kirk, i think krzy was sincere about the article. i highly doubt that fade would allow an article bashing a sponsor.
you can say all you want about his consistancy- thats a different issue altogether, however (in my humble opinion) in the interest of good business i think you should keep your word and allow your offer to stand. i dont think he was threatening you- he basically said he was going to turn the isue into a positive and make pace on HIS side (the way you did by offering him free kits) by making an article of it NOW unless krzy comes on and proves me wrong........
just a suggestion, tryin to help maintain peace and all that.... i think this was just a miscommunication.
*as far as the original question-
if you are on a budget and palying with limited funds, the last thing you want to do is drop $350 for drums- thats a whole sound module off ebay. the fact of the matter is that while we all will have our thoughts on what sounds good, you will have your own opinion when you get them- and you really wont know until you buy it. i reccomend you check out the demos and buy a few kits from the styles you like best so you dont lose much if you arent satisfied- and then you can check out the huge number of sites with free samples to get you started.
my personal results were mixed- i ordered three disks and one wouldnt let me load individual hits, only the whole program- and there were maybe 10 sounds between the three disks that i felt were useable for myself- now when you stop and think that they have around 50 kits (i think, dont quote me there- there may be repeats in some) so if the same ratio held up, that would be 150 useable sounds (again, going off my original experience) at about .30 a sound if you bought the whole thing- not bad by that standard. thats just something to think about.
and a lil reminder guys- it IS a good idea to maintain a solid relationship with our sponsors- so love em or hate em, lets make it a point to keep it respectful when we give our thoughts on it......