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Gear Review: Roland VAD307 V-Drums Acoustic Design

By Magesh MageshContributing Author

Photo Source: Roland

The Roland VAD307 is a professional electric drum kit perfect for gigs, the studio, and home practice. It allows you to use your own sounds so you won't need to upgrade if you purchase this kit. The shells on the toms and the bass drum are deep like an acoustic drum set. This changes the resistance of the pads creating an excellent user experience. It has many advanced features like USB and midi which justify the price.

Roland VAD307 E-Drum Set see price

The Pads

Most electric kits have single-triggered pads and a dual-triggered snare. The VAD-307 includes dual triggers on the tom pads which is amazing! I found this useful in the studio where I could assign a pad to be a small tom and also a woodblock. This cut down the amount of over-dub tracks I needed to do. Having the pads have shells like an acoustic drumset is a nice touch. You can feel the difference when laying into each drum. Having the snare drum 12 inches, the mounted toms 10 inches, and floor tom 12 inches made it feel like an acoustic drumset.

Cymbals

The crash and ride cymbal are thinner on the VAD-307. This makes them easier to play. They also vibrate the way a metal cymbal would. In the past, I felt it takes time to adjust to going from an acoustic kit to an electric kit. This wasn't the case with the VAD-307. Having the cymbals dual triggered means you can clearly hear the difference when playing the edge and bell of the crash.

Hi Hat Pedal

The Roland VAD307 E-Drum Set has a metal hi-hat stand which is incredibly sturdy. I like the idea of mounting the model of it as it meant I could get it close enough to me to change sounds quickly. Having 12-inch hi-hats is great as I felt 10-inch hi-hats on other kits are too small to play intricate patterns on. The hi-hats are also dual-triggered. Of all the electric kits I have played, I felt the response was closest to an acoustic kit on the VAD-307.

Bass drum

The bass drum for the VAD-307 is 18 inches by 7 inches. This was my favorite part of the kit! A common problem with many electric kits is the bass drum pad starts moving if you play with a lot of force. This is a major gripe of rock drummers! The bass drum for the VAD-307 responds exactly like an acoustic bass drum. I felt it made playing this kit more enjoyable as I didn't have to worry about anything moving in the middle of a song.

The Stands

What is interesting about the VAD-307 is it doesn't come with a rack system! This is a game changer because it means you can place each drum exactly where you want it. The majority of the time, having a rack system compromises how high and how far away you can have each drum. I should also point out that the stands are double-braced. This is excellent for rock or metal drummers who play with a lot of force. Having boom stands on the cymbals means you don't have to overreach to play the crash or the ride.

The Module

Although the module has many advanced features it is still very user-friendly. Having Bluetooth and wireless functions makes playing songs on your phone very easy. The midi function allows you to import your own sounds. This to me is the best feature because it means the possibilities to create are endless. Another thing that impressed me was how much control you had over each drum sound. You can have a snare drum 'pop' for funk beats or let the snare wires 'rattle' for rock beats. Being able to add reverb and compression to your drumkits is a dream when playing in the studio.

Notable features

The real 18-inch bass drum was my favorite feature of the Roland VAD307 E-Drum Set. This is what I felt separated it from other electric kits. Having stands instead of a rack was also a massive bonus for me. Having 70 preset kits and 50 user kits means there is something for everyone regardless if you play jazz, funk, rock, drum n bass, or reggae.
 

Rating

Build quality: 10/10

Price: 9/10

Functionality: 8/10

User experience: 10/10 

Roland VAD307 E-Drum Set see price

About Magesh Magesh

Magesh is a musician and producer who has worked with Rihanna, Lionel Richie, Ricky Martin, Chris Brown, The Pussy Cat Dolls, Nelly Furtado, and Vernon Reid of Living Colour. He released an instructional drumming DVD called "Unique Beats" where he mixed the drum kit with electronics and Indian hand percussion. He recently moved from Australia to the UK to explore new musical opportunities.
Website: mageshdrumteacher.co.uk

Contact Magesh Magesh at magesh.magesh7@gmail.com

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