Tama Star Walnut Drum Set Review

I’ve owned my Tama Star Walnut kit for around three years, and it’s been the main drum set I play. So I thought it was about time I did a full demo and review video for the channel. This is a 4 piece shell pack in a stunning ‘Vintage Sea Blue’ finish. 

This 4 piece configuration has a 22 x 16 inch undrilled bass drum, 10 x 7 and 12 x 8 inch rack toms, and a 16 x 16 inch floor tom. The toms and floor tom are 6-ply with a 5 mil thickness, and the bass drum is 7-ply and is 7 mil thick.

What’s in the Tama Star Line?

The Tama Star is the flagship line of drums from Tama. There are 3 main kit types offered in Tama’s Star line. These are Walnut, Maple, and Bubinga. Each has their own sound characteristics, and they are all handmade in Japan.

Walnut has a warm and full sound that is darker than maple, but it’s not as dense and bold sounding as Bubinga. I think the walnut shells are really expressive and responsive, and all together this kit produces a really beautiful sound.  It has a dark and powerful tone with a particularly strong mid to low end resonance.

The Star Walnut comes packed with heavy-duty design features that make it stand out as one of the top drum kits on the market. Even though it’s more affordable than the other Star kits, it’s still an expensive pro-quality drum set.

In this Tama Star review, I’ll be sharing my thoughts on how this kit competes against other top of the line drum sets. We’ll also see if it’s worth paying extra money to get it instead of the more affordable pro-level kits available like the Tama Starclassic.

Tama Star Walnut Sound Quality

These drums sound incredible, and the walnut shells are the biggest contributor to the sound that this set produces. You get a deep and full sound that still has a good amount of attack and high-end cut.

I’d describe the drums as having a ‘naturally EQ’ed’ sort of sound. As you play down the toms, the tones get deeper and deeper, yet they’re still sharp enough to cut through a mix easily.

The Tama Star drums also have specially designed bearing edges that are slightly more rounded than Tama’s standard edges. This allows for a smoother vibration from the drumhead to the shell, and a little more of a rounded tone. It’s also worth noting the bearing edges are cut perfectly.

I’ve achieved a killer sound without any dampening on the two rack toms. They tune up beautifully, and produce a clear tone with a wonderful open resonance.

And the floor tom is a beast- it has a monstrous sound and I’ve just got one moongel on it. The kick drum is equally impressive; it’s extremely punchy and has a humongous sound, delivering a powerful low end.

The drums originally came with coated Remo Ambassadors on the toms. Right now I’ve got Remo Pinstripe Heads on, which gives these drums a little more of a fatter and punchier tone. I’ve also replaced the original Remo Coated Powerstroke 3 on the batter with an Evans Emad. 

Tama Star Walnut Hardware

The build quality is another area where this kit really shines amongst all the other Tama kits. Although the kit doesn’t have any reinforcement hoops on any of the drums, it shares all the other build qualities of the Bubinga and Maple Tama Star kits.

The kit comes with die-cast hoops feel hefty and solid, and they help enormously with tuning stability. They are much more dense than typical triple flange hoops, and feel a lot more weighty. In terms of sound, they offer a more focused sound than triple flange hoops.

It’s important to mention how they add a sense of stability to the kit and really help to make the kit feel sturdier and higher-quality.

The lugs not only look really sleek, but they have a low mass construction for less weight and contact on the shell. And the drums have an imprinted badge instead of a typical plastic or metal badge, as well as a small wooden air hole grommet.

The bass drum spurs and floor tom legs have notable features. They have a rubber design that stops the legs of the drums from touching the floor. This ensures that the drums resonate as much as possible. The floor tom legs also have built-in memory locks. This is a feature that you will only find on high-end kits like the Tama Star.

The rack toms are mounted with Tama’s StarCast Mounting System. While the main feature of this build design is to maximize resonance from the toms, I think the most impressive thing is that the toms have almost no wobble when you play them.

Additionally, I love how easy it is to mount them and lock them into place with the switch. The floor tom legs also attach with the same locking switch design.

Tama Star Walnut Finishes

Tama’s Star drums come in a range of incredible finishes. This kit has the Vintage Sea Blue finish which I’m a huge fan of. I think it looks so classy and the chrome hardware of the kit really makes it pop.

I’ve also seen several other finishes that look amazing, especially those with the Japanese Chestnut exterior veneer.

The dark walnut wood you can see on the inside of the drum shells looks absolutely amazing too.

And there’s also a certificate in each shell which is signed by the craftsman who built it, which I think is a really nice detail.

Tama Star Walnut Playability

There’s something very special about playing a kit of this quality. If you’ve never played on a high-end drum set, it’s quite difficult to conceptualize. It’s amazing how much of a difference pristine hardware and luxury design can make a difference to how a drum kit feels when you play it.

It almost feels like the drums produce beautiful tones before you even play them. The toms are incredibly responsive and dynamic, making them feel and sound very musical.

As I said earlier, the rack toms don’t move much, so it feels like you’re playing on a supremely well built drum set. It’s also an amazing experience to play on a kit that looks so good.

In terms of versatility, this set would work fairly well for all styles of music. However, I find the low-pitched tones would work exceptionally well in rock and metal settings. The drums may not project as much as you need them to, but some clever tuning and drumhead choice will make up for that.

This is a dream set of many drummers. You may find that once you get one, you won’t want to play on lower-quality sets again. It just feels so much better to play on thanks to the pristine construction.

Tama Star Walnut Value

In terms of price, the Tama Star drums are marketed to the premium end of the drum segment. They’re in the same sort of ballpark as a DW Collectors, or Pearl Reference Series drum set. But the Tama Star Walnut comes in a little cheaper than a Collector’s series kit from what I’ve seen.

With that being said, there are more affordable pro-level drum sets out there, such as the Ludwig Classic Maple, DW Design Series and Tama Starclassic drum kits that also sound fantastic.

Overall, when weighing everything up it’s clear to see why this kit costs what it does. And compared to the other flagship kits from companies like Pearl, Yamaha, Sonor, and DW, the Tama Star competes very comfortably in terms of pricing and design.

Verdict

This is the type of kit to get if you’re looking for one of the most pristine sets on the market. It’s an incredibly well-designed drum set that boasts luxury hardware quality with beautiful low-end sounds from all the drums. It also looks amazing.

All of this comes with a hefty price tag, though. I wouldn’t suggest getting this kit if you can’t comfortably afford it. It’s always a better option to invest your money in high-quality cymbals and buy a lower-priced pro kit.

If you’re able to get a Tama Star Walnut set, you’re going to love it. It’s the perfect kit to display in a drum room. It’s one of those kits that you can just sit and stare at for a while, especially if you get it in a finish that you love. It sounds just as good as it looks, making it one of the best pro kits on the market.