but I love what I hear so far. Explosive and dynamic.
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Hmm...very interesting, indeed! I figured they were slinging me a pile of BS, it's how they operate there, which is why I don't go in there for gear anymore. I like to buy drum gear from drummers who respect other drummers.

In the next few years I may do a custom build w/ DW instead of buying off-the-shelf, like I did in Feb. I have two full DW kits now but I'd like a little bop kit with a 20" kick and a really exotic finish.

You may find, like I did, that the factory remo heads sound great. I've tried fiberskyns, ambassadors, emperors, and now I'm right back to the factory heads. Tune, play, and re-tune them often over the first month and you'll begin to get a great sound out of them. I found my DW's harder to tune than other kits I've played...but I think I've found the sweet spot...and I'm able to do it much more quickly now.
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zambizzi said:
illustrator X said:
You may find, like I did, that the factory remo heads sound great. [...] Tune, play, and re-tune them often over the first month and you'll begin to get a great sound out of them. I found my DW's harder to tune than other kits I've played...but I think I've found the sweet spot...and I'm able to do it much more quickly now.
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you are one hundred percent right ... and i agree two hundred percent with it. ;-)
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When I see a DW kit, I immediatly think QUALITY!

But then I think £800+ ($1600+)

Is it really worth it when you can get a tama of the same standard but with more toms or accessories?

DAMN I BUMPED IT :(
 
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