Kids Drum Kit Advice
 

HI ALL :drummer::drummer::drummer:

Could some one please tell me if any of these brands are reputable and what would be best? My daughter is only 2.10yr - we are getting her drums for her 3rd birthday and would love some feedback before purchasing...

DE ROSA
MENDINE
VIC FIRTH
GAMMON
ROLAND
GP55
HOHNER KIDS
FIRST ACT
GP PERCUSSION
REMO
BRIDGECRAFT
RHYTHAM CLUB
YAMAHA
X8 DRUMS & PERCUSSION
LATIN PERCUSSION
LUDWIG
PERFEKTION
MEINL
FIRST ACT INC.
PANYARD
HONER INC.
TKO
CB DRUMS
DRUM CRAFT
UNION
PERCUSSION PLUS
CANNON
EDMBG
SONOR
HOTSTIX
GIRL POWER
VIC FIRTH

THANX HEAPS!! :drummer::drummer::drummer:
Gretch7!!

We are contemplating Gammon Percussion...??? Any tips on this one would be awesome too!!

I'm not sure you should really be worried about putting so much money into a brand-name when it comes to a children's drum kit. I'm assuming you'd be getting the child-sized ones? If that's the case, they'll eventually grow out of them anyway, and really just will serve as something for them to abuse for the time being. I don't think the 3 year old will be worried much about the tonal qualities of reputable drum manufacturing.

On the other hand, if you're giving your 3 year old a full-sized kit that she will be expected to grow into and utilize on a musician level for years to come, that might be a different story. However, I think it's probably more cost-efficient and insightful to just get a child kit without too much thought into the brand/quality, then allow them to beat the hell out of it for several years. If, by the time they're ready to move up and have shown an actual interest in making drumming something they want to do, you then go for something nice, because you know they will take care of it and use it, and it won't have to be repaired after years of a kid beating the hell out of them.

Kiddie kits aren't that expensive at all. I'd say just go to the shop and demo what they have. If the price is right and the kit functions at least half-way decent, buy it. Worry about a real kit later down the road when it actually matters. Your daughter won't be able to play a kiddie kit when she's a teen. She'll need new drums anyway.

Cheers for that! We're wanting to put too much money into a brand name but clearly don't want to get a piece of crap... I am ordering in Australia online thru Amazon with the advice of a couple of friends who are drummers... Not in a position to go to a shop and get demo done due to geographical location... We are getting a child size kit and have been advised that it is best to get a separate symbal... Just really wanting advice on brands as we have not heard of many of these...

I don't understand why you would spend all that money on something that you don't even know if it's something your child will even want to do later in life.

If she's not even 3 years old yet, I say buy her a cheap toy one and if she expresses a wish to play drums when she's older worry about getting a kit then.

I became a drummer in childhood after having built my own drum set out of cardboard boxes, tupper-ware bowls, skillet lids and cookie tins. "Piece of crap" is probably not a limiting factor in a child's ability to utilize what is there to further his or her mechanical skill in drumming. 3 year old children don't need a top-of-the-line DW kit to express themselves or become invested in drumming. If you're interested in recording the absolute best quality sounds from a high-quality drum set being abused by a 3 year old, you're being counter-productive. And if you're just wanting to cultivate the child into the drumming experience, that kid just needs to be in a musical environment and have something to gravitate to and utilize. It doesn't need to be top-quality. Kiddie drums aren't going to fall apart. They're built for kids. Unless you have a baby Hulk, don't worry.

As far as your separate cymbal comment, I'm wondering if you know anything about drums at all or English isn't your first language. Give her a high hat, a crash, and a ride. That's all she will need. The quality of those cymbals will only matter if you're actually banking on her growing up to become a drummer and want her to still use those cymbals years from now. Probably not a good idea, since she might decide to never touch a drum ever again.

Get her something affordable and let her beat the sh*t out of it. Encourage her, but don't enforce. And like Urban said, there's no point in spending all this money on high quality gear when you don't even know where she will place her interests.
And I don't want to encroach on your parenting or anything, but I do think enforcing interests on your kids is HIGHLY f*cking unethical. Not that I'm saying you're doing that. I'm just putting that out there. Most parents don't even know they do it.

