Newbie on a Mapex shopping spree!

[Jdrum1]

Hi,

First post, but have been playing for many years.

As of late, my drum collection was feeling stale. When it came to snare selection, I had many, but nothing I was feeling excited about.

I ran across a store offering some good Black Panther deals (around $300 each). Unable to decide, I ended up with both the RetroSonic and Nomad snares.

Great drums.





Fast forward to last weekend, and I run across another Mapex deal that I couldn't pass up!

Listed on Craigslist was a Mapex Limited Edition (birch/walnut) set.

For $1700, I received the drums (bass, 2 rack, and 2 floor toms) and;

-Gretsch Taylor Hawkins snare
-DW 9000 series hardware (dbl bass, HH stand, tom stans, 2 boom stands)
-Gibraltar throne
-Sabian HH Stage cymbals (hats, ride, crash)

Everything is in like-new condition. The drums still have the factory heads.....without a single stick mark (I may have added some since!).

The owner's plans to take up drums didn't really come through. Plus, he lived in a townhouse, so volume was of concern (he only played the set with Hot Rods).

I've done the math, and it looks like I came away with about $5k in gear.....not bad!

These are possibly the best sounding drums I've played. My old Tama Starclassic Performers were good, but these are a whole new category. I haven't had much time for tuning, but you can just tell these are special when you hit them!

Thanks for looking!

[Texdrumr]

Gorgeous kit. And welcome to DC!

Tex

[drummerMD]

All I can say is that I'm very jealous I can tell just by looking at them that they sound killer! Thats what I want for my next set,but I already have 5 accoustic sets already. . . . .awsome kit!

[Jdrum1]

Gorgeous kit. And welcome to DC!

Tex

Thanks Tex!

All I can say is that I'm very jealous I can tell just by looking at them that they sound killer! Thats what I want for my next set,but I already have 5 accoustic sets already. . . . .awsome kit!

The pics don't do them a bit of justice.

[late8]

Welcome Jdrum1. Great first post and what a great deal you found. The snares look fantastic too. Looks like you have some new HHX cymbals leaning up against the floor? How do you like them?

[Jdrum1]

Those are the one's that came with the set (Just realized that I missed the "x" in hhx in my original post).

They are all hhx stage models, and I'm not a fan. All sound thin and one-dimensional.

[MDK]

Great looking kit, saturns are solid and sound fantastic. Great deal as well. I to am not a fan of the hhx line either other than the evolution hats. They should be easy to sell though as they have quite a following.

[ludleg]

Wow - did you ever score a deal there! I'm a fan of Mapex - great sounding drums. Those snares look fantastic. Welcome to Drum Chat, btw!

[gdmoore28]

One of the best scores ever! What a deal. The drums are beautiful. Good on you.


GeeDeeEmm

[Jdrum1]

Thanks for the compliments.

Believe me when I say that I'm fully aware just how lucky I was!


As I said above, the HHX Stage cymbals have been a disappointment. I wasn't in the market for new cymbals, so no biggie, but I expected to like them more. The hats are the best of the bunch. The ride and crash are SO lifeless. They sound entry-level.

The pleasant surprise has been the Taylor Hawkins snare. Nothing fancy about it, but it's really solid. It's not in the same league as my Black Panthers, but still a really nice drum.

[SpazApproved]

That is great man!! Welcome and thanks for sharing

[-bongos-]

Nice score. What do you think of the walnut snare? I was thinking about grabbing one off of eBay a couple months ago, but didn't pull the trigger.

[gdmoore28]

Thanks for the compliments.

Believe me when I say that I'm fully aware just how lucky I was!


As I said above, the HHX Stage cymbals have been a disappointment. I wasn't in the market for new cymbals, so no biggie, but I expected to like them more. The hats are the best of the bunch. The ride and crash are SO lifeless. They sound entry-level.

