Why MRP Drums? OK, You've been playing mass produced drums forever and now its time for you to step up and be taken care of like the professional musician you are! Think about-Would you rather settle on 'buying' your next kit or snare drum or 'have it built' just for you? I think you know that answer! With MRP Custom Drums - It says more about you as a player and also proves that what's found on a store shelf is not enough for you anymore. What we create for our Artists are drums that are very different through innovative and uniquely thoughtful designs in many ways. All of the attention we put into the construction of our drums makes for a drum sound that's unparalleled by any company. All MRP Drums are handcrafted one drum at a time to your exact order and that starts by the shells of your kit being personally hand selected by Mark Ross. No generic parts used on our drums-The lugs we use are our own solid, machined lugs which are totally noiseless because there are no moving parts. We utilize cutting edge construction methods throughout the entire building process. It assures excellent quality control and details that can not be achieved with mass production. However, the most important tools we use in all facets of MRP construction are our hands and eyes! Checking our bearing edges (See MRP EdgeWorks) and finishes with human eyes and hands is something a programmed machine just can't do. These practices are just a few of the details that help us create incredibly resonant sounding drums because all of the parts add up to one single superior instrument! High quality items were never inexpensive and never will be. But just because our drums have a substantial production costs due to us machining our own parts, high quality paints and laminate finishes we (and our Artists) find it certainly worthwhile considering how great our drums sound and look! In short, all of the sound and visual benefits we build into your drums stand out and place your signature on your music! That places an exclusiveness on our drums. When we started in 1998 , Mark Ross had a goal of creating 50 drum sets in a year. That was a daunting yet successful achievement. In 2002, he had a goal of doing 100-150 drum sets. We build NO MORE than 150 kits in a year's time! In early December of 2003, the goal of the 150th drumset order for the year had been placed. Any new orders were placed into the 2004 order book just to insure the quality of the drums! No mass production here. MRP Drums COMPLETELY sheds the corporate image of other drum companies due to the direct hands-on approach of the owner Mark Ross doing the actual crafting of all the drums that leave the Oceanside facility. Yes, the same dude that answers the phone when you call is the same dude cutting your bearing edges-Mark Ross!!!! No "factory", no "corporate headquarters", in fact we're actually so busy we stopped advertising well over a year ago and have NO plans to start again! Yes, we're that busy helping drummers get their dream drums! MRP creates ONLY high end, professional quality drums-No intermediate and definitely not any entry level lines of drums. With lead times on the more exotic custom requests, an MRP Artist can be looking at a possible 12 week lead time on a project, usually less. Again no 'banging' out drums for the masses. That brings up another topic-Why aren't MRP Drums in the Stores-Good question! Easy answer too! Mark Ross states "You can't find a truly custom drum built to your exact order sitting on a store shelf-You need to have it built just for you! That's where we come in. You can't order a Ferrari by walking into a Ford Showroom. You need to contact Ferrari directly" Check out our ordering info here. Bear in mind, the image of being in an exclusive club is not what we imply-Its just the way Mark wants to run MRP Drums. Treat ALL MRP Artists with the professional respect they deserve.FAR better than anywhere else and provide them with both great sounding and great looking drums that are BEYOND personal! Maybe you thought you were just going to simply "order" a drum set. With MRP, you are going to be treated like the pro you are to a unique creative experience that YOU are directly involved with - Not some kid asking you "What do you need man" across a store counter... Again, which would you prefer? Face It-You deserve more! What MRP stands for is the close attention paid to our Artists. We listen to what an Artist wants and needs in a snare drum or a drum set. There's never pressure to "buy" from MRP because we help our Artists make their decisions on their drums based on the application, musical tastes, and the sound they need in the context of the band they play with. We tailor a drum set around the Artists requirements not sell them something sitting on some shelf! MRP Drums are strictly Professional level, high ended musical instruments. We don't (and never will!) even offer any intermediate lines and certainly not an entry level line. We build custom drums, perfectly fitted to our Artists' specifications. An interesting observation we've made in recent years - We've kept our status of strictly high end drums steadfast by helping countless drummers realize their dreams. When the economy of the US began declining after the turn of the new millenium,Mark Ross noticed a trend in the drum business-The rush by drum companies to create cheaper imported drums for financial survival. The only 'cheap' thing that will do to your business is cheapen your brand. Instead of following the trend, we kept focused on our core value and products but most importantly on why we exist-To help our Artists build their dream drum set! In short, by staying the course, MRP grew at its largest rate from 2002 and even more in 2003! 2004 is in full swing and that's despite the recent economic turbulence. Basically, our Artists are seeing the extreme value in what we do! Another interesting observation - Mark already saw a trend in the company in mid 2002. He relates, " We've always been viewed as a high end drum builder and that is definitely accurate. But what I see now is that we're getting Artists who are trading up from their present "high end" drums that they once perceived were just that only to realize there is so much more that MRP has to offer them! What I want to convey to my Artists is that whether you come here, call or email you not only get a LOT more in terms of sound, finishes and value when you have an MRP drum set built by us, you also get treated like a star because you deserve it! We are not some high pressure store, we treat people like people!" Come over to MRP and you'll have not only what usually is your last drum set but also an experience you won't soon forget!