So similar that it doesn't matter, especially when mixed with other instruments.

To me, I notice instantly that tom 3 had the cleanest and most resonant tone.

I preferred the classic maple but let's be honest, they all sounded good. And personally I think once you add any of these to a full band mix those slight differences would be pretty hard to pick out.

As someone who plays a Classic Maple, I picked up Tom 3 immediately. There’s a reason they’re my favorites, and it’s because of that insane resonance and projection that’s so easy to control or embellish, if you put the right heads on them. That attack from Tom 4 was very distinguishable as an oak shell as well.

I have a set of original 3-ply maple drums from about 1970. I have to say, they sing a bit more with lots of tone and sustain. They are in big sizes so that helps. I also own a set of 1979 6-ply Ludwigs in the same sizes (14/15/16/18/26). The 3 ply sound amazing but only produce about 60-70% of the volume of my 6 ply shells. But the 6 ply shells have a narrower useful tuning range. If I could only own one set, it would be the 3-ply's. They sound AMAZING (plus I have microphones!!)

For me personally, volume number one is the best. Definitely the cleanest and most open tone. The maple has overtones at the very end of the sustain, as if at the end the tone rises higher. Put on your headphones and you'll hear what I'm talking about. Only mahogany has a stable tone from beginning to end

The Sonor one was the best

ive owned them all, so i got them all right, the thing that differs them its when you play them, specialy live, my band mate said that the mahogany was low on volume , so you need to mic them even in small venues, classics are nice but really hard to get rid of the overtones , specialy the maple one, best of both world is the oak, fat like the legacy but with lots of projection, less overtone then the classic maple

Excellent test. And, the comments, above all, are very telling. Honestly truly is a rare commodity.

Definitely #3 classic maple is the one that I prefer. But they all sound great and would be completely workable IMO. I've got a 1975 set of Ludwig's that I bought new. Thank You. This was a wonderful demonstration.

Since I use to build custom drums I got it right! Very impressed with my ear since it’s been 6 years since I last built. But Mahogany, so soft and warm ❤❤. My favourite

Will the audience even notice?

Classic Maple has the most resonance. I think a change in head types would be a much more dramatic change of sound than the difference between shell types. Subtle changes between each only, but no. 3 is the best.

Great comparison! I guessed them all correctly, which I must admit was a surprise. There were very subtle differences between them, but based on the first test with just the overheads, I was instantly drawn to tom 1 (Legacy Mahogany) as it seemed to have the most pleasing pitch bend, where the pitch of the note bends downwards slightly as the sustain fades out. The Legacy Maple did that too, but had some less pleasant ringing overtones towards the end of the sustain. This was the other way around during the second test with the close mic. I preferred the Legacy Maple which has the most pleasing tone in that test and the Legacy Mahogany seemed to have some annoying overtones! The Classic Maple seemed the most different to all the others, and it did sound slightly higher pitched overall, but also had the least pitch bend, where the pitch stayed the same for the full length of the note. The Oak drum was really nice too with a decent pitch bend, but some bright over tones.

Yeah I picked out tom #1 as being the 'Legacy Mahogany' during the blind test. Nice warm full tone. My favorite of the group as well. Truth be told it would be hard to tell the difference in a playing situation with a band. They all sound good.

As remarked, good / less good heads make a much greater difference than the variations in woods. The very slight differences you may hear now will completely disappear with use in a gig or in the studio. Then it is the sound technician who will make the difference

Classic Maple definitely sustained the longest. Legacy Mahogany seemed to have the most beef. I would like to see a similar test with a 16" floor tom.

OK, just watched to 4:04. Have no idea what is what, but absolutely prefer the sound of the first drum you hit first. Let's carry on with the video... OK, after individual hits on isolated drums, still like one best, but two would be acceptable, and even four, as well... three is still a no go... definitely very helpful. I would love to hear the Classic Maple (drum three) with the rounded bearing edge option, since they're more reasonably priced, even with that option than the two Legacy models, which--obviously--my ear prefers. If you could put your hands on one of the Classic Maples with the rounded edges and A/B it you would make me, and I'm sure others, very happy. I'm thinking the rounded edge would/will make the Classic Maple more Legacy-like sounding.

it's crazy how much of a classic maple nut I am and yet on a blind test..that's the one I liked least! My ears loved #1 and #4 for their depth and sustain balance. Thanks for the video.

Several points: 1) What heads were used? Clear 2 ply? 2) Legacy: 30 degree bearing edges; Classic: 45 degree bearing edges 3) Was surprised about the extent of higher frequency presence in classic maple. Also surprised to hear the role of the oak in dampening these frequencies. 4) A db meter might be helpful in distinguishing classic oak from the legacy models, all of which have notably shorter sustain. This test was awesome!!! Great format, thanks for the effort here.

