Ludwig Accent Combo

There are a few variations on the accent series. In production now is the Accent Combo, Accent CS Combo & Accent CS Custom. I got my set in 2007 and are the accent combo. For this review i will focus mainly on the Accent Combo. The Accent Combo and CS Combo are soundwise and quality of hardware pretty much the same. Shell construction is where they differ. The Accent combo is an 8 ply shell with alternating layers of mahogany (lauan)and basswood for the outer 7 layers and the innermost layer being maple, mostly for looks. For those who don't know what lauan mahognany is, it's not the same species as real african or honduran mahogany. Lauan has similar look and tonal qualities as real mahogany and can be purchased for alot cheaper since it's more abundant. The CS Combo is an 8 ply all basswood construction. Both models are covered in a pvc type wrap which looks nice & is very durable. Rack toms are mounted to the arms directy to the side of the tom (like pearl drums), not rimmount. The snare that comes with the kit is supprisingly a wooden snare. You're usually stuck with a thin cheap steel snare with the lower priced kits. The wood snare is a big plus in my book. Toms have 6 lugs each and the bass has 8 lugs. The CS Custom is of a bit better quality than the other 2 having an 8 ply birch construction, a bit better hardware & the toms are rim mount. Bass pedal isn't much but it will do the job if you don't have a pedal already. If the set comes with cymbal stands as mine did they are pretty good quality. Sturdy double braced stand. Overall features are nothing super special but the hardware & drum shells are sturdy & will hold up very well. I'll give this catagory a 10 for the fact that there is good quality hardware on a lower price set.

This kit sounds amazing with good heads & proper tuning. Making this kit (or any kit for that matter) sound great is all in the tuning. People will complain that drums sound bad and its mainly because the heads aren't properly tuned. For example, i'm no pro at getting drums perfectly in tune so when i do it the kit doesn't always sound as good as it can be. My buddy who has bee playing for the last 15 or so years gets everything just right it sound like a whole new kit. One that can easily keep up with kits twice the prce of the accent. And a good part once you get the head in tune where they need to be they will stay in tune. The stock heads that come on this kit are esentially cheaper versions of evans g1's with the ludwig name on it. for stock heads they sound alright but i would suggest upgrading to get the most out of this kit. I put Aquarian performance II's on the toms, a Aquarian hi-energy on the snare & Superkick II's on the bass. I still have the stock resonant heads on the kit, those are of pretty good quality. Eventully I'll upgrade them but i really don't need to anytime soon. With my set up i get a nice deep thundering boom from the bass, a good high pitched crack from the snare with just the right amount of overtones & a deep yet articulate sound from the toms. I would & have put the accent kit up against higher end kits and it had no problem holding its own. Bottom line, with the right heads & proper tuning this kit will sound just as good if not better than the higher priced kits. For being able to easily compete with higher priced/end kits i give the accent at 10 in the sound catagory

I've had this set for around 2 years now and so far it is standing up to the test of time. I do take care of my stuff so my kit has only seen the normal abuse that comes from playing on it alot. I haven't had the drums fall out the back of the truck or someone trips over a tom or anything like that happen. I would say that if something like that were to happen, cosmetically the kit would suffer but fuctionally I suspect it would be alright. Overall I'd say that this is a sturdy road worthy kit.

Haven't dealt with ludwig directly.

My ludwig accents started out as the basic 5 piece trap kit. After playing on it for a while instead of saying I want an upgrade I said this kit sounds so good i want to expand it... So I did. I bought a second accent shell pack & combined it with my kit and also got the 8" & 10" add on pack. My kit grew from the basic 5 piece kit to a monster 12 piece kit. It's set up as double 22" basses with 8", 10", 12", 12", 13", 13", 16", 16" toms and both 14" snares; each snare has a different head & different pitched tuning on it. The toms are set up in 1/2 step incriments... back in the sound quality part i said the toms were articulate, this is where that statment comes from. even tho I have 2 of each size drum they are tuned to 1/2 step pitch intervals and you can distinguish the difference in pitch. My only complaint (if you can call it that) is that I would like a 14" mounted tom & an 18" floor tom but unfortunately ludwig doesn't make those sizes in the accent series. Overall this set is well worth the little money you pay for it and i wouldn't trade it for anything else.

Mine is set up as a four piece. 22x16 kick. 12" rack tom. 16" floor tom. Pork Pie 6x14 maple snare (rocks!) Sabian AA Metal-X cymbals (also rock!) Evans EC2 on toms. Evans EMAD on bass drum. Evans G2 coated on snare top. Evans Hazy 200 on resonant side.
The features are very basic. Nothing fancy. No memory locks. I'm not sure what the wood is, but it's not maple!
The stock Ludwig hardware that came with the kit is pretty poor. All the stands are either stripped or falling apart, but hey, Ludwig has to save cost somewhere! Bass drum spurs aren't the best, as the drum will slide forward under a heavy foot. The biggest problem I have is with the rack tom holder. It simply can't withstand heavy hitting. The rack tom starts to sag after only a few hard hits. I put the rack tom on a snare stand to alleviate this problem.

