9 Best Portable Drum Kits (2024) – Compact Drum Sets

Author: Brett Clur | Updated: | This post may contain affiliate links.

Portable kits have become increasingly popular for drummers over the years. Whether you’re a drummer who plays a lot of gigs or is tight on space in the practice room, a compact drum set will provide a serious amount of value.

Most of the big drum companies have some sort of portable drum set in their product line. With all the different shell types and sizes available, it can be hard to decide on which one to choose. So, read through this list and decide which one may be best for you.

9 Best Compact Drum Kits Worth Considering

1. Pearl Midtown

The Pearl Midtown kit is small, yet very punchy. The small toms and bass drum have a thick sound that rivals many larger kits. This is thanks to the 6-ply poplar wood that is used for the shells. While the toms sound full and responsive, the bass drum sounds very warm.

The 13” snare drum is the weakest point of the kit. Although it has a tight crack and cutting response, it doesn’t have a lot of depth in the tone. So, it won’t feel like it’s giving back to you when playing like a thicker snare drum would. It’s quite tricky to tune as well.

The rack tom is 10”, the floor tom is 13”, and the bass drum is 16”. These small sizes allow you to fit this kit in the tiniest space on any stage as well as the tightest corner in your house.

In terms of musicality, you could use this kit for any style, thanks to its large sound. It can be tuned high for jazz and low for rock. You may just need to get a thicker drum head to get a beefier bass drum sound.

The kit has two color options - cherry and black. Both have a bright sparkle wrap that looks great under lights. The Pearl Midtown has two bags to fit the whole kit in. However, you need to buy those separately.

I’ve used the Pearl Midtown as my portable kit for many years, but I’ve never played a gig with the snare drum as I feel it will never do as great a job as a higher-quality snare drum.

Instead, I just use the snare on one of the practice kits for my students. I feel it’s more than good enough for a beginner or anyone needing to practice at home. It just won’t cut it in professional situations.

You’d be surprised at how thick this bass drum sounds when you have a dense head on it. I’m always shocked at how powerful the sound is when you hear the bass through a microphone. It’s great for getting an effective tone on live stages.

I wouldn’t rely on that deep sound for studio settings, though. It isn’t as concrete as most drummers and producers would like it to be.

PROS

  • Big sound for such a small kit
  • Warm and responsive tone
  • Versatile enough to play any style of music

CONS

  • Snare drum tone doesn’t have much depth

2. Ludwig Questlove Pocket Kit

The Ludwig Questlove Pocket Kit was designed by Ludwig with the help of famous drummer, Ahmir Thompson. More famously known as Questlove, he is a busy drummer who plays gigs all over New York.

When traveling to venues in New York, you need to be able to take your kit with you on public transport. So, Ludwig and Questlove designed this kit with that in mind.

It’s undoubtedly one of the lightest portable kits on the market. It’s so light that you can carry the whole thing in a few bags over your shoulders with no problem. The shells are made from hardwood and cause the drums to project surprisingly well.

The shell sizes are even smaller than the Pearl Midtown. The snare is very similar in that it lacks the depth of tone that you’d typically need from a snare drum.

These drums sound best when tuned medium to high, producing a cutting tone that works well on those frequency levels.

The kit comes in 3 finishes which are Silver Sparkle, Black Sparkle, and Red Sparkle. Each finish has a distinct color that looks fantastic.

Along with the shell pack, you also get pedals, cymbal stands and drumsticks. Because of how easy it is to transport, you’ll be ready to take on the streets of New York or any other major gigging city.

This is one of the lightest drum kits I’ve ever carried. That’s the main benefit over all the other portable kits, in my opinion. While they’re all designed to be lightweight, you're unlikely to find anything lighter than the Pocket Kit.

One thing that I don’t like about this travel drum kit is the tones are fairly paper-like. They’re like that because the shells are light, so you don’t get much depth out of the drums.

However, these tones seem to work really well in pop, hip-hop, and rap settings. Those styles of music don’t require deep and bellowing sounds from the drums, so the kit works perfectly for that.