I'm totally surprised by your disappointment with the HHX Stage cymbals. They are not really my cup of tea, but I never perceived the ones I played as "lifeless" or "entry-level." I always thought that the Stage series was meant to be used exactly as the name implies, thus more emphasis on ping than over/undertones in the ride, and a fast decay on the crashes. That's not exactly the characteristics I desire either, but the ones I played delivered on their intended purpose. Nevertheless, you have practically nothing invested in them for all practical purposes, and there will be a large audience to buy them on ebay. You, my friend, can't loose for winning!

GeeDeeEmm

[Jdrum1]

Nice score. What do you think of the walnut snare? I was thinking about grabbing one off of eBay a couple months ago, but didn't pull the trigger.

Love it.

If I had to choose just one, I'd go with the Nomad. The sound differences between the two are exactly what you'd expect given the physical differences.

That said, the Retrosonic is absolutely beautiful!

I'm totally surprised by your disappointment with the HHX Stage cymbals. They are not really my cup of tea, but I never perceived the ones I played as "lifeless" or "entry-level." I always thought that the Stage series was meant to be used exactly as the name implies, thus more emphasis on ping than over/undertones in the ride, and a fast decay on the crashes. That's not exactly the characteristics I desire either, but the ones I played delivered on their intended purpose. Nevertheless, you have practically nothing invested in them for all practical purposes, and there will be a large audience to buy them on ebay. You, my friend, can't loose for winning!

GeeDeeEmm

I have an old entry level Paiste entry level crash (302, iirc). The HHX stage sounds almost identical!

[Jdrum1]

In regards to the new snares; I've got a couple older Black Panthers, and they don't hold a candle to the new ones.

Everything about the new models seems better; finishes, hardware, sound, bearing edges, and especially the strainers. The new strainers are on par with the "boutique" strainers I've had experience with (Dunnett and Trick).

[Bish]

Great looking setup.

Welcome to Drum Chat.

[dirtysticks]

Nice!!

[longgun]

Hi,

First post, but have been playing for many years.

As of late, my drum collection was feeling stale. When it came to snare selection, I had many, but nothing I was feeling excited about.

I ran across a store offering some good Black Panther deals (around $300 each). Unable to decide, I ended up with both the RetroSonic and Nomad snares.

Great drums.

Welcome to DC!

Looks like you scored some great drums, at a great price..........congrats

I love that Mapex snare on the right.......absolutely gorgeous

I'm pretty surprised to hear about the HHX cymbals............I've never owned any, but I've always heard good things about them.

[gdmoore28]

I have an old entry level Paiste entry level crash (302, iirc). The HHX stage sounds almost identical!

Ouch! Can't get more descriptive than that. By the way, Texas is not "the edge of the earth." It is Arkansas's left appendage and the center of the universe as far as I'm concerned. Go Texas!

GeeDeeEmm

[FlyByNight]

Beautiful kit. Welcome to the forum! I love the 1 up 2 (or 3) down set ups.

[Jdrum1]

Ouch! Can't get more descriptive than that. By the way, Texas is not "the edge of the earth." It is Arkansas's left appendage and the center of the universe as far as I'm concerned. Go Texas!

GeeDeeEmm

Lol. Really, they are very similar.

You've clearly never been to west Texas! The fact that you have to drive another 200 miles west to get to El Paso blows my mind.

[SpazApproved]

can't stop staring at that first snare drum!

Surprised you didn't go with matching Mapex pedals still... their pedals aren't bad. But I own the 9k pedals myself and they are just amazing! Hard to compete with those!

[Jdrum1]

can't stop staring at that first snare drum!

Surprised you didn't go with matching Mapex pedals still... their pedals aren't bad. But I own the 9k pedals myself and they are just amazing! Hard to compete with those!

The DW's were included with the set!

[weezy]

Great looking setup.

Having flashbacks, Bish?

[SpazApproved]

The DW's were included with the set!

oh well you lucky son of a gun