History of Tama Drums
Tama drums have been pleasing drummers for nearly 40 years. They are popular, mainstream drums. They evolved when rock music was new and thriving and have been on the market ever since. Historically, Tama brought about several innovations (especially hardware) that is still being used and that have influenced other drum makers.
Other People Are Reading
-
History
-
Tama was originally named Star drums in the late 1960s to the early 70s, prior to the name change. The Star brand name sold drums beginning in 1965. Hoshino Gakki owned the company. It partnered with Ibanez guitars and Tama drums in 1962. The name change occurred in 1974 when Gakki decided to give the drums a new identity due to the new features added to the drum shells and hardware.
Features
-
The new additions to Tama consisted of memory locks, boomstands (for the cymbals), cymbals mates, offset titlers and multiclamps for the drums. In the 1970s, when the stands were thin and unstable, the company produced the first double-braced hardware for its drum kits to stabilize the stands. Tama was on its way to offering a better overall kit for drummers.
-
Types
-
The first type of drums produced by Tama were named Imperialstar drums. Later in 1977, Tama became a more successful company because of its release of the popular Superstar drums. These drums became Tama's first lacquered kit, as the drums were expensive. The cost of Superstar drums slowly came down and eventually were affordable for everyone to use. In 1983, Tama offered the Artstar drum series as the new line of drums. They were popular then and are still popular.
Time Frame
-
In the 1980s, the drum sets featured the new Camco chain-drive pedal, the X-hat auxillary hi-hat and the very first double-pedal for the kick drum. The double-pedals were called the "twin pedals with both beaters in a single housing," but are now referred to as the double-pedal construction. They are mainly used in hard rock and metal bands to deliver an intense and fast beat for their songs. In the 1990s, Tama introduced the Iron Cobra pedals that were stamped as "the feel that's unreal," 1st Chair thrones that gave comfortable support to the drummer's back and body, and the FasClamps that gave the drummer a fast and easy setup for the drums.
Significance
-
Other innovations that Tama has created include strong drum shells from the 1994 Starclassic drums. Similar to the Starclassic's thin, sturdy shells came the StarCast mounting system. It is a suspension mounting system that is easy to use and does not effect the tuning when being operated. Other drum brands and companies have been inspired by Tama to make similar shells but none have compared to Tama's style.
-
