First kit for a keen teenager - Christmas etc.

The Player is 2 rack toms, 1 floor tom. The Rambler is 1 rack tom, 2 floor toms. I like the 1 up 2 down configuration myself, but it's more about cymbal placement. I get that having more drums up front is cooler looking when you are a kid.

BTW, I'm not trying to sell you on this kit. I'm just thinking in terms of $ (or £) for new.

I just looked and found them in white, silver, red, and a black also. That was US music stores though.
 
I can attest to the Ddrum Journeyman build quality. I have the 16x14 floor tom, and it's a well built/sounding drum. However, no cymbals with that. So it might take you a bit over budget.
Yes, he already has a throne for the electronic kit. Nothing fancy though.

@harryconway I think that was my broad thinking. Though i suspect we'd look at the single floor tom with two racked kits, he's already said he doesn't want two floor toms.
OK. Scratch 2 floors. Perhaps Natal as a 5 piece, then. https://www.newcastledrum.co.uk/col...ia-ufx-plus-5-piece-shell-pack-in-grey-strata

But really, any of these kits you listed will do just fine. I also like the Natal because of the all birch shell.
 
I think that Natal Arcadia is unusual, most Natal Arcadia are poplar it seems. I think they add £150-£200 for the birch shells. If that's all the difference there is, that would be £150 saved as I'd just go with the poplar. I know birch is "better" but for our purposes it wouldn't make the blind bit of difference!

ddrum Journeyman look to be in the same ballpark as Pearl Exports for price, though a little harder to actually source.
 
I think that Natal Arcadia is unusual, most Natal Arcadia are poplar it seems. I think they add £150-£200 for the birch shells. If that's all the difference there is, that would be £150 saved as I'd just go with the poplar. I know birch is "better" but for our purposes it wouldn't make the blind bit of difference!

ddrum Journeyman look to be in the same ballpark as Pearl Exports for price, though a little harder to actually source.
The Journeyman may be in the same ballpark but I highly doubt the quality is as good as the Exports. The Journeyman has no track record, at least in the US. Pearl Exports have been best-sellers for over 30 years.
 
Cheers - it looks like the Journeyman PLayer is only available in yellow (even on the ddrum website), is the "player" the same as the "rambler" fundamentally? I couldn't discern a difference.
I bought my ddrum Journeyman on Ebay. Just over $500 US. It's an option at the very least. The hardware is SOLID. I was impressed with the hardware I got with the kit.

You might want to look into PDP. They make nice drums, you can find them used on the cheap.

The Rambler has 2 floor toms, and one suspended tom. I have the Player, which is a 2 toms up, with 1 floor tom.
 
Sounds like some great options listed above by other users. If your son knows he wants to drum after he is a teenager, he will definitely need a better kit. I would strongly recommend the Yamaha Stage Custom. If he takes care of that he will have it for a lifetime. Changing the heads to some Remo Coated emperors will make it good enough for gaming or anything else imaginable. Plus you can easily add more toms for a relatively low price. I would suggest getting him this, then he can save up his money or wait and get better cymbals, better throne, etc. I probably spent close to a thousand dollars on cheap drums and cymbals and hardware. I wish I just bought a better kit a long time ago. The options listed above are good options, but in a couple years, your son will want a new kit because his sounds like crap. The Yamaha Stage customs come with some of the best hardware and they can work with any genre. Again, if this is just a things your son likes doing and he will out grow it, then you can just buy him a cheap kit, but it will not last!

Best of Luck
 
One final question on this. Are different drum "fixing" mechanisms interchangeable at all? e.g. if we bought a Natal set, could the mounted tom toms being swapped for Pearl ones in the future etc? Obviously snare is self supporting, as is the floor tom, and I presume (despite vaying quality) that broadly all cymbal hardware can hold all brands of cymbals?
 
OK, in a spirit of being decisive, I've taken on board everythng said / suggested, and come back to these two specific kit options:-
https://www.gear4music.com/Drums-an...c-22-Drum-Kit-Hardware-and-Cymbals-Black/2CKI - £499

OR

https://www.thomann.de/gb/pearl_roadshow_fusion_jet_black.htm at £426, though might add a specific cymbal / stand to bring it up to equipment parity with the Natal

I can't get away from the fact that the Natal Arcadia looks to hit a price point between the "lower end" Roadshow and the mid range Export, whilst at the same time getting reviews and comments that suggest it is close to being on a par with the Export quality wise.

