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Considering how versatile drums are, it can be difficult to know where to start when looking for your first kit or one to add to your collection. Investing in a new kit opens up new sounds, better quality gear, and renewed creative inspiration.
Our top pick is the Pearl Masters Maple. It has top-notch construction and some of the best frequency balance and shell resonance of any drum kit on the market. In this guide, we run down some of our top drum set choices for different types of drummers and explain features and elements of kits that are most important when evaluating options.
Shopping around for drum kits to add to the collection or for an upgrade from the one you have? These are our picks for the best acoustic drum sets of 2024.
Quick Summary of the Best Drum Sets
- Pearl Masters Maple (Best Overall)
- Yamaha SBP2F50 Stage Custom Birch 5-Piece Shell Pack (Best Drum Set for Rock)
- Mapex Venus 5-Piece Fusion (Best Fusion Drum Set)
- Ludwig Legacy Mahogany Pro Beat Shell Pack (Best Vintage Drum Set)
- ddrum Hybrid 5 (Best Hybrid Drum Set)
- Pearl Roadshow Jr. (Best Entry-Level Drum Set)
- Sonor AQX (Best Budget Drum Set)
Best Drum Sets
Best Drum Set Overall
SPECS
- Configuration: Shell pack without snare drum
- Number of drums: 4
- Drum shells: 18” x 22” bass drum, 8” x 10” and 9” x 12” mounted toms, 16” x 16” floor tom
- Shell material: North American maple
How does one determine the “best” drum kit? Is it in the overall package, meaning it comes with all the shells, cymbals, and hardware you need? That’s just not how it works when it comes to high-end drum kits. In our world “best” means quality craftsmanship and attention to detail. And this 4-piece drum kit nails it.
The maple shell construction offers attack, snap, and sustain that works well with all styles of music thanks to the frequency balance. Four-ply construction which equates to more resonance, sustain, and durability.
The hardware is next level too. Pearl Drums' Mastercast hoops reinforce the wood of the shells and create more contact with the rims for better tuning stability. And with the R2 Air Tom Suspension system in place, the toms resonate perfectly no matter how the player has them angled.
Professional kits like the Pearl Masters Maple are as well crafted as drums can get. It’s a high price point and doesn’t come with a snare drum, cymbals, or hardware. But if you’re looking for a versatile shell set that’s very well made - and durable - this is a top choice for serious drummers. Professional drum sets don't get better than this.
Best Drum Set for Rock
SPECS
- Configuration: Shell pack with snare drum
- Number of drums: 5
- Drum shells: 17” x 22” bass drum, 5.5” x 14” snare drum, 7” x 10” and 8” x 12” mounted toms, 15” x 16” floor tom
- Shell material: Birch
Yamaha makes almost every type of musical instrument, and their reputation is well respected – especially when it comes to drum sets. They’re a favorite among rock drummers. A rock drum kit is based on larger shells than jazz kits, and for good reason. They need to carry the groove in a dense rock mix, and they need to be loud.
Popular kit piece sizes include a large kick drum around 22” or 24”, with floor toms sometimes even going up to 18” if a player wants to go really deep. The size and type of snare drum is highly up to the drummer’s preference, but usually comes in around 14” and has a great midrange frequency profile for competing with thick guitars and bass.
But it’s not just the size of the kit pieces that make this model from Yamaha great for rock and heavier music. Birch shells let their EQ profile shine through, and the Air Seal System keeps their form over time. Yamaha’s YESS tom mounting system is based on a single point of contact that rounds out the sound quality.
Best Fusion Drum Set
SPECS
- Configuration: Drum shell pack with cymbals and hardware
- Number of drums: 5
- Drum shells: 5” x 14” snare drum, 16” x 20” bass drum, 7” x 10” and 8” x 12” rack toms, 12” x 14” floor tom
- Cymbals: 14” hi-hats, 18” crash/ride
- Shell material: Poplar
Fusion kits offer the power and volume of rock kits with the versatility to sound great with other genres too. They’re commonly a mix of the kit piece sizes that are common in jazz and rock kits.
Everything starts with the 9-ply poplar drum shells. They’re smooth to play with flexible tuning and good rebound, have great midrange and high-end presence, and punch in the low end. Bearing edges use Mapex’s SONIClear design that allow the heads to have better shell contact.
The Cymbals are hammered brass and the bundle comes with 14” hi-hats and 18” crash/ride, but you’ll need to add your own additional cymbals like crashes. It comes with road-ready, durable hardware that includes a hi-hat stand for all pieces that come with it and doesn’t take up too much space.
