I'm considering moving on and finally investing in a great kit that I will keep for a long time and tour with this fall and in the future. I play for a alternative rock group but also do a lot of pop country and hard rock stuff on the side. I like prefer large toms and a good size kick. I'm a Gretsch fan but considering moving into the custom kit market.

What kit do you play now? What is the one thing you love about your kit? What are you not happy with? I'd love some insight from other drummers playing hi-end kits. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

Well...first its a shame that Pearl discontinued their Masterworks line...they offered a wide range of tones and were completely built for and around you. But, lucky for us, Sonor has introduced their SQ2 line and it is amazing.

As to what I play I have my three lovely ladies.

Tama Superstar Custom
I bought this as my regular keep at home practice kit for the versitility of the drums and the ranges that can be coaxed out. The 22 inch bass has a lot of punch and dominance and when combined with an Evans Hydraulic batter head......its a mean tone then haha. Whether you like a loose or tight tuning Tama has a lot to offer. Ive had this kit for 8 years now, and I cant't really find anything wrong with it.

Roland V-Drum Pro TD-20SX
I bought this little gem to use as for songwriting, but ended up buying additional pads and cymbals and I use this when I need an incredible range of voices and instruments for the various groups I play with. I even mix and match this kit with my two acoustic kits and honestly feel like Terry Bozzio must feel when he is sitting behind HIS beast. The Roland over all is an incredible drumset and it has no faults...unless you dont enjoy electric kits.

Drumwerx African Waterfall Bubinga
This is by far my pride and joy. Drumwerx is a little known company that hand builds each and every kit. They offer a full range of ply combinations and custom drum sizes as well. I went for the 10 peice that is featured on their site. This kit offers everything and when combined with some of the V-Pro pads...there is no genre that can stand before that monster.

A buddy of mine Rich Redmond, drums for Jason Aldean and swears by high-end sonor kits. I'll definitely have to check out the new SQ2 line!

I actually play a Roland V-drum Pro kit at my church for the past year. I had never been a fan of electric kits whatsoever but this kit has such a realistic feel, incredibly accurate triggers, and awesome sample sounds!

I just checked out the Drumwerx website and saw the kit you are talking about - maple shells right? I'm definitely going to have to spend some time checking these out - the company seems pretty solid and I still want to mess with the "Build Your Dream Kit" function. If you don't mind me asking - how much was your kit and did you create yourself with their building tool?

The Sonor SQ2 is...just an amazing kit. Swing by Sonor's website and check out the SQ2 Drums Configurator...kinda like D.W.'s Kitbuilder program...just...better haha. Sonor has always put out a product that honestly...Pearl nor DW could ever touch.

Definitely play around with the Dreamkit builder program at Drumwerx. I used the program to build my beast and I couldnt be happier with the full options they offer. And ill even list my full setup for you...

The Beast
20 x 24 10 ply Kick
5 x 10 12 ply Snare
8 x 14 7 ply Snare
8 x 8 7 ply Tom
8 x 10 7 ply Tom
10 x 10 8 ply Tom
10 x 12 8 ply Tom
10 x 14 10 ply Tom
8 x 15 12 ply Tom
8 x 16 12 ply Tom

All with black Evans Hydraulic heads batter and resonant and black chrome hardware.

I also use the full Zildjian Avedis line of cymbals with a 22 inch sweet ping ride and the Istanbul Agop and Sultan series.

So in total 10 piece kit with 16 cymbals that I swap in and out.

Kit cost $5,300.oo
Cymbal cost $2,500.oo

Wow, that is quite the set up! I bet you're a Carter Beauford fan!

I will definitely be messing around with both the sonor and Dreamkit builders.

$2,500 is a good price for 16 cymbals - especially Avedis! Did you buy used in general?

Have your tried Zildjian K custom Hybrids at all? I play a 17" and 19" hybrid and am in love - even considering the hihats and ride!

A friend has an Arbiter kit that is absolutely cannonlike. Nothing drilled into the shells -- tightening the heads uses a single bolt on a loop rim, almost like a hose clamp. The shells are maple and very well made. Loud, loud drums. http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/autotune/arbiter_intro.html

He also has a Hinger(?) snare -- the shell is made in two halves, top & bottom, and it can be opened or closed to give you better projection.

http://www.olympicdrums.com/HingerSpaceTonel.html

That Arbiter kit is crazy! I'd be really interested in seeing how well that "advanced tuning" option really works! The guy on site also said they were very loud drums...I imagine it would take me a long time to track down one of these kits but if I ever run across one I'll be sure the check it out. Great find!

That Hinger snare is out of this world! I had never heard of that before...it seems as if they are very popular among orchestral players around the world because of its projection and ability to be very loud. So cool! I'd be interested to hear from some kit players that use it, as well as the Arbiter kit!

I think the Hinger snares are very scarce -- the guy who made them either died or is too old to do them anymore. The ones you can find are very pricey. The Arbiters sound amazing but if the drummer is used to smashing his kit, he might have trouble adjusting initially. You just don't have to play as hard.

Well, the actual retail price of both my Istanbuls and Zildjians would be....much much more with out my sponsorship agreements. And you absolutely nailed it, Carter is one of my drumming hero's as well as any drummer that offers more melodic options to offer the groups I play with. When I sit behind my kit, I do my best to add creative and rhythmic direction above and beyond the call.

