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I was a young child when I got my first electronic drum set, but I knew how to play drums very well; although different from a “normal”, real acoustic set of drums, the size, versatility and overall feel of me fell in love the moment I put my sticks on the pads. Not to mention that I was pretty shy, or wanted to play drums late at night, I could quickly plug in my headphones to get around the “rules” of drumming – watch your neighbors.
I also had a portable set, so bringing it to my friend to jam was never a problem. Today we are here with our list of Best Electronic Drum Sets on the market to help you with your store efforts. Don’t forget to check our checklist when shopping for your own set.
Best Electronic Drum Sets In The World
Alesis Nitro Mesh
The Alesis Nitro Mesh e-kit includes an 8″ dual-zone mesh snare, three 8″ single-zone mesh toms, a 10″ dual-zone crash (chokeable), two additional single-zone cymbals (one for hi-hat and ride cymbal), hi-hat controller pedal and a complete four-post drum rack.
Also included is the Alesis DMPAD kick pad with a rugged pressed-steel body, anti-creep spikes and a single-zone srurface. Included with the kick is a sturdy kick pedal, along with the essential mounting key, sticks and manuals. Just a few strokes of the quality mesh pads reveal the kit’s acoustic drum-like qualities, especially with rim-shots and cross-stick. The same goes for the crash, which is capable of impressive chokes.
The module contains 385 sounds, 40 kits and 60 playalong songs, and the layout is great for quick kit/drum voice editing – this is where the module has the advantage over almost any other kit in this price range. Offering incredible specifications at an impressively competitive price tag, the Nitro makes an excellent first drum kit or a great low-cost practice kit. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Roland TD-1DMK
This compact kit includes an 8″ dual-zone mesh snare, three 6″ single-zone mesh toms, three choke-able 10″ dual-zone cymbals (hi-hat, ride and crash), a hi-hat controller pedal and a bass drum pad. The neat four-stand rack is built around a narrow H-shaped center section and includes a built-in rubber bass drum trigger wide enough to accommodate a dual pedal. This makes it one of the best electronic drum kits for smaller spaces.
The TD-1 module is packed with solid backing tracks, practice aids and some challenging coaching features. Despite the lack of a few bells and whistles, the module’s simplicity makes it incredibly user-friendly, making it particularly suitable for beginner to advanced drummers. The 15 kit presets on board are varied in style and offer a useful selection of sounds suitable for many styles of music. The two-layer mesh heads respond well and the module offers a pleasant dynamic range. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Yamaha DTX402K
Yamaha’s DTX402 series is aimed at beginning drummers. There are three kits in the 402 series, but the 402K is the best for a tight budget and offers a lot to get beginning drummers started. The kit features a sturdy rack and quiet, natural-feeling rubber drums and cymbals. The DTX402 module is packed with 287 expressive drum and percussion sounds, 128 keyboard sounds, 10 customizable kits and nine reverb types.
In addition, aspiring players will find multi-genre playalongs, recording features and ten training tools to improve timing, speed and expression. Impressively, the DTX402 is also compatible with Yamaha’s free DTX402 Touch app (iOS/Android), which enables deeper kit customization, additional playing challenges and rewards as players improve. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Roland TD-07KV
With Roland’s patented, tunable, dual-ply heads for the snare and toms, plus a standalone kick drum pad, the TD-07 is the most affordable, uncompromising kit in the V-Drums family. Couple the feel of the pads with the expertly recorded sounds and you have the ideal platform to get started, with a kit that will last for many years to come. Built-in Bluetooth lets you jam wirelessly with your music library, and built-in coaching modes help keep your timing in check. Finally, there’s a USB MIDI/audio interface that lets you connect to your computer to make recordings. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Alesis Command Mesh
The Command Mesh follows a standard configuration of a five-piece plus cymbal set, including an 8″ bass drum that also uses a mesh head. The snare and toms are all dual-zone, meaning that separate sounds can be assigned to the head and edge of each pad. Other top features include a USB MIDI connection, so you can easily record MIDI data into a computer – plus standard MIDI in/out jacks, 3.5mm headphone and auxiliary inputs, expansion inputs for an additional tom and cymbal.