Great comparison. Love the warmth and tone depth of the Legacy Mahogany (#1), my favorite. Was surprised how much I liked Classic Maple (#3), so open and resonant. Not crazy about the attack on the Classic Oak (#4), but it would totally depend on the music scene you’re in. Cheers!

THE 3 RD CLASSIC MAPEL RESONATED THE MOST EVERYTIME

#4 has best sustain for me. Classic Oak. Too bad there's no way I'm lugging a full oak kit up and down Manhattan. Maybe back in the 90s. Nowadays, if I show up with ANY toms, it's a miracle.

First of all, excellent work on your demonstration. Comparing the shells could not have been done any better. This was outstanding! It gave us Ludwig fans the best comparison we can get. I use classic maple, myself. You can hear one consistent tone from the drum, there is no pitch bend. The re-enforcing rings will cause this. But, like many viewers stated, they all sound great!

I liked thefirst one most, which didn't surprise me after you revelaed what was what. Number two has a very slow and late low end boost, which I found weird. Awesome video by the way man, great effort!

The Oak has more attack and less sustain than the other drums.

So much of that is also the style of music you're playing. I love the deep fundamental note of that mahogany. But, if playing in a band environment, especially, with electric amplified instruments, the attack and "snap" of that Classic Maple would almost always be my choice. They all sound killer though. GREAT demo. Well done.

Number 3 Classic Maple! My favorite!

Just a thought: next time it might help to use a larger drum size - I expect the larger drums, would more accentuate the character of the shells. I sure have noticed dramatic differences in bass drum shells.

Nice video, it was very interesting, my feelings by all 4 toms was always the right, but i dont no why. Furthermore after the video I can't say which drum typ i would prefer. Taking my own experience in consideration, my opinion about sound is, that the most important key for a good drum sound is the fell.

A very smart way to make a comparison.

It was odd, but the side-by-side demo of the Legacy Maple seemed to indicated high overtones in the sound but when isolated, it was the best-sounding drum, by far. The pitch was truly centered, it has excellent resonance with no bad overtones in the resonance. Indicates good tuning, too. My guesses were correct for the first two, the Legacy Mahogany gives itself away with that gorgeous sound right in the middle and the short decay. Both the seven-ply shells seem the same, couldn't tell them apart.

"A Hert or two..." Singular or plural, it's Hertz. 1 Hertz. Two Hertz. This comment Hertz. Great demo, man! Thanks for this video :)

I got them all Right!!! the diferences are very subtle, but they are there. Mohogany shell has a little bit more low end and didn't sing as much as the maple. This was my favorite

I liked 2,4,1,3. Really surprised to see that 2 and 3 which I liked the most and the least are both maple!

The Maple Classic had the most sustain. That said, if I had all tuypes on a drum kit I doubt it would make a huge difference, especially in a live venue. I have all but the Legacy Mahogony (BTW the Classic Oak is 5-ply). The Classic Oak (which was originally the Keystone Series) seems most resonant to me due to the dual 45 degree bearing edge.

Before the reveal, I'm going to guess Tom 1 is the Legacy maple, Tom 2 is the Legacy mahogany (sounds lower) Tom 3 is the Classic Maple (most resonant, no re-rings) and Tom 4 is the Oak (sounds the most different to me). My favorite is Tom 2 and Tom 4.

Great job. I didn't know which was which, except #3. As soon as you hit it, I thought you were hitting my very own '88 4 play no re-ring Rockers. Sounds just like my 12" Tom. So , I thought it was Classic Maple, and I was right. Other than that, I liked the Legacy mahogany best.

same as with guitars, where the pickup makes 98% of the sound. Speaking of drums it is the heads. I've had maple, birch, walnut in the studio. same heads, same tuning. No one could tell what is what in one session. Especially when you squeeze everything together in a compressor and put it in a mix. I know it's fun to talk about how the wood makes the difference, when in reality it doesn't. What matters tho is the build quality of the bearing edges/hardware and a good ass sounding head/tuning. Interesting video tho :)

I only picked #3 classic maple..Wow. it resonated the most.I guess that's what I would buy if I was in the market,and they cost a lot less,even better.

I could tell the Legacy 3 ply drums from the Classics. I own a 1968 Ludwig kit as well as a 2017 Classic Maple. I couldn't tell the wood type differences. The drums with the re-rings are always slightly warmer. The sharp bearing edges are slightly brighter.

