I was of the hunt for long-lasting sticks and these fit the bill. I have had these 5a sticks for about 2 years and have only gone through about 4 or 5 pairs of them over that time - I use to go through vic firth's hickory 7a sticks in about 1 and a half to 2 weeks of practicing, so these have definitely been worth the price in the long run. Of course being these these are carbon fiber, they are therefore a bit heavier than wooden sticks, meaning that it requires stronger fingers to play things like doubles or triples with.

I'd recommend these if you want your sticks to last, but if you really want to maximise your speed by the tiniest margin, wooden sticks are likely the way (if they're not, like, 2B wooden sticks). Although, If you don't mind possibly sacrificing a bit of durability for weight, the 7a version of these sticks will certainly be lighter in comparison to 5a wooden sticks - I personally haven't tested them out at this point in time, so you'll have to experiment for yourself.