Feature:
No one had been able to make a pedal that your whole foot can use except ludwig. Yes these pedals squeek and don't hold up to hard stomping, but they are the only design to alllow for heel control, The beater is always in a back postion so the delivery time is faster. All other pedals rely on a spring to do the whole job after you step on the pedal. Ludwig springs are very loose it's the positioning that makes it so fast. Get it?

Quality:
These are so cool looking, You can even play em with bare feet. Comfy!

Value:
These can cost from $100-$150 and will last your whole life, unless you lack technique and stomp on the pedal like an idiot.

Desirability:
No doubt the coolest looking pedal ever invented, Remember kiddies Chaain drive = Slow. Think about it, if you were gonna hit someone, would it bee faster to wind it up your arm, or just punch straight.SNAP! These things just snap!

Sound:
Like any other pedal except you have better control over lower volumes. I was like everyone else once, I saw that chain and sproket and had to have one,... What a mistake. 25 years later I realized I played faster as a little kid. I needed to get my old Speed King pedal back.

Support:
Buy it from someone who deals with Ludwig and can get you warrantee information. They should fix the squeek and relaunch the pedal as improved, that would be a good marketing idea,

Overall:
I love em.

Feature:
Just attach the beater, screw it tight, place it under the bass, take off your shoes and socks, and lightly tap it.

Quality:
It is a Ludwig, so you know it is the top of the line.

Value:
I bought the blemished piece, and there is no visible signs of scratches or markings of any kind.

Ease of Use:
When I first got my kit the pedal was slow, chain driven, and small for my foot. Now this Speed King is fast and powerful. I took my shoes off and played with my toes. It is quick and responsive.

Support:
I really don't think I will ever need to contact the company over this pedal, except of course to inquire about a double bass foot pedal.

Overall:
I wondered if it was my timing with the foot pedal that came with my kit, but now having the Speed King, I see it wasn't timing, it was the equipment. Invest in the best and get yourself a real foot pedal:Ludwig Speed King, it is worth every dollar, and maybe two.

Feature:
The features are so great and simple. All you need to do is it out hook the heel plate up and put the beater on , put on the bass drum and your palying.

Quality:
The Quality is awesome common it's Ludwig.

Value:
The Speed King is worth all of the price it is. It can easily sell for double that because it is so durrable and good.

Desirability:
It feels awesome it is sexy. I abusolutly love this thing

Sound:
The sound of this pedal is like any other bass pedal. It sounds great live and in the studio. But if your in the studio you will have to tape the back down so it doesn't clack against the floor (If you play heel up).

Ease of Use:
Easy, it is so much faster than other pedals out there. It is great for doing triplets on.

Support:
I bought it off of here so I wouldn't know how the support is I imagine it's great though

Overall:
Overall this pedal is the best I've ever see by far. It is so easy to setup and use. It looks amazing and is totally worth the price, whether your a beginer or are experienced it is the best there is Period!

Feature:
folds away in a snap. great for gigging.

Sound:
I bought this product a month ago from a friend that he bought 35 years ago. it kinda puts my DW 5000 to shame. if any of you guys go to see roy haynes, you'll see that he uses a 35 year old speed king as well.

Feature:
The pedal is sleek, and built well. The moving parts are sealed and contain an internal spring mechanism.

Quality:
There are few moving parts, no external parts to adjust or break, therefore a pedal that is built and will last.

Value:
The current price appears to be a value compared to other single pedals.

Desirability:
It has an aesthetic look that most pedals lack.

Sound:
This pedal is my favorite! I've been using this particular pedal for 15 years, for all styles of music. It produces a assertive tone when required, and is subtle for jazz.

Ease of Use:
The pedal responds to your every move.

Overall:
I can't wait to see a double pedal version of this!

Feature:
Pratically indestructable.

Quality:
The best my dad's ever seen and he's been playing since the early 60's.

Value:
Back in the 60's you used to get these things for $25 but they're sure worth $120 today.

Desirability:
My dad's always got the hottest girls.

Sound:
They're very smooth and quiet.

Ease of Use:
Easy to mount, solid, and easy to adjust the tension.

Support:
Get one of these bad boys.

Overall:
My dad bought his for his double bass gretch set back in the 60's and they still perform great 40 years later.

Feature:
This pedal features a reversable heel plate to make the pedal one or two-piece,its seldom ever used though.The drive strap easily detaches as does the pedal post assembly from the footboard for tear-down and gigging.This pedal features two internal compression springs,one inside each post,with a tension adjusting screw on the bottom of each post.This differs from modern pedals that use a single external spring.The beater is also centered on the rocker shaft unlike most pedals today that use an offset configuration.

