The sound/s are awesome, put it thro a powered monitor with a 15" full range speaker and a horn tweeter and stand back! Just listening thro a pa system with your eyes closed convinces you are listening to a miked acoustic kit. The feel of the pads are great and very sensitive to touch. The only improvement I can think of, would be to make it even more velocity sensitive. The volume levels are about right, and they can be changed seperately if needed (according to the manual)

Mine came with the drum pedals, the drum pedal I inserted into a custom made base, so mine doesnt go anywhere when I am playing. The hi-hat one I swapped for a Medeli hi-hat pedal, so they match.

Its easy to use,set up is quick and simple. I just change the bass drum, crash cymbal and snare sounds to suit me. I like the layout, obviously designed by a drummer (unlike the DD-65). It simplicity itself and doesnt cause confuson when you start to play, its ideal for a beginner, as you get decent sounds straight away and its quiet when turn the volume down or use headphones.

Its very reliable and very robust, as I use a music stand to mount it on. I sometimes do street work with my group, so I wrapped some foam lagging pipe around the outside casing, to prevent any knocks or damage if it got dropped. th

Its excellent value for what it does, and highly recommended as a portable drum machine to used for a gigging drummer in small venues, as a recording kit in studios (no lengthy sound checks needed) and as a teaching module. It teaches u to be sensitive and as I play in a praise and worship group in my local church its ideal.

No dealings with company as I have no cause to contact them.

The color is just right and very pleasing to look at, its design is excellent, I prefer it to the DD-65. I use it as my main instrument and I also have a full size electro kit. Its a brillant designed piece of electronics. I wouldnt use anyhing else!

Active Praise and Worship Musician

Many and varied, but chiefly Gospel

Yamaha knows drums the sounds are great beacause there's a variety of sounds that the user can choose from.

It would be nice to include a deal with the travel case that's been created for it. overall the accesotries were fine

this is a well built product with professional quality

yes I believe it's worth it's selling price

Dealing with Yamaha has never been a problem great service and product knowledge.

When I first saw it a 2nd hand music store i just had to have it cause the price was reasonable. Since I produce quite a lot of elctronic, pop, R&B and hip hop music. I really was considering utilizing it as a midi drum controller.

Hip-Hop, R&B, Pop, Rock, Jazz, Cont. Gospel

the sounds pretty awsome, kickass realism. though, it is hard to get the exact sound combinations you'd want // compared to a set of real acoustic drums

I haven't tried them all, but it seems to have quite alot of features. Complicated to learn them all but i guess that's a good thing. Would be better if you can store more sets of custom kits

As with most other owners say, it looks a bit flimsy, but after whacking it for a bit it proves it's durability. Pad's are made pretty well, though it still feels a bit awkward. The size is also many times bigger than what I expected. Chunky.

Would be better if the price included the stand as well, since having the drumset without a stand is pain in the ass to use. Slightly overpriced in my opinion

no need for support yet

Could do with some others within the price range, but it's still pretty good for it's value

Rock / Jazz / Pop

It sounds decent. I play through a bass amp. It has nice variety with tons of unusual sounds like whistles and woodblocks. Obviously inferior to a well-miked acoustic kit, but I fool tons of people with it. I think the crash symbols are the weakest sound.

I am giving this a slightly low rating because although it comes with foot pedals (the key to allowing you to play it with the same skills an acoustic kit requires) they are really, really poor. You can use all sorts of third party pedals in place of the ones it comes with. I bought a Roland KD-8 kick trigger and a quality acoustic kick pedal and the difference was absolutely massive. Has a very solid feel on the right foot now. I am looking for a replacement for the hi hat pedal now.

It really is easy to use. I record with it and it just goes directly into the sound card with very little noise. Just turn it on and start hitting stuff.

Mine has held up really well over time.

I'd say it's a decent value, but as the technology on electronic drum kits improve this will lose value over time. Considering that this has been around for quite a few years already, back in the day it was impressively before its time.

hobbyist

rock and pop

I have owned this drumset for about six months and it is indcredible. It sounds like a real set and you can modify it so you can put reverb and loud volume and you can make your custom kits and change like over 200 sounds.

