Musical Instruments

[PackerFan7485]

I have really wanted a drumset for a long time, and now I am getting close to getting one. Where I live, there are not many music stores with drum sets under $500 or even $700 for that matter and I was about to give up when I got side tracked and realized Best Buy sells musical instruments. I went in the drum room and played the real drums for the first time, and I feel like I had a knack for it and it would be something I would like to pursue.

So, I was just wondering, what drum set should I get if my price range is $300 maximum, maybe a tad more if worth it. I saw on BestBuy.com that there are two sets for under $300, the $200 PDP set without cymbals, and the $250 PDP set with cymbals. Which is worth it? Are they good kits for a starter; and how long will they last if I pursue to go further (If I become a good drummer, will I need to get new drums soon or will the PDP set hold up). And since there is a $200 set and $250, which is the better deal. Would I be better off buying my own cymbals or for the extra $50, are the cymbals going to sound good and hold up?

Thanks for anyone who helps

[PackerFan7485]

Can anyone help me?

[4sdDrummer]

Both of those are actually the same kit if I'm not mistaken, the PDP Z5. The thing about buying drums is that you need to be aware of three basic parts of the purchase. On the Z5, for instance,  $200 will get you the five heads (Bass drum, 3 toms and a snare). As you noted to get the cymbals as well its an extra $50 or $60 but this pack only includes a crash cymbal and a hi-hat. Buying the cymbals on there own is pointless because the third part you need to be aware of is hardware. With few exceptions, drum kits do not come with hardware (snare stand, cymbal stands, bass pedal, drum throne, etc). There is a hardware pack for the Z5 just like there is a cymbal pack, the hardware priced at $99.99. This, along with cymbals, would put you around $360 before tax.

I would recommend saving your money a little longer to get the whole set up because a drum set without cymbals is not really a drum set. You'll be hard pressed to find a complete set at a lower cost unless you start looking into used kits. If you go that route, you might actually find one of better quality for near the same cost because while the Z5 is OK to start, it will not satisfy you long if you really get into drumming. In the long run, going with better quality now will reduce your need to upgrade later. 

[ccox30]

PackerFan -

I am glad you have decided to give Best Buy a chance to give you the best musical experience you can get.  First off, the wood the shells on the drums are made of really makes a difference in the sound quality and life of the drum kit.  It is really worth spending the money on a decent kit rather than settle for the Z5 kit and 3 months down the road decide you really love the drums and want a great kit.  The Z5 is great for beginning drummers but it sounds to me like you really want to stick with the drums so I would make the investment in a great kit.  I have two options for you that you might want to pursue:

1.  PDP FS 5 Piece Kit - This is a nice red to black birch drum kit that will last a long time and keep a great sound.  Birch wood on drum shells sounds tremendous, is durable, and also is used in many higher priced kits.

2.  Gretsch Catalina Mod Black Widow 4 Piece Kit - This has one of the best sounding kick drums I have heard in a while.  It has a great black finish that makes for a very nice looking and sounding kit.

Both of these kits run in the $630 - $700 range but are well worth the money.  To keep your hardware costs down I would recommend getting one cymbal stand, a high hat stand, and a snare stand.  For cymbals, Zildjan makes the ZHT series which are reasonably priced and still sound good.

Good luck to you with the drumming and don't forget you'll get free lessons with us when you buy your instruments from us!

Chris Cox

MI - Knoxville

*My comments are my comments alone and do not reflect the feelings of the Best Buy corporation.*

[ekoldr]

Yeah man the Gretsch Blackwidow hit is dope, deffinately a worthy musical instrument. The Z5 I believe is geared more toward the child who's parent doesn't want to spend the money on a kit if the child wont like it in 3 years. Packerfan had mentioned that when he had sat down to play he had a knack for it, if this really is something you'd like to persue providing yourself a quality instrument  will give you a better playing experience. Might I also suggest the birch shell Yamaha Stage custom kit. 999.99 for a five piece snare and all and it comes with cymbal hardware so only cymbals are left to wory about. Let us know if you need anymore help deciding.

[NetTech]

Might be too late to get my 2 cents in, but  someone else might benifit later.

