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Thread: New here...recurring theme?

  1. #1

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    Default New here...recurring theme?

    Hi folks,

    Ok, so I am new here. First, a little background:

    I am a father of two boys, 39 yrs of age, ( seems to be quite a few of us "older-ish" guys jumping on the drums lately), from Montreal Canada. I am looking to buy a drum kit primarily for my youngest son ( 6 yrs old ) who has shown quite a bit of interest in playing drums ( or at least pounding on something other than his older brother), as he pretty much plays air drums to every song on the radio.

    I am primarily a bass player, and have been playing for about 30 years, give or take...have done the club circuit thing many years and now just play with a few other guys just for fun, but the drums have always interested me also...enough so that I know I can play simple stuff, as I have sometimes switched with the drummer to play basic songs during jam sessions.

    Here's the thing...I dont know if my younger son will develop a passion for the drums, but I know that I would certainly love to have a kit to improve my own skills.

    The kit that I have been looking at is a Roland TD-4K kit, mainly since...

    A) having an electronic kit will allow my wife to maintain her sanity while my son learns how to play and...

    B) will also allow me to play till the wee hours and not get kicked out of the house. I know that an acoustic set will generally cost me less, but can get noisy REAL fast in the hands of a 6 year old, and the versatility factor of the electric kit is attractive to me...and if Im going to invest, I might as well buy the best brand.

    What are your thoughts on this kit, or do you have a better suggestion?

    Thanks in advance,

    John

    PS: awesome forum you guys have here. I have been lurking for a few days and am blown away by the resourcefulness of it all.

  2. #2

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Welcome to the forum John! I think you have it well thought out. An E-kit would be a great place for a 6yr old to start without driving your wife up the walls. I see little kids in guitar center all the time playing on the electronic kits. I think they are facinated with all of the sounds you can change the pads to. I think it may defintely keep him more occupied and less likely to get bored with it and give up. Of course I would also suggest getting him started on some lessons as well as he will progress at a much faster rate, thus keeping him more motivated to stick with it.

    I'm not the best person to give a review of the TD-4k, though I'm sure someone on the board has one and can chime in with a good review. Roland is certainly the top dog in the E-kit world though, and everything I have ever played on sounded great and was very user friendly.

  3. #3

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Welcome John! The Roland is a great choice in E-kits. It will keep the noise within the confines of the headphones. Please monitor the headphone levels when your youngest is playing so the ears don't suffer hearing loss.

    The rubber pads are nice but if you continue your path on the e-drums and are seriously thinking about adding or upgrading componets, invest in the mesh pads. They feel much like real drum heads and you can tell in the stick definition as the stick rebounds off of the drum pad. It's great that you have your youngest in mind when it comes to drumming. I have a 5 year old boy who has shown some passing interest in playing too but that only occurs when daddy is trying to practice alone in the garage.

  4. #4
    Larrysperf Guest

    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    great choice, and welcome

  5. #5

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Welcome to Drum Chat Trooper!

    I am by no means an expert on e-kits, so I too will leave that for others much more knowldgeable than myself. I do think it's awesome that you are encouraging your son, and also that you are wanting to share that journey with him.
    Quoting gonefishin: Just have some bacon with ya when you go pick her up..........youre an instant chick magnet.





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  6. #6

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Quote Originally Posted by late8 View Post
    Welcome John! The Roland is a great choice in E-kits. It will keep the noise within the confines of the headphones. Please monitor the headphone levels when your youngest is playing so the ears don't suffer hearing loss.
    good point !!!

    Quote Originally Posted by late8 View Post
    The rubber pads are nice but if you continue your path on the e-drums and are seriously thinking about adding or upgrading componets, invest in the mesh pads. They feel much like real drum heads and you can tell in the stick definition as the stick rebounds off of the drum pad. It's great that you have your youngest in mind when it comes to drumming. I have a 5 year old boy who has shown some passing interest in playing too but that only occurs when daddy is trying to practice alone in the garage.
    and another good point !! Are the rubber pads exchangeable with the mesh? In other words, If at a later date I want to invest in mesh pads instead of the rubber ones on the kit, can they be swapped out? I am not sure I could afford the all mesh TD-4 kit over the "regular" one for now.

    Quote Originally Posted by pastor_bob View Post
    Welcome to Drum Chat Trooper!

    I am by no means an expert on e-kits, so I too will leave that for others much more knowldgeable than myself. I do think it's awesome that you are encouraging your son, and also that you are wanting to share that journey with him.

    Thank you !!!I have two boys; the older one who is 9, has just started guitar lessons after school and has shown great enthusiasm towards playing and learning, and I think the younger one is picking up on his eagerness to play music with daddy. My older boy keeps saying " hey dad, we can form a band if Trevor learns the drums !!!!"

  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by trooper View Post
    My older boy keeps saying " hey dad, we can form a band if Trevor learns the drums !!!!"
    It just doesn't get much better than that Trooper!
    Quoting gonefishin: Just have some bacon with ya when you go pick her up..........youre an instant chick magnet.





