Simmons SD5K Electronic Drum Set  

The reason i gave this an 8 is because it doesnt have many cymbals but it does have 3 toms (which is REALLY helpful). I like the preset kits and the way the model is set up. it practically teaches you how to play the preset songs and is really helpful with tempo adjustment, color coded cords on the back, and headphone input. Ive had this for about 2 years and it has shown NO signs of wear whatsoever except stick marks on the heads (which is normal). LOVE IT!!!

The price is amazing!!! for the awesome module and 3 toms, i dont think anyone should buy a high-end Yamaha or something unless youll be using it proffessionally at gigs. I bought this because i wanted to play my drums in my apartment without bothering my neighbors. But after 2 years i can see they built this thing to last! i dont think itll break anytime soon! if you need an electronic kit but are on a budget, buy this!!!

Ive said price a million times but thats because thats one of the best features. This thing is tough and very durable, and my friends think its pretty awesome. but yet again, if your gonna be using this at gigs and stuff it might not be a good choice if your using this to pay bills, not for fun. but i play Heavy Metal on this, and like i said, no signs of wear

I think ive said enough. awesome kit!!! look no further!!!

To put it bluntly, the drum brain included with the SD5K is equivalent to the level of sophistication you'd find in a Toys-R-Us Casio keyboard.  There are lots of kits to choose from, but many of them sound either extremely similar to each other, or really really out there and weird.  Sample quality is pretty terrible if you're aiming for accurately sounding like a real kit, with no variations in the sound, just in the volume based on velocity of hit.  Again, sound quality is similar to playing the drum samples on a Casio keyboard.  If you're looking for something to play on stage, either you'd better be in an 80s New Wave revival band, or look at something a little higher-end.

As for the drums themselves, they do a decent job of picking up your hits.  However, I had a really phenomenal drummer friend of mine goofing off on it, and during a "just for kicks" recording session, I noticed that many of his hits were not caught by the pads.  Bear in mind that he was doing a lot of very technical, fast, intricate beats which I never could, so I'm willing to be a little forgiving of that for the price.  It also would be nice to be able to mute the cymbals, but again, you get what you pay for.

The construction is decent enough, not great.  The frame design is a bit flimsy with only a single cross-bar.  Everything will need to be tightened up on the kit pretty regularly, since as you play, things tend to loosen up and move/sag on you.  Just carefully put a good amount of torque on the drum key as you set up, and you should be okay for a session or two.  If you're really picky about your setup, this may drive you crazy, but I'm not, so I live with it.

In particular, the input jack on the bass drum pad has this nasty habit of coming loose, even to the point of the nut coming off and the whole jack falling back into the pad housing.  I'd recommend tightening down the nut on that, and hitting it with some kind of bolt sealant to keep it tight.

The cabling system is pretty good, everything's a good length, and it's easy enough to wrap the cables around the frame and still have them the perfect length to make all of the connections without any annoying slack, so kudos there.

Lastly, the rug spikes on the bass pad and hi-hat pedal are sort of crap, and the velcro barely does anything to keep them from sliding around.  It's worse on the bass pad for obvious reasons.  I eventually put mine up against a wall to prevent this.  Definitely put a rug under this thing that will give the spikes good traction, or your going to be re-adjusting constantly.

This is a pretty solid kit for the purpose I bought it, and cheap enough to justify that purpose.  I don't use the drum brain for a damn thing other than as a midi-out into an audio interface, using it as a midi capture device to control drum kits on Reason 6.  In this role, it works well, and sounds WAY better than the default samples in the drum brain.  It also makes an awesome practice kit for coming up with beats, and not pissing off the neighbors in the process.  So if you're looking for something inexpensive to practice on, the low cost is worth its shortcomings.

Overall, if you're looking at this, you should already know to lower your expectations.  This is not a gigging kit, it isn't a stellar piece of equipment, it's an overglorified Rock Band controller.  However, the pads feel decent, it's simple to set up, it's fairly quiet, and it doesn't take up a tremendous amount of space.  I would recommend this to anyone who wants something to practice with in a space where a full blown drum kit won't work.  Also, it makes for a good midi drum controller if you've got the patience to get the midi out talking to your software (or you've got a synth player who geeks out over setting things like this up, which is how I did it).  Just don't expect it to compete with a more sophisticated electronic kit, or even a cheap acoustic kit, as far as sound quality or feel.  Otherwise you're going to be let down.

This is a great set. The programmable pads come in handy if you want to have the illusion of having more than one kit. Most of the sounds are realistic.  Assembly was fairly easy. Adjustable pads and cymbals are great for personalization. I'd like to have the ability to play a rimshot on the edge if the pad, rather than having to program a pad, soley, for a rimshot sound.

IIt's definitely worth it! I am a beginner musician looking to do some solo recording for fun. You can customize it to suit your sound, from an 80's soft rock, country, industrial, or even something a little heavier. The response and sensitivity are excellent. And it's nice that there isn't a lot of plastic parts either. It seems relatively sturdy so far.

I would suggest this to people playing small rock/pop/country gigs. But mostly to people just looking to practice or do simple recordings. Out of the box, It isn't really death/black metal friendly, There would be some upgrading/customizing involved. It seemed responsive to blast beats, but doesn't come set up for double kicks. (Apparently the hi hat can be customized to a kick.)

(Keep in mind that you need your own kick pedal for the bass drum pad.)

Cheers

These E-drums are well worth the money.  I used them for both paractice sessions and small clubs/gigs.  Sound great through our PA.