I Know Nothing About Drums and Gear...Help!!

There isn't a guitar player on this planet who will be able to tell the difference between a Voyager and a Saturn. An audience at a gig won't notice either. All that really matters is the drummer, not the gear. Drums sound like drums, whether they are cheap or expensive. Drum sound is mostly heads and tuning anyways. Both those Voyagers and whatever Ludwigs you had would likely have been fine.

But now being now, get a quality $500+ dollar used kit complete with hardware and cheap cymbals, and you'll be set to play anything. Use the next chunk of your budget for new heads, and start putting the extended budget towards cymbals, but only when you find pies you know you love. In my neck of the woods I've noticed a ton of drum sets on Craigslist lately, probably a good buyers' market right now.

I disagree with that. I understand a lot of people won't notice, but its a question of whether you want to just not sound bad or really sound good. They may not notice a bad set, but a really good set will grab attention.
 
I disagree with that. I understand a lot of people won't notice, but its a question of whether you want to just not sound bad or really sound good. They may not notice a bad set, but a really good set will grab attention.

+1, and a nicer sounding kit will inspire you more whether the audience hears the difference in sound or not.

As for sizes, if you do any rock music I find 10, 12, 14 fine for that so don't worry too much about what is marketed as a "rock kit" or "fusion kit". Their are times I wish I had a 16 to add to the kit though.. I also find a 20" bass drum fine too, and allows you to get the toms lower, if you want.
 
Someone is offering me a PDP FS with new heads for $300. No hardware (besides tom mounts), no snare or cymbals. Just the bass drum, 2 toms and a floor tom. Is this a good deal? It is in excellent shape. :)
 
Someone is offering me a PDP FS with new heads for $300. No hardware (besides tom mounts), no snare or cymbals. Just the bass drum, 2 toms and a floor tom. Is this a good deal? It is in excellent shape. :)

Bump.

I'm going to possibly be buying this on Monday, so I could really use some advise. Thanks to anyone who responds. :)
 
They are pretty nice drums, and the couple times I've played them I like them. $300 for a 4-piece shell pack is pretty good if they are in nice condition. If the heads are in good shape then that's really good.

Figure you'll probably spend $130 for heads, and $75-100 for a decent snare. And like someone already said, a Ludwig Acrolite is a great, inexpensive snare.

But hardware can be expensive so watch out. You probably don't need DW 9000 series or anything. Just get some sensible light or medium hardware. And don't be too afraid to buy used hardware. Just make sure you can inspect it to check for dents.

The Zildjian A pack with serve you well but new its ~$700 and used ~$500. You can probably do better buying individual cymbals. Made just buy a good ride, a 16" crash, and a set of hats for now. Add/Upgrade when you can.

Best of luck.
 
They are pretty nice drums, and the couple times I've played them I like them. $300 for a 4-piece shell pack is pretty good if they are in nice condition. If the heads are in good shape then that's really good.

Figure you'll probably spend $130 for heads, and $75-100 for a decent snare. And like someone already said, a Ludwig Acrolite is a great, inexpensive snare.

But hardware can be expensive so watch out. You probably don't need DW 9000 series or anything. Just get some sensible light or medium hardware. And don't be too afraid to buy used hardware. Just make sure you can inspect it to check for dents.

The Zildjian A pack with serve you well but new its ~$700 and used ~$500. You can probably do better buying individual cymbals. Made just buy a good ride, a 16" crash, and a set of hats for now. Add/Upgrade when you can.

Best of luck.

Thanks man, I 'm going to take it. :)
 
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