It included sticks, pedals and the power source but it didn't come with headphones

It is easy to play and you can modify the features, sounds and even kits very easily, you can have the best sound easily

I've only had it for 6 months but i play very hard metal and i can assure ut lasts very long

I think it is the best electronic set you can buy for this price and the relation price-value is great

never used it

I got it as a present but when i saw it on the internet i thought it was awesome

Active Musician

Metal

Cymbal sound is great but pads don't respond like cymbals.

The possible pad assignments are unbelievable and easy to do. I'm not sure the pads are in the best configuration. I would like the crash cymbal further to the right. The reach is a little cumbersome.

Very easy to start using. All the features can be adjusted and used as desired.

Easily worth the price.

Haven't needed any support so far.

Hobbyist

Rock, Jazz, Blues

good for practicing pro or begginer.

yes you get aset of sticks and of course the moniter that has over 100 sounds to play along to.You can also record.

Yesmade nice and simple and is bound to last up to about 2-5 years.

Worth it.

No.

A lot

PRO DRUMMER AND BASE GUITAR.

ROCK

Sounds very good, hook it up to a PA and you will say wow and choke prolly. The selection of sounds is decent approx 200 sounds 100 of which are standard drum kit sounds, 25 or so cymbals, and the remaining 75 or so bizarre stuff, tambourines, cowbells, hoots and hollers, etc.

Not incredibly feature laden, but hey you're only paying like 2 benjamins on this bad boy right? You can create custom kits, etc to suit your needs, beef up reverb, change pad sensitivity, thats about all youll ever need usually.

Yeah this thing is made pretty well, i have had it over a year and beat on it relentlessly going against everything the instruction manual says and it still rocks hard

This thing is pretty well worth your money if you are starting or you have a big big big acoustic drumset like i do and want something smaller to dink around with

never needed any

I have it, and i think i will probably be upgrading to a full kit electronic setup from roland

Everything mostly session work

These drums definitely sound awesome through a good set of headphones Ive had mine for like 2 years and it still rocks the house everytime I plug it into my amp. I never use the speakers onboard beacuse they sound muffled and distorted. but if you plug in the phones or an amp, you will be pleasantly surprised.

mine didnt come with a stand or a carry case or a power supply but it did come with some low end sticks that I promptly replaced. the pedals work great the hi-hat works way above my expectations, and the bass drum sometimes hits doubles and triples which is annoying sometimes, but can sound awesome at other times. also you can put any drum on any pad. you can turn your hi-hat pedal into a bass drumm and have double bass!! or you can move your hi-hat to any poad on the kit and the pedal will still open and close it! its sweet.

I bang so hard on thes drums I thought my sticks were gonna break. It is very durable. the only reason i rate it a nine, is because the bass pedal malfunctions occasionally, but not bad or often enough to ruin the whole package

I think this product is awesome. I bought it out of a catalog and hit gold. I love it.

I have never had a problem where support was needed.

I think it looks pretty cool, its not plain looking at all. it kinda looks like a toy which makes alot of people hesitate purchasing one. but once you get used to it you will like it.

rock, metal, weird stuff nobodys ever heard of

a slight step up from GM drum sounds

nice bundle with headphones and a DVD

nothing special here. for the money however, fairly nice

NA

recording musician

various

As usual, Yamaha comes through with propriety modeling; a number of great sounding, USABLE kits!

The only reason this got an "8" is slight lack of routing; headphone jack doubles for recording output.

Really improves stick control, foot control!

Sturdy enough for home studio work; I read a review where a teacher said they bagged the pedals to keep dirt out...I would recommend this.

ABSOLUTELY the best value in a usable, affordable electronic drum set: small footprint, some great sounds!

I dunno...haven't needed it for my keyboard or this product; guess that says it all!

I own it!

Professional musician, producer

Yes

Has some cool sounds, nothing to write home about.

Good features, lacking in total control.

Just plug in and play, cool.

Mine still works, i think. Cheap pads and pads are to small for me.

Good value for a starting drummer or practice kit.

Haven't had to send it back... so i don't know.

I have it.

