1. Tama CB90R Cobra Rubber Beater
The Tama CB90R Cobra is the best bass drum beater if you want a premium beater with a pronounced attack. This is a rubber beater that weighs more than your standard felt or wool beater, but it definitely gives you more punch.
Why do you need the Best Bass Drum Beater?
Everything little detail on your drum kit can make a difference in the overall sound quality. If you are a very particular drummer, you should know that even something as small as the type of bass drum beater can make the biggest difference in sound. Also, bass drum beaters can wear down much faster than an entire bass drum pedal unit. Replacing an entire kick drum pedal unit is a bit impractical. Instead, you can just swap out the bass drum beater, which is much more affordable.
Finding the best bass drum beater is not the easiest thing in the world. There are a few factors you need to consider before honing in on any particular one. First and foremost, you have to decide on a material, because the material will greatly impact how your beater sounds. Generally speaking, you have softer beaters such as felt and wood. Felt and wool both give you a thumpy softer sound. Wool beaters are even softer than felt, but they just won’t give you any power or articulation.
Then there are harder materials such as rubber and wood, which give you a hard clicky trigger-like sound. Rubber beaters will have a good amount of sustain and power. Meanwhile, wood beaters have a hard natural sound with a sharp attack.
Additionally, you need to look into whether the beater is self-adjusting or not. It is very important to figure out how the beater will strike your bass drum head, and a lot of that has to do with pedal mechanism and drum placement.
Finally, you need to consider how the size and weight of the beater will impact sound and playing style. Lighter beaters will be easier to strike and move with the bass drum pedal. Larger sized beater will usually strike with more force and produce a larger sound.
Best Bass Drum Beater
- Tama CB90R Cobra Rubber Beater
- Danmar 205 Red Wood Beater
- Pearl B100DB Duo-Beat Beater
- Vater Vintage Bomber Beater
- DW 107 Flyweight Beater
1. Tama CB90R Cobra Rubber Beater
The Tama CB90R Cobra Rubber Beater is the best bass drum beater if you are looking for something premium. Although they are designed for the Tama Iron Cobra Pedal, they have a standard fit and can be used on most pedals. The best feature of this beater is its pronounced attack, which of course is at the cost of handling speed. Additionally, the Tama CB90R Rubber beater gives more of a punch that felt beater, but a bit less attack than a wooden beater. In other words, the Cobra rubber beater is somewhere in the middle of the road.
Furthermore, the CB90R Cobra weighs more than your standard felt, wool, or even plastic beater and has more volume. This means you get a good amount of attack. Also, you can easily adjustable the beater angle. Unfortunately, there are some pitfalls associated with this beater, such as the rubber heating up when you play fast. This leads to it wearing down faster over time.
– Premium beater
– Universal fit
– Pronounced attack
– Weighs more than felt and wool beater
2. Danmar 205 Red Wood Beater
The Danmar 205 Red Wood Beater has been the favorite of the top drummers in the world ever since its release. It is the best wood bass drum beater ever made, mostly due to its iconic red striker. One of the defining features of the Danmar 205 is its impeccable durability. With its bend-resistant rod, you have a beater that won’t warp over time and gives you a uniform response every time it strikes.
Furthermore, the rod and beater are permanently attached, so there is no more need to tighten the beater head. Many pro drummers choose the Danmar 205 because of its well class consistency and durability.
Additionally, the Danmar 205 wood beater delivers a massive attack and present click. It also has a strong low to mid-range punch. Basically, this thing is loud and proud. The Danmar 205 also has a nice weight. In other words, it is lightweight enough to deliver at a good speed but also packs in a nice punch. Finally, we like it because it is cheaper than most similar brands while still holding up build quality.
– Iconic red beater
– Great durability
– Consistent
– Massive Attack
2. Pearl B100DB Duo-Beat Beater
The Pearl B100DB Duo-beat beater is the best-felt bass drum beater if you also want the option to go plastic. You should know by now that Pearl makes drum accessories, so it goes without saying that they have a nice lineup of bass drum beaters. First of all, we are very surprised at how lightweight this beater is considering the fact that it is a felt and plastic beater in one unit.
Second, we really like the attack on the beater on both sides. The felt and plastic sides both sound good. In terms of durability, there have been some users who complain about the durability a little. However, we have not had any real issues with the felt side wearing down quickly.
In our view, this beater really shines in its versatility. We really like the fact that you can toggle between plastic and felt, which really adds to the diversity of your sound. And besides, you really can’t question the integrity of any Pearl gear. Just trust that they’ve made making quality drumming gear for many years.
– Lightweight
– Felt and plastic beater in one
– Versatile
– Durable
3. Vater Vintage Bomber Beater
If you want the best bass drum beater that is an industry classic, then you should give the Vater Vintage Bomber a go. This bass drum beater was designed with Otis Brown III, one of the greatest drummers of the jazz era. It is intended to replica the soft and boomy bass sound in jazz.
The defining feature of the Vintage Bomber is that it is big and oversized. It has a soft and puffy synthetic covering that feels and sounds like the original lamb wool beaters from the Jazz era. But don’t be turned off by its size. The Vintage Bomber is not heavy at all and weighs about the same as a stock plastic beater. Additionally, it is quite easy to control.
The Vater Vintage Bomber is definitely not just limited to jazz. We like the fact that the tone coming from this beater is really special quite special and is especially good if you are into warm sounds. Rather than increasing attack, the Vintage Bomber helps emphasize the lower qualities of the bass drum. In other words, it is great for those looking for a deeper more responsive tone.
– Warm, deep responsive bass
– Larger than most beaters
– Not heavy
– Not just limited to Jazz
4. DW 107 Flyweight Beater
You can’t really go wrong with DW when it comes to any drum accessories. The DW 107 Flyweight beater is an industry-standard with high-impact plastic on one side and lightweight red plastic on the other. This is a standard-sized two-way beater that will fit any modern bass drum pedal.
The key feature of the DW 107 is that it is much lighter than stock DW beaters. This is mostly due to strategically cut-out slots that save weight but don’t impact sound. Furthermore, the lightweight beaters yield better and faster response and pedal control. Additionally, you get less tired after jamming out with these for long periods of time.
Finally, the DW 107s are built quite durable. It features a tempered steel shaft with a height-adjustable weight. This helps you make micro-adjustments to the feel of the beater. Overall, the DW 107 is a great all-round bass drum beater suitable for metal, rock, and other genres.
– Dual-sided plastic beater
– Very light
– Fast response
– Great pedal control