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  8. #8

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    I'll just add another welcome, Trooper. I'm 36, and my 11 year old and I take lessons back to back. Good stuff.
    Robert

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  9. #9

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    hay trooper .. welcome I dont even have the money for the td-4 but Ive been thinking about it .. its seems like a great kit for the money and a good kit for your situation. I cant remember what inputs it has but if it can take one of the 3 zone mesh snares I would go for it and look at doing the snare upgrade when You can .. than you can just upgrade the drums to mesh as you have the money .. and have the extra rubber pads for effects .. you can never have too much cow bell
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  10. #10

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Welcome to the forum trooper..........sounds like your youngest will definately enjoy the drums and already has the passion.

    Im not a fan of E-kits but thats a personal preference, lots of others like them. They are good for playing wee hours of the morning and will help keep your wifes sanity.

    Best of luck to you in your search.
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  11. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by gonefishin View Post
    Welcome to the forum trooper..........sounds like your youngest will definately enjoy the drums and already has the passion.

    Im not a fan of E-kits but thats a personal preference, lots of others like them. They are good for playing wee hours of the morning and will help keep your wifes sanity.

    Best of luck to you in your search.
    Thank you !!!

    In terms of feel, I would certainly prefer a good acoustic kit. The way you can manipulate tones and sounds by varying the way you attack the kit cannot be duplicated on an electric kit as the TD-4 type. I am assuming the TD-20 style kits may allow you to come closer to achieving this ( or maybe not), but for now I think that for my needs, I am hoping that a "beginner" level E-kit will serve my purposes...and save my marriage.

  12. #12

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    idk, I'm torn. Electric kits are good for noise and sound sample purposes, but they have a much different feel than an acoustic kits. Although an electric kit is a good idea in theory, I feel that you may not be doing yourselves a favor in the long run. I started playing when I was your sons age, and half the fun was being able swap out drum heads, clean cymbals, rearrange hardware, and getting/buying new gear. You really miss that whole aspect, which I found quite amusing at age 6/7/9/12/14, if you get an electric kit. Also, with the hundreds of different sounds that you can get with an e-kit your son may not concentrate on what's important, the rhythm and feel.

    I do own a Roland electric kit. It's an older TD-20 setup with a TD-8 brain. I live in an apartment and do not have an opportunity to play any of my acoustic kits where I live and it absolutely drives me nuts. I very rarely play my electric setup because it does not have the same feel that an acoustic kit does. I'm addicted to the bass vibrations of the bass drum, the crack that hits you in the chest when you hit the snare, going down the toms and being able to fell the different vibration points in the drums, and the buttery feel of the cymbals, NOT the physical sound that goes into my ears. You just can't get that with an electric kit, hence why mine sits and collects dust while I haul around my acoustic kit to every opportunity I get to play it.


    On a less personal note, if your sons plans on being in the school band or playing drums in Jazz band or even a garage band, he's going to need an acoustic kit. You might as well bite the bullet now because if this is something you son is going to be seriously interested in your going to have an acoustic kit in your house sooner or later.

  13. #13

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    I certainly agree with you concerning the feel of an acoustic kit. The are certain dynamic sounds that you can get out of an acoustic by simple changing the way you attack the skin or cymbal that cannot be achieved with an E-kit.

    I think that getting the E-kit will allow me to do a couple of things: 1)control volume, which an acoustic kit will not allow me to do without further investing in muffles or other forms of silencers 2) not use up too much space, as my "jam room" is probably only 100sq/ft, which already has a multitude of amps, computer desk, and toy boxes.

    In terms of him joining a band, I would love nothing more than for him to one day experience all the fun that I have when I get together with the guys and play, and will support him 100% all of the way. I just think that for now, with the restrictions I have, getting the E-kit will take away the limitations I currently would have with an acoustic kit. E-kits (at least the Roland) also will allow him to work on things like his timing with the built in metronome and warm up exercises. Also I don't necessarily think that having the hundreds of sounds as a bad thing...ultimately it will keep him on the drums and allow him to explore different sounds and possibilities.

    I like to think of the glass half full than half empty when it comes to the E-kit, but your points are valid.

  14. #14

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    hey Trooper, welcome to DC, i agree with all above, but wow 6! thats young, at least if he doesn't develop a interest like you said, you can have some fun too!
    Enjoy the Music!

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  15. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by MartyM View Post
    hey Trooper, welcome to DC, i agree with all above, but wow 6! thats young, at least if he doesn't develop a interest like you said, you can have some fun too!
    Yeah I agree that 6 is very young, but music has always been in my family. My mother played piano all of her life, and I picked up the bass when I was about 9 or 10. My father thought that buying me an instrument would be a waste of time and money, but my mother knew differently...she saw something that my father didnt see being she was a musician.