The Journeymay Player simply isn't widely available in the UK, and that yellow kit from Thoman is on a long lead time too - so putting aside the colour, I'd be nervous about it as a Christmas present.

This is the kit I would buy if I could justify another £150, but I'm not certain I can - SWMBO will have a view!!
 
One final question on this. Are different drum "fixing" mechanisms interchangeable at all? e.g. if we bought a Natal set, could the mounted tom toms being swapped for Pearl ones in the future etc? Obviously snare is self supporting, as is the floor tom, and I presume (despite vaying quality) that broadly all cymbal hardware can hold all brands of cymbals?

That's a conundrum of a question. The short answer is no.

All companies use their own tom mounts. You can't directly swap the mounts. Pearl use pipe arms, Tama, Ludwig, Natal use "L" rods, Yamaha use hex arms. Even with the "L" rods, they can be different diameters so one won't fit the other.

That being said, suspension mounts can usually be swapped. The direct to shell hardware can be purchased. Mounts can be purchased. Pretty much ANY part can be purchased. Therefore, if you are good with tools and have a mechanical mind you could have any combination you want.

If you want to get lost down this rabbit hole, check out Gibraltar. They make pretty much anything.
 
That being said, suspension mounts can usually be swapped. The direct to shell hardware can be purchased. Mounts can be purchased. Pretty much ANY part can be purchased. Therefore, if you are good with tools and have a mechanical mind you could have any combination you want.

If you want to get lost down this rabbit hole, check out Gibraltar. They make pretty much anything.
Thanks! I'm no genuis with a screwdriver, but I'm a quick learner (I've done all sorts on MTBs in terms of repairs that would frighten most dads!) so if a bit of customisation is all that's required, that's no issue.
 
OK, in a spirit of being decisive, I've taken on board everythng said / suggested, and come back to these two specific kit options:-
https://www.gear4music.com/Drums-an...c-22-Drum-Kit-Hardware-and-Cymbals-Black/2CKI - £499

OR

https://www.thomann.de/gb/pearl_roadshow_fusion_jet_black.htm at £426, though might add a specific cymbal / stand to bring it up to equipment parity with the Natal

I can't get away from the fact that the Natal Arcadia looks to hit a price point between the "lower end" Roadshow and the mid range Export, whilst at the same time getting reviews and comments that suggest it is close to being on a par with the Export quality wise.

The Journeymay Player simply isn't widely available in the UK, and that yellow kit from Thoman is on a long lead time too - so putting aside the colour, I'd be nervous about it as a Christmas present.

This is the kit I would buy if I could justify another £150, but I'm not certain I can - SWMBO will have a view!!

Either kit would be fine. The Natal is probably the better kit for the money. Pearl does offer a lifetime warranty on just about everything if you are the original owner however. Both have good hardware. They both have poplar shells. It's really a toss up.
 
Actually, Natal looks even better VFM now as it appears to be £449. Opting for the G4M in house cymbals instead of the Paiste 101 - probably not much in it, I know Paiste are a decent brand, but I get the impression low end branded stuff can often be surpassed by no-name entry level stuff.

These are the cymbals in the basic Natal kit - https://www.gear4music.com/Drums-and-Percussion/CZ2-Cymbal-Pack-by-Gear4music/ML2 vs these Paiste (£20 more if they were worth it) - https://www.gear4music.com/Drums-and-Percussion/Paiste-101-Universal-Brass-Cymbal-Pack-14-16-20/BSZ
 
Ehh, they are both brass. With G4M you get a cymbal bag, with Paiste you get a name. You can at least use the bag down the road when cymbals are upgraded.
 
OK, dived in for the Natal shell kit plus hardware at £339, just need to make a decision on cymbal set.

Another "the more you spend, the better you get". Though equally I might be happy to find some ebay deals now that there's a shiny new set of drums to be wrapped up. Opens up some new options anyway!
 
I'd go for good hats and a crushable ride for now, but that used set Swissward posted sounds like a great deal to investigate.
 
I'd go for good hats and a crushable ride for now, but that used set Swissward posted sounds like a great deal to investigate.

I agree. Definitely buy used. But don't feel like you have to buy the whole kit and caboodle to start. I started with NO cymbals. Ugh :confused:
 
Thanks! I hadn't even realised Gumtree was in the UK (for some reason I assumed it was like Craigslist and US only). Still nervy about buying something I don't even pretend to understand properly, but would be good to be able to have some metal to hit when santa arrives etc.
 
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