Hey there,
For all the MIJ Master brothers- we know Star, Pearl, Hoshino, Gracy- but you really need to include Negi - they have been busy making great drums in Japan since the mid 60s to today. Here are some shots of old Negi drums and a shot of one of my modern Negi snares - Beech shell 10 ply made in 2010
Modern Negi
[IMG]http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn87/Osakabop/2013-09-06215957_zpsde493dcc.jpg[/IMG]
This drumset show right here in this particular posting is not mine- I just want to show you a modern Negi set:[IMG]http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn87/Osakabop/ScreenShot2013-10-16at115802PM_zps2a2bf62f.png[/IMG]
OsakaBop - Those are cool old drums! Nice to hear of a new (new to me) brand.
Are their current drums expensive? That snare sure looks nice.
They currently are only a high end drum maker- that orange sparkle snare I acquired about 3 months ago- they aren't cheap - like the price of a Star Classic snare in the US. But very, very nicely constructed- a collector - certainly a collector in the USA if you come across one.
the 60s/70s Negis are all over the place in quality- like some are high end and some are made for school band class- I have a whole set of 70s Negi marching drums at my drum school I got cheap - I think they tried to make both ends of the market spectrum- which can be confusing to collectors
Were they ever available in the American market?
I had never heard of them either...
Bill
good question Bill- let me look to see if any got into American markets. They could be part of the various named MIJ brands in the American 60s/70s scene though. Today though they are really making fine, higher end drums. It's all just good information. The more we know the more we can understand em all
...Today though they are really making fine, higher end drums. It's all just good information. The more we know the more we can understand em all
I agree.
For what it's worth, my understanding and respect for all MIJ's evolved over time. When I first started drumming (very early 70s), it just wasn't "cool" to own one of the MIJ stencil sets. If you were any good at all, you had to own one of the big-named American made sets.
I actually continued that line of thinking (with a Gretsch set and then a Ludwig) until the late 70s -- when an van accident left me needing a set right away, and the only sets the local music store had in stock were new Pearl wood-fiberglass sets. It didn't take long for my opinion to change, and I still own that 1978 Pearl set!
(I know, I've told this story before in a couple of other threads but felt I needed to share it again!)
Bill
Interesting discussion re: fiberglass shells. My first good set was a Tama "Swingstar" from 1982. I tuned them quite high (I like alot of rebound) and those toms just really popped and they sounded great. I could probably do a better job tuning them now but it was really quite easy to get a good sound from them. I also had a set of Pearl "Export" fiberglass and they never had the sound that those Tama drums did.
I really love the sound of wood drums, in fact I prefer them. But great things can happen with fiberglass drums.
Back to the Negi discussion ... :)
Right on to both of these comments.
Way back in 1986 I recorded an 12" vinyl album on a Tama Swingstar drumset that has really stood the test of time and recently was re-released. Those drums recorded really well. They were fiber-board- I have played expensive Rogers kits made of similar stuff.
Wood-fiberglass drums are very similar to the Pearl maple fiberglass GAX Giant Step Artist drums that I collect over here- awesome stuff
