Yamaha 5pc Shell Pack with a 20" Kick 14” Snare Drum in Natural Wood for Students and Working Drummers, (SBP0F50NW)

Real beauty!

I’ve played lots of drum kits. Owned some really expansive ones. These sound every bit as good for half the price or better. I use them for playing shows with my band and I love not having to worry about scratching/denting a cheaper kit but also not sacrificing the sound these beauties deliver. I may actually get another so I’m not constantly taking them apart for gigs. Well packaged but requires some assembly as they are in a small box for the size of the kit once put together. No cymbals or stands/pedals included but so worth the money!

I waited a couple months before writing this review for the Yamaha Stage Custom set I got the 10, 12, 14, with a 20" kick in raven black finish ( Go Ravens :D ) I couldn't be happier with the purchase. I first played the drums with the Remo UT heads that came stock, and then later switched to Evans G2 batter heads and G1 resonant, combined with an E-Mad2 w/ stock Yamaha remo resonant bass drum head. The drums arrived in the original packaging which is a wonder of its own. Everything was very compact and well-packaged, and the hardware and drums were all in great, safe condition upon delivery. The bass drum had a slight bit of separation where its plies meet on one side, but that was not enough for me to send them back. Otherwise I still believe the drums to be "like new" as described. They are 100% birch drums and since 2014 Yamaha uses 6 x 1.1mm plies, so it is dense wood and relatively thick drum. Some would say these drums don't sing and are hard to pull any resonance or flavor out of, but I would disagree. With proper tuning and good heads these drums sound better than the many similarly-priced drum sets I have played. I think they sound great and the drums and hardware are manufactured really well and do not sacrifice quality. The hardware is the same hardware Yamaha uses for their premier, top-of-the-line kits and I think that shouldn't be left unsaid. There is good reason that Yamaha is a name that is seen all over the world in music, and I am a proud owner one of their kits! If I had to pick one thing negative - it would be toward the snare. It's perfectly fine and usable, and has 10 tuning rods (awesome), but if one was to invest in another really nice snare drum with a nice set of cymbals this kit is perfect for learning or playing events.

I bought this Yamaha stage custom birch cranberry red (Open box demo) kit for a $135 discount because of the Sweetwater ad saying it had some small scratches on the end of the bass drum. I just opened the box and found that the bass drum has some really large scratches on the middle of the outside of the bass drum (Picture included) It broke my heart to see those deep scratches on the bass drum but I guess I don't deserve a better looking bass drum. the shells and the absolute lugs are great quality. I replaced the factory installed 1.5 mm triple flanged hoops with 2.3 mm triple flanged hoops after reading so many reviews that the 1.5 mm triple flanged hoops tend to go out of tune frequently. I gave this review 5 stars because this is a great professional sounding 100% birch shells, budget friendly drum kit that has been the best selling kit for the last 30 other than the Pearl export series which are made from poplar wood.

We spent a lot of time picking a non entry-level drum set for a teen with advanced drumming experience and this one was no disappointment at all! The finishings, the color, the materials, it's a big step forward compared it to the basic set he used to have. Out of the box, it's very straightforward to build the kit, even without having any drum set knowledge at all. The shiny look feels very professional and the sound is crisp and clear, just spectacular. A great and durable drum set for the money!