FUNNY STUFF, FASHION. Everyone would like to be on the right side of it but few can agree on what it is.

Fashion is the key with which advertisers unlock the safe of desirability, knowing that if they can make your perfectly adequate hi-fi system appear cumbersome and outmoded with their new, transistorised version, resplendent with flashing LEDs, you might be suckered into parting with some of your valuable folding for an item which is no better in performance terms.

Inevitably there are manufacturers who resist such cheap manoeuvring. In the drum world you would be hard pressed to point the accusing finger at Ludwig who have made only minimal concessions to the passage of time in their designs and promotional methods. Ludwig had already been making drums for more than 30 years when the modern set-up evolved in the swing era of the 40s.

Ringo chose Ludwig in the 60s. Ginger Baker did likewise in the 70s and so it goes in the 80s. Ludwig drums have retained their mystique because the drum kit has changed so little during the chart era. As I said a couple of issues back, current models don't do anything that a 20 year-old Ludwig can't do just as well. Thus were they able to rest on their laurels, respected and sought after. All would no doubt have continued to be well had it not been for two unlikely and unpredictable elements — inflation and the Japanese. As western manufacturers fought a losing battle to keep prices down, along came Pearl, Tama, Yamaha and the rest. Ludwig seemed happy to sit on the sidelines as other companies fought for the lucrative first kit buyer.

Until now, that is. At last Ludwig have woken from their competitive slumber and produced the Rocker 2 and a range of first-class stands to match the standard of their top of the range drums.

The Rocker 2 is a package which comprises five drums — 12x11, 13x12 and 16x16 power toms, a 22x14 bass drum, a 5x14 snare, a hi hat and snare drum stand, one straight cymbal stand, a tom holder and a bass drum pedal. The drums are three-ply in thickness, with maple outside and in, and gum in the middle of the sandwich. This particularly adventurous combination (in that it's so thin) creates a bright, punchy sound which resonates long and clearly. The lively sound is enhanced by the inevitable choice of silver-dotted Rocker batter heads and clear Rocker bottom heads.

I don't much care for this range in conjunction with the regular four-ply Ludwig drums, where they seem a trifle thin and flappy, but they certainly gave me a pleasant surprise here. As is the norm with power toms, the 12 and 13 matched well tonally with the floor tom — this despite everything I've experienced and said about the L-bracket tom holder, which has a choking effect on my toms but which is here compensated for by the thinner and more resonant shell construction and the inner acoustic coating.

Nor does this create a structural problem with strength or rigidity. Whereas the original Premier Royale bass drum was so thin that it could be bent out of shape if the front head and hoop were removed, the Rocker is a far more resilient affair, which must be comforting news for the drummer who's funds don't run to cases or anything safer than a roof rack by way of transport.

The kit comes in a choice of five colours: red, white, black, navy blue and metallic silver. Ludwig have decided to return to their classic name badge and nut box design as well as the cheap, simple efficiency of that much-imitated L-bracket tom holder.

Remarkably the thin shell does nothing to limit the depth of pitch or overall volume of the bass drum. Good news for those with back trouble or without block and tackle.

The snare, astoundingly, is another matter altogether. Since Ludwig make a range of what are generally considered to be the best snare drums in the business, you would think that they could do a better job than their rivals with the budget variety. Sadly this is not the case. The Rocker snare is a shallow five inches of wood with a correspondingly thin sound that also features a rather unpleasant oink in its tone, and not much else. The trusty two-bits-of-string snare mechanism is there, but nothing else which would tell the player that this drum comes from the same line as the 402 or Colliseum.

If their drums are an interesting blend of ancient and modern, the new Ludwig hardware benefits from the unashamed poaching of good ideas from the same Japanese makers who first copied American drums in the early 70s. Just to confuse matters further both new ranges are made under licence to Ludwig in Taiwan where lower wages help keep prices to a minimum. Since the heavier duty stands are an option open to the buyer with an extra 150 quid it's worth looking at these alternatives at the same time.

