My Music City Custom Snare Verdict

Dang our threads always get off track and then generally get crazy. Here is my experience. You can use ā€œfactsā€ to debate any posit pro or con but when it comes to personal choices it really doesnā€™t matter cause you generally have a diverse population who will have different choices and opinion. So some will pick Pearl, DW, some boutique, etc. All the successful ones obviously meets individuals needs so to each their own. Itā€™s really like arguing politics on Facebook cause you arenā€™t going to change minds ( no matter your facts or arguments) and often you alienate or piss people off. Iā€™m still learning to Let it go, Let it go. Let it go. If it isnā€™t constructive or productive why bother.
 
Is that a Nashville tree? šŸ¤£šŸ¤£šŸ¤£
Planted by a native of Tennessee and also cut down by one?
It better be or you should send it back for refund.
Precisely. You both get right to the satirical heart of how absurd it is to obsess over "American Made" affiliations. The topic can get out of hand quickly. After certifying that a shell is crafted in America, one can go on inquiring, "But is the craftsman American born? Does he or she wear only American clothes and drive only American vehicles? And does he or she say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning? If not, I'll have no part of this drum."

Just how far can such nonsense be taken? Apparently, way too far.
 
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Precisely. You both get right to the heart of how absurd it is to obsess over American Made declarations. The topic can get out of hand quickly. After certifying that a shell was crafted in America, one can go on inquiring, "But is the craftsman American born? Does he or she wear only American clothes and drive only American vehicles? And does he or she say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning? If not, I'll have no part of this drum."

Just how far can such nonsense be taken? Apparently, way too far.

Just to be clear, I'm was only talking drums and it wasn't about the craftsmanship which I always said was mighty fine drum. I've tried maintain this as a civil conversation about equipment only and this was never a personal comment or a place to put someone down on their purchase. I only said my personal preference would put this ~$700 if I were to consider it with comparative reasons and I don't like Pearl's practices, apparently this was a mortal sin on the DW forum. Look, if I really like something then I will pay for it and if you find piece of equipment that will inspire music, wonderful...figured OP and most others has similar sentiment here so outside opinions should be immaterial and freely discussed, or so I thought.

But I think I had every right to be skeptical of Pearl as their MC line for snares and drumsets carry a premium price, have a 'Nashville' emblem but are 100% overseas shells so had to question the SS at least. Many are ok with this, but I am not (thus I don't play Pearl anymore) which is fine and no big deal, to each their own and in no way trying to convince anyone here but I truly believe if Pearl has a smaller overhead then they should give the consumer a break. But the source of who the shell maker remains anonymous, somewhere in the US but probably not Nashville it seems, or so said. Winston never answered my question above but sounded like it was important enough to send an email to Pearl to ask the very same thing as well as same question on the drum forum board
You can use ā€œfactsā€ to debate any posit pro or con but when it comes to personal choices it really doesnā€™t matter cause you generally have a diverse population who will have different choices and opinion.

Again, wasn't trying to convince anybody of anything...why should I care what anyone plays? Bang your drum and have fun. But here's another fact, your labor costs are much cheaper in Taiwan....like 75% from what what I see. I'm not a pro-US made with a screaming eagle tattoo guy...in fact, there very well may be better consistency coming from the Pearl Masterworks facility than what I see on the US drums since alot manufacturing talent has gotten lost through the decades unfortunately. But if you want to donate more to Pearl corp., they will happily accept as they may be the most business savy of any leading manufactures. But look at the values we see today, there is reason brands like Taye and Dixon can put their flagship lines at much more affordable prices...not sure if Mapex still makes Saturn line in Taiwan or not but excellent prices + relative overall quality nonetheless.
 
I would applaud any company who brands their wares: "Made on Planet Earth"

Instead of dividing it all up
I wouldn't mind having a snare crafted on Jupiter, though transport costs would be hefty.

Review update: I'm taking another few days to break the drum in and acquaint myself with its characteristics before imparting my detailed impressions. For now, I can report that I'm thoroughly pleased with it and have no buyer's remorse at all. It's still the snare I'd order if I were ordering one today.
 
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I bought an American made snare with some Pearl lugs, throw off, snares and hoops! Take that! Hey C.M. are those lugs any good? I don't have the time to search through Pearl's 18 different ranges. hehe (Just bustin'). Snare is killer by the way. Look at that figuring. Steambent 1/4" quilted maple, 14x7 with steambent solid re-rings. It's for sale too if anyone's interested. $649 w/ Beato Pro 1 case. I have the same thing in 14x6 that I'm keeping.
 

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I'm glad you're holding off on your review.

The "new drum" thing needs to use up it's initial charge before the actual opinions become clear.

Even my most favorite snares...I switch them up.

I will be totally in love with my walnut snare one week, and totally in love with something else the next week. Rinse, repeat.

My point is that not every day will be over the moon.

The drum stays the same but my perception and preferences...are unpredictable
 
I bought an American made snare with some Pearl lugs, throw off, snares and hoops! Take that! Hey C.M. are those lugs any good? I don't have the time to search through Pearl's 18 different ranges. hehe (Just bustin'). Snare is killer by the way. Look at that figuring. Steambent 1/4" quilted maple, 14x7 with steambent solid re-rings. It's for sale too if anyone's interested. $649 w/ Beato Pro 1 case. I have the same thing in 14x6 that I'm keeping.
You have Pearl's CL100 minimal-contact lugs (used on its Session Studio Select and Masters lines). They're designed to promote shell resonance. Yes, they're beyond good. Properly maintained, they should last throughout the life of the drum.
 
