Best drum set under $600?

My cousin wants to start on drums, but he has no idea on which shell wood is better. So far he decided he wants a TAMA, and nothing can change his mind.

Which TAMA drum kit would you guys recomend? also, what is better Mahagony or maple? Whats the difference?

My brother has a Pulse drum set with maple shells and it sounds really bad. By the way my cousin wantts to play stuff from Slipknot.

If your cousin is happy with his cymbals and hardware and is only wanting a 5 piece, then he might be able to get a shell pack (meaning just the drums). TAMA Rockstar Custom shell packs usually start at around the $500 mark. He'll have to shop around.

He may also want to consider used.

Also, check out ebay for a Tama kit. You can usually find a used Rockstar 5 piece kit for around $500 there. You should also try and talk your cousin into checkin out other brands too, there's more out there then just Tama that sound as good or better for the same price or cheaper.

ND

Look at local music shops, and check out their used selection. I personally like Tama, but like the guys said, there are other brands. However, I would not want to go for anyone except Tama, Pearl, or Yamaha. Other guys will say Mapex and Pacific, but I think that those two companies have only recently started to make good stuff. If you buy used from those two companies, you probably won't get good equipment.

Maple vs. Mahogany? For under $600? If you can find a maple Tama kit for that, buy me one too! :-)

For my money, the best bargain under $600 is the Pacific FS, which is birch. I'd actually add a few bucks and get the CX Maple.

I've never seen a Pulse maple kit, but I suppose it's possible. If it sounds bad, it's probably the head selection and tuning more than the drums and the shells.

Other than these suggestions, I'll have to jump on the ebay bandwagon if you're stuck on Tama name for the price range.

BTW Chabo, Pacific and Mapex have always made good kits. However, they also made some student level kits.

Sonor has a Force 3001 kit that you can get some places for 599.

They are Maple/basswood. They have a great sound to them IMO. If you are decided on Tama though, you could get the "ready to rock package." It is a good starter kit. My ex had one when she started playing drums. The cymbals aren't the greatest, they are Planet Z cymbals, but the set sounds pretty decent. Its been a while since ive heard the kit so I dont remember everything all too well. You could Check out Rockstars though or the Ready to rock swingstar package. Pacific has some really nice birch kits for cheap too. I wouldn't mind having a Pacific kit if I had the room(3 drumkits already in my house).- my Metal/Rock kit, my electronic recording kit and my jazz kit. =X Not enough drums, but never enough space!