Sorry meant to say we're NOT wanting to spend too much money...! She has played friends' real drum kits and she drums on anything and everything - she has a cheap plastic toy drum kit and she is ready for something else and better... I don't see $150 as THAT much and it is what we would spend on any other present so why buy something else to add to the loads of toys she has and that sit it in the bottom of the toy box when she loves to drum...??

You're right, I don't know much about drumming personally - is that a crime? I came here for some advice not to be asked if English is my first language??! Thank you - I am actually TESOL trained, please excuse my musical ignorance and typo...!! I am not enforcing anything on my kid I am only encouraging her in the things she is already showing interests in!!! For your info - she loves to dance and sing so now she goes to modern jazz for 2-3 years olds, she also swims four times a day in our pool and can dive and do overarm - beats watching F*Cking TV all day don't you think???! I encourage, not enforce - if I wanted parenting tips, I'd ask... Thanx again, maybe I'm chose the wrong website to come for some sugguestions...?!

I agree that you might not want to go and get the best just yet. Honer Kids might be a good place to start, but I think the best is to let her do what you would do and find what she likes. Copmfort level with equipment is really important for kids. A good teacher is important too. Fro more info on beginner drumming, please go to thefretlessmusician.webs.com and see Our Services. There is usually some free stuff there.

Thank you Voojaday for just giving me some sound and non wanky advice - much appreciated as that is wholely and solely what I came here for!!!

Get a djembe instead and find out if your kid has rhythm.

I think you chose the wrong way to respond to the help you came here seeking.
If you're going to be selective about the advice you're willing to accept, you may as well just be deciding on your own.

The advice you have been given is simple and correct. Buy what you are comfortable paying for, but don't worry about quality this early in the game, as it will not matter. If your entire goal is to buy the best quality kiddie kit for your 3 year old, you obviously care more about irrelevant factors than simply providing a means for your kid to decide to enjoy. If you absolutely need the drums to be the best possible brand, that quite obviously speaks more to your own desire than your kid's or the practicality of the matter.
But hey, don't take my word for it. Instead, just think whatever you want to. You obviously have it all covered.

I don't NEED the drums to be the best possible brand...!! I am simply asking advice on a good brand that is not too costly... I am asking because I am ordering from Australia via Amazon in the States so I am not familiar with many of these brands, nor is one of my drummer friends... We only know of the more expensive, known brands so I am trying to avoid those but asking re the brands we have not heard of which are also the cheaper ones...

Thanx Secede, we do have Bongo drums - she also drums on a kids plastic Wiggles drum, a tamborine, her toy Elmo's drums and biscuit tins... She drums on anything and everything including our dogs...!! She is showing great rhythm in her drumming, dancing and loves to sing also - she sings TOMORROW from ANNIE at the top of her voice and loves all musicals, and also loves the Celtic Women DVDs and requests we put them on... I am not trying to enforce anything on her, I am simply trying to encourage the things that give her joy... If she chooses to go further with anything that is her choice to make... I was selected as a New Zealand promising player in hockey when I was twelve - I was also encouraged but not enforced... I did not pursue playing at that level but I continued to play hockey at representative level until I was 18 and socially until I was 21 went travelling - I did not push further through my own choice... I bring my own child up in the same way...

Are there no kiddie kits in Australia? There's got to be a few music shops out there where you can find and demo a kiddie kit. In fact, I think that might be the best route to go, because then you can actually feel them out for yourself and also avoid shipping charges.

Is there any reason you need to order on the net? I still wonder about the need to know branding information if you're not concerned with quality. Why not just get whatever is in your price range and is reviewed well? Your kid won't mind.

Thank you Freebase Dali, yes there maybe somewhere I could find a demo kids kit - I need to look further and if/when we do a trip to the city... We live in a small town in remote Western Australia, we are a 2400km round trip drive to the city, Perth... hence ordering online and Amazon have free shipping... basically most shopping by all residents here is done online & unfortunately you have many experiences of buying things that look authentic and good but when they come you have been either lied to or shafted or you are unable to view well what you are buying - hence why I am asking reputable kits... It is not so much brand name I am after - I am not a brand basher by any means... I just like to know if I am buying something decent that is not going to fall apart and that theory stands for anything I am purchasing... Sometimes you go the cheaper option and in a week it breaks and when if you paid slightly more you get a better product that last... Unfortunately due to isolation we often have to purchase this way... I will do some more research re reviews, I guess it is reviews I came here for...