The pads themselves are a rubbery material which does dampen the noise a bit when compared to the previous kit but at least for my play environment I didn’t find the difference to be jaw dropping. If you live an apartment complex with thin walls, it may make the difference between being yelled at by your neighbor at 2 am and not, but in a house it’s negligible. Easily my new favorite component is the metal bass drum. It has a very slick metallic look to it and is a lot more comfortable on the feet than the first drum kit.

The improvement in functionality on the drums is astounding. In game, this is what the drums are supposed to play like. There are no more dead zones on the pads. In Rock Band, I would feel cheated on the drums because I knew I hit a certain pad and it didn’t register. That is gone in Rock Band 2. If you miss a note, you missed it. The entire kit feels more responsive and I noticed a significant increase in my drumming ability and score. The kick drum is still a challenge but is more comfortable than before and more responsive. The game does a better job in Rock Band 2 of making it obvious when the kick drum has been hit then in Rock Band. With all the improvements, suddenly medium drums note charts went from being difficult to easy.