At 12/6/08 06:14 PM, funkycaveman wrote:
DRUMS
im thinking about playing the drums, does anybody have any advice, i might buy rockband and see what the drums are like on that before forking out $1000+ on a kit. anyboday got any advice, i need as much as i can get, i might collab with a mate who plays the bass. thanks xx
The Rock Band drums are nothing like playing an actual kit - not just from a positioning and number of drums angle, but from the feel of the impact. My advice if you're going down that route is to get some double sided sticky tape and four mouse mats for them, to dampen the sound and improve the bounce on the heads. And get some actual lessons as well to teach you the proper methods of doing ridiculously simple things like holding the sticks and where to put the bass pedal (it seriously needs teaching). At the very cheapest, get yourself a Vic Firth practice pad and a pair of sticks from a drum store.
Good starter kits in the few hundred pounds mark are anything by Mapex if you're looking to make a noise. A few hundred will get you a starter kit (and if you're haggling, a drum throne) probably with hi-hats but more than likely completely without cymbals. Cymbals and pedals are where the big money is spent.
If you're looking for a silent kit then a Pearl Rhythm Traveller (the kit I have) is enough to practice on. Ideally, best of both worlds here is a Yamaha DTExplorer electronic kit that makes next to no noise on contact (less than a set of Rock Band drums do unmodified), yet allows you to pump the sound through headphones.
I'm currently saving up for a Roland TD9-SX and had my Grade 3 drum exam on Saturday.
My laptop is still broken, and I don't like using my desktop at home. It's an ugly nightmare of broken saturation monitors and agonisingly slow boot up times.