Are you new to drums or getting back into drums after a long hiatus and don't know where to start with gear? You've come to the right place!
Finding a great quality kit and gear that won't break the bank can be difficult, but we're here to help point you in the direction that best fits you!
How Can I Find the Best Kit Configuration for Myself?
A vast majority of drum sets that you see on the market have the following configurations/setups:
- 10/12/16/22" which is a great choice if you play Gospel, Rock, Metal.
- 12/14/18" which is a great choice for jazz/bebop applications and even R&B
- 12/14/20' which is a great choice for jazz and R&B applications
- 12/16/22" which is a great choice for Rock, Metal, Indie, Contemporary Worship, Country.
- 13/16/22" which is a great choice for Rock, Indie, Contemporary Worship, Country.
- 13/16/24" which is a great choice for Rock, Contemporary Christian, Country.
Most intermediate/advance player kits do not include a snare drum but rest assured, we have some great options for you!
What Do You Recommend for Beginner/Intermediate Players that Includes Everything?
We have other kits in our store than what is listed on our website. Here's our recommendations from our store kits for beginners/intermediates that include the drums, hardware, throne, cymbals, everything one would need to get started:
- Mapex Rebel Series Complete Drum Set
- Pearl Roadshow Series Complete Drum Set
- TAMA Imperialstar Series Complete Drum Set
What Do You Recommend for Intermediate/Advanced Players?
Once one reaches this level, everything is sold separately. Drums are sold as a 'shell-pack' which means drums only, no hardware or cymbals or throne. Here's our recommendations from our store kits for intermediates/advanced:
- PDP Concept Maple 5-Piece Shell Pack
- Mapex Armory Series 5-Piece Shell Pack (Includes a Steel snare)
- Yamaha Stage Custom Birch 5-Piece Shell Pack
- DW Design Series 5-Piece Shell Pack
What Snare Drum Recommendations Do You Have?
This is a great question and one we get asked often! What's the difference between Metal and Wood snares? Can't I get the same sound out of either?
Metal snares tend to be more projective than wood and more sensitive, especially for brush work, than wood but it also depends on how you tune the drum.
You can tune a metal snare and a wood snare that are the same exact depth, diameter, heads but both will sound completely different as they are completely different.
Aluminum Shells:
- Aluminum shells offer versatile, workhorse-style snare performance with round punchy attack, dry and controlled resonance, and musical overtones.
Bronze Shells:
- In addition to their heavy weight, bronze shells offer aggressive attack, darker tonality than brass, and substantial volume and projection. Bronze is excellent for rock and metal situations.
Brass Shells:
- Brass shells are renowned for their fat attack and projection in live performance, while producing bright tonality with complex overtones. It's a favorite amongst players of heavy styles of rock and metal on stage and in-studio.
Copper Shells:
- Copper is a softer metal with tonal characteristics that are similar to tone woods. Copper shells offer warm attack and sensitivity with darker tonality that is excellent for heavier styles of music.
Steel Shells:
- Steel offers a distinctive cut and tone that is renowned in popular music. DW steel shells offers a loud and metallic attack with focused tone and musical ring and is ideal for live performance.
Stainless Steel Shells:
- Slightly lighter weight than conventional steel but more versatile, stainless-steel shells offer crispy attack with musical overtones and bright resonance. Great for studio and live performance.
What Size Snare Drum Should I Get?
The main sizes for snares nowadays are 5.5x14, 6.5x14 and 8x14. These are measured as depth x diameter.
5.5x14 Snare
- The sound perks to a 5.5x14 snare is the amount of crack/pop you can get because the drum is shallower, making the overtones/ring more controlled.
- This is a great option for Pop, R&B, Funk.
6.5x14 Snare
- The sound perks of a 6.5x14 snare is that this is the perfect middle-ground between deep and shallow snares. The 6.5x14 has more overtones/ring compared to a 5.5x14, but can also be tuned low for that deep phat snare sound.
- This is a great option for Rock, Punk, Metal, Contemporary Worship, Country.
8x14 Snare
- The sound perks of an 8x14 snare is the lower-tuning range. This is the go-to size for phat tuning or crank it up and it cuts through the mix!
- This is a great option for Rock, Punk, Contemporary Worship, Country.