Another gripe I have with the kit, which is a problem that most Ludwig kits seem to have, is that the drums don’t stay in tune for very long. You’ll have to tune these up before every gig if you’re a hard player.

This may not be a problem for most drummers, but I’m the set it and forget it type of drummer, so I’m not fond of tuning the drums all the time.

PROS

  • Extremely light and easy to transport around
  • Includes cymbal stands and pedals
  • The drums work sound great when tuned medium to high

CONS

  • The snare drum is weak
  • Mediocre tuning retention

3. Tama Club Jam

The Tama Club Jam is Tama’s take on a standard compact kit. It has everything you’d expect from a small kit such as small drums and lightweight hardware. However, it has some unique qualities that aren’t seen in many other mini drum kits.

The shells are made from a combination of poplar and mersawa woods. They have a quick tone that is very lively, making this kit a great option for live gigging as it will give off a lot of energy on a stage.

The snare drum is 13”, the rack tom is 10”, and the bass drum is 18”. The most unique drum is the 14” floor tom. It has a depth of 7”, making it one of the most shallow floor toms on the market. Although is shallow, it’s still able to produce a deep and beefy tone.

The other unique part of this kit is that the ride cymbal arm mounts onto the bass drum, saving a lot more space from not having to place a ride cymbal stand. The cymbal arm is quite thick and will be able to hold ride cymbals up to 24”.

I found that this is one of the best portable drum sets for tight spaces due to the ride cymbal being able to mount onto the bass drum. Ride cymbal stands always take up the most space because the legs of the stand have to be set quite wide to support the weight of your ride. Eliminating that frees up a bunch of space, letting you fit into tight corners.

I’ve played so many gigs in bars where I had to settle for using only one cymbal due to space limitations. Having a setup like this would have made those gigs way more enjoyable with two cymbals.

The kit comes in several colors with the Aqua Blue finish being the most popular amongst drummers. If you need a compact kit with a seriously small footprint, the Tama Club Jam is a great one to go with.

I love the mixture of woods in this kit. Most compact kits in the same price range are only made from poplar wood. I think the added mersawa gives this kit a bit of an edge over the others with the brighter sounds it supplies the kit with.

You’ll just need to upgrade the drum heads soon as the stock heads aren’t of the highest quality.

PROS

  • Short and lively tone
  • Beefy shallow floor tom
  • Ride cymbal mounts to the bass drum

CONS

  • The stock drum heads aren’t very good

4. DW Design Series Frequent Flyer

DW kits are notorious for being very expensive. The Design Series drums are DW’s most affordable line, offering high-quality DW manufacturing to most drummers.

Although the DW Design Series kits aren’t as customizable as the higher-tier DW kits, the company does offer the kit in a compact setup with their Frequent Flyer kit.

This is the biggest kit on the list so far with its 14” snare drum, 12” rack tom, 14” floor tom, and 20” bass drum. These full-sized shells are relatively shallow, adding to the compactness of the kit.

They’re made of maple wood that gives them a warm and round tone suitable for many different playing situations.

The hardware of the shells is what makes the kit very light to transport around. Although the hardware is light, it still feels like you’re playing on heavy-duty hardware.

The standout feature of the kit is the snare drum. It’s a standard DW Design Series snare drum and it sounds immaculate in every situation. You can tune it low to sound boomy or high to sound cracking.

The kit is one of the cheapest kits on offer by DW. However, it’s still a lot more expensive than most of the compact drum kits on this list. So, it’ll be a big buy if you decide to get one.

I’d recommend getting this kit if you’re not looking to have multiple drum sets. While it works well as a compact solution, it will also work perfectly well in environments where you need large sounds and lengthy tones.

The 20” bass drum is the same size as many bass drums from full-sized kits, so you’ll feel right at home when playing hard rock tunes on the Frequent Flyer.

I found the maple wood to react incredibly well to microphones, so you could even use this kit to record in the studio.

 While it’s more expensive than the other kits on this list, the benefit of being able to use it in any situation makes it more than worth that price. I know plenty of jazz drummers who use the Frequent Flyer as their one-and-only drum set.

