Middle child is hankering after a drum kit for Christmas/Birthday. He’s almost 10. He’s been asking for one for long enough that it’s passed the ‘seen it, want it, flash in the pan’ threshold. I’m happy to buy one because, to be blunt, I also want a drum kit. I had in mind a budget of up to £150, but have no idea if it that’s realistic or not? Real drums or electric drums, either would be fine in principle if there are decent options at that price? Any thoughts or suggestions or words of caution?

Get the quietest ones you can find?!

I’d have right there’d be reasonably decent kits going second hand from those kids where it was just a phase.

I have 3 Pearl Export toms (in black) and 2 kick pedals that have been gathering dust for ages.
Was going make up a to full kit to re-live the days when I had hair!
£50 if you want them for your lad

You might be able to find something on eBay/gumtree for £150; if you’re lucky there might even be some cracked & broken cymbals in there for that price… I’m not sure I’d trust an electronic kit at that price…

For a 10yo i’d recommend a “jazz” kit – small bass drum, one rack tom, one floor Tom & a snare drum, easier to reach the extremities than a full size rock or fusion kit. Cymbals especially can be cheap & nasty or expensive, or anywhere in between

http://www.drumshop.co.uk/collections/acoustic-drum-kits/products/ludwig-pocket-kit-4-piece-beginner-drum-kit

If he’s big for “nearly 10” then this may be more appropriate, especially if you want to use it too:
http://www.drumshop.co.uk/collections/acoustic-drum-kits/products/sonix-beginner-5-piece-fusion-drum-kit?variant=1016281580

Just don’t go browsing the Drum Workshop or Sakae ranges… Or the Istanbul Mehmet cymbals…

I chopped in all my old gear in for the basic yamaha electronic kit with the intention yjat the whole family can have a bash on it, seems to work well and it nice and quiet. About £400 though, but worth it. You’ll need a couple of hundred quids worth of cymbals to go with that £150 shell pack too.

I managed to rack up about 5 grands worth of stuff in my late teens/early 20s.

Cheers for the ideas.

I have 3 Pearl Export toms (in black) and 2 kick pedals that have been gathering dust for ages.
Was going make up a to full kit to re-live the days when I had hair!
£50 if you want them for your lad

Pardon my ignorance, but what else would I need to add to that?

No probs – happy to help get you (both) started especially as you’re keen to have a bash too!
It’s really great to be able to practise/play and learn together, which doesn’t mean you need two full kits but IMO you don’t want your son standing around, unable to play or join in “cos Dad keeps taking over my kit”.
As per JD’s sage advice you need only a jazz kit set up so small bass, snare, high-hat and cymbals would do it.
Just remembered I have a drum stool which you can have free with the toms – PM me anytime

Don’t know if you got sorted but I would thoroughly reccomend an electronic kit to get started. There was one posted on here for sale not long ago, a roland one I think. The ability to turn down drums or use them with headphones is worth it. Most modern electronic kits feel close enough to the real thing in terms of developing technique. Plus if the enthusiasm wanes you aren’t stuck with a drum kit – they’re not fun to have hanging around in our house. Electric ones fold up.
If you do go with an acoustic kit, please make sure kid has some decent earplugs as well. Tinnitus is even less fun than an unused drum kit lying around, I speak from experience.
Hope you get sorted

Actually I think I’d avoid that first kit I linked too. If he’s nearly 10 it’ll be no time before he’s outgrown it, and then he’ll either want a full size kit, or give it up. Both ways you’ll be stuck with a kit that has a very limited resale audience

Pardon my ignorance, but what else would I need to add to that?

Bass drum, snare drum, hi-hat stand, one or more cymbal stands, hi-hat cymbals and one or more other cymbals. If just one then I’d recommend an 18in crash/ride. If two or more then a 20in ride and a 16in crash to start with.

Oh, and some sticks and earplugs

Is something like this decent? Seems to get reasonable write ups.

http://www.musicradar.com/reviews/drums/alesis-nitro-e-kit-635956

Appreciate it’s double my original proposed budget, but grandparents are happy to chip in as well (preferring to get something he’s keen on rather than just buying stuff for the sake of it).

