Roland HD-1 Electronic Drums User Reviews at zZounds

"Should I get an HD-1 or one of the TD series kits?" submitted February 21, 2009

By a customer from comcast.net

Overall

Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Getting back into it after being away from it for 20 years

Music Style: Jazz, "Classic" Rock

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Sound: The Roland sounds are amazing, and the HD-1 is no exception. The pads felt good and were responsive. Compared to one of the TD series kits, though, individual drums ("instruments") cannot be modified. Volume and sensitivity are set "globally" and cannot be adjusted in relationship to each other. For my tastes, the kick was a little too loud and the snare a little too quiet. If you don't like messing with programming parameters, you just want to play, you have ten kits at your finger tips. Feature: The mesh-head snare is nice, and the gum-rubber pads are responsive and easy to play. There is not a great deal of adjustment that the user can make to the individual drums. The snare is the most adjustable. The other instruments pretty much just move up and down. The cymbal rods are fixed on their angles and cannot be adjusted for tilt. The toms can be spread and slid up and down their mounting bars, but cannot be tilted. Roland obviously used drummers to set this up because stuff was all in a comfortable place, but unlike the TD series kits, adjustments are very limited. Ease of Use: It's as easy at it gets - set it up, plug it in, selection one of the ten drum kits, set your volume and start playing. No electronic drum kit is easier to use. Quality: For what it is, the quality is excellent in terms of strength, fit and finish. It is strong enough, but is not made for the road (it doesn't come apart) - it is best to set it up and leave it in a room or studio. The tom pads are not the TD series pads, and I've never seen them anywhere else. If one broke, you'd need to contact Roland, but it's best to think of this kit as one of the old all-in-one stereos viz one that is made up of various components. Value: I gave this a nine, but could have given it a ten. Its value is excellent, depending on what you want. If you want something to take on the road, something for which you can change the sounds and settings of individual pads, and something you can get other parts for to customize and modify, you'll be disappointed. If you want something self-contained, extremely small, and easy to use you can't beat this. Consider carefully, though, that a TD-4 is only $200 - it takes up a bit more room, and requires (simple) programming, but give you a lot more versatility. If you're limited on space and don't want to "mess with" the kit, the HD-1 is hard to beat. The Wow Factor: The product looks great, works great, and sounds fantastic. For having so little adjustment, Roland really "got it right" - on my TD-4 I make adjustments all the time, but the HD-1, which I'd mess with it if I could, works very well "as is." Overall: Again, I'm not sure how to rate this. After playing it for a week, I traded it in for a TD-4 because I wanted the additional versatility. If you're a casual player, or don't have a lot of space, or don't like to fiddle with "programming" (although the programming of e-drums is pretty easy once you catch onto it), the HD-1 has a lot to commend it.

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"Nice product for getting into electronic drums or as a quiet practice kit to work on your chops without goin to the shed." submitted January 1, 2012

By a customer from comcast.net

Overall

Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

Manufacturer Support

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Playing drums 50 plus years, used to play professionally

Music Style: Jazz & everything else that led up to it & evolved from it

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Sound: Simple, basic, electronic drum kit with good quality pre-programed kit sounds. You can not tweak the individual sounds of each drum/cymbal in the kit. Kit is compact & very quiet, excellent for practicing & not disturbing others, Bass drum pedal takes some getting used to because there is no rebound of the beater head. The snare is small so I opted to use the larger snare from my td-10 kit with a regular snare drum stand. There are few options for adjusting individual set components, but this is because the idea is to have an easily transported kit that is quick to tear down & doesn't use up much space. The toms have a softer surface than the older electronic kits & that is good for the old joints. You don't have a lot of flexibility with adjusting the angles of the hardware and fine tuning individual sound characteristics of each piece. This is an ideal kit for a beginner, but makes a really nice set for quiet practicing if you have chops. I was very impressed for the price. I really like this kit for what it is. Hopefully Roland can make some improvements in the adjustments of the hardware & come up with an upgraded brain the would allow more flexibility in tweaking & mixing the individual drum/cymbal sounds. Feature: Best features are: quiet practice possibilities; compact design takes up little space; quick to tear down & transport Ease of Use: Triggers are effective; kit sounds are good but you need to have chops to get it to sound good as a complete kit; quick learning curve if you are familiar with the instrument; though you have little flexibility to make adjustment with the hardware the kit is quite playable. Quality: Too soon to tell about durability. I wouldn't want to take this on the road. Seems like it will hold up well as an in-house kit for quiet practice/ basic recording if you don't bash them like a guerrilla & know how to play Value: Well worth the money for the price. It is what it is, but don't expect it to be something more. With that said, don't be scared away because I really like this for what it is. Manufacturer Support: NA The Wow Factor: It is a good basic starter kit for introduction into electronic drums. For the experienced player it fulfills a low cost niche as a quiet practice device of surprising quality for the price. Overall: I love this for what it is & would get another one because it meets a specific need as a low cost decent kit that allows me to play when I otherwise would not be able to do so.