PROS

  • Wonderful DW manufacturing qualities
  • Compact kit with full-sized shells
  • Fantastic snare drum tone 

CONS

  • More expensive than the other kits on this list

5. Yamaha Stage Custom Hip

The Yamaha Stage Custom Hip is a relatively new product from Yamaha that is made for the modern drummer. It takes the same design qualities of the standard Stage Custom and adds a bit more spice to it in a compact form.

The first thing you’ll notice is how shallow the drum shells are. With the snare being 13”, the toms being 10” and 13”, and the bass drum being 20”, the depth of the drums really stands out to the eyes.

Although the drums are shallow, they produce a very punchy tone that works wonders in jazz, hip-hop, and electro settings.

The standout feature of the kit is the floor tom that doubles as a snare drum. It has become a popular trend amongst drummers to have a secondary “fat” snare drum.

So, Yamaha has jumped on board and provided a snare drum/floor tom with this kit. It sounds thick and beefy when turned on as well as off.

You can’t review a Yamaha kit without mentioning the Y.E.S.S. mounting system. It’s part of most of Yamaha’s kits and it sits right at home with this one as well. It makes positioning the rack tom extremely easy while it also helps to keep the tone of it.

Some drummers may want a deeper bass drum. However, this one is great if you enjoy its tone.

I’ve personally found myself adapting with the drumming world and regularly using a floor tom/snare drum in my setup. Most people have started calling them ‘snoms’, but I’m not sure if that will pick up soon!

Anyway, the floor tom is the main selling point of this kit as no other portable drum set offers something like that. I think it’s a fantastic feature to have. If you’re not a fan of the sound, you don’t need to use it. The floor tom still sounds great on its own without the snares.

I’ve seen some of my favorite drummers such as Richard Spaven and Stan Bicknell using this kit. They make it sound like a high-quality professional set. So, the possibilities are quite high with what you can do with it.

I didn’t find the toms to resonate much. The shallow depths cut out most of the ringing tones you’d find from other kits, especially from the bass drum. If you want more resonance, I don’t think this would be the kit for you.

PROS

  • Includes a floor tom that doubles up as a snare drum
  • YESS mounting system makes positioning the rack tom very easy
  • Great kit for jazz, hip-hop, and electronic music

CONS

  • Not every drummer will be a fan of the shallow bass drum
  • Lacks resonance

6. Tama Cocktail Jam

If you’re looking for a kit that is completely unique from a standard drum kit, the Tama Cocktail Jam is one to look into. Cocktail kits were a lot more popular in the 20th century.

However, this kit has gained a lot of popularity, thanks to drummers such as Robert ‘Sput’ Searight and Michael Schack.

Although it looks different from a standard drum kit, it fundamentally works the same. The biggest difference is that you can stand up to play it if you wanted to. It has a 12” snare, a 10” rack tom, 14” floor tom, and 16” bass drum.

The toms don’t have resonant heads, meaning they have a very short sustain. The bass drum has a soft pad that acts as a reso head which you can take off if you want to. The snare drum is pretty standard.

This is the perfect kit for busking on the streets or playing in tight clubs. It may not be the best option for a gig with a large crowd though.

I love how this kit can be used for a visual benefit. It works the same as a standard drum set, but it looks wildly different. Most people are used to seeing drums on a stage. When they see this, they’ll be wildly intrigued, making it the perfect option for having a unique look on the stage.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t sound the same as a standard drum set does. The short sustain means that no rich tones will come from the drums. This means you can’t use a kit like this for recording unless it’s the sound you’re specifically going for.

Other than that, it’s a great alternative kit to have in your collection of drum gear. Again, it provides some good eye candy for anyone who’s watching. It’s also a good option to go with if you want to try standing for a gig.

PROS

  • Great for busking
  • The whole kit fits into two carry bags
  • You can stand while playing it

CONS

  • Short tones aren’t great for large venues

7. Sonor AQ2 Safari

Sonor was one of the first companies to have a popular compact kit with their Sonor Safari. There were so many drummers playing that kit, thanks to its light weight and small size.

