I've decided to treat myself to a E-Drum set this christmas but now I'm stuck trying to find a good fit. So I'll try to write quickly about myself and the ones I've found so far that could be good.
I'm a music producer and play some guitar and piano. I also own Superior Drummer so the kit will 100% of the time be routed into that so if the drum module sounds ass idc I'm good for sounds. But drum programming is just not fun.
I've also never touched a drum in my life. I'm not looking to become a expert drummer. I could easily just buy a high end kit and that's that, but knowing myself it will eventually gather dust in some corner. Not tryna become the next Mike Mangini. So I'm mostly looking for something that's juuust good enough and won't immediately disintegrate when looking at it funny.
Here are the kits I've found so far and some drawbacks about each:
Alesis Nitro Max: I've heard that this one's actually a relatively meh kit and the fact that the ride (and maybe the hihat?) aren't chokeable would be the biggest deal breaker.
Roland TD-02K(V): This one seems to hit the sweetspot between price and not being extremely flimsy, but in all my research I always hear this: "Always get a kick tower". But obvs I don't know how bad a simple kick pedal is compared to the real deal. I assume with a real kick tower it's easier to upgrade to a double pedal setup which I might want to do down the line and idk if you can just connect more kick pedals to this thing. But aside from that this kit would prolly be my go-to.
Millenium MPS-750X: This one might be a bit too large for my space and on thomann I'm reading some mixed reviews regarding build quality so idk what's up with that. Otherwise this also seems like a fine if maybe a bit pricey option.
Yamaha DTX402K/DTX432K: I haven't done research on those yet but they're available and also in my price range.
Alesis Nitro Pro XL: This one seems to me like the best option but at a cost ofc. The question with this one isn't "is it good" but rather "does it make sense to buy a set this good if I could save money and live with the compromises".
So bottom line I think the biggest question I have is whether I should get a set without a kick tower and save lots of money, or treat myself and have no regrets. And secondarily does the chokeability of the ride matter?
Again I'm mostly just going to do it for fun and to spruce up my own songs, not to join a band or audition for Dream Theater haha.
Also idk if I can get to a music store to try one out in person.
Kick tower and all-mesh pads are a must IMO. Rubber pads feel horrible, and you want to be able to use a proper kick pedal eventually.
I've had the Millenium MPS-850 for a couple of years and would definitely recommend it. The MPS 750x looks like the same thing with one less cymbal - seems like a great deal to me. The "realistic" hihats the 850 came with (they're on a real hihat stand) feel IMO slightly worse than "unrealistic" ones, but not that much that it's a real negative. I just wouldn't pay extra for it.
I've never tried an Alesis kit, but they look like they have about the same build as Millenium. You probably can't go wrong there.
Between these two, I'd just go based on what's included in the kit. If you don't need to buy a drum stool and hihat stand separately, that's a big win.
I also tried Roland sets in the past, they're good, but you have to spend at least 1000€, and I think the quality upgrade doesn't justify the price. Maybe if you can get one used.
Thanks, no idea how I overlooked the 850, that one seems perfect, if maybe a little larger for my space but it should be fine.
Though I don’t think I’ve heard anyone say why a kick tower is a must. Is it just because you can upgrade to a good kick pedal, or is there more to it, like for example does the kick pedal + tower combo feel better?
If you want to start cheap, the 750x is great as well. Please double check this, but I think it has two extra inputs for another cymbal and tom, that Thoman sells as an upgrade kit for like 70€.
Regarding the kick tower, most of the cheap "just pedals", don't have the rebound you need to play double strokes or fast notes like you would on a real drum kit. So if you want your skills to be transferrable, you probably want a real pedal. The higher end Roland pedals look like they'd provide good rebound, but they're >200€, so I doubt you'd be saving any money with them. They're smaller and potentially quieter though. As a bonus, the towers work with double pedals, if you happen to be into Metal Music.
' course I’m into metal haha, so kick tower it is. Though I’m not looking for skill transferability, it does sound like I shouldn’t go for pedal only.