On the side of the module is another USB jack, so you can connect a memory stick with your own jam tracks or samples. The sounds in the streamlined Command module follow the general feel of the rest of the kit: it’s safe, with everything you need. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Yamaha DTX562K
The DTX502 module provides the user with a total of 691 drum and percussion samples and 128 keyboard voices. There is also plenty of room for 50 user kits. In addition to drum samples, which come from Yamaha’s classic acoustic drums, this module includes additional sounds created by third-party VST developers. The USB port also provides drummers with access to the wealth of drum sample libraries that are readily available.
The DTX562K’s samples are crisp and clean without being muddied or “enhanced” with compression or masses of reverb – just a truly great drum sound. The selection of intelligently assembled kits and the small but diverse range of songs is equally impressive. Cymbal features such as muting, swells and choking are authentic and make the whole kit even more enjoyable to play. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Roland TD-17KVX
The big message of Roland’s mid-range TD-17 line, with new pad designs, sounds derived from the flagship Roland TD-50 module, Bluetooth and the ability to import your own samples, is that electronic drums shouldn’t feel like a compromise for those who are learning an electronic kit and want to get better at it. Hence Roland’s “Become a better drummer, faster” tagline.
Apart from the high quality and configurable sounds, Bluetooth and the ability to import your own samples are the main strengths. You can throw any .wav sample you have onto an SD card and put it into the pool of 100 user slots. Then comes Bluetooth. Many drum companies have already experimented with their own systems, but this solution makes the TD-17 one of the best electronic drum sets out there.
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Roland TD-27KV
Roland unveiled the TD-27 module and kit in early 2020, and it sits in the middle of Roland’s e-kit range. At the time of writing, the TD-27 forms the backbone of Roland’s VAD series of kits, as well as the TD-27KV we’re reviewing here. The sounds are derived from the flagship TD-50, and includes a number of technologies designed to make playing your e-kit as close to the real thing as possible.
Prismatic Sound Modeling builds on the kit’s raw samples – recorded in world-class studios, while PureAcoustic Ambience Technology puts your virtual kit in realistic-sounding rooms, complete with room and overhead mic simulation. The complete kit includes larger pads (10″ toms, 12/13″ crash cymbals and hi-hats) and the big news is the addition of a 14 “x4.3″ stainless steel PD-140DS digital snare and an 18” CY-18DR ride cymbal for more response, physical movement and realism. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Yamaha DTX920K
Yamaha’s flagship DTX920K electronic drum kit comes complete with the powerful DTX900M module, plus four triple-zone drums, three triple-zone cymbals, a dual-zone hi-hat, robust kick drum and a sturdy rack system. Inside the module, Yamaha’s XA (Expanded Articulation) system helps enhance the natural feedback and realistic sound of acoustic drums by creating marginally different samples every time you strike, even if it’s at the same speed.
The module also has an aux-in/sampling jack for recording your own samples, or you can import your favorite sounds via USB flash memory. And if you want to explore the world of hybrid drumming, Stacking lets you layer multiple drum voices on a single drum to further customize your sound. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Roland TD-50KVX
The most notable aspects of the TD-50 are the new digital ride and snare that can now be connected to the kit’s module via USB. The ride not only feels more like a real cymbal thanks to its size and weight, but is also designed to respond more realistically thanks to multiple sensors on its surface. The snare uses the same digital technology to perform much more realistically than any previous model.
The module itself accommodates 50 kit presets using Roland’s brand new Prismatic Sound Modeling engine. It is also possible to import your own samples via an SD card. These can be assigned as primary samples, triggered by a chosen source, or mixed with other samples via the new ‘sub-instrument’ menu.
Other notable features include balanced XLR master outputs left and right, a new routing engine that allows the kit mixer to control only the headphone monitor mix without altering the front-of-house mix, and 10-channel USB audio that allows multitrack recording directly to a computer. Overall, this is one of the best electronic drum sets.
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Conclusion
As a beginner, when you first explore the Best Electronic Drum Sets for you, we recommend that you search for a rack that is built to last and at least five drum and three cymbal pads (hi-hat, crash and ride). Pads are likely to be made of rubber – although mesh pads are becoming increasingly common at this level – and the module (sometimes called ‘the brain’) offers a limited selection of sounds, from acoustic kits to electronic sounds and percussion – by no means premium, but more than sufficient for home use.