Since then, Sonor has released it under their AQ2 line of drums. This massive upgrade has made the Safari one of the highest-quality compact kits on the market.

The shells are made from maple and every Safari kit has a wrap that makes the drums look very sleek and professional.

The standout features of the kit would be all the high-quality hardware that keeps it together. The die-cast lugs make tuning extremely easy while the SmartMount keeps the rack tom sounding pure and resonant.

It’s a great kit for playing jazz, hip-hop, and funk. You’d just need to replace the stock drum heads to get the best tones possible.

I’d comfortably say that the AQ2 Safari is one of the top portable kits you can get your hands on. However, the price point isn’t as competitive as the Pearl Midtown or Ludwig Pocket Kit.

You could buy a pretty good full-sized drum set for the price of the Safari, making it a luxury portable kit that I can’t see everyone running to spend their money on.

If you plan on primarily using this kit as your main set, it’ll be worth the investment. However, I wish Sonor would drop the price a bit to keep it in tight competition with the others. Unfortunately, Sonor kits are typically more expensive than the other main drum brands.

Nonetheless, I found the sweet tones to sound beautiful to the ears. I also found the tuning range of the drums to be surprisingly wide. Finally, I think this kit has a fantastic snare drum. Something that most other portable kits are lacking.

PROS

  • High-quality upgrade of the original Sonor Safari
  • All the finishes and wraps look immaculate
  • Die-cast lugs make tuning very easy

CONS

  • The stock drum heads aren’t great
  • Not as competitively priced as some other portable kits

8. DW Performance Series Low Pro

The DW Performance Series Low Pro is another highly unique kit on this list. It has extremely shallow drums that don’t have any resonant heads. In turn, you get a very small drum kit that doesn’t make a huge noise.

The snare drum is 12”, the toms are 10” and 13”, and the bass drum is 20”. These sizes make it a great tool for practicing. If you use it for gigging, it would probably work best for busking or playing in small bars. It won’t make enough of an impact on a main stage.

The best part of the kit is that it folds up into one case. So, you’d only need to be carrying around a single case when going to play a gig. Overall, it’s a great kit with very specific uses.

However, this is arguably the least popular kit on this list. It has a wildly high price tag, and it doesn’t offer the same standard drum set build as the other sets I’ve gone through. Not many drummers gravitate towards this set because of the price and the fact that it doesn’t resonate.

Having no resonance is similar to the Tama Cocktail Jam, but the Tama kit is way more affordable. If you have no problem with the price of the DW Low Pro kit, it’ll suit you well. If you think the price is high, there are several cheaper options that may just suit you a lot better anyway.

Personally, I’ve only really ever seen DW endorsed artists play on this set. It’s a fantastic drum kit, but it seems a bit out of reach from the general buying public.

PROS

  • Doesn’t make a huge noise
  • Fits into one carry case
  • Great for busking or playing in bars

CONS

  • Not great for playing on big stages
  • Expensive

9. Gretsch Catalina Club Jazz

Let’s face it, the main drummers who use compact kits are the ones that play jazz. Jazz drumming requires high tones along with a lot of resonance and most compact kits work wonderfully in that situation.

The Gretsch Catalina Club Jazz kit is one of the most famous drum kits used for jazz in the world. You’ll most likely see one of these at every jazz festival you go to.

The toms are 12” and 14” while the bass drum is 18”. Each of these drums is packed with resonance, giving you a very musical drum kit. The 14” snare drum has a tight crack and is very sensitive to ghost notes. This is perfect for comping rhythms.

There are so many of these kits on the market that you have a huge selection of finishes to choose from. If you play jazz, this kit will be perfect for you. Drummers who play other styles may not like all the resonance.

The signature feature of the Catalina Club Jazz is the booming bass drum. Even if you dampen it a fair bit, the boom remains constant. It’s a big reason to why jazz drummers love this kit. I personally find the boom to be a bit much when I’m playing other styles of music, but it’s perfect for jazz.

