When looking for an electronic drum kit you will come across many different options, but a lesser known category is that of the Mobile Drums. These are handy electronic drum kits that you can easily take with you or store away. The sounds are just as realistic as with a real electronic drum kit and the kits are very easy to take with you and store away.
Mobile drum kits can provide a solution in the following situations:
- You live in a space where neither an acoustic nor an electronic drum kit fits, for example an apartment or studio, but you would like to (learn to) play the drums
- You are a music producer and want to be able to easily record your drum parts via MIDI
- You want to be able to practice on the go, for example before a show
- You want to be able to practice at any time of the day without having to sit behind a drum kit
The Millennium MD-90 is a mobile electronic drum kit that has been on the market for some time now and comes from Millenium, the house brand of music store Thomann.
Now that I have had the MD-90 at home for a few weeks, I will share my experiences with you in this review.
In this blog
Millennium MD-90
Review
The MD-90 is a compact and basic mobile drum kit with realistic sounds. Plus points are the ability to easily take the kit with you and the pedals that respond well to foot movement, unlike the Millennium MD-100.
This kit won't replace a real electronic drum kit, but for the drummer with limited living space it's a perfect solution.
Pros
- Compact and mobile electronic drum kit with a good price
- Realistic sounding noises
- Easy to carry
- Built-in speakers
- Pedals respond well
Cons
- Hi-hat pad is in an illogical place (to the right of the snare), which makes certain playing techniques impossible
- Kit contains 1 crash
- Kit cannot be mounted on a snare stand
Pros and Cons of the Millenium MD-90
Since this review concerns a portable electronic drum kit, I have reviewed this kit differently than other electronic drum kits. A portable drum kit is a completely different type of instrument that you cannot expect to play exactly like a real drum kit.
Earlier I tried the Millennium MD-100 which I was quite pleased with. I expected to be less enthusiastic about the MD-90, but the opposite turned out to be true; the MD-90 comes very close to the MD-100.
What immediately struck me was the realistic sounds and the wide range of kits (45). The sounds are clear and of good quality.
Where I was not satisfied with the quality of the MD-100 foot pedals, I am much more enthusiastic about this kit. The pedals respond well to your foot movement, which was often not the case with the MD-100.
What I am less happy about is the position of the hihat pad. It is in the middle, which is not a logical place for a hihat. Also, this kit contains less pads than the MD-100, so you have to make do with one crash less.
Another disadvantage is that the Millenium MD-90 cannot be mounted on a snare stand. In the video I have the MD-90 on a drum throne, which works fine. A side table should also work.
What's in the box?
- Millenium MD-90 Mobile Drum Set
- 1x Hihat pedal
- 1x Bass drum pedal
- 1x Drumsticks
- Power cord
- Manual
💡 The Millenium MD-90 is the predecessor to the recently released Millennium MD-100, a mobile electronic drum kit with mesh heads and more sounds.
Toms and Cymbals
The Millennium MD-90 consists of the standard setup of a drum kit, namely a snare, three toms, a hihat and two cymbals. The hihat is in my opinion somewhat illogically positioned, because as a drummer you usually cross your arms while playing on the hihat.
All pads are velocity-sensitive, so they respond differently when you strike them hard or soft.
Rubber Pads
The pads of the Millenium MD-90 are made of rubber. This gives a little more sound to the surroundings, but is not audible to you if you wear good headphones.
The pads are not very big, but not too small either. It is important that you look at the drum kit when you play, otherwise you run the risk of missing the mark.
Three Cymbal Pads
The 3 smaller pads represent the cymbals. Of course, these do not move, so this cannot be compared to an acoustic or electronic drum kit.
The pads are all single-zone, so you won't be able to create a "ping" sound on the ride. The cymbal pads react the same as the tom pads.
Kick and Hihat Trigger Pedals
The two pedals included are trigger pedals, which send the signal directly to the integrated module. The pedals are of added value so that you not only train your hand coordination, but also your feet. The kit is therefore certainly suitable for learn to play drums.