You have Pearl's CL100 minimal-contact lugs (used on its Session Studio Select and Masters lines). They're designed to promote shell resonance. Yes, they're beyond good. Properly maintained, they should last throughout the life of the drum.
Cool thanks! Summit Drums let's the buyer choose the hardware they want. I bought this off the original buyer. 7" is just too deep for me.
 
I'm fascinated by the location of manufacture being directly correlated to MSRP. I, for one, could care less where anything is made. Is it a quality build? Does the item meet the specifications listed? Does it perform as advertised? That's what's important. We live in a globally sourced economy. Things are made all over the place. Do people get all up at arms about what Taylor Made clubs cost versus a Titleist because Taylor Made are manufactured in China and assembled in America? Nope. Are Harley guys boycotting Harley because the fuel injection parts are made in Germany and the computer parts come from Taiwan? Nope. They even buy the hell out of the V-Rod which is a Porsche made engine.
If wood is bent in Taiwan does it make it less quality than if it was bent in America? Steam bent is steam bent regardless of the global location of the bender. I find that most of the talk around origin of manufacture is about nationalism, not end quality. I can say that I work on things built all over the world and IME the American made items have more quality control issues than things built overseas. E.g. While working for Toyota we in the shop used to compare the Ohio built Camrys to the Japan built ones and the verdict was that the American one had more NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) issues and quality control issues than it's Japanese counterpart.
 
......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................more suspense..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
 
Just to be clear, I'm was only talking drums and it wasn't about the craftsmanship which I always said was mighty fine drum. I've tried maintain this as a civil conversation about equipment only and this was never a personal comment or a place to put someone down on their purchase. I only said my personal preference would put this ~$700 if I were to consider it with comparative reasons and I don't like Pearl's practices, apparently this was a mortal sin on the DW forum. Look, if I really like something then I will pay for it and if you find piece of equipment that will inspire music, wonderful...figured OP and most others has similar sentiment here so outside opinions should be immaterial and freely discussed, or so I thought.

But I think I had every right to be skeptical of Pearl as their MC line for snares and drumsets carry a premium price, have a 'Nashville' emblem but are 100% overseas shells so had to question the SS at least. Many are ok with this, but I am not (thus I don't play Pearl anymore) which is fine and no big deal, to each their own and in no way trying to convince anyone here but I truly believe if Pearl has a smaller overhead then they should give the consumer a break. But the source of who the shell maker remains anonymous, somewhere in the US but probably not Nashville it seems, or so said. Winston never answered my question above but sounded like it was important enough to send an email to Pearl to ask the very same thing as well as same question on the drum forum board


Again, wasn't trying to convince anybody of anything...why should I care what anyone plays? Bang your drum and have fun. But here's another fact, your labor costs are much cheaper in Taiwan....like 75% from what what I see. I'm not a pro-US made with a screaming eagle tattoo guy...in fact, there very well may be better consistency coming from the Pearl Masterworks facility than what I see on the US drums since alot manufacturing talent has gotten lost through the decades unfortunately. But if you want to donate more to Pearl corp., they will happily accept as they may be the most business savy of any leading manufactures. But look at the values we see today, there is reason brands like Taye and Dixon can put their flagship lines at much more affordable prices...not sure if Mapex still makes Saturn line in Taiwan or not but excellent prices + relative overall quality nonetheless.
Well I was trying to state a cautionary tale. You don't have to explain your comments-I see the merits of your arguments. I wouldn't get defensive and It's not a personal attack-I've gotten same grief for doing the same thing. What a frigging hypocrite I"d be. You have your criteria for facts-other people will value in another way. I've been accused of intentionally trying to derail a thread for off topic comments like yours could be interpreted. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with your opinion nor can't have your opinions-or your "facts" (in fact I agree with some) it just seems misplaced and I think some will take it all wrong-as they have. Administrators can delete your facts-as a graph I posted of some data (I think they saw it as political). I geek out and go on and on about some science facts-but really we are just talking to ourselves, and I get grief from it. As I said I'm learning to Let it go, Let it go. I'm just suggesting do the same-few are replying to you now because they are excited for CM and I think some may see as you trying to burst his bubble or you could be thought a lunatic as a good fraction of forum member here do myself (welcome to the club ROFL). Which I don't believe you would intentionally do anything like that at all-just you learned or have opinions on things and you voice them. It just vomits out at times-boy do I know about that. It can be a dang rough crowd is all I'm saying. I'm good with you s1212 and CM you both seem like righteous dudes. Carry on. It's a great drum market with really well-made budget and mid-level kits-I'm not one to spend a fortune on drums either but I wish I had pulled the trigger on a Guru kit when I had the chance, and I have an uber expensive SONOR artisan Amboina snare that was a gift from my wife (it's more than any of my kits LOL).
 
After meticulous and protracted deliberation, I've summoned the conviction to leap from the proverbial fence and order a Music City Custom snare drum: 14"x5" in walnut. The decision wasn't without its trials, but in the end, walnut's tonal warmth, generous tuning range, and stunning aesthetics won the war. Maple is a staple, but its commonality was also a deficiency in this case. Walnut's scarcity pleaded for my attention, and I answered in the affirmative. Soon, we will be one.

Below is an image from Pearl's website of the exact model/design I ordered:

View attachment 106161

The drum will arrive late tomorrow or Saturday. I'll post more pics to this thread upon reception.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the demos I submitted. I do appreciate your input.
So you already played one before you bought it?
 
Ha ha I didn't think a half snorted line of coke even existed
Had a producer friend that used to lay out 2 foot lines.
So it is possible.
 
Wow flooding in several US states and countries in Europe. It might be time to build an ark. Keeping it drum related how many drum sticks would it take to build an ark? There could be a drum stick shortage and CM have no sticks to play his new snare is what I ā€œreckonā€.
 
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