Active Drummer

Everything, mostly ROCK

i like this my cousin owns one and it is so awesome.

i like to play on it i am going to buy one because i am in a band and it is easy to carry.

nothing will break on the drums it is so cool.

i think it should be cheaper. like $175. no less then that but no more the $210.

all

This product sounds incredible for it's price range. I found it to be a marvelous instrument for practice when I didn't have my full set with me. Of course each drummer has his own sound on the acoustic traps that is unique but that aside,this unit sounds like real drums! I borrowed from a friend's little brother to check out when I loaned him my keyboard. I play funky-jazz,gospel and neo-soul and I even see myself recording with this unit because it sounds so authentic.

I would not expect this YAMDD55 to have anymore accessories and features than it has because of the low listing price. I wish I had one of these when I first started out learning drums because of the headphone feature. I started out playing the drums but my mom made me give them up because of the noise. YAMDD55 cancels out all the problems with noise with its headphone feature.

This product appeared to be especially well made,and put together to withstand some rugged use. Unlike some other units I have seen and used, this is not toy!

Yes, see above comments

Not applicable.

Guys, I don't mean to be redundant but,if you see the above comments, Yes, I want this unit.

garage-bandleader, Funk-jazz enthusiast and part-time recording engineer

Funky-Jazz

I am a keyboard player, not a percussionist, and I use this for latin percussion effects, and the sounds are very adequate for what I need. Of course, the pads aren't as responsive or dynamic as a true conga set, but I find it much better and a lot more fun than my workstation.

What sold me on this was that I could use my hands instead of the sticks. I was considering buying a Roland HandSonic, but the Yamaha DD55 did everything I needed at a fraction of the price. A shared ouput/headphone jack kind of sucks, but this doesn't matter to me. I get great sound running this through my regular system and playing through my studio monitors. This unit runs on batteries, but it can also run through a 12V adapter (not included).

Very easy to use. My only real complaint is where they put the dial that controls which drum kit to use. I have a tendency to move that dial when I play using my hands. Nothing earth shattering, but it does get annoying.

Ok, I guess. The foot pedals look cheesy, but they work.

I bought this barely used from someone for $100. Saved me from spending over $500 on a Roland Handsonic.

Other than the annoying problem I have with the drum kit dial, I like it. I wouldn't even mind gigging with it as a novelty.

Recording Musician (Keyboard Player/Singer)

Christian music/Jazz/R&B

The speakers on the unit are ok. It actually sounds better through the headphones. If you take it anywhere to play, I recommend an amplfier or speaker. Overall the sound is decent.

This thing is loaded with all sorts of features. If you're considering buying this unit, keep in mind different websites/retailers sell this unit bundled with different accessories. Some retailers sell it with a power cord and some don't. Some retailers sell it with headphones, sticks and a power cord. Just make sure you check the product desription to see what comes with it. Also, even though there are two foot pedals included, I replaced them with the Yamaha KP65 kick tower and Yamaha FC4 sustain pedal to give the kit a more realistic feel. However, if you don't want to spend the additional money, the foot pedals that come w/ the unit will do. A stand for this unit is a must. Either a snare stand or the Quiklok DS55 Drum Machine stand will suffice.

Easy to use and the manual is very user friendly. It may take a while to go through everything but it's worth the time.

Upon first glance it may appear to be a toy. However, I can assure you it's not. The outer casing is very sturdy and the pads can take a beating. I've had my unit for over a year and it's holding up well. My four year old son has beaten the tar out of it and the unit is still standing.

I think it could be a little cheaper but you won't find anything else on the market that has all the features of the DD55 for anything less. I think it's a great value.

Haven't had the need for any support.

Own it and plan on buying another one.

It's a great tool for the studio or for jammin' - so portable. I'm currently looking for a good powered monitor to use when jamming. Any suggestions? Something that can handle the highs and lows without distorting?

Cross-faded drum samples with level of impact. Ease of use with outside systems - via 1/4" jack; MIDI jacks. My only complaint might be that there is only one 'custom' kit available, and setting these features is sometimes a little obscure - keep the manual close by.