4x14 Snare
- The classic piccolo snare drum size! For all you David Garibaldi, Johnathan 'Sugarfoot' Moffett, Phil Collins fans, this is the size for you!
- The piccolo gives you that crack and bite without a lot of overtones and ring. This is the size that many world-renown drummers use or have used for a long duration of their career.
How Many Cymbals Do I Need?
With each kit, the amount of cymbals/hardware will vary depending on your personal musical taste and how many you'd like. The standard setup is four cymbals which consist of the following:
- Hi-Hats
- Crash 1
- Ride
- Crash 2
From this point, you can add what are called 'Effects' cymbals which would consist of these:
- Splash
- China
- Trash Crash
- Trash China
What Cymbals Do You Recommend for Beginner/Intermediate Players?
We are dealers for a variety of great cymbal companies and a majority of them offer cymbal packs which are a pack of cymbals that include the following cymbals:
- 13" or 14" HiHat Pair
- 16" and/or 18" Crash Cymbals
- 20" Ride or Crash/Ride
Here's our recommendations for cymbal packs:
- Meinl HCS Series
- Paiste PST 7 Series
- Paiste PST 8 Series
- Sabian B8 Series
- Sabian SBR Series
- Zildjian I Series
What Cymbals Do You Recommend for Intermediate/Advanced Players?
We are dealers for a variety of great cymbal companies and a majority of them offer cymbal packs which are a pack of cymbals that include the following cymbals:
- 14" or 15" HiHat Pair
- 16", 17", 18" and/or 19" Crash Cymbals
- 20", 21" or 22" Ride
Here's our recommendations for cymbal packs:
- Meinl Classics Custom Dark Series
- Meinl Classics Custom Dual Series
- Meinl Pure Alloy Custom Series
- Meinl Pure Alloy Series
- Meinl Byzance Traditional Series
- Meinl Byzance Dual Series
- Meinl Byzance Dark Series
- Meinl Byzance Brilliant Series
- Paiste 900 ColorSound Series
- Paiste 2002 Series
- Paiste Giant Beat Series
- Sabian XSR Series
- Sabian Stratus Series
- Sabian AA Series
- Sabian AAX Series
- Sabian HHX Series
- Zildjian A Series
- Zildjian A Custom Series
- Zildjian K Series
- Zildjian K Custom Series
What Type of Cymbal Stands Do I Need?
Based on how many cymbals you want on your kit, this will determine how many cymbal stands you have. The most common cymbal stands consist of the following:
- 3-Legged HiHat Stand - Perfect for many setups.
- 2-Legged HiHat Stand - Perfect if you use a Double Bass Drum Pedal
- Boom Cymbal Stand - Industry standard for Ride cymbals and Crashes to bring the cymbals either further in for closer reach our further out to accommodate rack tom placement.
- Straight Cymbal Stand - Perfect for jazz setups, stationary cymbal setups where you do not require your cymbals being angled out or in.
The following brands and models are great for these playing styles:
- DW 3000 Series - Price friendly, durable, perfect for gigging and studio.
- DW 5000 Series - Heavier duty, durable, perfect for gigging and studio.
- DW 6000 Series - Lightest weight, durable, perfect for gigging and studio.
- DW 9000 Series - Heaviest duty, durable, perfect for gigging and studio. (Please note that these stands are quite heavy so if you're loading in/out of a gig, you might need a drum tech or heavy-duty hardware case)
- TAMA Roadpro Series - Heavy duty, durable, perfect for gigging and studio.
- TAMA STAR Seres - Heaviest duty, durable, perfect for gigging and studio. (Please note that these stands are quite heavy so if you're loading in/out of a gig, you might need a drum tech or heavy-duty hardware case)
- Yamaha Crosstown Hardware Pack - Lightweight, durable, perfect for gigging and studio.
I Want a Comfortable Throne/Seat. What Do You Recommend?
A comfortable throne is one of the most crucial pieces of a drum set because if you're not comfortable sitting and playing, you're not going to enjoy playing and progressing. Here's our best-selling throne options:
- Ahead Spinal-G Throne
- DW 3000 Series Round-Top Throne
- DW 5000 Series Saddle-Top Throne
- DW 5000 Series Round-Top Throne
- DW 9000 Series Round-Top Throne
- DW 9000 Airlift Round-Top Throne
- Pork Pie Round-Top Throne
- TAMA 1st Chair Hydraulic-Lift Throne
What Bass Drum Pedal Should I Get?
