Any drummers here?

Scotty87

Scotty87

Lacks accountability
I'm thinking about getting a kit and taking some lessons. I've played various instruments all my life but have been out of it for awhile. I miss playing music and I've always wanted to give the drums a go.

What do I need to know? What makes a good starter kit? My musical interests are mostly metal - Tool, Slipknot, Mastodon, Sevendust, etc.
 
I would suggest staying away from the complete entry level drum kits with cymbals because the cymbals typically sound like crap. Shell packs from any of the major brands $500-1k will sound great and then look for used pro level hardware and cymbals. The most popular kick drum for rock is 22"x18".
 
Like homeboy said, for anything not crap you're looking at 800-1k. Get a pdp kit (not the shit 3-400 dollar one) with an entry level cymbal kit. The zildjian zbt line sounds decent enough. You'll need an extra 18" crash and a China cymbal if you want to play metal. Buy Remo replacement heads for it and you'll be able to get some decent sound

Don't skimp on your double pedal, either get a DW
5000 or the nice Pearl pedal


Practice daily for at least an hour. It's all about seat time. Practice paradiddles and other fundamentals religiously. Start doing everything left handed. Brushing yorur teeth, holding your coffee, unscrewing containers, etc. you need to train your brain and body to be ambidextrous. Once you have that you can start training it to think in odd timing signatures. Learn how to tune and care for your drums and above all



WEAR THESE

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Have fun :)
 
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Good info right here about the 18" and the china. Def must haves.

Neat idea about doing everything left handed.
 
I'm a big fan of the Yamaha starter kits. I think I paid $650 for mine (no cymbals) and I'm still using it almost 20 years later. I took about 6 months of lessons but found that my playing improved astronomically when I hooked up with a band that had the patience to help me out in my first couple of years.

I started doing the left hand thing almost immediately and now I would say I'm close to ambidextrous. And for your cymbals, you can get one of those cheap starter sets which are OK at first, but I find all of my cymbals at pawn shops.

And I wouldn't recommend this to everyone, but I use the steering wheel of my truck as a drum practice pad whenever I'm driving.
 
I drum a few different styles,surf-punk-speed metal and Highland drumming(think bagpipes).Ive had a Yamaha kit,CB kit and the cheapest was something called Groove Percussion(it was 50 bucks). The cymbals that come with alot of kits will never really be as good as something "purpose built" that are not sold in a set/kit. Check your local craigslist....I see sets all the time around me for dirt cheap,and if its just for wailing away,then hey,why not
 
interesting thread. Definitely practice an hour a day. Try to avoid crossing over as much as possible - use left hand on high hat, right for cymbals. Get used to different sticking techniques. The double base drum pedal can come later. record yourself and play with a metronom. Work on good technique but stay musical. Less is generally more. Know when to be a team player but also be capable of taking the limelight when warranted.
 
Do not skimp on cymbals. Most all low end drums can sound decent with good heads and tuning. Bad cymbals will ruin your life (and everyone around you).

I have 3 kits and manage 7 kits + 20 snares in a studio. There is nothing worse than a bad sounding cymbal.
 
KMC said:
Do not skimp on cymbals. Most all low end drums can sound decent with good heads and tuning. Bad cymbals will ruin your life (and everyone around you).

I have 3 kits and manage 7 kits + 20 snares in a studio. There is nothing worse than a bad sounding cymbal.
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I was very fortunate to spend most of my career...:rolleyes:...playing with drummer who knew good sound in his gear and was adamant about making his tone good and not harsh. He spent good money on good cymbals and his cymbal licks were crystal clear. I spent 8-9 years off his right side with no earplugs. I don't have a lick of damage in my left ear. I really appreciated his stance on quality stuff.:beer:
 
Are you looking for standard or electronic drums? PM me if electronic. I have a full Pintech set. I forget the manufacturer of the brain but I can get it.
 
Also look used, I picked up a sick set from a local guy back in grade school at a garage sale. He was in a big band and finally getting out. Everything was Pearl, Remo, Yammy, top of the line Zildjian cymbals, all kinds of booms, spare toms, more crap than I knew what to do with. And a dope double bass pedal, the only thing that sucked was his stool. I opted to keep my starter drum set stool and sold his with the starter kit.

