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Play better. Buy smarter. Drum faster.
Honest gear reviews, buying guides that cut through the noise, and features on the drummers who inspire us. Pull up a throne.
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Latest guideOCDP John Otto snare | 50 made, $799Gear reviews · Drummer features · Buying guides · Practice advice · Honest verdicts · Zero fluff · All groove
More than a blog
Three things you won't find on any other drum site.
The Gear Guru
Our AI gear expert. Any drummer, any era, any budget — it builds the rig and links every piece, used market included.
Ask it anything →The Rig Vault
Legendary rigs documented era by era — Bonham to Barker — and yours next. Vote 🥁 for the Rig of the Week.
Open the vault →The Groove Lab
A beat maker in your browser. Program a groove, tweak the tempo, share it with a link — no app, no sign-up.
Make a beat →
Explore the site
Acoustic Drums
Acoustic drum kits are the heart of what makes drumming amazing! They sound incredible, look amazing and most importantly of all, so much fun to play.
Advice for Drummers
Are you a drummer looking for guidance? Our advice covers everything from the types of gear available and the kinds of drum lessons to career support.
Cymbals
Cymbals are a fundamental part of the drum kit. Cymbals are often what gives a drummer their unique sound and style.
Drum Heads
Drum heads shape your sound before anything else — coated, clear, single and double-ply, compared and explained.
Drum Lessons
Without a doubt, one of the fastest ways to get better at drums is drum lessons. The main question is what type of lessons are best for you.
Drummers
Every drummer feature on Drum Faster — the professionals, the content creators and the rising stars, and the gear each of them actually plays.
Drumsticks
Drumsticks are a key part of every drummer's setup — sizes, woods, tips and finishes explained, plus reviews of the sticks worth your money.
Electric Drums
Electronic drum kits are now incredibly popular among drummers. Originally seen as a novelty, they have become a key part of almost every drummer's setup.
Hardware
Pedals, stands, racks and thrones — the hardware that holds your kit together, reviewed and compared, from budget stands to flagship pedals.
Recording Drums
How to record drums at home — the mics worth buying first, the audio interface with enough inputs, and the setups from one mic to eight that actually work.
Accessories
Drum thrones, practice pads, hearing protection, cases and the rest of the kit around the kit — the small purchases that change how long and how well you play.
Drummer Health
Hearing, wrists and backs — the parts of a drummer that wear out, what the research says about why, and the habits and gear that keep you playing for decades.
News
The latest from the drumming world — new gear, tours, releases and the stories worth your time, written up in the days they actually happen.
Latest from the blog
News
OCDP John Otto snare | 50 made, $799
Limp Bizkit's John Otto has an OCDP signature snare: a 14x6 vented maple drum in a graffiti wrap, limited to 50 and sold only at Guitar Center.
News
Canopus BA-1470 | First Baritone Series snare
Canopus has launched the BA-1470, a 14x7 walnut/birch snare and the first drum in its new Baritone Series. It's out on 15 October.
News
Godsmack drum battle | Up for GRAMMY votes
Godsmack have submitted "Battle of the Drums" for two GRAMMYs. It's not a nomination yet, but it asks why a drum duel still works live.
All Our Buying Guides
Audio interfaces for drums | How many inputs?
Which audio interface to buy for recording drums: how many mic inputs you need, the two- and eight-input standards, ADAT expansion and the e-kit case.
All Our Buying Guides
Drum VSTs | The best sounds for your e-kit
The best drum VSTs for an electronic kit: Superior Drummer 3, EZdrummer 3, Addictive Drums 2, GetGood Drums and Steven Slate Drums compared, plus the free ones.
How to
Connect an e-kit to a computer | USB, MIDI, latency
How to connect an electronic drum kit to a computer: the USB cable, MIDI versus audio, the buffer and driver settings that kill latency, and mapping the pads.
Drum Faster on YouTube
Latest Shorts
Groove Lab
The Amen Break is just two extra snares
News
Journey's drum tech had to finish the show
Rig Vault
Ringo's first Ludwig, and the Beatles logo
News
U2's drummer had to learn to play again
The Beginner Course
When the Levee Breaks is the money beat with the kick moved
News
U2's drummer had to learn to play again
Tools
Bored of your rudiments and fills? Let this deal you new ones
Tools
Your phone flattens your drums. Here is the fix
Free Drum Lessons
The flam tap is one hand, twice
News
Michael Jackson's drummer just dropped the price by $42,000
Tools
Two taps on the same lug, fifteen cents apart
News
Michael Jackson's drummer is selling this $108,000 kit
The Rig Vault
Legendary rigs, era by era
The kits behind the records — documented year by year, every piece linked. Drop a 🥁 on your favourite: the weekly winner is crowned in our Friday email.
- Latest era · 1977
John Bonham
196919731977
Ludwig Super Classic maple · Ludwig Vistalite · Ludwig Stainless Steel
See the rig → - Latest era · 2015
Neil Peart
198120072015
Tama Superstar · DW Collector's Series · DW Collector's Series R40
See the rig → - Latest era · 2023
Travis Barker
19961998+11 eras2023
Ludwig Rocker · OCDP custom · OCDP Jelly Bean
See the rig →
The drummer's toolbox
Free tools that run right in your browser — no apps, no downloads, no faff.
- Drum tunerHit a drum, see the pitch — match your lugs by ear-proof numbers.
- Drum FiltersMake your phone drum videos sound mixed — tap a genre, hear it, post it.
- Tempo trainerThe metronome that pushes you — literally drum faster.
- Rudiment trainerAll 40 essentials with the sticking in your ears.
- Pattern generatorStickings nobody wrote down — set the rules, generate, play along, share the link.
- Practice logTrack every session and keep your streak alive.
- Song temposThe BPM of the songs you get asked to play, a tap from the metronome.
A free account unlocks the lot: saved kits and tuning pitches in the tuner, the auto-climbing trainer, gap click, odd time signatures and meter loops in the metronome, random rudiment practice, the full practice log, exporting your filtered drum videos, and bigger Gear Guru limits with saved chats. No card, no catch — just your email.
Join freeDrummers we love
Funk
Aaron Spears | Usher's drummer, and everyone's teacher
Aaron Spears defined modern R&B drumming with Usher and Ariana Grande, and taught a generation online. His playing, his DW kit, and his legacy.
Metal
Alex Cohen | Progressive drumming's advanced class
Alex Cohen writes books on extreme polyrhythm and does things on double bass most drummers would not attempt. His playing, his books, and his Yamaha kit.
Rock
Alex Van Halen | The other half of Van Halen
Alex Van Halen built the biggest drum sound of the 1980s. Hot for Teacher, the resonator kits, his Ludwig and Paiste rig, and life after Eddie.