Quality:
quality appears fine.these pedals historically have a tendency to develop squeaks,but this is solved by penetrating spray lube such as silicone.

Value:
This is a good pedal,but because there are other direct-drive pedals such as the yamaha flying dragon or gibraltar that sell for about the same price or less and offer more features,then the speed king becomes less appealing.

Support:
N/A

Feature:
I'm actually somebody now who doesn't like a lot of features that much. This pedal easily comes apart for folding away and packing up for gig use, and that's really all that should be necessary. You can play with the spring tension and the beater length, and that's really all you should need. The problems with having tons of adjustability in a bass drum pedal is that setup takes longer when gigging. With this pedal, all you have to do is unfold it, hook the base plates together and then hook the pedal up to the beater link and insert and tighten down the beater, and that's it. You're ready hook it onto the bass drum hoop and play.

Quality:
Although I just bought mine new, numerous other people have said they've been playing 20 to 30+ years on the exact same Speed King pedal they bought when they were young, so I'm confident the Speed King will be the last bass drum pedal I ever buy.

Value:
This pedal allows you to play without any limitations whatsoever, WITHOUT breaking your bank account to get it. Sure there are other direct drive pedals, the only ones I know of cost hundreds of dollars more, so you have to take out a loan to get them. Not so with the Speed King.

Desirability:
This pedal screams "Classic!" and "Vintage!" since it was first introduced in 1937, perfected by 1948, and has had ZERO functionality changes since then. Ludwig hasn't changed it since then because there has literally been no need to. I love the vintage look when it comes to things, and this pedal delivers on that.

Sound:
This pedal delivers the same sound as other pedals can deliver. The big difference is in the controllability of that sound. If you've got good technique with your foot and leg, you can play quieter and with more finesse at lower volumes than almost all other pedals available at this price.

Ease of Use:
The one thing about this pedal is you HAVE to have good foot and leg technique. Chain drive pedals are more forgiving in this area, but at the expense of being limiting. The Speed King, because of its design, has no playing limitations, but that also means you have to have good pedal technique to begin with. This isn't to say however that beginners should shy away from the Speed King. By no means. In fact, I'm of the opinion that THIS is the pedal for beginning drummers to use from the start! Doing so will get new drummers used to playing their drumset's bass drum without having to worry about limits to their playing because of the pedal they are using.

Support:
Bought from a distributor, so I have no clue about the support area.

Overall:
Competitors' pedals have been trying to duplicate what the Speed King has been delivering to drummers since it was introduced in 1937 and perfected by 1948. Practically all of their attempts have failed, or resulted in pedals that were so prohibitively expensive that they weren't available to budget drummers unless they were willing to take out a big loan. Proudly made here in America, the Speed King delivers limitless bass drum playing potential to the drumkit player. The only limitation to what it can do is literally what your playing foot and leg can and can't do! It sets up and takes down without any need for tools, making for easy gigging, and while the lack of features and adjustability may be an issue for some, the tradeoff is a simpler pedal that has fewer parts to break and/or wear out. Stories abound of Speed King pedals going 20-30+ years without a breakdown, so durability is not an issue with this pedal. So, break out of the prison caused by playing with a chain drive pedal and buy a Speed King!

Quality:
Like I said previously, I had to use straps to keep the two arms (or posts) from spreading out. There is a definite problem with this, because not one, but both of my brand new pedals spread and the rod or piston inside got wedged, leaving the pedal without much spring action at all. I don't know how this problem can be solved, but I do have the phone number to Ludwig, and I will try to help them resolve this. If the pedal did not have this problem I would have rated it a 10.

Value:
Sorry, but the value is terrible, especially if every pedal they sell has this problem.

Desirability:
I would not buy another one until Ludwig can assure me the problem has been taken care of. If they fix the problem, then I will purchase at least 2 pedals and write a much better review.

Ease of Use:
The pedals work ok now, but not without using plastic straps to keep the two arms together!

Support:
I'm not sure how the support will be, seeing how this is Saturday and Ludwig seems to be closed. I am optimistic and will try working with them as much as possible. I am not looking for my money back, but to simply solve the problem and get this pedal back to the grade it should be.

Overall:
Besides the arms or posts spreading, one of the inner rods came apart, and I ended up having to epoxy it back together. Also, the end caps which keep the inside greased will not stay on, so I have to use a touch of epoxy to keep them on.