Not a problem! That helps clarify a lot of things and it really is helpful (having lurked here for a long time) to know that the drum images at this place are permanently hosted Bowing

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A few days ago I created an image post thread just for the snare:

http://vintagedrumforum.com/showthread.php?t=59053

I've described it a bit in that thread but will add a few more comments here:

- The Vistalite 5x14 is noticeably lighter than my Spaun acrylic 5.5x14 by about 2 pounds minimum, maybe 3. A bit more portable and I actually brought the amber 70s snare to church practice last week! The other drummer there really liked it and I am thinking of bringing it in for this coming weekend.

- Maybe because I have a 30-wire snare on the Spaun in comparison to the Vistalite's stock Ludwig wires...the newer snare has a more "brittle" sound with the clear vintage Emperor while the Vistalite has just a good mix of shell and head tone. I probably liked the Spaun best years ago when I ran a Fiberskyn on there, may put one back on at some point.

- The original low tension of the snare head on the Vistalite really led to a fat tone that focused on the shell; tightening that up has brought up the snare sound considerably while still retaining the overall warmth of the shell.

- While the strainer on the Spaun is modern and locks in place reliably, the Vistalite's strainer works just fine even though the twist knob and the throwoff do rub against each other at times. I want to say it's the P-85 - the black galaxy Acrolite I sold last year had the same one too but in worse condition, despite being a newer drum.

There are certainly similarities in my acrylic snares' ability to project but with the clear vintage Emperors, my Vistalite has a warmer tone than the Spaun running that same head. I feel with that batter head, the Spaun wants to be tuned a bit higher (larger mass + modern bearing edges) while the Vistalite is really at home in the medium-low tunings that I've always preferred.

Didn't get to reply to this part earlier but I will now:

This has been my dream kit for some time...I don't ever envision wanting anything BUT this Vistalite set! Mallet Player2

I remember in the mid-2000s always wanting something more "professional" - something I alluded to in the first post - and of course reading drum magazines one can get overwhelmed with all the different wood/material options that the manufacturers present. But thanks to Bonham and other 70s artists, to me, acrylic IS to me a "professional" drum option right then and there. Specific to the Vistalites, I remember reading that Jim Keltner played a blue Vistalite super-sensitive snare on Steely Dan's "Josie" and that's validation enough for me! (On Youtube I've seen clips of Hall and Oates being backed ca. 1977 by a drummer with a blue Vistalite kit, and the Isley Brothers performing ca. 1974 on Soul Train I think with their drummer using a clear Vistalite kit; I also recall reading somewhere that Al Green's drummer Howard Grimes has a blue Vistalite kit still)

Even after having read about the past criticisms both of the material and of Ludwig's quality control with their acrylic products...my initial counter to those was to run the Fiberskyns (in my "frankencrylic" era) to tame some of the overtones and that did work for a while, particularly when I had been influenced to tune the toms a bit higher per reading many discussions at Drummerworld.

But over time I think I wanted to get back to lower tuned toms and that's when the clear Vintage Emperors gave me the perfect solution: a head that accentuates the visuals of the translucent kit while being much more at home not cranked up.

It's funny, but I'm reading this and thinking, sorry Chris. I shouldn't transfer my love of lost drums to you. hehe I have sold two kits that I never should have. Now they haunt me and I still want them. My problem, not yours.

Anyhow, I love threads like this when folk experiment and share the experience.

-Doug

Great story !

I guess I must share my Vistalite Journey..

In 1987, I bought a double bass 9 piece clear Vistalite kit from a church for 400 bucks.

With cases.

Then, foolishly in 1988 I sold the kit to a major drum retailer ( I won't name names)for 500 bucks , having been told , you don't want those, blah blah blah

Young and dumb.

Now, I own three Vistalite drums, including a custom tom I'm converting to a snare.

I always wonder what happened to my clear 9 piece kit.

Aw! Glad you were able to get Vistalites later on though so there's at least a happy postscript to that saga Stage Band2

Did you ever record the serial numbers for your original set? Maybe those drums are floating around somewhere waiting to be found...

Other than that tom, what are the other two Vistalite drums you currently have?

I have a blue 12" that I keep in an Anvil Case, and a Clear 13" thats a total virgin, never been hit by a stick, I need to get a case for that one too, right now the Humes and Berg bag will do ..

Vistalites sound like thunder!! Here is my Jason Bonham signature set...Only 100 made...

Cheers

Amber for Bonzo ..

Black for Mourning ..

Yes Sir

They are actually yellow, not amber...

Cheers

Flashback : 1988

Evil Salesman pulls off a lug.

"You see those spider cracks, there ? See, eventually they will creep past the lugs and the shell is worthless. You might as well just sell us the whole kit now and cut your losses .."