# Electric drum kits



## tmitch45 (Jul 29, 2006)

Its my sons Birthday soon and he's been going on about having an electric drum kit for a while but I know nothing about them. We have looked at this one which seems a good sound and price combination but not tried it yet.

http://www.andertons.co.uk/electron...cid642/alesis-dm6-usb-electronic-drum-kit.asp

it sounds pretty decent






Its a more than we would normally pay out on his birthday but Dad has always wanted a drum kit as well so he knows it will be his but Dad will also use it. I've looked on ebay but I'm concerned that paying out £150 to £200 on a used kit may be a false economy due to the wear and tear nature of the drums being hit and therefore wearing out. Also we have explained to him that if he does not keep up his interest we will sell them!

So does this look a good kit for a beginner? Does anyone have experience on this kit, is it good quality? Are there things I should lookout for when buying an electric kit? He will mainly use the kit with headphones but will it work through my old 15w guitar amp or do I need a dedicated drum amp?

We are planning to visit a large music store at the weekend and try a few kits out.


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## Sh1ner (May 19, 2012)

It is worth a visit to the drum store before you make any decision.
I was not allowed a kit until I had mastered some rudiments on a practice pad first to see if I would stick with it, if you pardon the pun.
When I learned electronic kits were just about available. So it was effectively acoustic or nothing. I suppose it spared my parents and neigbours ears for a bit by using the practice pad.
I still use one today. You can take it anywhere and practice as it is quite quiet and behaves well enough. Not quite as well as a real drum but better than an electronic which I always find a bit dead and lifeless and not the way to learn to control a stick.
Every electronic kit I have played with the exception of the Roland mesh head kits TD12/TD20 etc has not had anything like the response and feel of a real drum and I find it makes rudimentary practice pretty much impossible although once you are partly proficient they are ok for playing along but without learning and being able to practice the basics ( single and multiple stroke rolls, different types of paradiddles, flams etc) it can be limiting overall.
Are you going to a drum store or general music shop?
You guitar amp may be ok but you will need to check if the input is compatible with the output of the kit and you will be limited with regard to volume. Which may be no bad thing at first. Perhaps take it along with you.
My kit has a separate sub and speaker system.
I would not be too worried about a used kit, they are quite robust. I think any newcomer plays a bit too hard at first and then soon realises that is not the way to play because it slows you down and stops doing it.
Good luck I hope he enjoys it. It sounds like dad will.


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

I used to have a dm5 mate so the one before this and it was pretty decent. Well made and could withstand a decent hammering (I hit hard!) The sounds available were good but the main reason I chose it was because of the separate kick drum pedal. A lot of kits have an electronic bass drum pedal (like the hihat one on this) and that just didn't feel right to me so having a pad I could connect my regular and double pedal to was an absolute must. 
Has he played a regular kit at all? The only thing I would say is that it is nothing like playing a real kit. The feel is completely different and I found it nowhere near as much fun to play. It's also louder than you'd imagine. The pedal hitting the pad travels through the floor (I had mine set up upstairs) and the rest of the pads can be heard too. 
You won't need a dedicated drum amp by the way, you can run it through a guitar amp fine if it's just for home use. To be honest I just used to play mine through headphones anyway as the guitar amp distorted the bass a bit when cranked up loud. 
As Sh1ner mentioned, I wouldn't worry about a used proper kit taking a battering that's what it's designed for! Skins can be replaced relatively cheaply (and you'd only need to do that once unless he actually stabbed the stick through one...) so there isn't much fear of losing money. Cymbals can crack though and they are expensive so if you are looking at getting one then that would be the bits to check, rather than the skins and drums themselves. I'd say you're actually more likely to lose money on buying then selling an electric kit if he doesn't like it than a £200 used set. Personally that's what I'd get for him to learn on and then see if he likes it but that's just me!


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## tmitch45 (Jul 29, 2006)

Thanks guys for the advice. I've been doing a fair bit of research and there are lots of differing views on electric v acoustic and Roland and Yamaha v Alesis. Unfortunately an acoustic kit is out of the question for us due to space and noise. He (we) will use the kit in a downstairs room on a solid floor so sound travel shouldn't be an issue.

We are planning to visit Richtone music store http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/electronic_drums/drum_kits/ which is where I normally get my electric guitars. They have quite a good selection of both electric and acoustic sets to try out!


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

We have the Yamaha DTX400 which we bought for my son. Like you we were pushed for space and had to be conscious if noise. Very similar layout to the one you have posted. 

My lad sits there with his headphones on and it isn't too intrusive, we can still watch TV with him down the other end of the room. 

He doesn't use his guitar or bass amp for it though as there is the worry of blowing things. We were going to buy a drum monitor, but he's happy with his headphones and so are we!). 

As said above, most music shops have decent and knowledgable staff and if they think one set is better than another, you normally get an opinion based on experience rather that which has the highest retail price.


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