This kit is affordable, works well across different playing styles, and provides a great starting point for building out the kit to the player’s preference. It’s a great fusion drum set that’s a solid purchase for advanced and beginner players alike.
Best Vintage Drum Set
SPECS
- Configuration: Shell pack without snare drum
- Number of drums: 3
- Drum shells: 14” x 24” bass drum, 9” x 13” rack tom, 16” x 16” floor tom
- Shell material: Mahogany/poplar
With the recent focus on tight, modern-sounding drums and custom manufacturers, some drummers long for the sound of the classic drums of yesterday. Ludwig brings their renowned 3-ply mahogany shells that were popularized in the 1960s to the 21st century with the Legacy.
Vintage-voiced shell materials are a mix of mahogany and cross-laminated with poplar that gives a warm sound with plenty of low end that still cuts in the mids. The series offers period-correct appointments like Classic lugs, Keystone badges, and retro finishes for a vintage aesthetic.
Keep in mind that with the focus on superb quality manufacturers put into crafting vintage drum sets, they often don’t come with everything you need. This kit is only a kick drum, rack, and floor tom so you’ll have to do a good bit of kit building to complete it. But when it comes to vintage drum sets, Ludwig is still one of the best.
Best Hybrid Drum Set
SPECS
- Configuration: Shell pack with snare drum
- Number of drums: 5
- Drum shells: 18” x 22” bass drum, 6” x 14” snare drum, 7” x 10” and 8” x 12” rack toms, 14” x 16” floor tom
- Shell material: Birch
Ddrum’s Hybrid 5 is a unique type of hybrid kit that combines elements of acoustic drum sets and electronic drums. But it’s not exactly what you’d expect from an acoustic/electric kit. It sports ddrum’s internal Acoustic Pro single-zone triggers that open up all kinds of electronic options with sample layering and replacement.
The all-birch shells feature different ply amounts for each kit piece. This design method gives them an airy attack with a gentle midrange dip. A quick decay on the snare drum makes it perfect for close micing whether using them live or in the recording studio.
But it’s the triggering that sets this kit apart from others in the category. The blending options this opens up between acoustic and electric sounds and samples make this one of the most versatile drum sets of 2024. And by being built into the shells it saves time and money on setup and investment in a third-party trigger system.
With a satin finish and colorful hardware, the Hybrid looks as modern as the convenience and features it offers. XLR outputs provide an easy feed that’s handy in all situations, though how it’s actually used is up to the player. When it comes to hybrid professional drum sets the Hybrid 5 is on another level.
If you think an all-electronic kit might be better for you, check out our guide to the best electronic drum sets.
Best Entry-Level Drum Set
SPECS
- Configuration: Drum shell pack with cymbals and hardware
- Number of drums: 5
- Drum shells: 4” x 12” snare drum, 10” x 16” bass drum, 5” x 8” and 5.5” x 10 rack toms, 8” x 13” floor tom
- Cymbals: 10” hi-hat, 13” crash
- Shell material: Poplar
Beginner kits are a great way for young players to get into drums. It’s a slimmed-down kit based on the Roadshow line. The 6-ply poplar shells are lightweight, but they’re not shy about attack. The hand-cut bearing edges have dual point tuning lugs that provide tuning stability whether they’re high and tight or loose and low.
The hi-hats and crash cymbal are small with a fast decay. Recording is the best way to track player progress, and smaller cymbals have less wash and sustain that works better for studio work.
Reduced-size hardware accommodates the shorter arms and legs of young players. Full adjustability lets players adjust the tension on the chain-drive kick pedal, set the height and angle of the snare stand, and the throne height locks to prevent slipping during playing.
Pearl’s Roadshow Jr. provides a lot of value as a basic kit for beginner drummers. This starter five-piece shell pack, cymbals, and hardware come with all of the important elements for students and younger beginners. At just a few hundred dollars, it’s a great entry-level drum set for anyone to start their drumming journey.
SPECS
- Configuration: Shell pack with snare drum
- Number of drums: 4
- Drum shells: 6” x 13” snare drum, 15” x 16” bass drum, 7” x 10” rack tom, 12” x 13” floor tom
- Shell material: Poplar
Just because a drum set falls into the “budget” price range doesn’t mean you have to skip on quality or reliability. The AQX is lightweight and easy to move, which makes it a perfect choice for drummers consistently on the go.
The shells are all poplar, a popular tonewood choice with good attack and high end. They work well across tuning ranges thanks to the durability of the die-cast lugs. Sonor’s SmartMount system provides stability for the rack tom and mounted cymbal.
