When we are looking at budget practice pads, we are looking for a single surfaced rubber pad, often made of rubber and mounted on a slab of wood. It can be useful for beginners who are just starting and are unwilling to invest in a $50 to $100 bucks pad. Even with this level of practice pad, it is mostly sufficient for most beginners to work on your basic rudiments and strokes. Often you will find these pads having just a touch more rebound than other pads, but it would work just fine.

You will also find the pad to be on the heavier side, but it should barely be a problem if you are playing with the correct mounting (snare stands) or on a solid, stable surface.

In this category, we are generally not looking at the big names and would often be looking at where most cheap things are found (Starts with C).

This ridiculously cheap practice pad costs a whooping SGD$4 (before shipping).

Recommended for beginners who are trying out.

Price: RMB20 (SGD4) before shipping

Where: Taobao

-> Click here to learn how to effectively use your practice pads

Most of the pads that you would see on the market would fall into his category. Different companies might have different proprietary material composition going into their pads. You might also find different pad sizes and thicknesses in this area, which would affect the portability and, often, the pad’s rebound and feel.

Choosing the right pad for you in this category generally revolves around the rebound, where and when you will use the pad (size and volume), and mounting options. Some practice pads in this area include a pre-drilled screw hole that allows you to mount it onto a cymbal stand for easy setup.

In this category, we recommend the ahead double sided brush pad. This practice pad has a decent surface area, a good rebound, and a relatively soft volume. It also offers an alternative coated side where you can practice your brush works. This versatility allows you to have multiple functions that can last you years as your drumming evolves.

Price: SGD 50

Where: Singapore Drum Shop

For students who often travel for work (maybe not for now, but soon.. hopefully) or go for wants a portable solution to use for your warmup before your gigs/ rehearsal. This category is the one for you. What we are looking for here is not necessary the pad that has the best rebound, but one that we can easily carry around..92

For this category, we recommend Sabian GripPad 6″. This pad is small and thin. Because of its thin nature, you can store it anywhere from your glove compartment to a tiny slot in your bag/luggage. The pad has a decent rebound and should be sufficient for your traveling needs.

Price SGD$33.90

Where: Sweelee

-> Click here to learn other methods to practice without your drumset

One of our favorite kind of practice pads when we do speed training with our students, the increased resistance from this category of pads allows the student to work on having a powerful stroke and speed. Don’t get us wrong, working with increased resistance practice pads or sticks (heavier) is not the only way to get powerful strokes and speed, but it has worked for some drummers.

One hack that drummers like to use as a cheaper alternative is to use pillows or soft surfaces to achieve this effect.

We do not recommend beginner drummers to use this practice method without first having a strong fundamental for your strokes. It will often result in bad habits and overexertion, causing your strokes to be inefficient and having difficulties achieving the right drum tone.

For this category of pads, we recommend Reflexx Practice pads. Reflexx is a company that specializes in low-rebound practice pad used by artists worldwide.

Price: USD$59.99 (~SGD$90) excluding shipping

Where: Reflexx

The pads that have we recommended so far should be able to get you pretty far through your drumming journey. However, what we are about to recommend you will bring your practice to the next level. The restrictions for most pads, being flat and lacking elevation, resulting in the inability to practice hand leg coordination or dexterity across the set.

Enter the practice pad set – these pads typically come in a set of four mounted practice pads, along with one kick pad for you to mount your standard pedal on. You are also able to adjust the positioning of each pad to set it up in different configurations. You can go for either a snare and toms position or an extended cymbal and snare position to practice your reach.

One option to upgrade this set is to purchase low volume cymbals and cymbal stands to simulate a full drumset experience.

The pad set that we recommend for this category is the DW smart practice set. Many famous artists have used this set as a warmup set backstage. This set features four pads, each pad having a slightly different pitch to simulate the drumset better. The response of the pads on this set is very balanced and has an excellent definition. We highly recommend this set for home practice. However, this pad’s price is slightly on the higher side because of the additional hardware and takes up slightly a little more room.

Price: SGD300

Where: Lazada (Ranking Sports & Music)

Choosing the right pad that you need very often depends on your practice circumstances and the amount that you are willing to invest in it. Suppose you are looking for a simple pad to kick you off to see if this interest lasts longer, don’t be afraid to go for cheaper options. On the other hand, if you are willing to invest it for the long run, there are tons of options out there to fulfill your every practice requirements. Keep practicing!