About Maple Custom

When the Maple Custom first appeared with its small mass gold-plated lugs and honey-tinged vintage finish (a finish which requires a four to six month ageing process), the drum world swooned. It was, quite simply, one of the most beautiful drum sets ever designed and heralded a whole new era in Yamaha's quest for the ultimate acoustic drum range. After the runaway success of the birch Recording Custom it was the turn of maple to come under the spotlight.

Maple offers a warm sound, a wide open tone with long decay and outstanding projection. The Maple Custom features 7-ply tom toms and 10-ply bass drums. The additional plies in the bass drum shells provide a punchy attack and accentuate the low fundamental tone. This counteracts the brightness and natural spread of maple wood.

The shells have straight-sided walls, allowing unimpeded sound projection. This is further aided by the perfect 45 degree bearing edges. The shells are manufactured using our Air Seal System where the wood plies, with staggered diagonal seams, are sealed together under evenly distributed air pressure. This ensures that all Yamaha shells are the model of consistency and durability. The Maple Custom shells have a high gloss lacquer exterior finish with a satin lacquer interior, except for the Vintage drums which have a special hand-rubbed resin finish inside and out.

The other striking thing about the Maple Custom drums is the small cube-shaped gold-plated lug design. These precision machined lugs are attached by a single bolt at the shell's nodal point thus allowing the shell to vibrate freely. A special nylon insert prevents tension rods from coming loose during play.

All the drums are fitted with Yamaha's Enhanced Sustain System (YESS) which provides minimum mount-to-shell contact, increasing the drum's resonance while providing maximum dynamic range and sustain. Finally, the 2.3mm chromed steel Dyna-Hoop rims provide pinpoint stable tuning, tight response and cracking rim-shots.

What Do I Get For My Money

Maple Custom drums are available in 2 shell pack configurations or as individual shells allowing you to build your perfect set of drums in the sizes you want to play.

The price of a Maple Custom drum does not include any tom arms which need to be purchased separately.

If you would like a quote for a Maple Custom drum kit please contact us with a list of the shell sizes you would like (see below for available sizes)

It is worth bearing in mind that although there is normally a limited stock of Maple Custom drums available for immediate purchase, most kits would be Special Order, made exclusively for the customer and shipped from Japan, taking between 4 - 6 months.

Available Sizes

Shell Packs

Jazz Fusion - 20"x16" bass drum, 10"x09", 12"x10", 14"x12" rack toms (includes tom holders)

Fusion - 22" x16" bass drum, 10"x09", 12"x10", 14"x12" rack toms (includes tom holders)

Bass Drums

18"x14
20"x16"
22"x16"
24"x16"

Floor Toms

14"x14"
16"x16"
18"x16"

Rack Toms

08",07", 08"x08"
10"x7.5", 10"x09"
12"x08", 12"x10"
13"x09", 13"x11"
14"x10", 14"x12"
15"x13"
16"x14"

Colour Options

The Maple Custom series drum kit is available in 2 different finishes, Turquoise and Black Maple.

To view the available colours, click on the icons above.