The bass drum pedal is what allows you to play those insane Gene Hoglan beats and one that you should not take lightly. Based on what style of music you play, what pedal you choose will be dependent on that. A Single Pedal is the industry-standard for many genres of music. A Double Pedal is an industry-standard for Rock, Pop, Punk, Metal, Heavy Metal, Hard Rock.
Here's our best-selling options:
- DW 3000 Series Single Pedal
- DW 3000 Series Double Pedal
- DW 5000 Series Accelerator Single Pedal
- DW 5000 Series Accelerator Double Pedal
- DW 9000 Series Single Pedal
- DW 9000 Series Double Pedal
- TAMA Iron Cobra 900 Series Power Glide Single Pedal
- TAMA Iron Cobra 900 Series Power Glide Double Pedal
- TAMA Dyna-Sync Direct Drive Single Pedal
- TAMA Dyna-Sync Direct Drive Double Pedal
- Yamaha FP9 Chain Single Pedal
- Yamaha FP9 Chain Double Pedal
Are There Any Accessories I Should Keep On-Hand?
We recommend you keeping a few of these great accessories on-hand whether you're at a gig or in your studio space:
- Drum Keys - Allows you to tune your drumheads and adjust small parts on your kit or pedal. We recommend at least 2 because when they get lost, they cannot seem to be found ....
- Moongel/Dampening Gels - Removes any unwanted/undesired overtones from your kit without changing the tuning.
- Stick Bag - Keep/store all of your sticks, mallets, brushes, etc. and take to a gig without the need for carrying everything separately/loosely.
- Cymbal Felts & Wing Nuts - These get lost constantly and are great to have on hand when you need them!
- Earplugs or In-Ears - Protect your hearing!
What Drumsticks Do You Recommend?
There are 4 main types of sticks and all are offered in either a Wood-Tip or a White Nylon-Tip. Wood Tip is the most common. Nylon Tip is best for those who want a brighter response from their cymbals, particularly the Ride cymbal.
- 7A - Thinnest and shortest of all 4 models. This is a great stick for lighter playing.
- 5A - The industry-standard and go-to model for many drummers. Not too light but not too heavy. Just perfect. Goldilocks' preferred stick!
- 5B - Heavier than a 5A. Great stick for heavier playing such as Rock, Pop, Punk, Metal, Djent, Gospel, Country, Contemporary Worship.
- 2B - The heaviest and thickest of the 4 models. Gene Hoglan's sick of choice! Great stick for Heavy Metal.
I Want to Learn How to Read Drumset Transcriptions. What Do You Recommend?
We recommend taking private lessons (which we offer here at the shop) so an instructor can show you the different notes on a drum set transcription. You can find more information on our Lessons page linked here.
Aside from drum lessons, we recommend the following books to purchase and learn from:
- A Funky Primer: For the Rock Drummer by Charles Dowd
- Stick Control by George Lawrence Stone
- A Fresh Approach to the Drum Set by Mark Wessels & Stanton Moore
- Advance Techniques for the Modern Drummer by Jim Chapin
- Concepts & Creativity by Carter McLean
- Great Hands for a Lifetime by Tommy Igoe
- The Funky Beat by David Garibaldi
- Future Sounds: A Book of Contemporary Drum Set Concepts by David Garibaldi
- Hal Leonard Drum Set Method Books 1 & 2
What Drumhead Combo Do You Recommend?
