# Dirk Verbeuren's Drum Setup on Megadeth's 'The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!' (2022)

> Dirk Verbeuren's first full studio album as Megadeth's drummer. Full breakdown of his Tama Starclassic Maple Custom kit, Tama Signature snare, and Meinl Byzance/Classics Custom cymbals used to record the Grammy-nominated 'We'll Be Back.'

**Type:** Album Drum Setup
**Drummer(s):** [Dirk Verbeuren](/llms/drummers/dirk-verbeuren.md)
**Band / Album:** Megadeth — *The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!* (2022)
**Genre:** Thrash Metal

## Overview

Released September 2, 2022 on Dave Mustaine's own Tradecraft label via Universal Music Enterprises, "The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!" is Megadeth's sixteenth studio album — and, as of 2026, remains the band's newest full-length release. Where "Dystopia" (2016) was a Grammy-winning introduction that Dirk Verbeuren completed on a tight two-week deadline after Chris Adler's initial sessions, "The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!" is the first Megadeth album built around Verbeuren from day one — pre-production began in Franklin, Tennessee in May 2019, with the bulk of tracking carried out over the following two years at Dave Mustaine's home studio in Nashville alongside longtime co-producer Chris Rakestraw.

That extended timeline let Verbeuren dig in as a contributor rather than just a performer: he earned his first Megadeth songwriting credits on the album, co-writing two of its tracks. The result is a record where his rhythmic fingerprint — precision double bass, jazz-informed dynamics inherited from his Soilwork years, and an ear for arrangement — is woven into the songs themselves, not just the performances of them.

Commercially, the album became one of Megadeth's biggest successes: it debuted at #3 on the all-genre Billboard 200, the band's eighth top-10 album. The lead single, "We'll Be Back," reached #14 on Billboard's Hot Hard Rock Songs chart and earned Megadeth a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 65th Grammy Awards (2023) — the band's second consecutive Verbeuren-era Grammy nomination, following "Dystopia's" win in 2017. "Soldier On!" and the title track followed as further singles, both charting on Hot Hard Rock Songs.

Mixed by Josh Wilbur and mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound, the album carries a heavier, more modern low end than "Dystopia" while keeping the same core mission: honor four decades of Megadeth's thrash legacy while pushing the band's most technically accomplished rhythm section forward.

## Gear Breakdown

- **Drums:** Tama Starclassic Maple Custom (twin 22"x18" bass drums, custom finish)
- **Snare:** Tama Signature Series Dirk Verbeuren Snare, 14" x 5.5" steel
- **Cymbals:** Meinl Byzance Brilliant Heavy Hammered (ride, main hi-hats, main china) + Meinl Classics Custom Dark (crashes, secondary hi-hats, secondary china)
- **Hardware / Pedals:** Tama Speed Cobra 910 single pedals (x2); Tama Iron Cobra 900 Hi-Hat Stands (x2); Tama Stage Master / Road Pro stands; Tama 1st Chair Ergo-Rider throne; Vater 5B / Power 5B sticks
- **Heads:** Evans G2 Coated (batter)/Hazy 300 (resonant) snare; Evans G2 Clear/G1 Clear toms; Evans EMAD2/EQ3 Black kick
- **Snare tuning:** Medium-high tension for fast, focused attack

### Tama Starclassic Maple Custom: The Full Studio Rig

For "The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!" Dirk Verbeuren expanded to a double-kick Tama Starclassic Maple Custom setup — two 22" x 18" bass drums rather than the single-kick-plus-double-pedal configuration he used for "Dystopia" and continues to favor on tour. The larger studio rig also added a third rack tom (13") and a deeper second floor tom (18"), giving him a broader melodic palette for an album where he had a direct hand in arranging the material.

Two genuine 22" bass drums — rather than a single kick and double pedal — gave him independent tonal control over each foot, useful for the album's most demanding double-bass patterns on tracks like "Life in Hell" and "Killing Time."

### The Tama Signature Dirk Verbeuren Snare

By the time Verbeuren tracked this album he had graduated to his own signature drum: the Tama Signature Series Dirk Verbeuren snare, a 14" x 5.5" steel-shell model built to his specifications after years of touring and recording with the company's stock and boutique lines. The shallower 5.5" depth (versus the 6.5" S.L.P. G-Maple he used earlier) delivers a faster, more focused attack — well suited to the album's tighter, more aggressive production.

### Meinl Byzance Brilliant Heavy Hammered & Classics Custom Dark

Verbeuren's cymbal setup pairs two distinct Meinl lines: the Byzance Brilliant Heavy Hammered series on his ride, main hi-hats, and primary china, and the darker Classics Custom Dark series on his crashes, secondary hi-hats, and secondary china. Running two hi-hat setups and two china cymbals side by side lets him switch tonal character mid-song without changing his physical position at the kit.

## Key Facts

- Megadeth's sixteenth studio album and, as of 2026, the band's most recent studio release
- Dirk Verbeuren's first Megadeth album built from the ground up, including his first songwriting credits (two co-writes)
- Debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200 — Megadeth's eighth top-10 album
- Lead single "We'll Be Back" nominated for Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance (65th Grammy Awards, 2023) — lost to Ozzy Osbourne feat. Tony Iommi, "Degradation Rules"
- Produced by Dave Mustaine & Chris Rakestraw; mixed by Josh Wilbur; mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound
- Tracked at Dave Mustaine's home studio in Nashville, Tennessee, after pre-production in Franklin, Tennessee (started May 2019)
- Tama Starclassic Maple Custom kit with double 22" kicks and Tama Signature Dirk Verbeuren snare
- Estimated kit value: $5,000-7,000 (Starclassic Maple Custom, double-kick configuration)
- Estimated snare value: $400-550

**Source:** https://metalforge.io/articles/the-sick-the-dying-and-the-dead-drum-setup

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*Last updated: 2026-07-02 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*