Very similar in concept to Yamaha's other 'professional' level Digital drums like the DTX series. Of course, due to the small pads, and constrained size of the unit, it does not have the dynamic 'physicality' of moving around a full-size kit. And the small pads mean that stick-accuracy must be right on to get a good 'hit'/trigger. Some sounds seem more critical than others. Since I reset the sensitivity up, this is better.

This little unit is indestructible. I had it at a summer camp to teach some of the kids the basics. It took loads of hard knocks and downright abuse from some very enthusiastic kids - and never missed a beat. One idea if anyone does something similar. The ladies at the camp put plastic baggies over the pedals to keep the sand out. That probably helped! ;-)

No support needed is the BEST support.

Now that I bought a snare drum stand for it and a proper drummer's throne - it looks very nice. I'll play it anywhere with anyone (assuming I have a good speaker/monitor output for the setting.) I personally find a 'real' snare drum stand looks much nicer and is probably more solid than the one sold by Yamaha specifically for the DD55.

The sound on my 4 track recorder sounds like a perfectly mic'd drum. My only complaints are minor. There should have been more cymbal sounds. If you listen through headsets, they sound great. I personally agree that the sound is a little weak through the built-on speakers, but what can you expect from those things. I own a bass amp, and I plugged my DD-55 right into it like a guitar, and the sound is shockingly realistic. No buzzing or anything. Through the headphones or amp, the sound is a 10.

Too many to mention, but here are a handful: 1) I've always been jealous of guitarts, because they can bring an acoustic to a campfire and jam away, and I'm stuck with just some lame ass bongos. This thing is very compact, and it runs on batteries. 2) So many digitally recorded actual drum sounds, your head will explode. Hand percussion sounds excellent, too. 3) You can plug it straight into a recorder, just like a guitar, and it sounds awesome on the recording. Not fake at all. 4) Get creative! I plug it into my guitar effects pedal for insane sounds. 5) This is the biggest one for any drummer... PEDALS FOR THE HI-HAT AND BASS DRUM!!! The ONLY reason I bought this is because I didn't have to hit a pad to get a bass drum sound. Plus, if you don't like the feel of the pedals it comes with, or if you want to play double bass with ease, you can buy and use the foot pedals that Yamaha sells for their full size electronic drum sets, and use those.

Plug 'n' play, baby. Manual is easy to understand. Move any drum to any pad. Adjust each pads volume, if you want. Very user friendly.

I'll keep it short. It's a ten. It would be embarrassing to play on stage with this, just because it can never duplicate the look of a real drumset in the minds of rockers. But, every drummer that has busted my balls while I was plugging this thing in for a quick jam, has dropped their jaws when they see how realistic this thing sounds and feels.

You want the feel and sound of a real set, with the ability to take it anywhere and jam with your guitar buddies, now you can. Buy this.

I haven't needed any, which is a good thing. I've beaten the hell out of it for going on three years now, and still haven't had anything go wrong.

Couldn't care less about the "sex appeal". I'm a drummer.

Hobbyist, active musician, in a band

jam drummer... pretty much anything

The sound is clear

The features will fit to your needs

I've had mines for five years and it still works like it is brand new

The internal sounds of the DD-55 are surprisingly good. I use it as a midi trigger however, so the sounds coming out of Battery are even better ;)

Came with an AC adapter and fairly lightweight (maybe 5A) unmarked sticks. I have heard that there are some units out there without AC adapters, so you may want to double check when buying.

It's a pretty sturdy unit. Mine has probably 20 hours of heavy play on it so far, and everything works like it did when it was new.

$140

haven't needed to.

Very good drum sounds, and lots to choose from. The hihat sound is usually mixed a bit low, but that can be tweaked if you take the time. Good dynamics (hit louder, sounds louder). Rolls get picked up correctly.

VERY portable, which is great for drummers who are used to dragging around tons of stuff and spending time getting it set up. Just plug it in and you're ready to play. Of course you'll also need an amp if you're playing with others.

Seems reliable, and pads are lasting well, but wouldn't go on the road - this is a practice and maybe cheap studio interface.

For $200 if you try hard enough you can get a real drum set used (starter set) or for $300 get a new Starion etc, which is better to learn on in my opinion. But if you want a very portable electronic kit with a Midi interface, its a great value.

Looks rather dorky. But does the job.

Drum Rock