It’s been awhile since I’ve shown what I’m actually using at home in my apartment for a drumming setup. I should start making posts like this every year or so.
The NUX DM-8 Drum Kit
The kit that I’m currently using is the NUX DM-8, which is currently the flagship drum kit from NUX. I’ve been liking this kit quite a bit, and it’s been working well for practicing at home. It has a little bit larger of an overall footprint than I’m used to, but if it fits on my drumming rug and platform, it fits.
I like how the mesh pads feel on this one and the drum module is more than good enough for my practice habits. I sometimes hook it up to EZ Drummer 3 if I feel like dragging out the laptop, but most of the time I’ve been using the presets in the module.
Check out my full review of this kit here for more details about this one.
The Anti-Vibration Platform
I have the entire kit setup on top of an anti-vibration platform I bought from vocalboothtogo.com. I ordered two pairs of their anti-vibration mats, which was the perfect size for my electronic drum kit plus the throne. I like these platforms so far and they’re working as intended.
They are pretty solid and don’t feel spongy like some other anti-vibration mats I’ve tried. They have a hard laminate surface on top which makes them feel about as stable as placing my kit directly on the hard floor. They have been doing a good job of keeping vibrations from the kit and the kick pad from going into the floor. They work better than I thought they would and they were reasonably priced when compared to other anti-vibration solutions I had been looking at recently.
The Pearl P930 Bass Drum Pedal
I’ve been using the the Pearl P930 bass pedal lately and I’ve been sticking with it as my go-to single bass pedal. It’s a fairly basic single chain pedal with minimal features, but the price was right for the quality it offers. I like its non-linear cam and smooth, quick action.
The longer foot board fits my larger feet quite well for both heel down and heel up techniques. It’s also a very quiet pedal in terms of operation with no clicking noise coming from the heel or squeaking or anything like that. The action is completely silent. It has a lighter, quicker feel, and that was more what I wanted for my apartment kit to help keep noise down.
The Kat Silent Strike Beater
I replaced the stock beater on the Pearl P930 pedal with a KAT Silent Strike beater. It’s basically a mini tennis ball for a beater. It makes less noise than the hard plastic beater that came with the P930, and it seems to cut down on vibration a little bit as well. It’s not a huge difference, but when combined with a mesh kick drum pad and a good anti-vibration mat it adds up and helps to keep the neighbors below from complaining.
One thing I really like about the KAT Silent Strike beater is that is has some weight to it, which I prefer, and it does a good job of triggering the kick pad properly. I don’t like beaters that are too light. Some other low noise beaters I’ve tried just felt too lightweight, especially on the P930 pedal.
The Sterling Audio S402 Headphones
These Sterling Audio S402 headphones turned out to be a pleasant surprise when I tried them out and I haven’t felt any reason to go back to any other headphones for now, even though I have some ATH-M50X and other options on the shelf. They have a really nice, clear and crisp sound that works great with electronic drums. They are also fairly comfortable and I can wear them without any discomfort while practicing. For the price I paid, I think they are a great value.
The Jojo Mayer Signature Sticks
I tried a pair of these out a while back just to see what they were like and have since bought more. They are a smaller, lighter stick which are just slightly thicker on the handle end, and I like how they feel in hand and while playing on electronic drums. The tips stay smooth and haven’t damaged my mesh heads. They feel like a good option for how I tend to play when I’m playing in my apartment.
Conclusion
With this setup I have yet to get any complaints from the downstairs neighbors, so that’s a good thing and that was the goal for every piece I’ve used here. I’ll probably swap out some gear again in the future as I try more things out, but for now this setup is working great for daily practice.
