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Drums & Percussion

Used Ludwig 14in Classic Maple SNARE Charcoal Drum
Product Price  $379.99
$499.99
Great Condition
Used Pearl 4.5X14 Free Floating Snare LIQUID AMBER Drum
Product Price  $199.99
$349.99
Great Condition
Used SABIAN 20in XSR RIDE Cymbal
Product Price  $119.99
$134.99
Great Condition
Used Singular Sound Beatbuddy Drum Machine
Product Price  $149.99
$229.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 10in ZXT Trashformer Cymbal
Product Price  $49.99
$69.99
Great Condition
Used TAMA 14in S.L.P. Studio Maple Sienna Drum
Product Price  $379.99
$449.99
Great Condition
Used DW 6X14 Design Series Snare Alpine White Drum
Product Price  $199.99
$279.99
Great Condition
Used Koide 18in 18" medium thin crash Cymbal
Product Price  $224.99
$349.99
Great Condition
Used Saluda 14in Prototype Pair Cymbal
Product Price  $209.99
$229.99
Great Condition
Used Saluda 21in electrified Cymbal
Product Price  $149.99
$189.99
Great Condition
Used Gretsch Drums 6X14 Catalina Club Series Snare YELLOW...
Product Price  $249.99
$349.99
Great Condition
Used Ludwig 5X14 Rocker LM305 Bronze Snare Bronze Drum
Product Price  $449.99
$516.99
Great Condition
Used 1980s SONOR 4 Piece Lite Cream Laquer Drum Kit
Product Price  $2,299.99
$2,699.99
Great Condition
Used MEINL 12in HCS China Cymbal
Product Price  $59.99
$69.99
Great Condition
Used LP Classic II Bongos
Product Price  $189.99
$249.99
Great Condition
Used 2020s Stratus By Sabian 16in Crash Cymbal
Product Price  $169.99
$260.99
Great Condition
Used TAMA 6.5X14 Superstar Snare BLUE SPARKLE Drum
Product Price  $169.99
$189.99
Great Condition
Used Mapex 12in MAPLE DELUXE Antique Ivory Drum
Product Price  $229.99
$299.99
Great Condition
Used TAMA 5 Piece Imperialstar Black Drum Kit
Product Price  $399.99
$549.99
Great Condition
Used Tonum 14in Vinatge Cymbal
Product Price  $229.99
$264.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 13in Special K Z Hi Hat Pair Cymbal
Product Price  $254.99
$279.99
Great Condition
Used TAMA 5.5X14 Swingstar Blue Drum
Product Price  $99.99
$279.99
Great Condition
Used SABIAN 20in HHX X-PLOSION Cymbal
Product Price  $379.99
$399.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 22in Avedis Medium Ride Cymbal
Product Price  $213.99
$349.99
Great Condition
Used Samsun 18in Janus Cymbal
Product Price  $279.99
$389.99
Great Condition
Used LP Caliente Set Conga
Product Price  $409.99
$499.99
Great Condition
Used MEINL 16in BYZANCE EXTRA DRY CHINA Cymbal
Product Price  $249.99
$279.99
Great Condition
Used Pearl 14in Limited edition SST Yellow Drum
Product Price  $99.99
$119.99
Great Condition
Used Orion 14in MS CONTROL Cymbal
Product Price  $89.99
$184.99
Great Condition
Used Orion 15in X10 Cymbal
Product Price  $89.99
$199.99
Great Condition
Used Yamaha 14in STEEL Chrome Drum
Product Price  $79.99
$99.99
Great Condition
Used DW 5.5X14 Collector's Series Snare Black Drum
Product Price  $379.99
$429.99
Great Condition
Used Saban 22in XSR MONARCH Cymbal
Product Price  $229.99
$249.99
Great Condition
Used DW 3 Piece Performance Series Cherry Drum Kit
Product Price  $1,499.99
$1,679.99
Great Condition
Used Paiste 16in Color Sound 900 Cymbal
Product Price  $119.99
$159.99
Great Condition
Used DW 14in CHERRY MAHOGANY TEAL Drum
Product Price  $649.99
$749.99
Great Condition
Used SJC Drums 3 Piece PATHFINDER PEARLESCENT Drum Kit
Product Price  $499.99
$629.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 10in A SERIES NEW BEAT HI-HAT TOP Cymbal
Product Price  $69.99
$99.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 12in A SERIES NEW BEAT HI HAT TOP Cymbal
Product Price  $59.99
$109.99
Great Condition
Used Hendrix Drums 7X14 Archetype Natural Drum
Product Price  $299.99
$429.99
Great Condition
Used Mapex 5 Piece Black Panther Labs Cherry Bomb Golden...
Product Price  $2,899.99
$3,499.99
Great Condition
Used MEINL 13in HCS Hi Hat Top Cymbal
Product Price  $38.99
$78.99
Great Condition
Used Noble & Cooley 14in WALNUT SOLID Walnut Drum
Product Price  $899.99
$999.99
Great Condition
Used Pearl 6X14 EXPORT STEEL STEEL Drum
Product Price  $99.99
$119.99
Great Condition
Used Ludwig 6X14 Accent SNARE STEEL Drum
Product Price  $69.99
$79.99
Great Condition
Used Gretsch Drums 6X14 Renown Snare Natural Drum
Product Price  $299.99
$324.99
Great Condition
Used Ludwig 10in LM300 STEEL Drum
Product Price  $209.99
$244.99
Great Condition
Used Mapex 5 Piece SATURN SCARLETT FADE Drum Kit...
Product Price  $1,299.99
$1,599.99
Great Condition
Used Canopus 6.5X14 zelkova snare drum Natural Drum
Product Price  $1,299.99
$1,499.99
Great Condition
Used Pearl 14in Hi Hat Cymbal
Product Price  $59.99
$99.99
Great Condition
Used Mapex 3 Piece SATURN V EVOLUTION TOUR 3 PIECE Custom...
Product Price  $699.99
$1,099.99
Great Condition
Used SABIAN 14in HHX Evolution Hi Hat Bottom Cymbal
Product Price  $129.99
$174.99
Great Condition
Used Pearl 14X6 Modern Utility Steel Snare STEEL Drum
Product Price  $99.99
$149.99
Great Condition
Used Zildjian 14in K CUSTOM SPECIAL DRY HIHAT Cymbal
Product Price  $299.99
$409.99
Great Condition
Used TAMA 5 Piece Imperialstar Blue Drum Kit
Product Price  $299.99
$384.99
Great Condition
Used Kings Custom 7X13 EMERALD MAPLE/POPLAR Emerald Green...
Product Price  $319.99
$399.99
Great Condition
Used Ufo 16in VOLUME CYMBAL Cymbal
Product Price  $149.99
$199.99
Great Condition
Used LP GALAXY GIOVANNI TUMBA Conga
Product Price  $399.99
$649.99
Great Condition
Used LP GALAXY GIOVANNI CONGA Conga
Product Price  $299.99
$539.99
Great Condition
Used Tempro 5.5X14 STEEL SNARE Chrome Drum
Product Price  $99.99
$114.99
Great Condition

