Hard to choose

[paistegirl]

Okay, so, I've played drums for a wee while and I am ready to up grade from my Tama Swingstar......But!...I am 'caught between' two different kits.
Any help/views would be awesome, The first is the Tama Superstar Hyperdrive EFX, I'm a big fan of Tama, the kit comes with alright hardware/I like the sound etc etc......It will cost about $2400 (NZ)
The other kit is the 'Truth' Aaron Gillespie custom kit, I have never heard a truth kit live but I'm told they are awesome and some of my favourite drummers use them.....Because I would have to order from the U.S it would cost me about $2000 (including shipping) for the kit, with NO hardware.....
I'm struggling to decide.....any input would be awesome...

[middleman]

Well Truth drums are a custom company and great sounding/looking drums. As you said, yes Truth are quite a bit more than that line of Tama you mentioned. If you have the money go for them, if not go for the Tama's. I would be proud to own either OR EACH hehe. Blessings......

[middleman]

BTW, I just saw that this is your first post here. Let me be your first and say welcome to DrumChat! Blessings.......

[Yoda]

If you think that both drum kits are of good quality it then comes down to hardware. Do you want the alright hardware now, or do you want to buy good hardware peice by peice.

[ratmycue]

My advice, dont buy any kit without first trying it, it has to 'fit' you man.

[bongobro]

Hey, paistegirl! Welcome aboard!

ratmycue has the right idea--if you can, play both (don't know if you can do that with Truth, since middleman correctly noted they're custom drums, however).

Only thing I would add is if you have the money for the additional hardware you'll need if you go for the Truth kit, go that way...not every day you can have a kit custom-built for you...

Have fun with 'em, and again, welcome aboard!

[Roger]

How big is the Truth kit? 1 up 2 down 5pc? How big is the Tama?

[totti]

Well yeah Ratmycue was right...

But I myself will grab a SUPERSTAR...
Like You PaisteGirl, I'm a big fan of TAMA....

So Try it first, If you love it then bring it home....

Nice to meet ya...

[pastor_bob]

Welcome to Drum Chat Paistegirl!

Looks like the Truth Aaron Gillespie is a 1 up and 2 down configuration, with a 13" ride, 16" and 18" floor. It's a 7 ply birch/poplar shell, and it's classified as a mid-level kit. Not bad, but for a custom drum, the construction seems like you are paying for the "custom" label.

If you like birch drums, I think you could get a better deal, but it's the configuration that you love, then this just might be you set. I noticed that the Tama kit came in several configurations, so I am not sure which one you are considering, but I am assuming that it would be the 5 piece. The Tama Superstar Hyper-Drive is a birch/basswood shell, so I would suggest that if you can, check the sound against shells that are fully birch.

This won't be an easy decision, and I think it will come down to with configuaration you like better, although I think the extra depth on the Tama bass (20X22 vs 24X18 for the Truth) will give it amazing punch. With the money you will save on the Truth kit, though, would certainly allow you buy the hardware that you need, so again, it probably comes down to which configuration you prefer.

Good luck with your decision. I've been there, and I understand your dilemna!

[funkymcstain]

wow, truth is doing a signature production kit? well, aaron did kinda put em on the map. but since it is not one of thier true custom lines, and made with (assuming) cheep birch and poplar...i'm gonna have to say go with the tama. i would almost bet that the truth sig kit is outsourced to a cheep company, and not anywhere near the quallity as thier custom line. tama however has very good very good quallity control at thier factories and are proven winners.

[Beave]

In this case i would go for the superstar hyperdrive kit.

[backtodrum]

Paistegirl, welcome to the forum and good luck with your decision. Either way I think you will be happy!

[middleman]

wow, truth is doing a signature production kit? well, aaron did kinda put em on the map. but since it is not one of thier true custom lines, and made with (assuming) cheep birch and poplar...i'm gonna have to say go with the tama. i would almost bet that the truth sig kit is outsourced to a cheep company, and not anywhere near the quallity as thier custom line. tama however has very good very good quallity control at thier factories and are proven winners.

