I know this is a bit like how long is a piece of string but any advice would

For a while now I have been contemplating buying a drum kit , never played before in my life but at 54 I have an urge to learn to do so so I have started looking at costs and like mtbs they can cost as much as you want or very little .

Question is ….. Will a set costing around 400 allow me to enjoy them or will they be hard work ?
Also, if I get into them, will I want to upgrade quickly or could I expand the initial kit ? Or just upgrade bits as they wear out ?

Thanks in advance for any help

You are unlikely to learn properly at your age so go with a cheap kit

This my experience of people who want to play guitar and then leave it in the corner of the room gathering dust after 3 weeks

You may be different but I doubt it

Plum

Get one of these…..
Roland HD1 VDrums

My brother who played drums for years recently got one. He loved it.

SB

I’m 43 and been learning drums for the last few years…I love it. A guy who used to teach me reconed he could get a decent second hand kit for less than £400, so you should be fine, esp. if you hook up with someone who can help you choose.

If you buy decent secondhand gear, you won’t loose much if you don’t take to it. Personally, I bought an electronic kit so I could practice at night and I like it a lot, but the sounds build into the ‘brains’ are a bit nasty, so better if you can use a software VST for the samples.

It’s a great instrument to learn, esp. if you can get some jamming going with a bass player.

Another vote for the Roland HD1. I bought these at the tender age of 47 and I love them. You can run a CD player or MP3 through them and play along in the headphones. Just brilliant.

£400 will get you a reasonable mid range kit, new, without cymbals. Or a s/h one with some budget cymbals. A budget kit comes with reasonable shells that will improve with some decent batter heads over time at £15 a head, or thereabouts. And flimsy stands that can be replaced over time.

Cheap cymbals on the other hand, will always sound like, er, cheap cymbals. I’d advise s/h cymbals from zildjian, Sabian, paiste or meinl. Or a Sabian B8 Plus cymbal pack. Zildjian ZBTs are not very nice

Just remember how much room they take up, and how ****’ LOUD they are!

http://Www.drumwright.co.UK or http://www.drumshop.co.UK for some examples.

I’m a sound engineer and love Electronica music (Alex twin, squarepusher & Luke vibert to name a few) but please don’t think any form of wired synth will replicate the energy and velocity of a drum kit. I’ve worked with both for 15 years

That said they are excellent, uses less room and can play without disturbing anyone. Good luck and your never too old to learn to play an instrument

I have a Roldan TD-12 and a Tama Starclassic Maple Custom.

Both have their place, as a beginer the basic Roland HD1 is fun, but its not like a really kit, you have to go up to the TD-9 to get something decent both in sound and playing performance.

The benifits of controling the sound cannont be underestimated, an acoustic kit is loud, there is no getting round it unless you build a nuclear bunker to play in.

Look for a second hand acoustice kit, you should get somwthing decent for £400 with all the bits you need to get started, but if you think soundproofing and noise is an issue then go for the Roland.

Your never to old to learn to play, go for it.

I have a Mapex Meridian Birch kit with Black Panther snare and a mix of Sabian & Zildjian cymbals; I also had an Alesis DM5 Pro electronic kit, which frankly I hated. Like playing rubber bricks. I got rid of the Alesis kit.

I’ve got a Sonor Force Birch kit which has the most unbelievable projection of any shells I have ever had. Yes what I mean is it is the most funkin loud kit I have ever had ! Thankfully i have a well noiseproofed mancave which it lives in so can play it regularly. Nothing to me beats the feel of a real kit. And you are never too old and anyway, who cares – life is for living.