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"The best things come in small packages! Big bang for the small buck." submitted April 8, 2008

By a customer from comcast.net

Overall

Sound

Features

Ease of Use

Quality

Value

The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Full time through college in the 90's then abandoned the dream for a "real job". Enjoy playing with small ensembles.

Music Style: You name it.

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VERIFIED BUYER

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Sound: The sound is incredible for the size. The pads are sensitive to your strokes and have different sounds based on the power of your stroke. The only disappointment was the high-hat. Not sure if the sensitivity is off but the sound is not quite as crisp as you would be used to with acoustic. The other cymbal pads are fine. The various drum set types are fun to experiment with and have authentic sounds. Feature: Purchased the accessory pack for just a little more. More than worth the money. The ear buds are better than you will receive with an I-pod or MP3 player. Fantastic sound Ease of Use: The set-up and use is very simple. Color coded wiring. Even despite it's small size, you can adjust the pad hight. The adjustable stool with the accessory pack is very beneficial as well. Quality: Roland packaged the set with amazing detail. Every part and component was protected and efficiently packaged. Not sure if the kit, now assembled, would be easy to transport. Value: Absolutely worth the money. Big bang for a small buck. (I promise I don't work for this company!) Manufacturer Support: No need to call for any service. I have played the heck out of them with no problems. Overall: Unfortunatley you can not expand off of this kit but that is what the appeal is. If you don't have much space, not a full time musician and play for hobby then this is your best deal. You could not play this set with a large ensemble of musicians or in a large setting without some serious amplifyinig.

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"Great for price, practice and utilization." submitted November 25, 2011

By a customer from gmail.com

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Features

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The Wow Factor

Musical Background: 18

Music Style: Folk, Rock, more

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Sound: The 10 sound kits available are nothing special. Maybe it's my kit, but the sensitivity isn't consistent, especially when you set the kit to its most sensitive setting. When that happens its nearly impossible to get a soft hit on the kick, and if you adjust the sensitivity any lower, you'll get your soft hit on the kick but it's a pain to get strong hits on the other pads. Even on the snare it makes it feel like I have to attack the pad just to get a moderate to strong, consistent sound. Still I use it as a MIDI controller with EZdrummer, so I can play on some nice sounding kits. Feature: There really aren't many features. The brain only has the 10 basic kit sounds along with their own demons. There's an adjustable metronome which is great for Practice. There is only five settings to adjust sensitivity, and no tweaking. The MIDI output is a very nice addition. There's also output for monitor and one for headphones. Ease of Use: It's beyond easy to use but like I said the sensitivity can. E inconsistent at times. This is perfect for practicing on, or if you don't have much room for a full size kit Quality: The design itself is great and everything seems very sturdy and well built. I'm especially found of the mesh snare as it provides a more natural feel. Value: It's a very good deal. It if the sensitivity were more consistent it would be a steal, unless you're looking for a whole lot of sound. I think this is best for newcomers, simple practice, those with limited budgets, or as a songwriting tool (which is why I got it). Manufacturer Support: I didn't really need support except I did go to their website and downloaded the manual. The Wow Factor: It's a great tool for your songwriting arsenal. Overall: I plan on using this kit a whole lot especially to supplement EZdrummer in my songwriting. I just wish the sensitivity was Ore reliable

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"Excellent entry-level electronic drum kit for the price!" submitted September 6, 2011

By a customer from gmail.com

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Sound

Ease of Use

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The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Hobbyist moving toward Active Musician

Music Style: All of it!

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Sound: This is an excellent entry level Roland electronic drum kit. With eight built in drum kits, you're sure to find a sound you like. This kit even has a setting for double kick! I also bought a MIDI Adapter for the PS3 to play Rock Band 3 and it works seamlessly. It was a little more of a challenge for me to set up as I'm a lefty, but with some experimenting I now have it set up and the setup exceeded my expectations. It's fun to be able to switch back and forth to just play drums or play along with songs on Rock Band. Feature: N/A Ease of Use: Set up was relatively simple. It would be nice if the instruction manual or DVD had a section for lefties though. Especially newbies who have never set up a drum kit before! I wasn't sure how to do it and had to get help from drummers who could get my kit set up for a left-handed drummer. Understanding that the kit is more or less "backwards" for a left handed drummer doesn't quite cut it... where exactly does the crash go? The ride? Is it Toms 1, 2, 3 in reverse order? And even though I'm a left-handed drummer, I still use a right kick... Quality: Overall I'm satisfied with the quality and orientation of the kit. It's a little wobbly when really getting into the groove, but again, it's an entry level kit. It would be nice if I were able to move my snare drum further out horizontally and if the pedals could actually move in some rather than just rotate. Kit arrived in perfect condition, well packaged, with no cosmetic blemishes, dings, or problems. Although I wouldn't personally want to have to do it, it seems relatively simple to "tear down" and "set up" the kit if going on the road. The worst aspect again, is that it's a little wobbly when really getting into the groove. I think part of that is because everything is stacked so closely together... rather than being able to really spread out the drum pads, etc. Also, there's limited range for adjusting the drum pads and the pedals seem a little "off." And there are no external speakers of any kind... so you'll have to use headphones only or purchase speakers. Value: I most certainly think this kit is a great value for the price. I've seen drum kits of much less quality being sold for about the same price, sometimes more. I'm very pleased with the sound, setup, and Roland quality for the price. It's also great for small studios, apartments, or anywhere space is limited. Manufacturer Support: N/A The Wow Factor: I wouldn't say this kit is necessarily "sexy." There's only one Roland mesh head (the snare). All the other drum pads are just black rubber pads and the cymbals are black plastic with black rubber on them... This isn't bad or good... it just is... and to be expected for an electronic drum kit in this price range. I would say this kit is more practical rather than sexy. Overall: When I get a lot better at playing drums, I'll eventually want to move up to a higher level Roland kit. I've seen a Roland setup of a professional drummer I know and his kit ROCKS!!! That's my goal! =) But again, right now the Roland HD1 exactly fits my needs.

