BeatIt Test: Polmuz Birch Model 3 Blue to Black Fade

We have received yet another parcel from drumstore.pl – an importer and distributor for numerous drum and percussion brands. This time round, it also contains a drum kit from the freshly rejuvenated Polmuz brand, which premiered in late 2019. Naturally, being Polish, we were more than happy to take a closer look at the instruments.

We are testing a Polmuz Birch Model 3 Blue to Black Fade kit

1. The test

The test was carried out in our own recording facility. The kit comprises two rack toms, a floor tom a kick drum and a snare. The heads put on by the producer were: Remo Emperor Clear (batter) and Remo UK skins (reso) on the toms, a clear Evans EMAD2 (batter) and a Fiberskyn-like Polmuz resonant head on the bass drum as well as a Remo Ambassador Coated (batter) and a Remo Ambassador Snare Side (reso) on the snare. During the test, we also used a prototype hardware set (bass drum pedal, hi-hat stand, snare stand, boom cymbal stand, straight cymbal stand, drum throne), which comes with the kit.

2. Basic specification of the drum kit tested here:

Manufacturer: Polmuz
Model: Birch Model 3
Model no: M3-522-BTBF
Kit elements: 10″ x 8″ tom, 12″ x 9″ tom, 16″ x 16″ floor tom, 22″ x 18″ bass drum, 14″x6.5″ snare
Colour: Blue to Black Fade
Finish: Glossy Lacquer
Material: 100% Birch (6 plies, 6.9 mm)
Tom mount: Non-invasive
Claw hooks: Rubber pads
Hardware: Chrome
Virgin bass drum shell
Stands: Yes (hi hat, snare, boom and straight cymbal stand)
Bass drum pedal: Yes
Drum throne: Yes

3. Product and sound

The Polmuz Birch Model 3 Blue to Black Fade set is undoubtedly inspired by the vintage style (although not as much as the Tulipwood Aqua Blue we wrote about last month), which at the same time meets present-day requirements thanks to the use of modern technologies. The kit consists of the following: a 10 “x 8″ rack tom, a 12″ x 9″ rack tom, a 16″ x 16″ floor tom, a 22″ x 18″ bass drum, and a 14″ x 6.5” snare drum. The drums make a positive impression at the first glance. The Blue to Black Fade finish underneath the glossy lacquer really catches the eye. It fades from turquoise, through to blue and black, leaving the grains visible. The shells are embellished with the new logo of the revived brand. Death and black metal players would probably choose a slightly different look, but drummers interested in Polmuz, and playing all the other styles, will have something to look at. In addition, the buyer gets well-made bass drum rims in black finish as well as 45° bearing edges, nice plywood (one hundred percent Birch), and a non-invasive tom suspension system. The tension rods work absolutely flawlessly when it comes to tuning, although the downside is that the snare drum detuned after several minutes of playing rimshots (three rods closest to the place being hit went completely loose). Of course, you can solve this problem with the help of tuning rod locks, which are available at any drum store. The user also receives bass drum legs with telescopes, claw hooks with rubber pads and a set of hardware: a bass drum pedal, a hi hat stand, a snare stand, two cymbal stands (boom and straight) and a throne included IN THE PRICE of the drum set. It must be noted and praised, especially given the fact that the price is in the region of PLN 3500 (USD 970 / EUR 780.

We tested the drum kit using the following tuning achieved with the help of a Tune-Bot device:

Bass drum – C (first octave, 30 Hz on the batter head and 50 Hz on the batter head)
Floor tom – D (second octave, 95 Hz on the batter head and 148 Hz on the batter head)
12″ rack tom – A (second octave, 138 Hz on the batter head and 255 Hz on the batter head)
10″ rack tom – E (third octave, 240 Hz on the batter head and 306 Hz on the batter head)
Snare – A (third octave, 308 Hz on the batter head and 350 Hz on the batter head)

We focused on one type of tuning, because we are dealing with a kit in a rock configuration (sizes and skins) and we feel there is no point trying to jazz it up. The whole set is characterized by what sonically distinguishes birch as a drum-building material, i.e. clear high frequencies with a nice-sounding low end, and a lot of warmth thanks to a well-balanced mid-range. We played a few quick sixteenth-note double-bass patterns on and you can be sure they were not overpowered by the low frequencies, because the high range produced by birch shells really gives the kick drum the right kind of projection. The floor tom souns deep enough without losing definition and attack. Both rack toms beautifully cut through other instruments and are quite musical (the whole kit was tested during a rehearsal of a heavy rock band that Viking, our editor-in-chief, plays with on a daily basis). The snare drum sounds quite light and airy; reminiscent of styles such as Funk or Pop. We didn’t manage to get a slightly more beefy sound from it (nothing wrong with that, though), but after an unplanned detuning of three tuning rods due to applying rimshots, it turned out that the instrument was pretty easy to “deaden”, and with a nice sonic effect.