10 Recommended Drum Sticks

2025-02-25

Drumsticks are indispensable for drummers and they come in a variety of materials, sizes, and shapes, depending on the model. Sound House offers more than 1,000 different models (as of August 2024).
Many of you may be wondering which model to choose from such a huge number of drumsticks.
In this article, I will summarize the characteristics of each drumstick material and shape, and introduce some recommended drumsticks.

1. Material

Hickory: A popular material that makes up the majority of drumsticks. It is recommended as a first pair for beginners because of its moderate hardness and weight, making it easy to control.
Oak: The hardest and most massive material among wood sticks. Recommended for those seeking a powerful sound.
Maple: A lightweight material with a texture that feels soft and comfortable in the hand. Recommended for jazz and acoustic drummers.
Carbon Fiber: Highly durable material with little variation from piece to piece. It offers a different playing feel from other materials, such as stick-to-stick sound.

2. Size

Drumstick sizes are not strictly defined in millimeters, but there are some standard sizes used by manufacturers such as Vic Firth, which are written in numbers and letters (5B, 7A, etc.). The size is written in numbers and letters (5B, 7A, etc.).

The smaller the number, the longer the size, and the thicker the letters are in alphabetical order.
Therefore, 5B is thicker and longer than 7A.
The most popular size is 5A, but I hope you will choose a set of sticks that will suit you best.

3. Tips

Drumsticks have thin tips, although there are exceptions, and there are different types of tips. Each shape produces a different sound, so choose a pair that best suits the genre of music you want to play.

The green part in the image is the tip.

Round tip: The tip is spherical and the contact surface with the cymbal or head is constant, so it is easy to align the sound grains.
Barrel Shape: The tip is almost rectangular in shape, which allows you to obtain both volume and consistency.
Egg-shaped: This type not only has less variation in sound, but is also easy to express by the way it is struck.
Teardrop Shape: Slightly sharper than the egg shape. This type allows for more subtle expression.
Wood tips: This type is used on many drumsticks. Various sounds can be obtained depending on the tip shape and material.
Nylon tip: Nylon tip is attached to the tip portion. The attack is tighter and the sound of the cymbal is more delicate.