I am going to purchase a bass drum, and am deciding between Pearl or Yamaha. My school uses Yamaha, but they are kinda old, so I was wondering between new lines of Pearl and Yamaha, which are better. Also which have you all found can take the most stress "cranking" wise. Thanks.

Well I would say Yamaha, just cause that is what we play on, and they take a lot of abuse, but i don't know about Pearl so...that is my opinion.<P>------------------<BR>-Dustin<BR>Thomas Stone H.S.<BR>STONE RULEZ!!!<BR>AIM: BIGNapz & Flowgoode

Pearl all the way... best hardware, shells, rims, & everything else... they take a licking & keep on ticking

how big of a bass drum are you going to purchase and either way iwould suggest a Pearl, but dont forget to change heads, because if you keep cranking that one head, and dont replace it, the lugs are gonnastress and pop!..itll happen with any drum, and hoops can get beat up on any drum, and their not hard to replace, so its no big deal....id get a Pearl , but since your line uses Yamaha, ask your director about these things if you plan on using it in public performances...<P>------------------<BR>-Kevin<BR><B>NHS Percussion</B><BR> <A HREF="http://www.drumlines.org/nhsdrums" TARGET=_blank>www.drumlines.org/nhsdrums</A> <BR> punk@drumlines.org

replacing head & stuff aint no big deal othrert places...here its like freaking getting permission to launch missle at the school or something. Its like not possible to get muc we need from the band here....we ask..but we dont get regardless if we need.<P>------------------<BR>Aaron Yingling<BR>Montour High School Drumline<BR>Bass #1

i played Pearl in HS and am playing Yamaha in college, and i must say, i miss my Pearl bass drum. buy the Pearl, you won't regret it.<P>------------------<BR>Christopher Tebbens<BR>Oberlin College<BR>Christopher.Tebbens@oberlin.edu

I think Pearl basses resonate more than Yamaha. but Yamaha have some warm tones up close.

they may have it up close, but where is the audience? where are the judges? where are you performing to?

I prefer Yamaha over Pearl, but when it comes to bass drums, I would stick with Pearl.

go for Yamaha they are alittle bit more expensive but the sound quality is a little higher but pearls are kinda nice too if you are short on money

Pearl are nice, but I think Yamaha sound better

In the 10 years or so I've been doing this, I've played on Yamaha, Pearl, Premier, and Stingray. All I really have to say is DO NOT BUY Yamaha, they do not take abuse very well, the rims crack, you need a wrench to tighten the bottom head at times, and the sound is no better than the Pearl's. On the other hand Pearl drums have proved their durability over and over, I highly recommend it for that reason. Stingray drums are just a joke, they were bought for no other reason than they look cool.

Derek
--
97 Butler Vagabond Bass Line
98 Golden Lancer Bass Line
03 Steel City Ambassador Snare Line

Ive used Both... go with the Pearl

Are the manufactured heads that come a bass with the drum recommended to use? Im just wonder because our band just bought 4 Pearl competitor basses.."16in,18in,20in,22in"
and the heads are translucent,like you can see ur hand through the other side..and we are using the Yamaha muffling strips...its seems like they arent producing enough sound or projecting....anyone...PLZ HELP!!!!!!!!!!

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Get new heads.

Evans MX bassheads are the best heads you could possibly buy. they come with a muffling system that works great if you reinforce it with a little tape. Good stuff, I cant believe I marched without them before.

the heads that should come with the drums (smooth white Pearl logo heads) should be fine, as far as projection its sounds like you have too much foam. on smaller drums such as 16,18,20, you don't need a whole ring of foam just about half to 3/4 will do. if u still can't get projection try new heads. like Kevin mentioned

our band uses Yamaha and they sound pretty good, but they do break very easy. i would probably go for Pearl cause they dont break as easy, but Yamaha does have a good tone to it though................

i love the Yamaha drum. plus they look cooler than the Pearl drums. thats just a side note

I have a good feeling that this battle could go on forever. I like them both equally to tell you the truth. Both companies manufacture some nice drums.

I'd have to say Pearl because we play on those and we haven't had any trouble with them. Our old drum directors new line plays on Yamaha and he says they aren't all that good. So go for Pearl!