My son wants to be a drummer....help with choosing kit

[Porrig]

Does anyone here have any experience using small electronic drumkits? My son will be 7 next month and insists that he wants to become 'a rock and roll drummer'. Setting that horrifying thought aside for a while( ) we've decided to get him something to get started. I've been looking at the Yamaha DD65 and it seems like a fun piece of kit.

Any opinions? I'm thinking electronic primarily because I don't want to set up an acoustic kit inside the house.

 

[deepika]

that is something good.

 

[playsarobin]

Yamaha is one of the better kits sub $1k for sure.

I use three acoustic kits (Craigslist finds) and a Yamaha electric kit when I teach and have zero complaints about it and I'm working towards going electric all the way around the room.

 

[Stratofreak]

The quality of entry level instruments is really pretty amazing these days, considering just how little you spend today vs. 30 years ago. If a drum kit could have been purchased 30 years ago for today's price, I probably would've ended up a drummer.

I think that going electronic is a great idea. Get him some headphones and everything else in the house remains peaceful.

Hope it goes well and he enjoys it enough to continue learning!

 

[JJ321]

Yamaha makes great kits, as does Roland.

 

[fltundra]

I picked up a 6 month old Roland TD4K2 off craigslist for $600 for my 14 year old and it's been flawless. Great drum kit at the 1000 dollar price point.

 

[buddyboy69]

Maybe look for something that is in a kit form instead of a pad so he can get all his limbs going. more set up like a real drum, so the transition will be easier when the time comes.

 

[niclake13]

I've always used Roland V-Drums for electric purposes. Probably a bit out of your price range, but they make good stuff.

Also, being a drummer/percussionist myself... if it seems like he's going to stick with it, one of these ( http://www.musiciansfriend.com/drums-percussion/evans-2-sided-speed-and-workout-drum-pad ) will be a great thing. Keeps him from banging on furniture, and allows him to practice his rhythm while just sitting around the house.

 

[62deluxe]

Get him a Yamaha first and see if he sticks with it. If he turns out to be good, be prepared to plunk down about $2k for a Roland set (plus another $2k for updated monitors).

 

[JohnnyGtar]

You can NOT go wrong with Yamaha. I've been drumming for 41 years, and Yamaha makes some of the best drumming gear on the planet. (No, I don't play a Yamaha kit except for my snare drum, which is a KILLER, so I don't get any brownie points! LOL) PLUS, a buddy of mine runs their USA drum division, so if you need some extra info, I can ask him for you.

 

[macca]

no offense, but that Yamaha DD65 looks like it will be only slightly more helpful to learning to play the drums than Guitar Hero is to learning to play the guitar. Drums are a physical instrument and if he wants to learn how to play, he'll need to practice on something that makes the sticks rebound (and that feels like) a real drum and cymbal. If you are worried about spending $ on something that he might not truly be serious about, he will be better off with a pair of sticks and a practice pad like the one mentioned above. The pad is enough to get him going on holding the sticks, rudiments, etc. If he stays with it and wants to continue playing, you can then keep building from there, perhaps next with a snare drum and then next a kick drum and high-hat so he can start practicing actually playing the kit.

Why do you want to go the electronic route? I think it is more important for a beginner to play a real drum and cymbal then it is someone with experience, because now is the time he will be learning good habits (or bad habits) and that is best done on a real drum. Once he knows what he is doing and how a real drum feels , playing an electronic kit won't be so detrimental because he'll have enough experience to translate one experience/feel to the other. If ti was my kid (and the noise was not an issue), I'd get a used snare, kick, and high-hat to start him out. This won't cost a ton (relative to an electronic kit), and is enough for him to really practice an experience playing rock drums, and determine whether he actually likes playing or if it just something that looks cool but he won't put the time in. (it will also force him to concentrate on playing rudiments and beats/grooves, rather than just tooling around on the toms).

If noise level is the reason you want an electronic kit (and if it is, how do you play all those guitars and amps you must have if you are here lol), then I would try to find a used electronic kit that at least has a snare with a mesh head and kick drum that hits a real head, not just a piece of plastic.

Good luck; if he sticks with it, you'll be able to jam with him in no time.

