If you’re looking to buy a drum set, you may be wondering what the differences are between electronic and acoustic kits. These are your two main drum kit types, and they have significant differences. However, they’re both made for the same goal of being able to play drums.
In this guide, we’re going to explore each drum set type. We’ll give you two high-quality examples of acoustic and electronic kits, and we’ll explain which option is best for different people.
The biggest benefit of electronic drum sets is that they’re not as loud as acoustic kits. They’re rubber and mesh pads that get amplified digitally through a drum module that connects to headphones or an amp. If you just use headphones, no one will hear you from next door.
Another benefit is that electronic drum sets offer multiple drum kit sounds. Every drum module has ten or more preset drum kits, allowing you to have different drum kit sounds to choose from.
The final benefit is that electronic drum kits are easy to record. You don’t need multiple microphones to record drum parts. You simply just have to plug a USB cable into a computer.
The biggest downside of electronic drum kits is that they’re very expensive compared to acoustic kits with the same quality. You can get a lot of affordable e-kits, but their sound quality will be nowhere near the sound quality of an acoustic kit that has the same price tag.
Another downside is that you need power to play them. You also have to have headphones or an amp, or else you won’t be able to hear what you’re playing.
The final downside is that they don’t feel as satisfying to play as acoustic kits. This comes from a combination of how they look and how they’re designed.
The Roland TD-50KV2 is a seriously high-end electronic drum kit. It’s one of the best options on the market, as it offers the best pads, module, and sounds.
The best thing about it is that it has digital pads for the snare drum, ride cymbal, and hi-hats. These digital pads perform very similarly to how acoustic drums and cymbals perform, allowing you to play things on these that you can’t play on other pads.
Another cool thing about this kit is that it still remains quite compact. You save a lot of space if you play this over an acoustic kit, and you still get all the benefits of having a luxury drum module.
Overall, it’s one of the best possible options to consider if you want an electronic kit. The problem is that it’s about double the price of a top-tier acoustic kit.
There are too many benefits of acoustic kits to count. However, there are a few obvious ones that we’ll mention here. Firstly, it feels a lot better to play an acoustic kit than an electronic one. All the drums and cymbals are a lot more responsive.
Acoustic kits are also better for playing live gigs. They bring a lot more energy to the stage, and they also look far better when set up.
A final benefit to mention is that acoustic kits are a lot more affordable than high-end electronic kits. A good acoustic kit with top-tier cymbals will only cost around $3000 to $5000, whereas all the best electronic kits on the market cost a lot more.
The biggest drawback of playing an acoustic drum set is that it’s very loud. Acoustic drums are so loud that it isn’t possible for people to play them if they live in crowded areas.
They’re also difficult to record. Since they have so many parts and components, you need multiple microphones to hear everything, whereas you don’t need a single microphone with electronic drums.
The final downside is that they’re large. Not all acoustic kits are big, but most are, stopping people with little space from being able to play them.
The Sonor SQ2 is a beautiful drum kit that sits at the very top of the range of acoustic kits available on the market. It features all the best build qualities that Sonor has on offer, and the drums sound incredible.
They’re easy to tune, and they look amazing when the kit is set up with hardware and cymbals to complement it.
No, electronic drums feel quite different from acoustic drums. With electronic drums, you’ll either get pads that are rubber, mesh, or silicone. Acoustic drums have plastic drumheads, so the pads on electronic drum kits feel a lot bouncier.
High-end electronic drum kits have pads and playability that make them feel similar to acoustic drums, but they still don’t feel exactly the same.
It’s better to learn how to play drums on an acoustic kit since acoustic drumming is the main aspect of playing the drums. If you end up playing gigs, it will be on an acoustic kit 95% of the time.
However, learning on an acoustic kit isn’t possible for everyone. If you can only learn on an electronic kit, you should still go for it. At least you’re learning to play no matter what.
Electronic drums are designed to have presets that sound like acoustic kits. They sound very similar, but they don’t have the same tonal responsiveness. Higher-quality drum modules have sounds that are more similar, whereas low-quality kits have sounds that are extremely synthetic.
The big benefit of electronic drums is that you can play electronic sounds that you can’t create on acoustic drums.
Acoustic and electronic drums have a very close relationship. Ideally, every drummer should have both types. You can play the acoustic drum kit for gigs and settings where volume isn’t an issue, and then you can use the electronic drum kit for practicing.
There’s a lot more to it than just that, but you have to experience playing both to get your own idea of the subtle differences.
Drum Teacher
Brett Clur has a Drum Performance Diploma from Trinity College London has been playing drums for over 20 years. He is passionate about advanced concepts and uses his years of experience to teach his students about them. While he is a full-time drum teacher, he is also working on growing a YouTube channel where shares his insights. You can see him playing there, or on Instagram where he posts daily videos.
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