Oh, thanks with the clarification on Truth Drums. I wasn't aware that they now make a lower mid level kit. I guess I should've checked their website first before writing my earlier post. I can admit to being wrong. In that case, ya go for the Tama's. The only thing I don't like about any of the Tama line is their mounting system. It's nice and all but eventually I want to buy the DTS tuning system for all my kits and the Tama mountings get in the way. Blessings.......

[32ndHeartBeat]

Go with Tama.
I like the name

[funkymcstain]

Oh, thanks with the clarification on Truth Drums. I wasn't aware that they now make a lower mid level kit. I guess I should've checked their website first before writing my earlier post. I can admit to being wrong. In that case, ya go for the Tama's. The only thing I don't like about any of the Tama line is their mounting system. It's nice and all but eventually I want to buy the DTS tuning system for all my kits and the Tama mountings get in the way. Blessings.......

not to steal the thread but have you used the dts? and do you like it?

[middleman]

not to steal the thread but have you used the dts? and do you like it?

Well I don't own a set of the DTS yet, but I've played with them at the store. I think it blows the drum dials out of the water, however considerably more expensive. Look at it this way, say if you broke a head during a gig or your tom loses considerable tuning. With the DTS system you have only one "tension" rod on the top to turn and one on the bottom. Instead of having to go in a star pattern checking all the weight/torque measurements with the traditional dials.

It makes for extremely fast tuning and if you have a lot of sound interference on the stage, it's no problem....no tapping here! One other aspect is this. Lets say you're in a cover band that covers a various amount of styles, including Jazz. Say your first set is Rock hence looser tensioned heads (well most of us rockers do that), and your next set is more Jazz or Bebop, etc. The DTS makes it easy to crank those toms to make a more authentic Jazz tone within a few cranks of the "wrench". I know most of the time you'll probably not have one Jazz set and one Rock set in one night playing covers, but you just never know these days.

One last thing is though I know how to tune, why would I want to spend 30-60 minutes when I can get the same thing done in 10? I wanna spend my time playing and not tuning. That's just me though, some guys really get off on tuning, I am not one of them. I hope this helps. Blessings........

[funkymcstain]

thats cool. i know the theory is good, i was just wondering if they actually worked well.

[Kjbakke2]

the truth kit is what i would go with
granted it wont have as much individual attention payed to it as if it were a truly custom kit
but coming from a small independent company
it will have much much more attention to detail payed to it than the tama
not to mention orange rox and gillespie does too hahaha
my vote is truth

[Stevo42w]

Go the tama.

Where in nz are you paiste.... I couldnt find any drum stores when i was in christchurch for a holiday :P only guitar and classical stores :P

[timezoner]

Hey paistegirl I've seen you lurking around trademe, nice to see a fellow kiwi in these forums.

[backtodrum]

What decision did you make on the drums piestegirl?

[holycow77]

If you're used to playing a Tama and you're happy with them, I'd suggest you go for Tama again:

1. You'll get to play it before you buy it.
2. You know what they're like, so there's not much chance of being dissapointed.
3. I doubt many non-drummers (and some drummers) have heard of Truth kits, so they won't think it's anything special. (I know I'm shallow)

[timezoner]

If you're used to playing a Tama and you're happy with them, I'd suggest you go for Tama again:

1. You'll get to play it before you buy it.
2. You know what they're like, so there's not much chance of being dissapointed.
3. I doubt many non-drummers (and some drummers) have heard of Truth kits, so they won't think it's anything special. (I know I'm shallow)

Keep in mind you don't have to buy brand new, just recently I saw one of these go online for $500NZ and someone beat me to the bid. It is an old school tama royalstar, I used to own one back in the late 80's and it was the best acoustic kit I have ever owned, until it got nicked....Gutted! So a vintage tama may be cheaper than you think man.

[quikstang2]

I wouldn't go with a custom set unless you know it's exactly what you want.