We've heard and tried many different drumhead combos and here's our recommendations for the best tone and overall sound:
Remo Tom Head Combos:
- Clear Emperors over Clear Ambassadors
- Coated Emperors over Clear Ambassadors
- Clear Pinstripes over Clear Ambassadors
- Clear Controlled Sound Black Dot over Clear Ambassadors
- Clear Vintage Emperors over Clear Ambassadors
- Vintage A over Clear Ambassadors
Remo Snare Head Combos:
- Coated P77 Powerstroke 77 over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated Controlled Sound Black Dot over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated Emperor over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated Ambassador over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated P4 Powerstroke 4 with Clear Dot over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated P3 Powerstroke 3 with Clear Dot over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated Emperor X over Hazy Ambassador
- Coated Controlled Sound Black Dot X over Hazy Ambassador
Remo Bass Drum Head Combos:
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear P3 Powerstroke 3 Batter
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear Ambassador SMT Batter
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Coated Ambassador SMT Batter
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear P4 Powerstroke 4 Batter
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear Emperor SMT Batter
- Ebony P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Coated Emperor SMT Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear P3 Powerstroke 3 Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear Ambassador SMT Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Coated Ambassador SMT Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear P4 Powerstroke 4 Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Clear Emperor SMT Batter
- Fiberskyn P3 Powerstroke 3 Front & Coated Emperor SMT Batter
Evans Tom Head Combos:
- Coated UV2 over Clear G1
- Coated UV2 over Reso Black
- Coated G2 over Clear G1
- Coated G1 over Clear G1
- Coated Onyx over Clear G1
- Coated Onyx over Reso Black
- Frosted EC2 over Clear G1
- Frosted EC2 over Reso Black
- Clear G2 over Clear G1
- Clear G2 over Reso Black
- Clear G1 over Clear G1
- Clear G1 over Reso Black
- Clear EC2 over Clear G1
- Clear EC2 over Reso Black
Evans Snare Head Combos:
- Coated UV2 over Snare Side 300
- Coated UV1 over Snare Side 300
- Coated G2 over Snare Side 300
- Coated Hydraulic over Snare Side 300
- Coated Heavyweight over Snare Side 300
- Coated Heavyweight Dry over Snare Side 300
- Coated EC Reverse Dot over Snare Side 300
- Coated Genera HD Dry over Snare Side 300 (Shop staple/go-to)
- Coated Genera over Snare Side 300
- Coated Genera Dry over Snare Side 300
- Coated Power Center Reverse Dot over Snare Side 300
- Coated Onyx over Snare Side 300
- Coated ST over Snare Side 300
- Coated ST Dry over Snare Side 300
- Coated Hybrid over Snare Side 300 (Metal drummers go-to/staple)
Evans Bass Drum Head Combos:
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Clear Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & GMAD Clear Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD2 Clear Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Coated Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Onyx Coated Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & Hydraulic Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EQ4 Clear Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EQ4 Frosted Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EQ3 Clear Batter
- Black EQ3 with Port Front & EQ3 Frosted Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Clear Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & GMAD Clear Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD2 Clear Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Coated Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EMAD Onyx Coated Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & Hydraulic Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EQ4 Clear Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EQ4 Frosted Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EQ3 Clear Batter
- White EQ3 with Port Front & EQ3 Frosted Batter
Aquarian Tom Head Combos:
- Clear Studio-X over Classic Clear
- Coated Studio-X over Classic Clear
- Clear Focus-X over Classic Clear
- Coated Focus-X over Classic Clear
- Coated Jack DeJohnette over Classic Clear
- Clear Super 2 over Classic Clear
- Clear Super 2 with Muffle Ring over Classic Clear
- Clear Performance II over Classic Clear
- Clear Response 2 over Classic Clear
- Coated Response 2 over Classic Clear
- Reflector over Classic Clear
Aquarian Snare Head Combos:
- Texture Coated over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Texture Coated Power Dot over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Buddy Rich Commemorative over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Jack DeJohnette over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Studio-X over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Focus-X over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Response 2 over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Hi-Velocity over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Reflector over Classic Clear Snare Side
- Coated Triple Threat over Classic Clear Snare Side
Aquarian Bass Drum Head Combos:
- Black Regulator with Port Front & Super Kick I Clear
- Black Regulator with Port Front & Super Kick I Coated
- Black Regulator with Port Front & Super Kick II Clear
- Black Regulator with Port Front & Super Kick II Coated
- Black Regulator with Port Front & Super Kick 10 Clear
I'm Ready for a Custom-Made/Built Kit. What Are My Options?
What an exciting moment! Creating your dream kit to your desired sizes, finish, hardware color, etc. is super exciting!
We are authorized DW, SONOR, TAMA, Gretsch, Pearl dealers along with many others so feel free to give us a call at (559) 222-5011 or send us an email to info@bentleysdrumshop.com with as much details as possible for your dream kit and we'll try to make it happen for you!
If you have any further questions about gear or ideas for your setup, please do not hesitate to reach out!