Gearank

Gearank Recommendation

The Yamaha DTX400K appeared on our recommended list for Beginner Electronic Drum Sets in 4 consecutive editions from January 2016 until September 2018.

Overview

The Yamaha DTX400K is a worthy entry level electronic drum kit which comes with many features to help you learn and improve your drumming.

It's the cheapest of Yamaha's DTX entry-level range and some of the savings have come about by only including single zone drums - the next step up, the DTX450K, improves upon that with a 3 zone snare.

The Yamaha DTX400K comes with 10 preset kits which can all be reconfigured using the 169 built in sounds. It includes 10 songs to play along with but you can also download more songs via USB.

Being a compact kit, it features smaller 7.5" pads for the snare and toms, with an upgrade option for a 3-zone snare pad, while the cymbals and hi-hat are 10" in diameter.

One special feature that Yamaha included is the ability to use the hi-hat pedal as a second kick pedal allowing you to play a double kick.

Note that the cymbals are not chokeable and are only single zone as are the drum pads.

Although many customer reviews rate the sounds of this kit quite highly, it's clear the lack of multiple zones means this is a kit you will soon outgrow. It is also quieter which will appeal to people who need to keep the noise down when practicing.

Specifications

• Snare & Toms: 4 x 7.5" Rubber Pads
• Cymbals: 2 x 10" Rubber
• Hi-Hat: 1 x Hi-Hat with Basic Pedal
• Kick Pad: KU100 Silent Kick Unit
• Drum Stand: Steel Rack
• Drum Module: DTX400 Drum Trigger Module with 8 Trigger Inputs
• Module Sounds: 10 Drum Kits, 165 Sounds, 10 Songs (Songs can be changed via USB)
• Extra Features: Built-in Training Functions, USB/MIDI Connectivity
• Module Inputs: 1/8"
• Module Outputs: 1/4"
• USB: MIDI
• Power Supply: AC adaptor
• Dimensions: 35.1" x 22.7" x 12.4"
• Weight: 38.6 lbs.

Demo

The following video offers a good comparison of the sounds of the Yamaha DTX400K and the Roland TD-1K