Our friends from DrumStore, one of the best drum shops in Poland have recently sent us a package. We always get something cool from them, and so it was this time. We got three big boxes full of drum gear. We have tested and reviewed it all. Now we want to share some of our thoughts with you. Let’s begin with a marvellous drum kit from British producer. This one is called Natal Arcadia UFX. Let’s go!
- Package and overall look
Drums were packed in cardboard boxes with Natal logo on it. Shells were really good secured with bubble film and sponges. They were arranged one inside another. They were really safe. After we have finally unpacked the stuff out of the box we were simply amazed. We put all the parts together and build a beautiful kit in blue to black finish. Real eye-candy! Everything looked solid, details were visible and we couldn’t hesitate from saying “wow” all the time!
2. Product
As we wrote earlier- we were quite stunned. And it wasn’t only because of details. It was the sound and functionality that made us blush. The Natal Arcadia UFX kit is a little bit modified version of the typical Arcadia. The difference is in the sizes of the toms and floor tom. These are a little bit shallower than the standard ones. Sizes are: 10 x 6,5″, 12 x 7″, 16 x 14″ and 22 x 18″. Shallower toms allows us to tune the drum quicker. It responds quickly and keeps the nice full tone. The tom holder is working perfectly and it also has a cool addition. You can mount an cymbal stand arm into it so you can have your splashes or other cymbals very close. It’s very creative! We also got a whole set of hardware. It was rock solid and well made.
We got twoo boom stands, hi-hat stand, snare stand and a drum pedal. Nothing was loose, nothing was squeaking. Pure joy. The pedal was reacting fast. It also looked solid and has double chain. Nice one Natal, nice one!
Natal Arcadia UFX is also equipped with snare drum. It’s also in blue to black finish, sized 14 x 5,5″. After quick tuning we got a nice loud drum which can satisfy every fan of hard and heavy music. After tuning it using TuneBot we were able to get the best from it. It’s very sensitive, so playing ghost notes is a pleasure here.
3. Test
This drum kit was tested in our studio. Natal put the Remo UT heads on each drum, so we didn’t change that. After giving every single drum a round of paradiddles and other patterns we played on the whole kit. It sounds really coherent and clear. Distance between every tom is satisfying, and it sounds natural. Floor tom is deep, just as 16″ drum should be. Unfortunately the snare drum is too loud and sometimes it covers the sound of other drums. It’s not a bad thing, but some people can be unsatisfied. Tuning of the drums:
16″ – D (bottom 163Hz, top 98 Hz)
12″ – F# (bottom 206 Hz, top 123)
10″ – A# (bottom 259 Hz, top 155 Hz)
snare drum – F (top 240 Hz, bottom 359 Hz)
bass drum – D (reso 82 Hz, batter 55 Hz)
4. Summary
The Natal Arcadia UFX drum kit can satisfy every drummer and drummerette who likes universal configuration, great and original sound as well as phenomenal look. You can purchase it with a set of great hardware, and it’s not so expensive! We highly recommend it to the fans of hard and heavy sounds. Pop drummers will love the fast toms. As you can see, it’s pretty versatile. And that blue to black finish is out of this world…
Producer: http://www.nataldrums.com/
Distribution in Poland: http://drumstore.pl/
Our rate: 5/5
