# Kill 'Em All Drum Setup: Lars Ulrich's 1983 Budget Kit That Launched Thrash Metal

> Discover the exact drum kit Lars Ulrich used to record Metallica's Kill 'Em All in 1983. A budget Tama Imperial Star, mixed cymbals, no endorsements — the raw gear behind thrash metal's birth.

**Type:** Album Drum Setup
**Drummer(s):** [Lars Ulrich](/llms/drummers/lars-ulrich.md)
**Band / Album:** Metallica — *Kill 'Em All* (1983)
**Genre:** Thrash Metal

## Overview

Released on July 25, 1983 on Megaforce Records, Metallica's debut album "Kill 'Em All" didn't just introduce a new band — it detonated a genre. Thrash metal as a distinct form crystallized here, in a budget studio session in Rochester, New York, powered by four young men playing with total conviction and zero commercial polish.

Lars Ulrich recorded the album in April 1983 at Music America Studios with producer Paul Curcio. The sessions operated on an almost nonexistent budget. There were no endorsement deals, no custom hardware, no triggers. Lars showed up with what he had: a bare-bones Tama Imperial Star touring kit that was the workhorse of working drummers on the cheap touring circuit.

The drum sound on Kill 'Em All is inseparable from this hardware context. Raw, slightly roomy, hitting like a garage rehearsal amplified — it is the sound of a drummer with something to prove and no resources to hide behind. Every pound and crash you hear came directly from the instrument without studio enhancement.

The gear story here is fundamentally different from any later Metallica album. By Ride the Lightning (1984) Lars had access to better rooms and more time. By Master of Puppets (1986) he was running Camco vintage maple with a Ludwig Supraphonic snare in a world-class Copenhagen studio. Kill 'Em All belongs to a different era entirely — the era before any of that existed.

Understanding what Lars played in 1983 completes the picture of how far Metallica's drum setup evolved over the following decade. The Tama Imperial Star is the origin point.

## Gear Breakdown

- **Drums:** Tama Imperial Star (Natural finish)
- **Snare:** Tama Imperial Star Wood Snare, 14" x 5.5"
- **Cymbals:** Paiste / Zildjian — Paiste 2002 / Zildjian A (mixed, no formal endorsement)
- **Hardware / Pedals:** Ludwig Speed King; Tama standard hi-hat stand; Tama standard boom and straight stands; Standard round-top drum throne; Regal Tip 5B
- **Heads:** Remo Ambassador Coated (batter), standard snare side resonant
- **Snare tuning:** Medium tension, warm and punchy

### Lars's 1983 Rig: The Tama Imperial Star

The Tama Imperial Star was the entry-level workhorse of Tama's early 1980s lineup — a step below the Superstar and Artstar II that Lars would later graduate to. Built with Philippine mahogany (also marketed as lauan) shells rather than birch or maple, the Imperial Star produced a warmer, less focused tone that emphasized body over attack.

For 1983 touring and recording purposes, the Imperial Star was a logical choice. It was affordable, sturdy, and widely available. Lars was still a young drummer without endorsement income — the kit was a practical touring solution, not a studio showpiece.

The configuration was a compact 5-piece: 22" bass drum, 12" and 13" rack toms, one 16" floor tom. This minimal layout mirrors the MoP setup Lars would use three years later, though the shell material and construction quality differed significantly. On Kill 'Em All, the mahogany shells produced the slightly muffled, thick low-end thud audible throughout the recording.

The bass drum at 14" depth (shallower than Tama's later configurations) contributed to the punchy, somewhat dry kick sound on tracks like "Hit the Lights" and "Whiplash." The limited studio time and budget meant minimal head and tuning experimentation — what you hear is essentially the road-worn touring setup captured in a one-shot session.

### The Raw Crack: Tama Wood Snare

Lars used a matched Tama wood snare from the Imperial Star lineup on Kill 'Em All — a 14" x 5.5" drum that contributed the warm, somewhat loose crack audible on the record. Unlike the Ludwig Supraphonic aluminum snare Lars would deploy on Master of Puppets, the wood shell here produced a rounder, less penetrating sound.

The 5.5" depth sits between a standard piccolo and a power snare, offering a balance of tone and body. For the dense, mid-range-heavy production of Kill 'Em All, the wood snare blended into the mix rather than cutting above it — which may explain why Lars upgraded to a Ludwig Supraphonic for subsequent sessions. The LM402's aluminum shell cracked with the precision the material demanded, while the Kill 'Em All wood snare has a more organic, slightly buried character.

That said, the snare's warmth suits the album's aesthetic. The production was not aiming for surgical clarity — Paul Curcio's approach was more about capturing raw energy in a limited timeframe. The wood snare's thicker sound worked in that context even if it wouldn't have survived the dense arrangements of Master of Puppets.

Tuned to medium tension and battered with a coated head, the snare delivers the punching accent sound behind "The Four Horsemen," "Phantom Lord," and "Jump in the Fire."

### Mixed Arsenal: Paiste 2002 and Zildjian A

Lars's cymbal setup on Kill 'Em All was a mixed bag of Paiste 2002 and Zildjian A — a pragmatic combination reflecting the reality of a touring drummer with no endorsement deals in 1983. Rather than a curated single-brand setup, Lars used whatever quality cymbals he had accumulated through his early touring years.

The Paiste 2002 series was a natural choice for the era. The 2002 line was widely popular in the early 1980s for its bright, cutting tone and durability — qualities that served fast, aggressive playing well. The 2002 Sound Edge hi-hats in particular produced the crisp "chick" and cutting stick definition audible on fast thrash patterns throughout the album.

The Zildjian A cymbals in the mix provided a slightly warmer contrast. The medium ride in particular produced a more musical, less aggressive sound for the moments where Lars backed off from full assault mode.

This mixed approach would change on subsequent albums. By Master of Puppets, Lars had settled into an all-Zildjian A setup. By ...And Justice for All, he added Zildjian Z series for heavier punch. But in 1983, he was still assembling his arsenal from what he could get — and the mixed Paiste/Zildjian combination captures a transitional moment in his cymbal philosophy before any formal brand relationships developed.

## Key Facts

- Recorded April 1983 at Music America Studios, Rochester, NY
- Producer Paul Curcio — the only Metallica album not self-produced or with Flemming Rasmussen
- Lars played a budget Tama Imperial Star 5-piece with no endorsement deals
- Mixed Paiste 2002 and Zildjian A cymbals — whatever was available
- Zero triggers, zero custom hardware — the purest gear snapshot of Lars's touring rig
- Stark contrast to the Camco vintage maple setup Lars used just three years later on Master of Puppets
- Tama Imperial Star was the budget lineup below the Superstar series
- Philippine mahogany shells vs. the birch Lars later favored
- No endorsement deal — Lars purchased or used this as a working touring kit
- Same compact 5-piece layout Lars kept through the Camco era
- The mahogany shell warmth contributes to the thick, raw kill em all sound
- Estimated kit value: $300-500 (1983) / $800-1,500 (vintage today if in good condition)
- Estimated snare value: $100-200 (1983) / $300-500 (vintage today)

## Internal Links

- [Lars Ulrich — Drummer Profile](/llms/drummers/lars-ulrich.md)
- [Master of Puppets Drum Setup — 1986 (Camco Oaklawn Badge era)](/llms/articles/master-of-puppets-drum-setup.md)
- [...And Justice for All Drum Setup — 1988 (Tama Artstar II era)](/llms/articles/and-justice-for-all-drum-setup.md)

**Source:** https://metalforge.io/articles/kill-em-all-drum-setup

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*Last updated: 2026-06-25 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*