# Sean Reinert vs Hannes Grossmann — Drum Kit Comparison > Side-by-side gear comparison between Sean Reinert and Hannes Grossmann (Obscura / ex-Necrophagist / Alkaloid). **Category:** Extreme / Death / Black Metal · **URL:** https://metalforge.io/vs/sean-reinert-vs-hannes-grossmann Death/Cynic's Sean Reinert vs Necrophagist/Obscura's Hannes Grossmann. Technical death metal's founding jazz-fusion pioneer versus its modern compositionally precise master — style, technique, gear, and legacy compared. --- ## Sean Reinert Setup - **Drums:** See [Sean Reinert profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/sean-reinert) ## Hannes Grossmann Setup - **Drums:** DW Collectors Series - **Cymbals:** Meinl Byzance Series (14" Byzance Traditional Hi-Hats, 18" & 19" Byzance Brilliant Crashes, 21" Byzance Traditional Ride) - **Snare:** DW Collectors 14x5.5" Maple - **Pedals/Hardware:** DW 9000 Series Double Pedal - **Sticks:** Vic Firth American Classic 5B ## Playing Style Sean Reinert (1971–2020) is technical death metal's founding father — his work on Death's "Human" (1991) and Cynic's "Focus" (1993) introduced jazz-fusion harmonic and rhythmic sophistication to a genre still consolidating its identity around raw brutality, proving that dynamic nuance and technical extremity could coexist. Hannes Grossmann (born 1982, Germany) represents the genre's modern compositional evolution — his classically trained, mathematically architected drumming on Necrophagist's "Epitaph" (2004) and Obscura's "Cosmogenesis" (2009) and "Omnivium" (2011) pushed technical death metal's ceiling for polyrhythmic complexity and structural precision to new heights. ## Technique Reinert's technique was rooted in jazz training — traditional grip on his left hand enabled ghost notes, brush-like dynamic sensitivity, and polymetric phrasing that had rarely, if ever, been heard in death metal, letting him navigate between brutal intensity and jazz-informed delicacy within the same passage. Grossmann's technique is built on classical percussion training and open-handed playing — he regularly plays with his left hand leading on hi-hat or ride rather than crossing hands, unlocking voicings and independent limb combinations that traditional crossed-hands technique cannot achieve, and constructs polyrhythmic patterns with genuine compositional architecture rather than just technical display. ## Key Differences Sean Reinert played a Pearl Reference maple drum kit with a Pearl Sensitone 14x5.5" steel/brass snare and Zildjian A Series cymbals (14" A New Beat Hi-Hats, 16" & 18" A Medium Thin Crashes, 20" A Medium Ride), driven by Tama Iron Cobra double pedals and 5A sticks — a jazz-crossover setup built for dynamic range. Hannes Grossmann plays a DW Collectors Series kit with a DW Collectors 14x5.5" Maple snare and Meinl Byzance Series cymbals (14" Byzance Traditional Hi-Hats, 18" & 19" Byzance Brilliant Crashes, 21" Byzance Traditional Ride), driven by a DW 9000 Series double pedal and Vic Firth American Classic 5B sticks. Reinert's technique was rooted in jazz training — traditional grip on his left hand enabled ghost notes, brush-like dynamic sensitivity, and polymetric phrasing that had rarely, if ever, been heard in death metal, letting him navigate between brutal intensity and jazz-informed delicacy within the same passage. Grossmann's technique is built on classical percussion training and open-handed playing — he regularly plays with his left hand leading on hi-hat or ride rather than crossing hands, unlocking voicings and independent limb combinations that traditional crossed-hands technique cannot achieve, and constructs polyrhythmic patterns with genuine compositional architecture rather than just technical display. ## Influence & Legacy Reinert's work on "Human" and "Focus" essentially invented technical death metal's creative possibility space, proving jazz vocabulary and extreme metal intensity were not mutually exclusive — a foundation that Necrophagist, Obscura, Origin, and the entire modern tech-death scene built upon for three decades. His death in January 2020 prompted an outpouring from the metal community underscoring how foundational his contribution was. Grossmann carried that torch forward into the genre's modern era, with Necrophagist's "Epitaph" and Obscura's "Cosmogenesis"/"Omnivium" now recognized as benchmark recordings, and continues pushing technical death metal's compositional ceiling through Alkaloid and Blotted Science. ## Verdict Sean Reinert and Hannes Grossmann represent technical death metal's two defining eras. Reinert is the genre's founding architect — his jazz-informed work on "Human" and "Focus" in the early 1990s invented the vocabulary that technical death metal still speaks today. Grossmann is the modern master who built on that foundation — his classically trained, open-handed precision on "Epitaph," "Cosmogenesis," and "Omnivium" pushed the genre's compositional and technical ceiling to new heights in the 2000s and 2010s. Together they bookend the "best tech death drummers" debate: Reinert the pioneer who proved it was possible, Grossmann the virtuoso who proved how far it could go. ## FAQ **Q: What are the main differences between Sean Reinert's and Hannes Grossmann's drum kits?** A: Sean Reinert plays custom drums with signature cymbals cymbals, while Hannes Grossmann uses DW Collectors Series with Meinl cymbals. Sean Reinert played a Pearl Reference maple drum kit with a Pearl Sensitone 14x5.5" steel/brass snare and Zildjian A Series cymbals (14" A New Beat Hi-Hats, 16" & 18" A Medium Thin Crashes, 20" A Medium Ride), driven by Tama Iron Cobra double pedals and 5A sticks — a jazz-crossover setup built for dynamic range. Hannes Grossmann plays a DW Collectors Series kit with a DW Collectors 14x5.5" Maple snare and Meinl Byzance Series cymbals (14" Byzance Traditional Hi-Hats, 18" & 19" Byzance Brilliant Crashes, 21" Byzance Traditional Ride), driven by a DW 9000 Series double pedal and Vic Firth American Classic 5B sticks. **Q: Who is the better extreme / death / black metal drummer, Sean Reinert or Hannes Grossmann?** A: Both are legends in their own right. Sean Reinert and Hannes Grossmann represent technical death metal's two defining eras. See the full analysis at [metalforge.io/vs/sean-reinert-vs-hannes-grossmann](https://metalforge.io/vs/sean-reinert-vs-hannes-grossmann). --- *Full comparison: [metalforge.io/vs/sean-reinert-vs-hannes-grossmann](https://metalforge.io/vs/sean-reinert-vs-hannes-grossmann)* *[Sean Reinert drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/sean-reinert)* *[Hannes Grossmann drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/hannes-grossmann)* --- *Last updated: 2026-07-01 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*