So much of playing drums is how they feel. I've been in the store and hit those. Immediately the legacy maple felt clearly the best, second was legacy mahogany (felt and sounded good but more quiet than legacy maple), third was classic maple, then the classic oak (oak/maple blend). I got all of them correct, maybe mostly because that's the order I played them in the store, so there's that. LOL

They all sound great! I slightly prefer legacy maple, it has a thick attack, I think that means a low a low mid frequencies burst, then highs in the decay. Classic oak the smoothest of the bunch. Would love oak for a quiet cafe gig, but would not bring my 2B oak sticks for it.

Nice video!

nice job matching up the tunings.

I liked the Legacy Maple and Classic Oak best. They were all pretty similar but slight differences, enough so that I had 2 favorites out of the four of them.

They are all good. I love the combination of the maple / oak shell in the Classic Oak line. Played all these in person, the Oak's kick drum is what I really noticed to be a bit more aggressive than the others. The oak did not sustain as much as the maple, but sound engineers gate that all out anyhow live or studio.

Of course the shells matter. The material and it's denseness matters. The thickness matters, the bearing edge matters, the heads matter, the tuning matters. Never compare drums when they're dampened, always have them wide open and only use single-ply heads. This is the proper way to hear the tones they're capable of, whether or not you choose to muffle them later.

First thing I noticed was the badges and the colour of the wood , any one who knows Ludwig drums could tell the drums apart from looking at the badge and the wood through the vent hole, great video comparisons, the wood had a very little different that majority of people wouldn’t notice it, but the bearing edge, the heads and tuning would make up the 95% of the tone but the resonance as far as the ring would be the density of the shell, next time put a vista light shell in with them for ring comparison, Thanks, Well done

I know I'm late, but the classic maple resonated the most and the longest. Classic oak was slightly behind that (but it was definitely a noticeable amount). Legacy mahogany resonated the shortest and the least (it was focused, which I would love for certain songs). The legacy maple resonated slightly more and longer than the mahogany, but not as much as the classic maple. I could go into more detail about the overtones, but who would care enough to read it all😂(plus others have already discussed the overtones🙃). I have a classic maple kit, but I'd also love to have a mahogany kit.

I preferred number three and was actually pleasantly surprised to learn it was the classic maple. I play a classic maple so perhaps I was drawn to that sound because of a sub-conscious familiarity with it. I wouldn't kick any of the four out of bed mind you!

You should have mentioned how many layers and such the toms had. But cudos to an excellent and really interesting video!

I for sure knew that the first two were in the Legacy series and the 3rd was the classic maple. My personal kit is a legacy mahogany kit and I've both played and mixed a classic maple kit for the past 10yrs live. Also, I would argue that an SM57 was not the best choice for the close mic in getting the differences between the shells to be more prevalent. You need a mic that doesn't have as much of a low end roll off as the SM57 does. An SM57 actually starts to roll off at 200hz to -6db around 65hz (generally point of inaudibility when there's a lot going on). In the live situation I'm in, we've noticed the best tom mics for our setup (Classic Maple) are the EV RE20. They have excellent rear rejection (so they don't pick up hardly any cymbal bleed if at all) and have a far better frequency response than most mics with the -6db point hovering around 36hz. Absolutely phenomenal mics. Anyway, that would be why there was very little difference in this shootout. The Legacy series digs a lot deeper (specifically the mahogany) into the frequency spectrum and sound absolutely massive by comparison to the Classic series.

Played all four of these in the shop yesterday and it was damn hard to tell the differences.....But I tended to the maple drums as a slight preference.....

The reinforced shells (legacy) should have a quicker decay, DW actually added re-rings to make this happen on their collectors series drums so drummers wouldn’t use dampening or 2 ply heads. I have a 1963 ludwig downbeat set (12/14/20) with mahogany Toms and a maple bass drum. i think the reason i like them so much has more to do with the Tom’s having brass hoops and no lug gaskets. It’s also worth noting i have a 1964 Ludwig clubdate set with the same shells and sizes and it’s definitely more resonant with just the single lug in the middle of the shell.

Nice video! - for me the Legacy Mahogany and the Classic Oak were rounder, warmer and had less sustain and were not as bright as the other two - that's my sound!

I heard the classic maple having longer sustain as well. Liked the Mahogany tone best overall, but would be happy with any. I do like the classic maple due to the extra overtones though. You can always calm them a little with dampening, heads, eq, compression etc. Bit you can't truly add it if you want it. So I'd rather have it be there if I want it. Kind of like wearing layers in winter. You can always take some off if too hot, but you can't add any if you left the house with one layer. 😂 Nice job!

