help an aspiring drummer

[soulreaver2662]

hey guys, i'm interested in taking up some casual drumming.

I live in a hdb so the noise will definitely be an issue. Right now i have my sights set on a pearl RT since it comes with mesh heads and it's not too expensive 2nd hand. At least i get to practice at home.

But i personally would prefer getting a more "standard" drum kit. There's another person selling his pearl forum kit and i do want to get it but i was advised by some drummer friends not to bother getting a decent kit for practice since i cannot play it loud at home anyway and i'll regret having spent money on something i cannot fully utilize and they feel that the pearl RT would be just nice for me.

I was reading up on the muting method in the how-to forums about stuffing the kit with fibre. So my problem now is i don't know which one to go for. A more decent 2nd hand kit to stuff with fibre or just get a 2nd hand pearl RT using the mesh heads it comes with. If the fibre method is effective for a hdb setting then i don't mind getting something within the $6-800 range.

Please advise thanks!!

 

[Schtauffen]

Heyy, welcome to the drumming community HDB drummer here to give his humble opinions too~

Anyways, noise is not the actual issue, your neighbours are. I've played my acoustic Carlos set full blast without any muting (maybe my full blast isn't that loud because I was told I'm pretty gentle on the drums ) but I have yet to get any complains. ('cept from my dad but now he says he wanna learn from me too! HAHA!) But

I would say, get a decent kit, if you take good care of it, it can last you a long way just like cymbals As for mesh head, I never touched them before, so can't comment on it. Hope other softies will give you more info!

Cheers~

 

[evident]

$6 drum set will be hard to find. anyway i'm a "hdb" drumm as you guys call it but i dont receive much complains mainly because i have good neighbors. but also i think i have fairly good control. i don't thrash my kit when i play. also if you're gonna call drumming "noise" then i don't think it's the thing for you. just imo. .

kidding.. anyway there are stickies around on drum muting. do check them out. you can play acoustic kits at minimal volume.

 

[Schtauffen]

I was reading up on the muting method in the how-to forums about stuffing the kit with fibre.

evident bro, bet you missed this sentence

 

[soulreaver2662]

thanks for the replies so far.
i guess i've decided to get the RT because it's slightly cheaper and it's small enough for my room. many people have said good things about it although some might disagree.
either way i'd still love to get more feedback from all the "hdb drummers" hahaha

 

[DrunkDrummer]

the RT is compact, cheaper (slightly) and has mesh pads.

the mesh pads
they cancel sound, but also provide unreal bounce, which leads to a VERY different experience when you shift to real drum heads
just my two cents

i have good neighbors and i mute the windows with styrofoam... working out fine for me, only the bass drum can be heard distinctively from OUTSIDE on the lobby.

i have a pearl target, it's working out fine for me

have fun drumming

 

[soulreaver2662]

hmmm looks like i should change it to the normal drum heads even with the RT?

but how does the styrofoam work? care to share? i mean wouldnt the sound still pass through to the neighbours below you from the floor?

from the lift lobby? o.o woah

 

[bigblackbear]

the mesh head has too much rebound compared to that of a real drum skin. so it would make your drumming different. i'd suggest that you go with the rt, but fill the bass drum and snare with some cotton. oh and do not that the toms of the rt is hollow(only top skin) so you can't fill them up with anything.

and and... the rt hi-hats sucks.

 

[SolGrundy]

the toms kinda suck too

 

[soulreaver2662]

OH YA. DOH. i forgot it was hollow toms. hmmm shit...so there'd be no way to stuff cotton. looks like i have to get a proper kit anyway.

 

[bigblackbear]

well actually, the hollow toms aren't that loud. so there really isn't a need to stuff them with anything. it's the snare and the bass which are a problem.

 

[soulreaver2662]

haha shit. now i really don't know what to do. i don't want to use the mesh heads after what most drummers have advised me against. but i think the RT toms without muffling would still be too loud for my flat. i have fussy neighbours.

 

[bealerbet]

hey soul thank for posting this thread. me a noob n looking for advise on wat to get kits for my hdb. still lookig for advise, me too tot of getting pearl rt, with mesh, hope after this thread is over i able to decide.

 

[soulreaver2662]

hmmm right now i also think we'd do well with either. if your area is very cramp then just get an RT and muffle them?

but if you can afford it and have the space i guess you could also get a full scale set and use muffling methods as well.

i've been looking at drums a lot over these couple of weeks and my conclusion is that...if you're willing to learn, even if you set up pots and pans as your drum set also can one hahahaha

 

[lester_music]

get a real drumkit.....you can still mute it by putting towels or silencer over it...

then if you are really for the skins, remove them and play the real thing with a right touch..

normally if you play with a right touch, you should not have neighbours coming complaining unless they are really nasty ones..so I guess u also have to seek the opinions if possible..if you know what i mean..