Pearl Reference Series
The mission
What if each drum in your drum set was engineered as an instrument unto itself. Each tom designed to respond perfectly within the confines of its respective frequency without compromise over any other area of your kit. This is the mission behind Reference Series. A complete set of individually engineered, incredible sounding drums.
Learning from the Masterworks Series
In 1999, Pearl began its most ambitious undertaking, The Masterworks Series, the world's first truly custom drums. Designed for the player by the player. Every aspect of the manufacturing process was custom made, from the number of wood plies, the wood selection, to the final finish. Over the last 5 years, through arduous listening tests, Masterworks has taught us a great deal about drums and what makes the perfect shell. So forget what you think you know about drums and take a close look at Reference Series, the most acoustically advanced drums in the world. To fully understand the Reference Series you must understand that the desired tonal characteristics of a 10" tom are completely different than that of a 22" bass drum. Thus to use the same material in both drums would result in a compromise.
Combination of task specific bearing edges and 3 time proven woods
Reference Series drums use a combination of task specific bearing edges and 3 time proven woods, Birch, Maple, and African Mahogany. Using Maple as a sole material has long been the traditional choice for shells and for good reason. Maple provides smooth, well balanced tone that is perfect for a 12" tom. Subsequently, all Reference Series 12" toms are composed of 6 plies of Maple. The only single wood shell in the series. The 10" and 8" toms receive 4 plies of Maple with 2 inner plies of Birch for cut and attack. And for maximum response, all 13" and smaller toms have a rounded 45° bearing edge.
And for 13" toms and larger
Beginning with the 13" tom and larger, Mahogany is added to the inner plies to increase the lower frequencies and accentuate the warmth of the Maple. The 14" toms and larger begin using our fully rounded bearing edge for even more shell contact. The 18" and 20" bass drums use 4 inner plies of Mahogany with 2 outer plies of Maple. As the size of the bass drums increase, so does the amount of Mahogany. The 22" and 24" bass drums incorporate an amazing 6 inner plies of Mahogany surrounded by 2 outer plies of Maple for the ultimate in solid responsive bass frequencies.
It's not about compromise
With Reference Series, it's not about compromise, it's about every drum in your kit performing at its optimal capacity.