Drum Options: Which ones work best, ones to avoid

Hello Everyone!
I am definitely getting into this, but not entirely sure which drums to go with. Here are the ones I’ve seen:

  • Reverie Drums (made for SP hardware) although backordered and not necessarily my style.
  • Various Travel Packs. I see the Pearl Travel kits work.

Others not seen with SP, but would they work?
-Pearl Fat&Skinny snare. I see this as a viable option as you can buy extras. Anyone try this drum?
-DW pancake bass drum. Seems like a great candidate but I see there’s mixed reviews as the bass drum is not steady. Thoughts?
-Trapps kit?
-Last but not least “Purecussion” drum sets from the 80s. They appear to be the perfect fit for this set up but am not sure if the rims will take the sensor. Has anyone tried this on a Purecussion kit?

I’d love to put this on a purecussion kit, but can it be done?

Hey @Primus, thanks for kicking this discussion off! I’m very interested to hear what you all out there have tried.

We love the Reverie kits, but you should also check out the DW Lowpro. We’ve been using one here at our studio and it’s a good option. The setup is a little finicky to get everything balanced and so that the kick doesn’t wobble, but once you figure it out, it’s a nice little kit. Very mobile. https://www.instagram.com/p/B4iIQiqh3VU/

I would not recommend the Trapps kit. We got one a few years ago, and it’s just not that good. Very plasticky feeling. And it doesn’t use standard hardware, so in the end it’s not fun to travel with.

We haven’t tried any of the other ones. But the Pearl Fat&Skinny looks really intriguing. It’s really hard to tell if SP would fit on the Purecussion from the few pictures I saw online.

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Tenoch,
Thank you for the quick reply. Based on your input, I will look into the DW and Pearl Fat/Skinny.

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the lowpro looks so dang nice. i just set up a kit using old US Mercury drums made in japan. and also have a drum thats made of some sort of acrylic polymer made by Remo. Id stay away from metal drums of any kind as they’d probably be the noisiest even with mesh heads.

Good point, re the metal drums. We’ve found that it helps to remove the reso heads if you’re looking for a quieter playing setup.

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My OCD has a problem with leaving the reso heads off! It’s added expense but I’d suggest replacing the normal reso heads with mesh heads. That should reduce sound and calm my OCD by having the reso bearing edge protected by the head and rim as well as looking nicer!

I’ve been looking at kits with wood hoops lately, but I’m wondering how well the sensors will mount. The kits I’ve been looking at are the PDP Concept Classic series and the new Gretsch Catalina Special Edition Walnut Burst. Thanks!

We prefer wood hoops, especially when using mesh heads. It’s just quieter.

You should have zero issues attaching SP to either of those kits. They look nice!!

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I’ve been wondering about trying SP on a shallow 13" Pearl Drum kit timbale I own with a mesh head fitted rather than buying a new drum. I also wondered if it might work on the LP 8" micro snare and other similar drum kit mini timbales, etc. Is there is a minimum diameter of drum needed for SP to pick up all of the zones? Any thoughts or experience with these appreciated! I thought the DW piccolo toms also look like a good option.