Electric drum kits, also known as electronic drum kits or electronic drum sets, have become increasingly popular in recent years. They offer a wide range of drum sounds and are a great alternative to traditional acoustic drum kits. Electronic drums sync well with your DAW, are incredibly versatile and are of course as loud and as quiet as you want them to be which is a good thing in most home studio settings.
Here are nine of the best electric drum kits on the market:
- Roland TD-27KV
- Alesis Strike Pro
- Yamaha DTX522K
- Pearl ePro Live
- Roland TD-17KVX
- Alesis Nitro Mesh
- Yamaha DTX450K
- Roland TD-1K
- Alesis DM Lite
1. Roland TD-27KV:
This high-end electronic drum kit is designed for professional drummers and offers a wide range of sounds and features. It includes a TD-27 module with over 100 drum kits and 1,000 instruments, as well as mesh-head pads for a natural feel.
2. Alesis Strike Pro:
This electronic drum kit is designed for advanced players and features a high-resolution color display, over 1,000 drum sounds, and mesh-head pads for a realistic feel. It also includes a built-in sampler, sequencer, and metronome.
3. Yamaha DTX522K:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for intermediate players and offers a variety of drum sounds, as well as mesh-head pads for a natural feel. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
4. Pearl ePro Live:
This electronic drum kit is designed for live performance and includes mesh-head pads, over 1,000 drum sounds, and a built-in sequencer. It also includes a built-in sampler and the ability to connect to a computer via USB.
5. Roland TD-17KVX:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for intermediate to advanced players and features mesh-head pads for a natural feel, as well as a variety of drum sounds. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
6. Alesis Nitro Mesh:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for beginners and features mesh-head pads for a natural feel, as well as a variety of drum sounds. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
7. Yamaha DTX450K:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for beginners and features rubber pads for a natural feel, as well as a variety of drum sounds. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
8. Roland TD-1K:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for beginners and features rubber pads for a natural feel, as well as a variety of drum sounds. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
9. Alesis DM Lite:
This electronic drum kit is perfect for beginners and features rubber pads for a natural feel, as well as a variety of drum sounds. It also includes a built-in metronome and training functions to help improve your drumming skills.
Acoustic v Electronic drum kits
Which type of drum kit is the right one for you? It's a great question, plus there are many reasons to choose either. An acoustic kit generally sounds awesome but is incredibly loud, your neighbours and members of your household won't thank you. There are ways to lessen the volume such as dampening kits but they change the sound dramatically and the bass drum with it's low frequencies still travels. There's also a lack of flexibility with acoustic kits with only one sound on offer (although you can change out the snare drum if you have a spare). Acoustic kits are also difficult to record but can sound awesome if you know what you're doing an can play well.
Electric drum kits on the other hand are great for practicing and playing at home. They are extremely versatile with usually a bank of sounds available, plus built in metronomes and practice programs. You just don't get these features with an acoustic kit. That's not to say that you can't use electronic kits in a live setting. You can of course and many do, particularly those leaning more towards electronic genres. They're also easier to transport generally speaking but still require plenty of lugging around and setup.
In terms of price their isn't a great deal in it and the options are incredibly varied, from beginner to high end professional kits all bases are covered.
Conclusion
Electronic drum kits offer a wide range of sounds and are a great alternative to traditional acoustic drum kits. They are perfect for drummers of all skill levels and can help improve your drumming skills if your just starting out. The nine electric drum kits above, are some of the best on the market, and each one offers a unique set of features and capabilities.