Drums for my daughter

jellyroll

My 7 year old has requested a drum kit for her birthday. My wife and I were thinking of an electronic set to preserve our sanity. What's a good set for a child to learn on? In other words, what's the Yamaha Pacifica of the drum world? Is it in fact a Yamaha? What configuration would you recommend?

Danny1969

The Alesis DM range is pretty good for the money. You can get a used kit for around £150

PC_Dave

The Yamaha DTX range are good, and you can get a decent set for a reasonable price on the used market - might be worth a look in?

EricTheWeary

The problem with electronic kits is that cheap ones are a bit crap, although things like built in metronomes and crazy sounding kits can be fun. You will also probably want to hear how she is doing so a way to amplify it or at least plug a second pair of headphones in will be necessary. A cheap acoustic kit is probably better value for money and you can upgrade bit by bit - how much time is a seven year old going to spend drumming that you can't cope with the noise ? A flats kit might be worth considering. They pack up as small as electronic but quieter than full acoustic. Not very cheap new though but, again, you can upgrade bit by bit over the years if necessary.

LooseMoose

Try to pick up a second hand Roland HD1 or HD3.  I drum as my main instrument and anyone that tells you those aren't good enough to learn and practise on is being unfair...great little kits and much quieter thanks to the lack of bass drum pad (it's a pedal instead) and mesh snare.

jellyroll

Thanks gents, I'll look into those options.

mike257

If you do go acoustic, I got my little lads a Performance Percussion junior sized kit. Unlike the stuff from the toy shops, it's a fully functional, tuneable kit with a proper kick pedal and proper hi-hat stand, but half the size.  My boys are 2 and 3 and can't quite reach the kick pedal when sat on the stool yet, so would be fine for a 7 year old, although she might outgrow it fairly quickly.

I only paid £50 for a second hand one but think it's about £150 new.

I probably play it more than they do

DrBob

My 7 year old is using an old Roland TD-3 which I traded with a mate for a guitar a while back.
It's OK but I would say that she seems noticeably better when she's on the real kit up at the Music Studio where she has her lessons..

jellyroll

thanks @mike257 and @DrBob.

axisus

Electronic is infinitely more friendly in terms of noise levels for both yourselves and neighbours. Probably easier to shift if it doesn't stick as well!

Drew_TNBD

The problem with electronic drums, most of them are not full-size. You'll be crippling her technique right out the gate I think. You're better off getting a real kit and putting mesh heads or silencer pads on it imho. Cheaper too in a lot of cases.

jellyroll

thanks everyone. appreciate the comments.