Skip to main content
Music Radar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Guitar Amps
  • Guitar Pedals
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About Us
More
  • "Worst rap album in history"
  • Superbooth 2025
  • Eilish vs Radiohead
  • 95k+ free music samples

Recommended reading

DrumCraft Urban Beats
Drum Kits DrumCraft’s Urban Beats delivers pro-quality looks and sound for the compact stage and budget
Drumcraft Bell Brass Snare
Snare Drums “An excellent entry point into the world of cast-shell drums, and a clear bargain”: DrumCraft Bell Brass Snare review
Alesis Strata Club
Drum Gear With the same mesh-head playability and powerful new Strata module as its bigger brothers, Alesis Strata Club brings a new compact form to its best-selling range
Alesis Crimson III
Electronic Drums Alesis’ popular Crimson e-kit just got an upgrade with version III sporting new heads and a new BFD-powered drum brain
Millenium MPS-850 E-Drum set
Electronic Drums “Boasts an array of features, many of which punch impressively above its relatively low price-point”: Millenium MPS-850 E-Drum set review
Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater
Cymbals "I love them, they just sing, they’re absolutely gorgeous:" Mike Portnoy just crashed Sabian’s party with seven sexy cymbals
Man playing Roland TD716 electronic drum set in a studio
Electronic Drums Best electronic drum sets 2025: Top picks for every playing level and budget, tested by drummers
  1. Drums
  2. Drum Gear

First Look: DW's new Performance Series

News
By Rich Chamberlain published 12 October 2010

Get a glimpse at DW's latest shells

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

DW Performance

DW Performance

DW has launched a brand new mid-priced kit – the Performance Series. The kit features HVX shells, which refers to the fact that their grain orientation is made up of horizontal, vertical and diagonal plies. All shells are North American maple, which DW claims will deliver one hell of a punch at lot to mid range frequency.

Page 1 of 4
Page 1 of 4
DW Performance

DW Performance

As well as HVX shells, the kit also features Quarter Lugs, which are basically scaled-down versions of DW's Turret Lugs, giving a whole new look to the shells.

Page 2 of 4
Page 2 of 4
DW Performance

DW Performance

John Good, DW’s executive vice president and drum designer, seems pretty pleased with the results. He said: “We wanted this to be a kit that more drummers could afford, but we didn’t want to cut corners. It’s really a challenge to hit a certain price point and not give up on quality or performance. In this case, we really did have to perform.

"We included many of the features that you’ll find on one of our more expensive Custom Shop sets. I think we’ve come out with a pro-quality kit that has its own sonic personality and can translate to just about any genre of music today.”

Page 3 of 4
Page 3 of 4
DW Performance

DW Performance

For more details head to www.dwdrums.com.

Page 4 of 4
Page 4 of 4
Rich Chamberlain
Rich Chamberlain

Rich is a teacher, one time Rhythm staff writer and experienced freelance journalist who has interviewed countless revered musicians, engineers, producers and stars for the our world-leading music making portfolio, including such titles as Rhythm, Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, and MusicRadar. His victims include such luminaries as Ice T, Mark Guilani and Jamie Oliver (the drumming one).

More about drum gear

With the same mesh-head playability and powerful new Strata module as its bigger brothers, Alesis Strata Club brings a new compact form to its best-selling range

“A high-quality solution for capturing your drums”: Sennheiser MD 421 Kompakt review

Latest

“While we were all eager to return to the stage, Sean's health is our top priority at this moment”: Alice In Chains pull tour after drummer experiences "non-life-threatening medical emergency"

See more latest
More about drum gear

With the same mesh-head playability and powerful new Strata module as its bigger brothers, Alesis Strata Club brings a new compact form to its best-selling range

“A high-quality solution for capturing your drums”: Sennheiser MD 421 Kompakt review

Latest

“While we were all eager to return to the stage, Sean's health is our top priority at this moment”: Alice In Chains pull tour after drummer experiences "non-life-threatening medical emergency"

See more latest
Most Popular
Sean Kinney
“While we were all eager to return to the stage, Sean's health is our top priority at this moment”: Alice In Chains pull tour after drummer experiences "non-life-threatening medical emergency"
Suzanne Vega
“It felt like every song was 20 minutes long. It was not comfortable”: Suzanne Vega explains why she had to play her groundbreaking 1989 Glastonbury set wearing a bulletproof vest
syntorial
New to synthesis? This free synth plugin can help you learn how it works
Tommy Emmanuel
“It’s really weird: 400 students asking questions, and I’m the only person there - and I’m the instructor - who can’t read music”: Acoustic guitar hero Tommy Emmanuel plays The Beatles and Oasis as he discusses the glaring gap in his musical knowledge
Steve in the Top Gun Anthem video
“I remember saying, ‘Come on, you’re gonna edit it down to, what, four bars?’ Harold goes, ‘No, we’re gonna keep everything.’ And they did!”: How a guitar hero's epic 64-bar solo lit up a classic movie theme
Paul Di'Anno in 1981
“If you’re a singer, you’re totally reliant on your body. You can't put a bit more distortion on your amp or use effects. You can’t compensate. You’re very exposed”: Why Iron Maiden had to change their singer to reach the next level
Guitars on a shop wall
“The effects of these sudden and unpredictable tariff actions will have a long-term effect on musicians worldwide”: Guitar industry leaders to meet with Trump in a bid to avert “devastating” impact of tariffs
PinkPantheress
“The only difference for me between me calling it an album and a mixtape is what I went into it thinking it was”: PinkPantheress on why her new project, Fancy That, is a mixtape rather than an album
John Lennon
“John said, ‘I don’t know where to go from here.’ So Paul said, ‘Well, I’ve got this other song I’ve been working on.’ They joined the two bits together to make one song”: The story of the greatest thing The Beatles ever recorded
Metallica
"While being dubbed the ‘Metallica Quake’ online, it actually posed no danger": Metallica’s Enter Sandman triggers mini earthquake on its American Football ‘homecoming’

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...