The pedals respond well, but only if you lift your foot properly when the pedal is not in use. When you first use the kit, this takes some getting used to.
Integrated Module
The kit includes an integrated module that has a surprising number of functions and sounds, including a recording function, hand-perc mode and a metronome.
45 Versatile Kits
The kit comes with 45 preset kits. All genres are represented, such as Dance, Pop, Rock, Jazz, Metal, etc. Many other sounds are available, such as World Music, Percussion, Vibraphone or Techno.
In addition to the 45 kits, there is also the possibility to compose 5 of your own kits. You can create these kits yourself with the 265 included sounds.
Metronome
The integrated metronome allows you to work on your timing. The metronome gives you the choice of two types of sounds: the familiar "click" or a human voice counting "1, 2, 3, 4".
The sound of the metronome has a clear and distinct sound.
Connections
The module has 5 different connections:
- Power connection (power supply)
- USB-MIDI (allows you to import the drum kit sounds to your PC)
- 3.5 mm stereo jack aux in (to connect your smartphone so you can play along with your favorite music)
- 3.5mm stereo jack headphone output (for headphones )
- 2x input for kick and hi-hat pedals
Overall playing feeling
Not all electronic drum kits are of good and durable quality. With the Millenium MD-90 I am very pleased with this: the kit feels solid and can withstand a knock.
A portable electronic drum kit will never feel exactly like a real drum kit, but with the MD-90 you come very close. Especially kits 1 (Standard), 7 (Jazz Brush) or 35 (Live) sound surprisingly realistic.
The Millenium MD-90 is in my opinion really suitable for learning drums, working on your coordination or as a warm-up for a show. It can also be ideal when you are a drummer or producer writing music and want to quickly try or record a groove.
Hihat and Kick Pedal
The kick and hihat pedals are easy to connect to the back of the module. It is advisable to place the pedals on a non-slip surface to prevent them from sliding.
The pedals are self-explanatory: when you press them with your foot, a signal is sent to the module, which picks it up immediately without delay.
The Millenium MD-90's pedals can't be compared to real drum pedals, but in this case they do their job well.
Which surface is suitable?
The Millenium MD-90, unlike other mobile drum kits, cannot be mounted on a snare stand. In my opinion, this is a disadvantage of the kit, because it gives you a little less freedom to position the kit as you want.
I myself have put the kit on another drum throne, but a side table or chair is ideal. You can also consider a percussion table (best option), such as the Thomann PT-100 Percussion Table.
What alternatives are there?
If the Millenium MD-90 isn't quite your kind of drum kit, there are a number of alternatives available.
Millennium MD-100
The Millenium MD-100 is an upgrade to the MD-90. The MD-100 has mesh heads (unique to table drum kits) and an extra pad, giving you two crashes. It also has significantly more sounds and kits.
The MD-100 also looks nicer in my opinion thanks to the blue light strip, but is also a bit more expensive.
Yamaha DD-75
Another alternative is the Yamaha DD-75. Yamaha is a leading brand in the music industry, so you know you're in good hands when it comes to quality. An advantage of the DD-75 is that you can use it on batteries.
This drum kit contains many kits (75 pieces) and you still have room to put together 10 different kits according to your own wishes.
Conclusion
Overall, I'm pleased with the Millenium MD-90, although I honestly had low expectations as I previously tried the MD-100.
The rubber pads I like them and they respond accurately to every stroke. The mesh heads are not a loss in this case. With a compact kit like this you can experience the feeling of drumming very well and work on your skills.
The position of the hi-hat could have been different in my opinion. It is illogical to place a hihat in the middle of the setup.
The easy take along of the kit is really a plus. This kit is easy to take out of the closet so you can play right away, something that cannot be compared with any other drum kit.
In my opinion, the Millenium MD-90 is a suitable solution for drummers who do not have room for a full-fledged kit, but still want to drum.
If you do have the space, I would consider a full-fledged drum kit like the Millenium MPS-450, Roland TD-02K or the Alesis Nitro Max, ultimately that is the most realistic option.
