1. Drum kit of the year
DW Design Series £1699
After back-to-back wins for the Black Panther range in our
kit of the year category, DW has finally broken Mapex’s dominance.
The Design Series is DW’s latest line of wares that take the
company’s boutique approach to creating top quality drums, but these gorgeous
shells come with a more wallet-friendly price tag than the US firm’s
Collector’s Series. We were wowed by the kit’s superb build quality and
stunning sound.
The win is all the more impressive as there were some
seriously tasty kits released this year. A particularly honourable mention must
go to Sonor’s deliciously dark Prolite kit.
2. Budget drum kit of the year (under £1,000)
Ludwig Questlove Breakbeats Kit £459
Finding a killer kit for under £1,000 is impressive. Getting
one with change from £500 is a darn right steal.
Ludwig offered just that this year with the launch of the
Breakbeats kit. Designed in conjunction with The Roots’ sticksman Questlove,
the diminutive kit was built with ease of transportation in mind, with
Questlove wanting a set-up that could easily be shoved in the back of a New
York cab on the way to a gig. Don’t worry, it’s also perfect for being lugged
into the back of an old Ford KA en route to your local.
We must also doff our hats to the re-launched Pearl Export,
which allows drummers to get their hands on an iconic range for sub £700.
3. Electronic drum kit of the year
Yamaha DTX562 £1526
Yamaha treated us with a brace of new e-kits this year, the
budget conscious DTX522 and the slightly more bells and whistles-laden DTX562.
Both kits come into Yamaha’s mid-price range, utilising the
new DTX502 module. The DTX526K really caught our eye thanks, in part, to the
excellent response we got from the kit’s textured cellular silicone playing
surfaces and the fact that it’ll all set you back just a whisker over £1,500.
Even better, the new and improved module features more than
double the memory and around 250 more sounds than its predecessor.
4. Budget electronic drum kit of the year (under £1,000)
Roland TD-4KP £649
Last year Roland impressed us with the mind-bogglingly
pricey TD-30KV, this year we love a kit right at the other end of the spectrum.
The titchy TD-4KP is one hell of an option for newbies, or
simply those with
limited space. The P in the name stands for portable, and
this rig is certainly that. The entire kit can be neatly folded away and packed
down into the provided gig bag, which is perfect for jumping on the bus with to
your next gig.
Now, you couldn’t do that with a Terry Bozzio-esque acoustic
set-up, could you? Not without causing some serious back pain, anyway.
5. Cymbals of the year
Paiste Precision Series from £149
Paiste takes our Cymbal of the Year gong for the second year
in succession. This time it’s the Paiste Precision range that has impressed us.
These metals share many characteristics of Paiste’s iconic
Signature line. They are, in fact, made from the same phosphor bronze as the
Signature cymbals but come in around 20-percent less expensive. And that
cheaper price point doesn’t mean a sub-standard product, we loved the Precision
range for its brilliant warm sound and cutting clarity.
6. Snare of the year
Premier One Series £550
Premier has done a whole heap of work in the last few years
in returning to the top table of the drum world, and the One series snares only
added to its resurgence.
The latest snares to be made by Premier’s UK-based drum
building guru Keith Keough, the One range impresses thanks to sheer scope.
With a seemingly never-ending array of exotic woods and finishes
to choose from, this line of one-off drums is a bold undertaking by Premier,
but deserves to be a massive success, and one that sees Premier reclaim its
place as a major player on a global scale.
7. Acoustic percussion of the year
Natal Classic Series fibreglass Congas from £408
Ever since global giant Marshall took over the Natal brand
back in 2010 we’ve seen plenty of stunning kits and snares from the rejuvenated
company, but not so much in what Natal built its name on - percussion.
This year that all changed. As well as a smattering of
cajons, bongos and cowbells (the ridiculously affordable Natal NSTC line
particularly excelled on the latter front), Natal unleashed these frankly
beautiful Classic Series fibreglass congas.
The stunning gloss white finish piqued our interest, but it
was the rich tones that the congas delivered and their wide tuning range that
really impressed.
8. Electric percussion of the year
Korg Wavedrum Global Edition £599
We’ve seen a veritable feast of Wavedrums launched from the
Korg stable since the electro percussion device was re-introduced in 2010 - the
Oriental, Mini, Black and now the Global.
While so many updates in three years may seem excessive, the
Global is a damn fine device in its own right. And what a versatile instrument
it is.
You can just about do what the hell you want with it - play
it like an acoustic drum, hit it with sticks, tap it with mallets or bash it
with your own fine hands to access some of the many sounds on board.
Speaking of sounds, there’s loads of them jammed into the
Wavedrum Global, with 140 loop phases, reverb and delay effects and plenty
more.
Yes, at £599 it does carry a premium price tag, but if you
want quality you, more often than not, need to put your hand in your pocket and
shell out a wad of cold, hard cash.
9. Drum heads of the year
Evans Level 360 from £11.99
It’s pretty rare that any drum company completely overhauls
its production methods, but that’s what Evans did with its Level 360
revolution.
Now, each and every head to come out of Evans’ New York
factory features the Level 360 design, which utilises a newly-designed collar
that gives a snug fit on drums of all shapes, sizes, makes and vintages.
In turn, this means that your days of over tensioning heads
just to get the things to sit evenly are over. You certainly won’t want to go
back to your old heads after giving these a whirl. And for that, we salute
Evans.
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