 

[ethang1977]

Look into a gretsch catalina drumset. Very cheap price but good quality. All the cymbal manufacturers have entry level cymbal bundles. Avoid any rubber pad electronic sets. Fyi, I've been playing drums for 22 years now. The quality of entry level sets now is very impressive.

 

[jjboogie]

I wouldn't go the electric drum route however I wouldn't get a toy kit either.

Let him learn to play on real wood and metal and skins. Feel is everything with drums.

 

[fjblair]

I also think he should start with an acoustic kit if you are serious about him learning to play. The DD65 is a toy and at 7 years old that may be all you need but it's not a good platform to really learn to play the drums.

 

[cbpickin]

My son built drum kits since he was about 2 out of household objects. At about 7, he had a kit made from buckets, 5 gallon water bottles, wicker baskets, pan lids, etc. He would not relent on his mission to be a drummer, even with a Dad gigging the guitar.
I got a killer Pearl Export set, with decent cymbals and an aftermarket stool, for $300 off of Craigslist. If you think he is serious, commit to a real drum set, IMO. You can learn to adapt to drumming on electronic kits, but I think you should learn on a real, acoustic kit. Feel is everything with good drummers.

 

[Flyin' Brian]

I wouldn't get a beginner an electronic kit. The feel is just not the same. Since he's a total beginner, the kit doesn't have to be huge, and he may not have the independence to use even the basics all at once.

As far as the noise, I listened to it for many years and after a while you don't even hear it.

 

[hobbes1]

I have both acoustic and electric kits. As I drum for recording and more as a "hobbyist", the acoustic kit is packed away and the e-Kit gets all the play time. Also, your son can use the e-Kit to trigger VST instruments like Superior Drummer with a computer. Can be played with headphones or through an amp or PA gear.
My advice to you is to get a basic, used eKit (Roland or Yamaha make great products) and a decent pair of headphones or small keyboard amp for him to use. See if he likes playing and sticks with it. If so, you can shop for improved pads on the used market (mesh head are great but i've not seen any of the new silicone yamaha pads on the used market--i thought they felt great though!). Few things are as painful as listening to a beginning drummer on an acoustic kit, in an enclosed space! I mean painful to hear and the drums and cymbals volume can be devastatingly loud make sure he uses hearing protection if you go acoustic!!!
If he likes the e-gear you get him, he will love something like Superior Drummer or BFD. the sounds blow away any module sounds you will find (even the Roland TD-30 is arguably not as good).
good luck!

 

[levous]

Dont forget, folks, he's 7

The Roland mesh heads and sound quality are ridiculously amazing. So, short of spending $2800, reel it back to meet your goals.

Lets say you get him a nice Yamaha kit and he is amazing. Time to upgrade him either to an acoustic kit or a Roland vdrum.

I'd recommend you find a teacher you like and ask him/her.

There are practice pads that have been in use for decades that have natural rebound but make little noise and are, in fact, pads. I remember the most amazing drummer I grew up with practicing his fundamentals on everything: pants, bus seats, the back of my jacket.

Kudos for letting a 7 year olds fancy grow into something.

If you don't mind the noise, I found that the discovery brand wooden shell acoustic drums that can be had for $100 American are excellent as long as you replace the skins, kick pedal, high hat and cymbals. You don't have to do so all at once. Set up the drums and if he likes it for more than a week, replace the heads. If he still practices and meets his teachers expectations, buy him a nice kick pedal. Finally, if he's going strong, replace the high hat hardware and cymbals. When he turns 8 or 9, buy a new set of shells and you've already got the rest. I love playing my kids set, it sounds superb and takes up very little space. You might even say I bought it for myself

 

[hobbes1]

just as an FYI, a decent used Roland eKit can be had for $300-400. some of these also come with a mesh head pdx8 for the snare. generally, they come with HH controller (FD8) and a kick pedal (as well as the kick "drum") too.

 

[madhattertcm]

no offense, but that Yamaha DD65 looks like it will be only slightly more helpful to learning to play the drums than Guitar Hero is to learning to play the guitar.

I 100% agree with this. I think some of the people here that chimed in about saying "yay yamaha" didn't realize what model this was. If you're going to learn a drumkit, you've got to learn on a kit. That electronic set is no better than pots/pans (no offense).

this would be a much better option to learn on: http://www.zzounds.com/item--ALEDM8PROKIT

it'll at least give him the feel of it.