Regular readers will recall my words of praise for the Pearl P-800 bass drum pedal in the March issue and someone at Ludwig shares my sentiments, because their new pedal is a dead ringer in all respects other than the arrangement of beater holder and strap attachment — an all-in-one design on the Pearl, and a side-by-side version on the Ludwig. With the Rocker package you get a more eccentric model which includes a chain-driven action — good — and a flat, one-piece footplate — not so clever. Though the pedal is perfectly playable, like the Royale it doesn't look that robust so watch out if yours is a heavy hoof.

The Rocker hi-hat is also on the lightweight side but with fewer obvious structural weaknesses, save for a feeble top cymbal clutch. It might interest players who want a stand which is responsive and well balanced, and which won't rip the bottom out of the trap case.

With its beautiful chroming and double-flanged tripod legs, the top of the range hi-hat looks similar to the Tama Titan but wins hands down with its chain drive linking the double spring action to footplate. Although I anticipated this method being borrowed from the Sonor Signature original two months ago, I didn't bargain on anyone actually improving upon it so quickly, yet the two stabilising rods on the Ludwig do prevent the chain from being twisted away from the vertical. This is good for the player's balance and healthy for the otherwise vulnerable chain links. It's unfortunate that this new competitive streak doesn't run to the inclusion of memory locks on this or any of the other stands, but at least the design does make provision for their later purchase, assuming you find a strip of gaffa tape unsightly and offensive, that is.

The rocker snare drum stand is another design re-activated from the past when it was good enough for Pearl to copy it. This means that although it might appear a trifle slim by current standards, its small tripod legs allow plenty of room for adjustment of its position in relation to hi-hat and bass drum pedals while still scoring well with its minimal wobble when the snare drum is under repeated attack.

The more expensive model is even better. A state-of-the-art design for the modern drummer. One of the first stands to allow for the use of the deeper snares which are so popular these days. You can actually park a Colliseum on this one and rest more than your chin on it. It's large, hard claws cradle the drum without affecting its resonance. Fixing the top of the tripod legs so that they are drawn in or out by moving their stays up or down, the stem of the stand is good, practical and ingenious in this sphere of diminishing variety. My only quibble concerns the toothed angle adjustment. It's strong all right, but limits the choice of positioning enough to be annoying.

The straight cymbal stand that comes with the Rocker is a simple tool, well made with its nylon bedding for middle and upper extensions and hard to knock over, though a stand this light would tend to move about during the prolonged bash, or 'gig', as it's known. So the confirmed animal might do well to consider its big brother which is equally simple but much heavier, more solidly constructed and, as such, hard to fault.

I know that the boom stand is very much in vogue these days but one look at the mighty version included in the Ludwig range (for which there is no budget alternative) makes me wonder. Is sitting in the driving seat of a piece of Roman siege equipment really worth all the toil involved in heaving them around and setting them up? Like its Trak counterpart, this one will double as a piece of scaffolding any time; it reached the ceiling in the Ludwig demo room and putting a mere cymbal on it would seem almost an anti climax. However, of its kind this is undoubtedly one of the best and ideal for anyone who had a Meccano fetish as a child.

Although the Rocker is a five-drum kit at the moment, the full range of power toms from 8 to 15in will be available within two months, and having made my regular point about checking that you can get these deeper drums into a comfortable playing position, it might be worth noting that these drums will also be available in the classic sizes.

If Ludwig eventually expand their range of finishes to include the natural wood look of their other kits I think the Rocker would sell just as well. Its distinctive, cracking sound is very attractive. The same goes for the Rocker 2 package but anyone who can afford £695 should pass on the snare, get a 402 instead and make an investment that will never be regretted.

Rocker 2: £695

PRICES: Cymbal stand — £63; Boom stand — £83; Hi-Hat-£95; Snare stand — £67 and Bass Drum Pedal — £73.