These drums can sound excellent with proper heads. The Evans EC2 heads work quite well for the toms. The toms sound best when tuned low. They're not particularly loud, but get the job done. If you know how to tune heads, you'll be pleasantly surprised. The toms lean toward the "dark" sound. Definitely not as bright as my friend's birch Gretch.
The bass drum is much better. I have a Pearl Export 22x18 with the same heads (Evans EMAD), and the Ludwig simply sounds better. The low end is more focused and cuts through far better. It's not as loud as the Export, but tunes better and stays in place more consistently. I bought mine used and it didn't come with the stock snare.

The hardware is where this kit suffers. I've had to replace all the stands. The stock cymbal stands are single-braced and quite flimsy. Any heavy cymbal will pose big problems. The hi-hat stand moved around too much and didn't have good pedal feel. My cheap Tama equivalent is far superior. A rivet in the snare stand broke, causing the snare to spin freely. Like I said before, the tom holder can't withstand heavy hitting.
The drums themselves are holding up just fine. The wrap hasn't bubbled. They stay in tune fairly well. The hoops have stayed true. I am confident that the drums won't let me down. The hardware I'm not so sure about.

I've never contacted customer support.

This is an excellent first kit or as a backup. With proper tuning you can gig and record with it as well. This kit is over 5 years old and is holding up well. Since it's so inexpensive, there's no worrying about some drunken idiot falling and breaking it. I've played shows and haven't been let down. You will want to replace the hardware before playing shows.
I've had other low-end kits (CB, Maxwin) and the Accent is far superior. It feels like a "real" drum set, not a toy.
The kick drum is the highlight of the kit. Tight, focused low end that records well with minimal eq.
The tom mount is the most frustrating part.
If it were stolen, I would probably upgrade to a maple kit.

*This is a review for the Ludwig Accent Combo. There are many levels of Accents out there, so whatever the designation is today, this review is for the lower-end basswood/mahogany shells that come in wrapped finishes; typically this includes hardware and is often packaged with Planet Z cymbals. Chances are if you paid around the $350-450 mark for the 5pc kit, this is the one you have.*

Shells: This kit started out as a 7pc gigging kit to save my 1979 Ludwig Maple Rockers from the bashing that club shows present. Quickly, this kit became my first choice for everything due to the lightweight and more comfortable sized shells. The quality speaks volumes of the current standards of Ludwig, and they sound incredible, even fooling a studio engineer into assuring me they had to be birch. The finish is a decent PVC wrap that resists nicks and dents very well (floor tom was dropped in parking lot with no marks), but they are easily warped by heat. Keep these shells covered and cool in the car, and keep them out of direct sun when possible while playing outdoors.

Hardware: The included hardware is tubular and double braced in design. Nothing fancy, but dependable enough. One major fault is how thin the tom arms are, and they are too easy to compress when used in rack clamps. The kick pedal is simple and single chained, but it is a very large and sturdy chain, no worries about breaking. The lack of a base plate on either the kick or hat pedals is disappointing, but expected at this price. All shell mounting brackets work well, but need the occasional tightening to keep them from shifting. Memory locks are included and work as well as any could. I do wish they would have included mem locks for the floor tom legs and kick spurs. Spurs are a simple curved design with little adjustment options, there are rubber feet that screw back to reveal pointed anchors for rugs. Hoops on the kick are hollow metal, which can be a problem for pedal claws that clamp down real tight. I suggest using hoop guards to keep this from happening.

As of Jan 2008, I am still using these, for more than 5 years now, in a monstrous 13pc double bass configuration, and I love them. These are truly the best in budget drums I could recommend.

As I said before, these have been mistaken in a commercial studio as birch shells. But to get great sound you will need quality heads and tuning skills. The stock ambassador ripoffs are not very good for batter, but work fine for resonant heads. I would suggest getting a set of batter heads when you purchase the kit.

Tuning hardware isnt the best, but works fine if you tune by ear. Torque wrenches that tune to present tensions on the screws wont work well with these lugs and screws.

I use Ebony Pinstripes, which allow a deep but broad tuning range. The heads do most of the work, and stay in tune over long periods of time.

This is my A kit right now, saving the vintage heirloom Ludwigs from being beaten to death. I play at least twice a month out at various venue with these, and continue to play and record at home with them. Tuning is needed rarely, but I like deep and low tom tuning anyway.

No dealings with Customer Service with Ludwig yet.

This is an excellent kit for beginners, with 5pc and expansion shells available. This is also a wonderful choice for people who are looking for a throw around kit for shows or practices. Against kits that I have played on that are in the <$600 range, from Tama, Yamaha and Pearl, the Accents win on all fronts, but the entry level Tamas are pretty much the same quality.