The Classic Oak (Keystone X) and Classic Maple sounded best to my ears

I find drum tone is a lot more about the ratio of fundamental tone to overtone than other instruments. In these examples I found the loudest fundamental compared to overtones are in order, 4 3 2 1 (to my ear, as recorded). In the overtone series, the fundamental tone is usually the loudest, but the question is by how much compared to the rest of the overtones. If you’re playing in a louder band where volume is an issue, you might want a stronger fundamental tone (“closed” sounding). If you’re playing in a lower volume group, or where a more complex tone is wanted and can actually be heard with more sensitive mixing perhaps, then the mahogany here would be a good choice (more overtones=more “open” sounding) Fwiw, I’ve always liked the very strong fundamental of maple properly tuned. The sustain of maple tends to be long but relatively quiet compared to the initial attack, giving maple a very punchy sound. Add more compression in the signal if you want more of that ring to come out. Also more plies=more mass=less energy dissipation is a contributing factor to increase the volume of the sustain phase. Hope this sparks a thought for someone - ymmv!

I really liked the classic maple

Classic Maple 👍🏻

The Classic Maple one is the winner for me!!! 🤘😈🤘

While all the toms had that nice "thump" sound, the Classic maple, tom #3, had the most resonance and sustain, especially in the isolation segment. I could also tell more of a sound difference between the Legacy Maple and Legacy Mahogany in the isolation segment and curiously preferred the Legacy Mahogany over the Legacy Maple. But based on this video if I could only pick one kit to purchase it would seem the Classic Maple would be my choice. You can always take resonance out through tuning and muffling, but you can't put it into the shell.

I got them right, helped me knowing that the 3ply (the "Legacies") have rounded edges (and the mahogany sounds darker than the maple) and the Classic have sharper edges. I loved them all quite a lot except for the classic oak (I'm not saying I didn't like it, just a little less). Cheers!

A great studio kit I think would be the Legacy mahogany kit. Live, classic maples all the way. Versatile, loud, powerful and reasonably priced. What maple drums should sound like.

thanks!

Is that the real comparison we should do here? I think it's more about if certain shell types sound better in certain tunings. They don't have to sound extremely different when tuned exactly the same imho, as long as they do certain ttypes of tunings better than the next configuration.

classic maple for me,all sound very good

What size drums are those? Also - thanks for sharing! If I was being real picky, I THINK I heard a slight more "punchiness" in the two legacy shells, and a slightly more "clear" tone from the classics. Otherwise agreed - pretty much the same!

I liked #1 and # 4 sweet tone and attack

I always I.d. mahogany shells. The oak I thought was maple with re-rings. The classic maple was my fave.

This was an awesome test. I have all maple kit in which I love. However, based upon your test to me… with the mahogany you can hear the fullness of the drum. Up until this test I wouldn’t have considered a mahogany drum set, but now it’s in the range. The maple had the attack and resonance. Thank you for this demonstration. Also what camera were you using ?

This is an excellent example of manufacturers hype. For years mahogany/poplar/maple and then gum was used in combinations throughout the American drum manufacturing world--and the drummers enjoyed "fooling around" with heads and hardware (Louie Bellson was a great example of a drummer who wanted to experiment--but not (typically) with shell construction. ) In order to compete and to keep their products "fresh " and 'modern", manufacturers began experimenting with different wood types (even steel, aluminum and acrylic) --however, even though there remained a minimal of difference, the manufacturers told prospective drummers that they now had a 'choice' and that was the explosion they needed to expand and compete. In the end its all about competition and money. In the studio an engineer can perform magic on just about any drum you give them--they are amazing and credit to drum sound goes to them: heads, edges, hoops, rims, mikes, all can make a difference. I have seen an engineer go to work on an old cracked acrylic kit that sounded like a cardboard box--after working the edges, replacing hoops and heads, working the mikes--you couldn't tell if the drum was plastic, mahogany or burlap. So its snobbery: if a drummer says he will only play maple shells because thats "the sound' for him--hes a snob, because that drum can be tweaked to sound like any drum. Close you eyes and tell me what type of wood is in the shell and 99% of drummers will not tell the difference. Especially in a hybrid shell. Tell me that the shell is 2 ply maple on the outside with a core of bubinga and then oak with an inner ply of mahogany--you couldn't possibly do that. THAT is manufacturers hype. However if you truly believe that sound is different and thats what you want--then OK buy it, use it--you are the perfect customer for the manufacturer and they will love you. Go back to 1940 and listen to the drums--they can sound different, because of tuning and recording--not shell construction. I am a custom drum builder and I make drums with mahogany , maple, birch, bubinga, walnut and they all sound great--very little difference in tone--put a different head on them , then yes, big difference. In the end, buy a drum kit with your eyes closed and LISTEN, buy according to what you hear--not what the manufacturer says in the shell. This was a great experiment, thanks.