About Drums

Drums and percussion are likely the second oldest musical instruments, beaten only by the voice itself. Percussion instruments produce sound by being struck, shaken, scraped or rubbed. Drums are just one member of the percussion family. They refer specifically to instruments with head or skin stretched over a shell. The technical term for the drum head is a membrane, making the drum a membranophone.

When you think about drums and percussion, your first thought might go to a drum set with a snare drum, rack toms, floor toms, bass drum, cymbals and cymbal stands. Perhaps you're a hand percussionist and drums to you are bongos, congas, timbales, cajons or even djembes. This just goes to show the wide variety of instruments within the drum and percussion category, and with such a long, rich history it’s easy to see why there are so many variations and types of drum in world.

Drum History

Drums and percussion instruments are the oldest musical instruments in history and haven’t changed much in the course of a few thousand years. One of the oldest discovered drums was made with an alligator skin and dates back to as early as 5500 B.C. Every culture on every continent used drums in some form, whether it was for musical purposes, communication with distant neighbors or relaying commands on the battle field. We've all seen the paintings of the Revolutionary War drummers marching on the front lines, or the ancient hortator keeping time on the Viking longship. However, as technology evolved, so did the drum.

Drum Construction

The basic principal of every drum is the same: a round cylinder with a drum head—or a drum skin— that you strike with your hand or a drum stick or mallet. The head is held down by a hoop or a rim, and tension rods or rope thread into a lug. The distinction made between drums and hand drums is somewhat obvious. Any drum you play using your hands is a hand drum or hand percussion. Acoustic drum heads vary widely depending on the type of drum they're on. A typical drum set drum uses a drum head made of mylar on the top and bottom of the drum, while hand drums often only have a calfskin head on top. To tune the drum up or down, you tighten or loosen the drum head.

The drum shells are constructed from a myriad of materials including wood, metal and plastic, and the different wood species or metals can produce special sounds. Many companies such as DW, TAMA and Yamaha create hybrid drum shells which utilize different tone woods or metal and wood to achieve a unique sound. Wood drum shells are constructed in several ways but the two most common ways are multi-ply construction or stave construction. Multi-ply drum shells are constructed using anywhere from three to 20 thin pieces of wood that are glued and pressed together. Stave drum shells are built using one piece of wood that is typically steam bent into its cylindrical shape.

Electronic Drums

Electronic drums originally started out as simple metronome machines and evolved in the early 1970s into something closer to what they are today. Companies such Roland, Yamaha and Simmons produced the first electronic drum sets. They became popular and commercially successful in the early 1980s as technology and samples became better and more advanced. Electronic drum kits or e-kits have a very similar design to acoustic drum sets. There's a snare, toms, bass drum, cymbals and you play it using drum sticks. However, electronic drums utilize rubber or mesh heads and the cymbals are rubberized pads. The biggest advantage to electronic drums is the amount of drum and percussion sounds you can program, as well as the built-in, complete drum sets.

Drum Set Cymbals

A typical drum set or percussion setup utilizes cymbals. A drum set includes a pair of hi-hats, a crash cymbal or two, and a ride cymbal. However, experimenting with different cymbal sounds has become very popular and many drummers often have effects—or FX—cymbals in their setup, including china cymbals, splash cymbals and cymbal stacks. Most cymbals are made from bronze alloy and are either machine or manually hammered into their final form.