Tama Drums (Japanese: 多満 (kanji); タマ (kana)) is a brand of drums and drum parts made and sold by Hoshino Gakki. The design, testing, and production of high-quality drums are done in Seto, Japan. Hardware and less expensive drums are made in Guangzhou, China. Hoshino Gakki has offices in many countries to help sell and distribute its products. Drums sold in the United States are put together and stored in Bensalem, Pennsylvania.

History

Hoshino Gakki started making drums in 1961 under the name "Star Drums." The founder's family name, Hoshino, means "star field" in Japanese, which is why the brand was named "Star Drums." The drums were made at Hoshino's company, Tama Seisakusho, which opened in 1962. This company originally produced Ibanez guitars and amplifiers. By 1966, guitar and amplifier production moved elsewhere, but drum manufacturing continued to grow. Two drum models, Imperial Star and Royal Star, were sold in the United States. These drums were less expensive than similar American-made drums from companies like Rogers, Ludwig, and Slingerland Drum Company, and they were successful.

In 1974, Hoshino focused on creating high-quality drums and hardware. They began marketing their drums under the name "Tama," which was the name of the owner's wife. The word "Tama" also sounds like a Japanese word meaning "jewel." The name "Star" was still used in Tama drum model names at that time.

Tama and Drum Workshop (DW) purchased the bankrupt Camco Drum Company. As part of the agreement, DW received Camco's machines and tools for making products, while Tama received Camco's name, designs, engineering, and patent rights. At the time, Camco was known for making the best drum pedal on the market, the Camco 5000. DW continued making this pedal using Camco's original tools and changed its name to the DW5000. They later improved the pedal with a chain drive. Tama also made a similar pedal with a chain drive under the Camco name. This Tama version used parts from other Tama pedals of the same time, except for the footboard. Tama used Camco's engineering to improve their drum quality quickly. Originally, Tama planned to sell low-cost drums under the Tama brand to beginners and use the Camco brand for high-end drums for professional musicians. However, high-end Camco drums were only sold for a short time and were made in the United States. Tama found these drums competed with their own high-end models, and sales were slow. Eventually, the Camco name was used on budget Tama drums, and Camco drums were no longer sold.

Tama created a special type of tubular drum called octobans. Octobans are 6 inches in diameter and come in eight different lengths, from 280 millimeters (11 inches) to 600 millimeters (24 inches). Their pitch changes based on the length of the drum shell, not the width.