Bill Ward vs Brann Dailor — Drum Gear Comparison | MetalForge
Side-by-side gear: Bill Ward (Black Sabbath) vs Brann Dailor (Mastodon). Kits, cymbals, pedals, sticks — compare specs and prices.
Frequently Asked Questions
What drum kit does Bill Ward use?
Bill Ward uses Ludwig Standard / Club Date Series with Zildjian Avedis Series. Ward played a Ludwig Standard/Club Date Series kit (24"x14" bass drum, single rack tom, one or two floor toms — no double bass throughout his career) with a Ludwig Supraphonic 400/LM402 aluminum snare and Zildjian Avedis Series cymbals (14" Hi-Hats, 16" & 18" Crashes, 20" Ride, 18" China), driven by a Ludwig Speed King single pedal. Dailor plays a Tama Starclassic Performer B/B maple kit (single 22"x18" bass drum, three rack toms, one floor tom) with a Tama S.L.P. G-Maple snare and Meinl Mb20 & Mb8 Series cymbals (18"-20" Traditional/Brilliant crashes, 22" Traditional Medium Ride), using a single Tama Speed Cobra pedal and Vater 5B sticks rather than any specialized double-bass setup.
What drum kit does Brann Dailor use?
Brann Dailor uses Tama Starclassic Performer B/B with Meinl Byzance Series (14" Dark Hi-Hats, 18" & 19" Brilliant Heavy Hammered Crashes, 21" Ghost Ride, 18" Extra Dry China). Ward played a Ludwig Standard/Club Date Series kit (24"x14" bass drum, single rack tom, one or two floor toms — no double bass throughout his career) with a Ludwig Supraphonic 400/LM402 aluminum snare and Zildjian Avedis Series cymbals (14" Hi-Hats, 16" & 18" Crashes, 20" Ride, 18" China), driven by a Ludwig Speed King single pedal. Dailor plays a Tama Starclassic Performer B/B maple kit (single 22"x18" bass drum, three rack toms, one floor tom) with a Tama S.L.P. G-Maple snare and Meinl Mb20 & Mb8 Series cymbals (18"-20" Traditional/Brilliant crashes, 22" Traditional Medium Ride), using a single Tama Speed Cobra pedal and Vater 5B sticks rather than any specialized double-bass setup.
Which is better, Bill Ward or Brann Dailor?
Bill Ward and Brann Dailor sit at opposite ends of a five-decade lineage running directly from Black Sabbath's doom-laden birth of heavy metal to Mastodon's prog-sludge evolution — and both prove that a single bass drum, played with feel and imagination, can outweigh technical firepower. Ward invented metal's rhythmic language by swinging where rock drummers stayed rigid; Dailor extended that language into melodic, compositional territory while singing over it. The generational throughline from Sabbath to Mastodon is audible the moment you put these two drummers side by side.