Setting up a regular kit for a kid

Since I recently upgraded from a Premier XPK kit to DW, that means my son gets an upgrade too! I just can't sell the Premiers, so I decided to set them up for my boy. He's just borrowing my K ride until I can get him something more suitable



He's been using a Ludwig Jr. kit, which is a little too small for him. But the full-grown kit is kind of a stretch. I spent a good part of last night setting up the Premiers as low and close as I could (10/12/14 toms, my 16 is going in the closet for now). The snare stand is as low as it will go, but it's still a bit too high, which is why I angled it forward a bit.

Any setup advice for making this more comfortable for a 7-year-old of average size?

Those might be the worlds smallest hi-hats.

The Old Hyde said:

Those might be the worlds smallest hi-hats.

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Haha, yeah, that's the First Act cymbal from his first toy kit, on top of the toy cymbal that came with the Ludwig kit. He's waiting for me to buy some new hats so he can get my Quick Beats!

EricT43 said:

Haha, yeah, that's the First Act cymbal from his first toy kit, on top of the toy cymbal that came with the Ludwig kit. He's waiting for me to buy some new hats so he can get my Quick Beats!

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haha you know he will get all of your gear in the end. I know by my son its impossible to get the throne height so he can reach the pedals and still not be sitting with the toms above his head.

Have you considered a 1-up 1-down setup? You could mount the tom-tom to a cymbal stand and get it a little lower. While a bass drum mount is convenient, I've never been able to arrange a kit comfortably with it, and I'm tall.

FoolInTheRain said:

Have you considered a 1-up 1-down setup? You could mount the tom-tom to a cymbal stand and get it a little lower. While a bass drum mount is convenient, I've never been able to arrange a kit comfortably with it, and I'm tall.

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Yes, I started with that, but I found that where the 10" tom is now, the height is limited by the bass drum. To get it any lower, I'll have to move it farther to the left. I'll try that, though, it may be more comfortable for him. If he turns his body more to the left, he'll have an easier reach to the kick pedal, too. I can actually do a 1-up/2-down with this setup. The 14" tom is suspended on a double tom stand, so I can move the 12" down there as well.

I'll try this, hopefully that will keep us out of the tom angles thread!

I just had another thought, I'll set up my Ludwig 3.5" snare for him, that will lower the snare height by another 2 inches...

I'll post some pics with the final setup and let you know how it works out!