I sold the set to go to Cancun in Jr High when I stopped playing set and focused on stage band instead. I think I will get a set soon, son's about 2 and I want him to be able to play.
 
Hallelujah! Something on the forum where I am the professional. Played drums and percussion for a living for near 40 years. All styles period. I have worked with lotsa big names but will not bore you with that.
I have 2 sets presently: my big band/ fusion Jazz kit. Maples maple Saturn custom. 20" bd, 8, 10, 12, 14" toms, Zildjain New Beat hi-hats, Sabian 21" ride, Sabian 22" Chinese, A Zildjan 12 crash, Sabian 10'crash, Zildjain 6 splash. DW 2-spring BD pedal, all other stands Yamaha pro stuff. Yamaha 6-pad electronic controller. Combo jazz kit: Gretcsh maple 18" bd, 12 and 14 toms. Cymbals borrowed for the other kit as needed.
Don't play as much as I used too, but have 20 students a week. Best beginner drumset method is the Alfred Beginning set book. The Alferd drum book 1 is also the best one for the hands and music reading (or Haskell Harr Book 1). Get through these books and you will be on your way. Know the 26 standard rudiments (now 40). The Lawrence Stone Stick Control method is also essential. Your hands need to work at control while you are beginning the independence of your 4 limbs. There are lotsa so called drummers that have little hand technique or are limited at independence. There are many drummers to emulate, and most are not you AC-DC Rock types. That type of playing is cool, but limited.
To build hand strength and learn control get a set of 2B sticks or Vic Firth Generals. Once you got it going on, there is no better stick period than than the Firth Dave Weckl model.
If you are gonna be at Tally I will bring some books, sticks and a drum pad to help you understand where you need to start.
Also matched grip please.
As far as cheap drums, the drums themselves can be dealt with but good hardware and good cymbals are essential. <www.musiciansfriend.com> is a good place to start. Run by me what you find and I'll let you know if it is worth a shit or not.
 
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A pratice pad, metronome and sticks is all you will really need for awhile. After that, Craigslist and pawn shops can be your friends.
 
Advice coming from a former college musician (jazz, stage, concert, bar, rock, and every single other type of wind and string band): if you want to be a professional, buy a pro kit. If you want to have fun, spend $50 on craigslist and have fun. Try it cheap first, then expand as your talent/work ethic grows. Don't buy a $1000 set and let it hold a sheet off the ground. Spend cheap, bang away, and if you want to take lessons, take lessons. Most "real" teachers start you on a drum pad for a couple of months, then you progress to a snare, then to a kit. That is the logical and classical approach. But there is nothing stopping you from buying a kit and banging away with the radio blaring in your headphones.

I bought a $50 kit off CL, and bang away on it for fun. I have about two patterns that sound reasonable, the rest is garbage bang donk boom crash clatter (dropped stick and laughing). It ain't the hardware holding me back.

And wear ear protection. Again, I don't need to hear nuances just yet, I just like to make noisy rhythm noises.
 
pscook said:
Advice coming from a former college musician (jazz, stage, concert, bar, rock, and every single other type of wind and string band): if you want to be a professional, buy a pro kit. If you want to have fun, spend $50 on craigslist and have fun. Try it cheap first, then expand as your talent/work ethic grows. Don't buy a $1000 set and let it hold a sheet off the ground. Spend cheap, bang away, and if you want to take lessons, take lessons. Most "real" teachers start you on a drum pad for a couple of months, then you progress to a snare, then to a kit. That is the logical and classical approach. But there is nothing stopping you from buying a kit and banging away with the radio blaring in your headphones.

I bought a $50 kit off CL, and bang away on it for fun. I have about two patterns that sound reasonable, the rest is garbage bang donk boom crash clatter (dropped stick and laughing). It ain't the hardware holding me back.

And wear ear protection. Again, I don't need to hear nuances just yet, I just like to make noisy rhythm noises.
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I took that just a step further and rented my kit when I first started out. I think the rental was $15 a month and that made me decide if I really wanted to learn the drums or was it just another flash in the pan decision. If I found after a few months that it wasn't my thing...turn the kit back in.
 
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