Millenium 973CH Flat Base Hardware Pack

I bought this hardware set as I thought it would nicely compliment the Sonor Gold Martini Kit that I also just purchased and while it does indeed look great and very retro with its flat bases (the look I was very much after) some pieces are better and more functional than others.

The boom and straight cymbal stands are simple, light and will do the job well. The snare stand is good too if only that the part used to tighten the snare basket size is plastic and I fear may crack one day in the future.
The hi-hat stand whilst looking great is struggling with my SABIAN AAX 13" Stage hats in that the spring mechanism inside isn't quite strong enough to lift the top hat up unless I separate the 2 hi hat cymbals a great deal. I unfortunately prefer them to be quite close together.
The bass drum pedal...well its not much more than a toy really and owning it has now motivated me to start searching for its immediate replacement.
All in all this pack looks great with its flat bases but functionally there is some room for improvement on some of the parts.

Overall very good for the money, if you are a gigging jazzer. Plus points are: Cymbal stands are VERY light (like crazy light), are built well and do the job if you're just putting cymbals on them (no hanging toms). Snare stand is much the same, its insanely light and works well. Criticisms: That the screw adjustment for the snare cradle is very flimsy and I think it might crack in my hardware bag before long....??? Hi hat stand works fine but its lack of stability may put some people off. kick pedal is awful but I wouldn't use it anyway and for the price and weight savings this set up gives me on tour, I don't care one bit.

Hope this review will be helpful if you are trying to decide between the Millenium 202CH lightweight set and this flat base set. I ordered the 202CH set but returned it - most parts seemed absolutely fine, but the hi-hat rod can not be unscrewed and instead has a hinge like some vintage hi-hat stands. My feeling was that in a bag of stands either the rod would get bent or the hinge will get broken, but it would be fine if being left set up most of the time in a studio or practice room. Having checked with Thomann I then replaced with the 973CH flat base set - the hi-hat rod unscrews in the conventional manner. Here's the Stop Press - the 973CH set is actually lighter than the 202CH. The 202CH box is marked 10kg but the 973CH is marked only 9kg assuming these are accurate. The bass drum pedal design is also better with the flat base set and works fine, don't know why some reviews are complaining about it - perhaps it has been updated. If you want lightweight hardware without spending a fortune the 973CH is a good option.