    I feel the same way about my 6 yr old, Trevor. I have a rule in the house that there always has to be music on...any kind or style...and he is always tapping his feet to the rythym, playing air drums in sync to the beat. he is showing a good knack for solid rythym at a young age, and I certainly do not want to discourage it.

    Since my older is boy is taking guitar lessons and I play bass, my little guy asked for drums from Santa so he can " form a band with Daddy"
    Plus Daddy will get to work on his drumming skills too.

  16. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by trooper View Post
    I certainly agree with you concerning the feel of an acoustic kit. The are certain dynamic sounds that you can get out of an acoustic by simple changing the way you attack the skin or cymbal that cannot be achieved with an E-kit.

    I think that getting the E-kit will allow me to do a couple of things: 1)control volume, which an acoustic kit will not allow me to do without further investing in muffles or other forms of silencers 2) not use up too much space, as my "jam room" is probably only 100sq/ft, which already has a multitude of amps, computer desk, and toy boxes.

    In terms of him joining a band, I would love nothing more than for him to one day experience all the fun that I have when I get together with the guys and play, and will support him 100% all of the way. I just think that for now, with the restrictions I have, getting the E-kit will take away the limitations I currently would have with an acoustic kit. E-kits (at least the Roland) also will allow him to work on things like his timing with the built in metronome and warm up exercises. Also I don't necessarily think that having the hundreds of sounds as a bad thing...ultimately it will keep him on the drums and allow him to explore different sounds and possibilities.

    I like to think of the glass half full than half empty when it comes to the E-kit, but your points are valid.
    Trooper great and valid points on #1 and #2. Can't argue with good common sense and can't wait to see the pics you're planning on posting when you finally have it set up .

  17. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by late8 View Post
    Trooper great and valid points on #1 and #2. Can't argue with good common sense and can't wait to see the pics you're planning on posting when you finally have it set up .

    I promise to post some up as soon as I pull the trigger on this. I am really looking forward to exploring the drums much more as well as this great site , and to share my passion for music with my boys.

  18. #18

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    Quote Originally Posted by trooper View Post
    I promise to post some up as soon as I pull the trigger on this. I am really looking forward to exploring the drums much more as well as this great site , and to share my passion for music with my boys.
    Let's see... your user name is "trooper" and you just used the phrase, "pull the trigger". I suddenly feel like putting my hands in the air.

    Seriously, welcome to Drum Chat trooper!

  19. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by LagerHead View Post
    I'll just add another welcome, Trooper. I'm 36, and my 11 year old and I take lessons back to back. Good stuff.
    LagerHead you just quoted my utimate dream....sharing lessons with my boy.

  20. #20

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    Quote Originally Posted by drummer View Post
    Let's see... your user name is "trooper" and you just used the phrase, "pull the trigger". I suddenly feel like putting my hands in the air.

    Seriously, welcome to Drum Chat trooper!


    At ease...

  21. #21

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Welcome to DrumChat trooper. I definitely understand your needs and restrictions, but I have to agree with Exotic Matter in that a big part of the drumming experience is rearranging gear, getting more gear, changing heads and then learning how to tune them. I don't know where your drum room is going to be but, just maybe would your wife be willing to wear earplugs when you guys are thrashing skins. I don't know, just an idea, no disrespect intended. E-kits are cool, but they just don't allow you to experience the full effect. On a totally different subject, look what I got my boy for X-Mas. A Washburn T24 Taurus 4 string bass. You will enjoy jamming with your boy. Nothing like sharing the same interests between generations. Enough rambling, see ya.
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  22. #22

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    I am seeing a common theme in your bands t-shirts wolvie, you wouldn't happen to like Rush would you? haha

    Trooper I think that considering everything an e- kit is a great choice. I also think it is awesome that your kid is getting into drumming that young! Keep him interested he could go very far.
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  23. #23

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    [QUOTE=TURTLINATOR;249173]I am seeing a common theme in your bands t-shirts wolvie, you wouldn't happen to like Rush would you? haha


    Naw, not really. But I made sure that I got a t-shirt every time they came whithin driving distance since 1981 (Moving Pictures) oops, just dated myself didn't I.
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  24. #24

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    Default Re: New here...recurring theme?

    Quote Originally Posted by trooper View Post
    I am hoping that a "beginner" level E-kit will serve my purposes...and save my marriage.
    Just remember, if the E-kit doesnt save your marriage make sure that your wife knows she can have what ever she wants to take but the drums staywith you......................
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  25. #25

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    Quote Originally Posted by gonefishin View Post
    Just remember, if the E-kit doesnt save your marriage make sure that your wife knows she can have what ever she wants to take but the drums staywith you......................
    . I have a feeling it would be the least of my worries...

    Well, I took the leap and bought the kit yesterday and is being delivered by Fed Ex as we speak. I should have it in my possesion and set up in about a week or so. I am not sure I will be able to hold off until Christmas!!

    Once my little "jam room" is all set up, i promise to post plenty of pictures.


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