And I’ve wanted some drums for years as well, which reduces my feelings of ‘could be a huge waste if he doesn’t get best use out of them 🙂 – a win-win situation for Dad! Plans are afoot to lend him to a friend of ours who plays drums to give him a shot so he can see if actually playing drums bears any resemblance to what he imagines playing drums is like, which itself is based on regularly nicking the cooking pots and wooden spoons from the kitchen and taking them up to his room.

In fact, why don’t I just buy some tatty buckets and trays and tell him he’s a street drummer like all those Harold Ramps on YouTube.

Looks good for the price. I had a DM6 for a while, it was mostly quiet apart from the kick pedal thumping through the floor. Didn’t particularly feel like an acoustic kit but if he’s never played an acoustic kit he won’t know that 😉

One thing though – if he feels the need to play with other musicians then an amp will also be as necessary as if he had an electric guitar or bass. And you will become his roadie until he gets his own transport

Cheers. If he takes to it well enough to get involved in all that nonsense then I’ll be delighted!

obadiah, thanks for the very kind offer. Further discussion reveals that his mother is much more favourable towards an electronic drum kit 🙂

He went to a friend of ours today for a shot of his drum kit, and he was getting him to see if he could follow a beat and so on, which apparently he could.

The drummer in junior’s first band just plugged his electronic drums into the bass guitar amp for band practice then borrowed full kits for concerts. They were usually playing support act and after a couple of minutes watching the drummer play other acts were happy to lend their kit. The drummer in his second band did the same but had his own cymbals. The third band’s drummer had kit but used the other band’s kit as it was better and neither band wanted to have to change kit between sets as it takes so long the audience can go off the boil.

I’m no drummer but have tried electronic versus acoustic; it’s only the bass pedal that stuck me as far superior on the acoustic.

I’ve done a number of gigs where the last band on provides the drum kit but all other bands bring their own cymbals, snare drum and bass pedal. Common practice at smaller gigs in Leeds.

Pro touring bands on the other hand will normally have their kit on a drum riser and after they finish their sound check, main support band (which is usually the same for the whole tour) will then set up their own kit in front of the headline band’s kit but not on a riser. Support band plays first then rapidly whips their stuff off stage ready for the main act. This is not practical at smaller gigs.

The few electronic kits I’ve tried , including the DM6 kit I had, use a standard bass drum pedal to play the bass drum pad, but I think som cheaper versions may have something electronic which simply cannot feel the same; the hi-hat pedal in my DM6 was horrible, nothing like a real hi-hat

I know this is the most obvious statement ever but drum kits are really bloody loud. Fortunately cheaper ones with smaller shells and 10 year old drummers will be quieter than a full size rock drummer on a big kit but just bear it in mind – you don’t get good at playing the drums without putting the hours in and that requires tolerant neighbours/parents/siblings unless your house situation is unusually drum friendly.

There’s also the matter of hearing – one of my colleagues who’s played drums for 20 odd years just had a hearing test and he has some broadband hearing loss (with a left ear treble dip from the hi-hats and a right ear midrange dip from the floor tom). I won’t go near a snare drum without musicians ear plugs in – but that means you tend to play them even louder!

I much prefer acoustic kits to electric but I’d get my child an electric one. (I’m a bassist really, not a drummer, but I can fool non-drummers that I am 😉 )

OP no probs – whatever you end up buying him I’m sure he’ll be thrilled. Only hope he “:sticks” with it! 🙄
FYI checkout the excellent drummer on Simple Minds Radio2 Hackney concert currently on iplayer/TV red button – great playing and modern set up

couple of quid should sort ye out!

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqJdzYY_Fas[/video]

If he takes to it well enough to get involved in all that nonsense then I’ll be delighted!

If not he can just work on his comic timing.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFZMhe1WeCQ[/video]

I am selling my son’s Roland kit. If you search my name you should find it.
Price is negotiable…
🙂