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"Do yourself a favor, be nice to yourself, buy one!" submitted September 9, 2008

By a customer from gmail.com

Overall

Sound

Features

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The Wow Factor

Musical Background: Re-activated musician!

Music Style: Rock, Blues, Funk and Indie

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SPOTLIGHT REVIEW

Sound: For the price, for the specs.....excellent! Much better than I anticipated. When I play with headphones on (I live in a condo complex) I find that I keep removing them to make sure that the neighbors can't hear the tremendous, concert-hall-like racket I'm hearing. Brilliant! Feature: It's a drum kit...(well, 10 kits actually). It has 3 toms, a bass drum, snare, hi-hat, ride and crash.......you don't really need anything else, especially as each of these has a variety of sounds programed into the module. Ease of Use: Incredible! I had this baby unpacked, set up and switched on in about 20 minutes....and that was with my 2 year old daughter running around all over the place 'helping'. Quality: I'm primarily a rock drummer and I can get a bit 'carried away' sometimes, so I initially worried something would break. So far though, it is putting up with quite a good hammering. Value: Superb! I read about how expensive Roland V-drums were compared to other makes etc. But, I also read some pretty damning reviews of these other products, so decided to go for the pricier make. To be frank, once you get this home and start playing, you'll forget the dent on your credit card and focus on the big smile wrapped around your face. Manufacturer Support: No problems encountered, so no need to call on support, at least not yet. The Wow Factor: Wonderful! It's compact, stylish, contemporary and looks very cool in the corner of your lounge. Okay, so it's not a professional kit. It's not something you'd necessarily want for regular live gigs etc. But, that's not what this thing is designed for. It's designed first and foremost for fun, and fun it is. Buy one, you'll love it. Overall: I was taught the drums/percussion from the age of 11 by an old jazz drummer who made me use wooden blocks until I was 'ready' for the real thing. I lived ate and slept drumming. Eventually, I played in bands and orchestras. I even got close to record deals, twice! However, in the end the dream fizzled out, I needed money and a college degree and an alternative career. The career I developed required a great deal of overseas living/travel. I couldn't move with a kit. Sadly, I stopped playing (except for the occasional event with some random African hand percussion in somewhere like Ghana). Then, I settled down, got married, moved back to the west and had kids......and low and behold the HD-1 came along. After over a decade, I am reunited with a kit and loving my 'born-again-drummer' status. It's a great way to unwind at the end of a hard day and better still, my 2 year old daughter is already learning and it doesn't matter how bad she plays, as no one can hear it! One day though, I am sure she'll be on the road in a beat up old van, en route to the next gig and she'll remember being able to play at home whenever she wanted! Really, do yourself a favor and get one of these things and have fun. ROLAND, thank you C White

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"Don't be scared to part with your cash!" submitted April 28, 2010

By a customer from msn.com

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Musical Background: Hobhy

Music Style: All

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VERIFIED BUYER

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Sound: Dropping almost a grand on something you can't touch can be scary. Don't be scared! They promised delivery from 2 days to 9. How about 42 hours! My son called me and was freaking out cause he had to wait til I got home to set it up and when I walked in the door he was pounding away! Got the personal monitor to go with and it's been great ever since. Good sound, great options and with a good set of headphones, all I hear is a little thumping. Top-notch gear and when he wants to move up, I won't hesitate to spend twice as much. Very Happy! Ease of Use: Just push some buttona and you get what you want. Value: Great value! Manufacturer Support: Guy I spoke to on the phone got me exactly what I wanted and knew what I needed. Very helpful!

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Roland HD-1 V-Drums Lite All-In-One Electronic Drum Kit

User Ratings

"Should I get an HD-1 or one of the TD series kits?" submitted February 21, 2009

"Nice product for getting into electronic drums or as a quiet practice kit to work on your chops without goin to the shed." submitted January 1, 2012

"The best things come in small packages! Big bang for the small buck." submitted April 8, 2008

"Great for price, practice and utilization." submitted November 25, 2011

"Excellent entry-level electronic drum kit for the price!" submitted September 6, 2011

"Do yourself a favor, be nice to yourself, buy one!" submitted September 9, 2008

"Don't be scared to part with your cash!" submitted April 28, 2010