There is a slight discernible sound difference between the ply differences. But really, not that it makes a real difference. If I had to choose I probably wouldn’t choose the Oak. Otherwise I am with you; it depends on bearing edge, rims, heads and tuning when considering sound. Other than that it might be a durability contest.

"A hert". That's a good one.

I liked both the Legacy Mahogany and Maple and had a difficult time distinguishing the two. The subtle differences would probably only be noticed in a studio. I am not sure how either would do in a live situation for me , I hardly ever mike my drums. I liked the oak better than the maple. I have a maple kit I love (Pearl custom z) so I was surprised. But there is maple in the shell of the Classic oak so it must be the combo that sounds great. I classic oak would be a great all purpose , do everything kit. Nice comparison

I own a legacy maple , but based on this shootout I prefer the classic maple ,on a side not I must say that when playing with my band the guitarist tends to complain a bit on not hearing my legacy drums (never had that feedback with my previous all maple drums), ..guess legacy don’t project as much as the classics which might explain why Alex Van Halen went back to classics after using the legacy’s for a while when they were newly introduced.

Every time you went through them 2 stood out. Legacy Mahogany and Classic Maple.

so so similar, but the classic maple did seem to resonate the longest

they all sound good! probably liked the classic maple the best...

I know ludwig has their supraphonic snare drums, but I have the much cheaper supralite and it sounds so incredible for the money!!

Classic Maple, all the way! From a guy that owns original 67’ Mahogany rings kit!! They sounded alive!!

Full disclosure, I play a 2012 Keystone X (which I think later became the Classic Oak shells?) but as soon as you hit Tom 1&2 I knew those were the Legacies. Embarrassingly, though, i got the wood wrong on both pairs😮 (which might kind of prove your point that build and configuration matter more than the actual material?). Know I'm late to the party, but really interesting video, thanks!

You can never tell the real difference when its just 1 drum off each series , you really need to hear the whole kit for the nuances to become apparent , when done as a whole kit to me the drums of maple and mahogany with poplar to me sound the best ,though the 7 ply maple is the best sounding all maple kit I have heard , despite its 7 plys it has a wonderful paper thin kind of sound

while driving and concentrating on the road, Tom 3 got my attention.

First, I can’t believe how different these sound while resonating. I was thinking of getting the Classic Oak but after hearing this video, I like the Legacy Mahogany the best.

expected to like mahogany the best, and did. Didn’t hate the others but thought the Oak was a little bright. There is something buttery about the mahogany though

Some shell sing at certain tunings. Even though they are all the same tuning range if the tuning range was different it might favor a different shell type.

Tom 1 all day long. I was 4 for 4 being a Ludwig guy and recording engineer. I was surprised I got one of them correct using laptop speakers lol.

For me the Legacy Maple (#2) sounded like a classic 60’s-70’s rock drum. They all sound good though.

Thanks for doing this - confirms what I long suspected - the shell makes little difference. As you said - most of the minor differences here are the result of imperfect exact tuning between the four drums. Your conclusion makes sense from a physics perspective as well. Transferring vibrational energy from a very small mass (the head) to a much larger mass (the shell) is very inefficient. For the shell to make much difference that energy transfer would have to occur either through the bearing edge or through the interaction of internal acoustic waves with the shell - both very inefficient. Shell depth, on the other hand, will make a lot of difference.

1&3 was my favorite.

There is no right or wrong here, but I personally liked 2 and 1 much more. Plus, They seemed like are clearer and they may have a wider tuning range. Also easier to control ringing

classic oak is a 5 ply shell. a core of 3 ply maple with a fairly thick inner and outer ply of oak.

2 and 3 great sounds, luv then at first Heard

They sound pretty much the same. The classic maple resinates the most. Price wise, I’d go with the oak. Regarding finishes I went with the classic maple purchasing the black lacquered paint known as sable.

Number 4Classic Oak for the win!

Yeah they hear very similiar but I agree the 3 Toms was the most resonant!! I think Tom 2 was soo beefy!

Classic Oak isn't 7 ply. It's 5 ply.

I knew the Classic was 3 and 4 ... I first guessed that 3 was the Maple but second guessed myself and changed it to 4 after hearing the 4. The slightly more boomy resonance of 4 made me think of my own Classic Maple 13x9 Tom ... it may be a tuning thing but I was in the ball park. Did not care about the Legacy Toms at all ... not my thing.