The build quality of this set is very good. The hardware is usually what breaks first on a kit but they seem to be very solid and a year later I can say that everything is just as good as it was when I bought it. Even after countless gigs/practicing hours. I was extremely surprised to see the quality of the kick pedal and the hi-hat pedal to be big and durable. On kits from larger brands at this price range the hardware is usually shit, that's why I went with DrumCraft. The sound depends much on the drum heads you put on it and overall you can get a great sound out of it for almost any style of music. There are some upgrades I would do right away. 1. Buying NEW drumheads. The drumheads it comes with are rubbish, I cannot stress this enough. If you are on a budget, you can keep using the resonant heads it comes with but NOT the main heads (I also recommend getting a remo reso head for the snare). 2. get Puresound. It makes a huge difference. 3. Cut a hole in the kick drum. When air can escape easily it produces a much more flat sound with less disturbing low tones which is especially good for playing indoors. Protect this hole by putting an "O's" ring on it (I used a 5" one). In conclusion. Build quality is top but get new drum heads.