Gear Reviews
Detailed assessments of the latest drum kits and accessories
A Year in Reviews
2024 was a great year for new drum gear, in this year alone I have reviewed new drum sets, new snare drums, some new cymbals, and some new thrones. As always, when I review a product, I really review the…
Mighty Bright NuFlex, BrightFlex, DuoFlex, and Encore Musician’s Lights.
Mighty Bright Lights have been around for a while, and any musician or performer that works in a darker environment has probably used them, I have had one in my stick bag for years (just in case.) But Mighty Bright…
ROLAND VQD106
The Quietest Electronic Set I’ve Ever Played In October of 2024, Roland announced an all-new addition to their V-Drum product line. The VQD106 Quiet Design kit claims to be the lowest playing noise set in V-Drum history. It comes ready…
New and Notable December 2024
DW LIMITED EDITION PERFORMANCE BIRCH, ALESIS SETS AND AMPS, LATIN PERCUSSION SIGNATURE 8” COWBELL, SABIAN STRATUS CYMBALS, PROMARK HYBRID HOT RODS, ON-STAGE STUDENT PERCUSSION PACK, BOPWORKS’ STICK STATION Drum Workshop Limited Edition Birch Set and Snare The Drum Workshop, Inc. (DW)…
Tommy Lee’s Motley Crue Girls, Girls, Girls, Tour Pearl Free Floating Snare Drum, Drastic Plastik Trigger Pads, and Tour Artifacts.
This Pearl snare drum is one of two custom Free Floating snares that Tommy Lee used on Motley Crue’s 1987 Girls, Girls, Girls Tour. Both snares were 6.5 x 14 Free Floating models with custom red hardware. One snare has…
NEW SABIAN CYMBALS Sabian 20” Dominator China, 22” Wide Lip China, 22” Tempest Ride, and 18” Rocktagon
As a fan and colleague of the late Dom Famularo, I was always impressed by his passion for drums and his ability to inspire others. Seeing him perform for the first time at a clinic back in 1995, I was…
The ddrum NIO Percussion Pad
With its nine distinct red rubber pads and backlit LCD, it’s hard to miss the ddrum NIO Percussion Pad. It’s been on the market for a few years now and is one of the more popular entry-level percussion pads available.…
Camtronome
Camtronome is a highly customizable metronome app designed for both beginners and experienced musicians. The “cam” in the app title refers to its ability to capture both audio and video while the metronome is active. However, there are other features in…
Yamaha Hybrid Oak vs. Hybrid Maple Kits: Experimentation That Keeps Pushing Boundaries
Yamaha is a very familiar name in high quality drums that goes back to 1967. However, I didn’t really get turned-on to Yamaha Drums until the very early 1980’s. That was when I started noticing them being played by many…
New and Notable November 2024
NEW GRETSCH CONFIGURATIONS AND FINISHES, ROLAND ANNOUNCES V-DRUMS 7 SERIES AND QUIET DESIGN KITS Gretsch Catalina Club: New Configurations and Finishes. In October 2024, GRETSCH DRUMS is not only adding two exciting new configurations to its Catalina Club series with…
New and Notable October 2024
SABIAN MENTORSHIP AWARD, DW SOUNDWORKS EXPANSION PACK, NEW PORTER & DAVIES ENDORSERS SABIAN – Dom Famularo – SEN Mentorship Award SABIAN is proud to announce the launch of the second annual SABIAN – Dom Famularo – SEN Mentorship Award. Set…
1929 Leedy Conn Tuxedo Trap Set with Butterfly Silhouette Painted Head
As we look at the history of the three leading American drum companies of the 1920s and 30s, Leedy, Ludwig, and Slingerland; their story leads us to the creation of the very rare drum kit in this article. In 1896,…
ddrum E-FLEX BT9 Electronic Drums
In 2022, ddrum unveiled their E-Flex series of electronic drums, designed to offer a quiet yet highly responsive playing experience. This line featured 6-inch mesh pads that provided both enhanced sensitivity and reduced noise. ddrum recently expanded the E-FLEX series…
The Carmine Appice Motherlode
Drummer, singer, songwriter, soloist, band leader, author, educator, innovator… It’s nearly impossible to describe Carmine Appice’s massive influence on the drum world. He sits near the top of Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of the Top 100 Drummers of All Time,…