I am a huge fan of the K Custom line especially the Darks. The K Custom Dark has such a gorgeous tone depth across the plate and really surprises me sometimes with the tones it produces. The K Dark has a really neat tone when you tap the edge of the plate with the shoulder of the stick, almost a Zil Bell type tone.

That Arbiter kit is insane!!! I like the autotune idea and the speed of which heads can be replaced, seated and uniformly tuned.

My highschool actually used a Hinger snare during our winter orchestral season. The sound projection was absolutely dominating. We would actually find ourselves pushing more towards the lower dynamics and more towards the rims just to dampen the attacks. That snare though had a tendancy to make you feel inadequate while playing. It captures and project even the smallest ryhthmic or dynamic changes and if you werent watching your inner beats or not controlling your sticks,it would amplify the mistakes. Definitely not able to cheat beats on that bad boy. In an open air concert setting that snare would produce loud clear responses that carried for awhile

Very cool, Dave. I love Carter for the same reason - he answers a higher calling than the typical drummer does and truly plays the drums as an instrument rather than a click track. I could watch him jam all day long - and many boring, long days at work, I do!

Just realized you are living in Nashville - what do you do here? I am out in the Hermitage area but have a rehearsal studio over in Metro Center at Diamond Sound Studios. Do you play out with any bands right now? Maybe I'll see you around.

Exactly! I completely believe that a drummer has more than just the obvious obligations to the music, and with my full ensemble percussive background I try to bring that to the kit when I can.

I actually work a few bands on the Sony label and though I have a home in Nashville I rarely get to spend anytime there, but when I have my off times I do alot of private teaching at middle tenn private schools.

I had no idea there was a studio out in Metro center!! How long you guys been there?

For about 6 months now - it is actually new within the last year. Cheaper than S.I.R. and Soundcheck and allows us to have a place to keep our gear set up and feel safe leaving it there.

Let me know when you're in Nashville again - love to meet up for coffee and talk geeky drum stuff.

I definitely will hit you up man for sure.

I wanted to throw a little story in here real fast. There's this little group I play with whenever I am home for awhile, more like just hang out and jam really, but it's probably one of the greatest times in my life. The first time I met these guys to play I didn't bring a kit with me and it turned out the guy who's house we were going to had a kit. So I get there and I am excited to see the kit and get down to rockin, only to find an incredibly beat up and unloved early 90's stock CB kit.

I mean this kit was a tear jerker. The heads were scraped and worn and both the crash cymbals had chunks missing out of the plates and ironically the ride looked brand new... The hat's were slightly bent and the stand had...well...it was nearing Duct Tape DEFCON 2. So in my head I automatically question the group I was about to play with. But, the urge to play won out and I got into the drivers seat and took the kit for a spin, and in all honesty...that kit sounded amazing. Despite having 2-3 inch chunks missing out of the plates, the crashes were very vibrant and would produce a crystal clear sound that actually had a little more depth than I think it would have with a full plate haha. The kick sounds great...the wood has aged and the head has seated perfectly. The snare even with its lumpy head, has a great clear sound. The toms hold their tuning and produce a really great 70's throwback studio sound. I know it may be hard to believe and you could blame it on the hops and barley, but this kit has an amazing sound. I would definitely do a live gig with this busted kit any day. Plus, whenever I get behind one of MY kits, I always appreciate my equipment more after playing on Old Busted.

Hmm..there's a moral in there somewhere kiddies.

Hahah very interesting! I have played a few ugly kits in my time and have never had this same experience...kits usually tend to sound a lot like you expect them to sound. What a nice suprise!

I had the same experience with a short scale (and I mean 25", normal is 34") bass my friend found at a pawn shop. The neck used to be able to double as a bow and arrow it was so bent, and the headstock looked like it was holding the tuners on by shreds of wood. But plug it in and it sounds like you're playing Victor Wooten's Yin/Yang bass. Well, okay, it's not THAT amazing, but you can get a really great attack and a punchy sound out of it. After a trussrod adjustment, some new strings, and a little duct tape TLC on the headstock and controls, it was a pretty decent instrument. Dunno if I'd call it solid yet, haha.

On topic, I don't play drums myself, but I might look into a kit to practice on, just to work my time until it's perfect so I can transfer that to bass and piano.

I did a session last month where the drummer used his1970s Rogers kit and that thing rocked! He also has an Arbiter kit, which is basically custom made, but he said he thought the Rogers was better suited or the studio. I agree. All we did was tape the tom heads a bit to reduce ring and it sounded great -- kick drum (22") was really good. I think that in the case of drums, sometimes the older wood gives it a great tone. Advances in engineering and construction probably do produce better drums these days, but I think attention to detail back then was probably better and more hands-on.

As for cheap basses, I've played those old Danelectro basses that were sold by Sears in the '60s and they sound just fine. You could buy them at that time for around $100.

I agree with you, Laklander - many of the 70's and older kits sound great! I good buddy of mine restores kits from the 70's and has done quite a few Rogers kits - he always let me come play his favorites and Rogers have become some of mine!