MusicRadar

• Review
• Manufacturer's Description

Yamaha has always been adventurous with shell materials. In the past it has reintroduced beech and oak to its upmarket kits and used all sorts of woods in its budget kits.

This time we have a real composite job, a cocktail of Philippines mahogany and falkata with a double outer ply of oak or a single outer ply of birch.

This was the first time that oak has been used on a budget kit and the review kit looked decidedly cool with its matt Raven Black oak shells and matching Nouveau lugs.

What is noticeable about the oak finish is that it is not sanded to the glassy sheen that is common on most drums. Instead the broad leafed grain is left textured to the touch. It gives the drums an appealing rugged vibe.

However, if you prefer a more conventional finish then you can opt for one of five birch colours, which are glossy and smooth, and also have an attractive grain. All the shells are eight-ply and are made in Indonesia using Yamaha's patented Air Seal system.

The inner ply is Phillipines mahogany and is laid vertically - unusual for Yamaha, but there is the argument that a vertical ply causes less interference with the sound waves travelling up and down the shell.

It's your choice...

You can choose from four shell configurations, all at the same price. Each kit includes a matching 14"x5½" wood shell snare drum and 700 Series hardware.

There's just one 20" bass drum kit which has 10"x8" and 12"x9" universal mounted toms with a 14"x14" floor tom. The other three kits all have 22"x17" bass drums.

The review kit, for example, had the same 10"x8" and 12"x9" mounted toms but with a 16"x16" floor tom. The remaining two kits have either 10" and 12" mounted toms with a mounted 14" power tom, or 12" and 13" mounted toms with the 16" floor tom.

Nouveau lugs

Aside from the shells, the really big innovation is the Nouveau lug. These are funky little fellas made out of Fibre Reinforced Composite (FRC), an extremely tough glass-fibre material.

Nouveau lugs were first introduced on Yamaha's top line Absolute series, but those were metal castings. By using synthetic lugs on the Stage Custom Yamaha have apparently shaved the price by almost £100.

Nouveau lugs are quite different from standard lugs because you can remove them from the shell. Each lug hooks over a single bolt-post and it's the bolt that's attached to the shell, not the lug itself.

In order to remove a head you just have to slacken each tension rod rather than completely remove it. This loosens the lug on its post so that you can flip it off.

Once all the lugs are loose then the whole assembly (head, rim and lugs with bolts) lifts off. So now you can change a head without having to extract the tension rods completely.

It's quicker than with normal lugs where you have to take every bolt right out. You still have to be careful, though, because a couple of turns too far and the lug itself can drop off its post and you find yourself scratching about trying to find it on the floor. Not recommended on a darkened stage.

As a result, it is advisable to hold on to the lug as you un-tighten it and the moment it comes loose from its post, move on to the next one.

As an added benefit, because the lugs 'float', there is also no need for the usual swivel nut insert. Instead, the tension bolt screws directly into the RFC casing.

This helps to hold the tuning better and it eliminates any likelihood of rattling, although we don't know if incidences of cross threading will increase. It's unlikely, but if it did happen - or if you lose a lug - Yamaha has thoughtfully included a spare with every drum.