Because they’re so mobile, the kit pieces are smaller. This contributes to the tight sound and small footprint. If you’re a drummer that needs a throw-and-go kit with minimal hassle the AQX is a great baseline for that kind of setup. Like the Pearl Roadshow Jr., this is a fantastic starter drum set.
Best Drum Sets Buyer's Guide
Drums are a complicated instrument. Even seasoned drummers have new things to explore when they’re shopping for new and additional kits. With so many options and features to consider it can be hard to know where to start.
These are some of the most important things to think about when you’re evaluating drum sets.
Shells
As the main part of any kit, shell packs are integral in creating the overall sonic mojo. Measured in depth and diameter, shell sizes are one of the most important factors. It sounds counterintuitive, but thin shells offer a fat and warm tone compared to thicker shells. But thick shells have better volume, projection, and a higher pitch. This goes for kick, toms, and snare drums.
Then there are plies, thin sheets of wood that are bent into the shape of the shell. They add desirable tonal elements to the sound of the shells. How many plies are used depends on the type of drum and manufacturer, but plies can range from just three to up to 40!
The metal alloys used for hoops, flanges, and lugs have a significant impact on the tone of the shells too. Steel has a good high end but is neutral otherwise, brass has an open sound, copper provides warm low end and midrange, and bronze is thick and warm. These aren’t the only alloys used in shell hardware, just some of the most popular.
Tonewoods
Manufacturers carefully curate the tonewoods they use in their shell builds. Different woods like birch, poplar, mahogany, and maple are among the most popular. But more esoteric options like beech, walnut, oak, and cherry have their own distinct sounds.
For example, mahogany is warm, rich, and resonant. Poplar has soft highs and mids with a little push in the low end for an overall smooth, even sound. Birch has more mojo in the high end, a dig in the mids, and a low-end punch. These are just some of the most popular, but hopefully, this helps prove why different kits are built from different types of tonewoods.
Cymbals
The type of cymbal setup a drummer uses is very much based on preference. One of the most important things to keep in mind when shopping around for a new kit is that most kits don’t include cymbals. This is especially true with high-end sets.
A few on our list do come with some cymbals, like the Mapex Venus 5-Piece Fusion and Pearl Roadshow Jr. Even when a drum set does include cymbals, it’s usually just the essentials like the hi-hats and a crash or crash/ride.
So when you think about the budget you’re working with, keep in mind you might have to use some of that toward a few cymbals if you don’t have any already.
Hardware
Good drum hardware is an essential part of any good kit, but it often takes a backseat in consideration to shells and cymbals. From the cymbal stands to the bass drum pedal, the hi-hat clutch to the throne, it all works together with the other elements of the kit.
Having a durable and reliable set of hardware is a necessity for every drummer, especially those that set up and tear down between rehearsal sessions, gigs, and recording. And remember, if you’re buying a kit that comes with certain pieces of hardware it might still be worth investing in high-end hardware that can stand up to the abuse playing the drums does to it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What drum kits do professionals use?
Professionals have been playing for years and know exactly what they need out of a kit. That said, the type of drum kit configurations they use vary a lot based on the genre of music they play and their particular drumming style.
A commonality among professional drummers is that they own or have access to multiple kits for different situations. This usually means they have a smaller kit for recording and a larger one for playing live, at the least.
Access to multiple sizes of shells, different types and sizes of cymbals, and a stick bag with all necessary accessories means they’re ready for any drumming situation. Every player is different.
What is the best drum set brand?
There is no “best” brand. Most drum companies offer different model lines that appeal to different types of players and price ranges.
Some of the most popular are Pearl, DW, Yamaha, Tama, and Ludwig but there are new companies that are absolutely worth looking into like Sonor, ddrum, Orange County Percussion, and Truth Custom Drums just to name a few.
The best brand to use is entirely up to each drummer.
What is a good price for a drum kit?
This depends on your skill level, experience, and needs. Beginners don’t need a lot of budget to get a quality kit to learn on and grow their skills, so the $400 to $650 range is reasonable, all things considered.
Gigging and recording musicians should be investing a little more into their kit, and advanced players need a professional drum kit. This is where drummers can get into spending thousands, but considering shells, cymbals, hardware, accessories, and more the increased cost starts to make sense.
Conclusion
Drums are a versatile instrument, and the pieces that make it up are as varied as the vibe of the drummer that’s playing the kit. We went over some of the most important things to look for in a drum kit, and some common questions buyers have when they’re shopping around for a new one.
These are our choices for the best drum sets of 2024 based on the most common categories drummers look for. Our top choice is the Pearl Masters Maple shell set because of the stellar craftsmanship. But if that’s out of your price range, the Mapex Venus is a versatile kit that comes with shells, cymbals, and hardware.