If you buy a kit for less than $500:

you get into drumming - you will quickly realize that better hardware and cymbals are a must.  The hardware on the drums will most likely be made of potmetal and have a tendency to break, especially with an aggressive taste in music and playing style.  The cymbals that come packaged with these sets sound worse than trash can lids and will also not withstand prolonged (abuse) playing.

you dont get into drumming - you probably will have to give the kit away, or sell it for almost nothing.  Why buy a broken piece of junk when you can get a new piece of junk for only $250?

My advice:

Visit Best Buy often and drive the sales people crazy with your newbie talents.  Keep experiencing "playing the drums" and see if you continue to want to persue it.  All the while, mow lawns, save birthday money, ask for cash for Christmas, pawn the guitar you thought you wanted to learn to play last year, and save your money until you can buy a better "entry level" product.  The Grestch Catalina series are very respectable.  Anything with tags that say TAMA, PEARL, YAMAHA, and some will also include Pacific by DW are also sound (solid/good/acceptable) choices.  Cymbals will be the things that cost you the most and you will want to upgrade soonest.  The entry level packages by either Sabian or Zildjian will suffice for an aspiring drum student until he wants to attempt to start gigging. 

Just remember this - learning to play any instrument well, takes some work (even those blessed with God given talent).  It's hard to want to do the "work" if your tools are turds.  Here is an annalogy that I will tell parents that ask me this same question.  If you wanted to encourage your child to explore and learn from the internet, would you invest in a Windows 98 computer and dial up internet, or instead invest a little more money and get a new "economy" priced computer and DSL/Cable internet service.  Plus, the better the kit, the better your chance to recover a larger part of your investment should your enthusiam wain.

Good Luck!

[PackerFan7485]

Thanks to everyone who has responded. I still am undecided since I am only 16 years old and a drumset is a HUGE purchase so I don't want to screw this up. I have visited Best Buy frequently and I am not sure what the salespeople think, quite honestly, I don't care; only once has one of them asked me if they could help me with anything. I seem to be finding myself playing the Electronic Drums more so than the acoustic, probably because they are a little more realistic for my case. This is because I live in North Dakota and it is very cold and brutal in the summers so the garage gets pretty cold, and my guess is that this is not good for drumsets. So electronic sets seem more worth it, but they are outrageously expensive. The cheapest is $700 and I was strongly considering it until I played the $2500 Roland Td-9 and it makes the Yamaha DTxplorer seem like crap--so electronic drums don't seem to be in the picture.

I am still considering acoustic sets and I might have to stick to winter playing. The other factor is noise since I live in a nice/quiet neighborhood and we have nice neighbors so I don't want to piss them off with the noise (one neighbor is pregnant).

My next question is, what should I do? I have been to Best Buy countless times and I am not sick of the drums. I really think I could get into this and I really want to go further. I am not thinking about the cost right now as that is not my main problem. My main problem is how could I play the drums without disturbing everyone, and if I do manage to somehow create some soundproof room (lol), how could I get them through the winter?

Seriously, as ridiculous as it sounds, I have considered making this little room in our garage that is soundproof or that reduces sound greatly;  I want to play that bad.

[sbb_f1234]

i am interested in grumset too, when i was very young , one of my neighbour ,an old man, always play drumset, and i like to listen to it, but he has died for 5 years,then no one can play it,as the drumset is a classic one. i hope one day i can learn it.

[ccox30]

PackerFan -

I just want to respond to your comment about what we Best Buy employees think about you coming in and playing while you make your decision.  It is our job to help you pick out the instrument that is perfect for you.  We don't work on commission and if it takes you a year to decide which one you want, we are perfectly happy to help you for a year so you can make a decision that you will not regret.  So please, do not stop coming into the store and playing.  Continue to talk to our employees and ask them any questions you may have.

As for sound proofing, a more economical way to control the noise is to get, I don't know the proper name but, they are these pads that fit over the shells as well as a few cymbals and the effectively mute the sound of the drum.  Also, a Plexiglas drum shield is another viable option.

Good luck continuing your search for the perfect drum kit. 

Chris Cox

*My responses are the property of me alone and do not reflect the Best Buy company as a whole*