I love the depth of tone you get from the toms of this kit. They ring out beautifully and allow you to create melodies from the drums. My one gripe that I’ve always had with these Gretsch Catalina kits is my frustration with the tom mount.

It can be very difficult to get your rack tom set up comfortably as the mount drops a bit every time you tighten it. This means you need to hold the tom higher than usual before tightening the mount. If you leave your kit somewhere for long, it’s not the biggest issue. However, it can get very annoying when you’re setting up the kit in different venues constantly.

PROS

  • Great kit for jazz drumming
  • Snare drum is very sensitive to ghost notes
  • Several finishes to choose from

CONS

  • Some drummers won’t like all the resonance from the toms and bass drum

Common Trends with Portable Drum Sets

The biggest similarity between most portable kits is that they don’t have good snare drums. This isn’t the case with all of them, but you’ll often see a drummer playing a portable drum set along with a snare drum that wasn’t part of the shell pack.

A big reason for this is that a smaller snare drum won’t provide the impact that a standard snare will. Since the snare won’t take up much space, a higher-quality snare will still fit the compact setup.

Another key part of most portable drum sets is that the bass will come with a riser if the size is 18” or less. If it doesn’t, the bass drum beater won’t be hitting the center of the head.

If you’re a drummer who wants the purest sound possible from the bass drum, you’ll need to buy a riser if the kit doesn’t come with one.

Importance of Good Drum Heads

The biggest determining factor of how good the sound of the kit is will be your choice of drum heads. Most portable kits don’t have high-quality heads to start with, meaning you’ll need to upgrade them to get the best sound possible.

Some thick two-ply heads on a small drum set can sound really big. Single-ply heads work well with jazz and an open rock sound.

Price Range of Portable Drum Sets

You’ll find that portable drum sets come in a wide range of prices. Some of them can seem quite daunting while others seem like they’re giving you a huge amount of value for the money. If you’re on the fence about how much to spend on a portable set, you should base your decision on two main things.

The first would be whether you’re getting the kit as a second gigging option or a main kit. If it’s going to be your main kit, I’d suggest you get the highest-quality portable set you can. The DW Frequent Flyer or the Sonor AQ2 Safari would be my choices. A slightly less expensive but still good option would be the PDP New Yorker.

If you’re getting the kit as a second kit, I’d suggest getting a cheaper one that still delivers everything you need it to. The less expensive kits still provide great tones and feel great to play on. They just may need a snare replacement and some better drum heads.

The second thing to consider is portability. Even though all the kits are compact and portable, some are just way more portable than others. They could weigh less or have fewer components in their setup. I’d suggest getting the lightest kit possible if you’re a heavy gigging drummer.

Conclusion

Having a portable drum set as well as a standard size kit can be really beneficial as a drummer. We’ve all had those moments when we feel like it would be such a chore to pack down our drum kits to use at a gig.

If you have a compact kit, you could use it just for gigging so that you never have to travel with your main practice studio kit.

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About Brett Clur

Brett has been drumming for almost two decades. He also helps his students get better at drumming. He can be found on Instagram (@brettclurdrums), where you can regularly catch glimpses of his drumming.

5 thoughts on “9 Best Portable Drum Kits (2024) – Compact Drum Sets”

  1. I prefer a 5 piece kit and all of these options are 4 piece. I have been using an old Tama Stagestar for gigs the last 4 years. 18″ bass drum, 13″ snare, appropriately sized toms. Overall it is at least 1/3 the size of a regular kit and that much lighter. With a mic in the bass it can play anywhere big or small. So far haven’t seen much available in this configuration.

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  2. re: the comment ‘Personally, I’ve only really ever seen DW endorsed artists play on this set,’ be advised the company doesn’t endorse the artist. the artist endorses the product!

    Reply
    • Been playing on my Dixon Little Roomer for over 2 years. Compact yet full sound as far as I’m concerned. I routinely swap the tom batter heads between Evans hydraulics and Remo vintage coated ambassadors for either inside or outside venues. Also mic the kit with only 1 mic; one condenser situated over the kick between the rack Tom and floor tom. Great all around kit.

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