Product: Mapex M-Birch
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
05/31/2008
at
03:57pm
by
Jim Overturf
Features
:
7
Birch ply shells that have a nice, resonant tone to them. The M-Birch series has multiple layouts, from fusion to standard. I have the standard 5 piece set with 18x22 bass, 9x12, 10x13 mounted toms and a 16x16 floor tom. I also received a bonus 8x10 tom with mounting hardware. The snare is a 5.5x16 birch shell, color matched. The kit comes with stands and pedals. Stands are all double braced and I've found them to be very well made and sturdy. All have memory locks. The bass pedal is nothing special, but is satisfactory for my use. The color choices are good. I purchased the transparent cherry and it is very nice. The major disappointment was the Remo heads, which were made for Mapex. You'll want to change them out for a better sound.
Sound Quality
:
8
Sound quality is good, but better with replacement heads. The snare has more overtone than I'd like. I've tried tuning it different ways but can't seem to get rid of it. The overall tone is fairly warm and the large bass provides a good bottom and projection. For the price of the kit the overall sound is quite good.
Reliability/Durability
:
8
I am a hobbyist so the kit hasn't been out of the house, but I believe it would hold up well on the road. The finish is very good, and the hardware is very durable. The drums have stayed in tune very well, but I am not a heavy hitter.
Customer Support
:
10
I've not had to use them except I ordered an extra cymbal stand. The one I received appeared to have a missing part, so I called Mapex and they shipped another one the next day. Very prompt. (I ended up finding the "missing part" the next day!)
Overall Rating
:
8
I wanted a kit with a decent sound, one that I could add to if I desired and did not want to pay a lot of money. I found the Mapex kit to have the best features compared to comparable Ludwig, Pacific or Tama kits and the price was better. The bonus tom was a plus.
If this kit were lost or stolen, I'd definitely buy another. But, I'd recommend getting an upgraded bass drum pedal. If there was one thing I'd change about the kit is the tom mounting system. It's adequate, but I'd like there to be more range of adjustment - perhaps fore and aft.
