-[Drummer Teaching] How to Buy Jazz Drums

Many friends who have just started learning jazz drums always worry about the choice of instruments at the beginning! There are quite a few jazz drum brands, including snare drums, cymbals, pedals, percussion instruments... and other diverse products. How to choose the ideal musical instrument for yourself? This will be something that everyone cares about! The basic equipment of a set of drums: divided into drums, cymbals, iron frames, and accessories.

Drums: bass drum (22"), snare drum (14"), treble tom (10"), alto tom (12"), floor tom (16").

Cymbals: Ride(20~22"), Crash(16~18"), Hi-Hat(14").

Drum skin: flat surface, white matte surface, oil surface, black heart, black, bright surface.

Iron: inclined cymbal stand, straight cymbal stand, snare stand, drum chair, foot pedal.

Accessories: drum sticks, drum brushes, small drum bags, cow bells.

The above is the basic drum set equipment. When you want to buy it, first compare the characteristics of each instrument, such as the quality of the cymbals, the wood of the drum barrel, and the wood of the drum sticks... which grade it belongs to. ? Make a detailed evaluation of all aspects first. As for the price difference, it depends on everyone's financial situation. If you are not familiar with the instrument, be sure to ask more experienced friends or musicians. Generally speaking, musical instruments are divided into several series, ordinary level, intermediate level, high level, handmade... Generally speaking, most of the so-called ordinary level are made by mold injection, whether it is a snare drum or a cymbal... Among them The body of the snare drum is divided into single plate, double plate, sandwich, iron barrel, and synthetic, so it is not accurate to look at the appearance alone. If the appearance of the drum is of high quality, it is usually mostly painted with baking paint, and it is divided into multiple layers of baking paint. You should pay special attention to the selection. In terms of wood standards, "drum sticks" are divided into maple, walnut, and oak. After knocking and testing, the difference in sound will be clear. In addition, there are also plastic heads and soft drum sticks made of plastic, including Beam rod. "Drum brush" is usually also called "steel brush". The handle is usually made of rubber, wood, or plastic. The "brush" part has "fine steel wire" ~ "plastic wire", and the handle part also has Made of wood, plastic. "Iron" stands are divided into single boards, double boards, straight stands, inclined stands, small drum stands, and drum chairs. The above are divided into the so-called single-bar tripod (named single board), double-bar tripod (named board), you can see it just by looking closely. "Drum skin" can be divided into single layer, double layer, and oil sandwich (oil surface). The ones commonly seen on the market now include EVANS and REMO. Nowadays, there are several brands of "cymbals" in China, but most of them are made in "Turkey" tradition. Regarding cymbals, we can only say that we need to listen more and have more contact to understand them better. It is not easy to understand just by describing them in words. , not only for cymbals, but also for any musical instrument! Because the ingredient ratio and process of making cymbals are quite complex, we are absolutely unable to understand them. However, we can definitely distinguish the feeling by hearing, and we can feel it by comparing the appearance. The most specific method when purchasing is to compare high-end products, mid-level products, and ordinary products to see how far the price is from the product level. The decision is based on your judgment and needs, so the price measurement is absolute. Necessary. As the saying goes, you won’t suffer any loss when you compare products! But if you don’t know enough about it, no matter how you compare it, the most important thing is to understand it first and ask more! Because this may be everyone's first time buying an instrument, and it is also the most exciting and loving first time in their lives to make a careful choice.

003-[Drummer Teaching] Which brand of drum set has the best price?

My personal suggestion is not to buy something that is too bad, as it will not be of any benefit to the overall learning

About "how to choose a drum for beginners" is a headache for many drummers who are not well-off in China. problem.

When I was in Chongqing, I only used a set of "Jinbao" for several years. Now I realize that the price paid for doing so is very high.

In short, how to choose a set of percussion instruments that suits you first requires you to determine a position for your development: are you going to be a professional drummer, or are you trying to see if you can play drums, or are you just On a whim?

1: If you just like music and want to try whether you can play the drums, and then decide whether to become a real drummer, then there is no need for you to buy it. Because even a second-hand "Jinbao" set often costs several hundred yuan.

2: If you just want to learn on a whim, please think calmly: Will I still be able to treat my drum with the same passion as now in 5 years? If the answer is "Yes!", Well, please refer to Article 3. If it’s “not necessarily”, then just find a place where you can play drums and deal with it first, because blindly buying drums will cost you dearly.

3: For those who want to become a real drummer, you should choose a good friend among "Pearl", "TAMA" or "MAPEX" that makes you truly obsessed.

If an ordinary set of drums is well maintained, it can last you for 5 years. You can practice a lot of rhythm and basic skills on it. Including those drum master tricks that will make you drool.

But please believe me, after five years, you will basically be useless.

From the posture of playing the drum, the attention to the drum sound, the feel, and the understanding of the drum - ordinary drums can train you to be useless in five years.

If you are willing to spend five years to destroy yourself and finally give up, or spend the same money to buy a real drum set and then spend five years to correct what you have practiced on ordinary drums. If there are a bunch of "errors", you can ignore the following paragraphs.

Now we analyze the mid-range drums worthy of drummers’ choice in terms of price and performance:

“Pearl” drums are the best-selling brand in the world, and they have the best production in the world. Craftsmanship and professionalism. Moreover, after being represented by "Zhongyin" company, we can buy the "Pearl" drum set that can be used with confidence at a suitable price.

The following models of "Pearl" should be suitable for you to choose:

"Rhythm Traveler": The "Alto" is insured at RMB 3,888, including: a snare drum, Two toms, one floor tom, one pedal, three cymbals (made by "Pearl" from a manufacturer specializing in cymbal production) (two 14-inch hi-hats, one 18-inch crash cymbal), pedal One cymbal stand, one crash cymbal stand, one snare stand, and two tom stands. It also comes with drum sticks and other gadgets.

Performance: Although it is the most low-end product of "Pearl", it is the product of the world's number one brand after all. Its biggest advantage is portability. Although it has a muffler function, with the popularity of dumb drum heads, this is no longer a feature. Its production process is impeccable, but due to the shortened depth of the drum shell for portability, the sound quality is inferior compared to other models of "Pearl".

"Target" series:": "Alto" is insured at RMB 3,388, including: one snare drum, two toms, one floor tom, one pedal, and cymbals (provided by "Pearl "Find three cymbals (two 14-inch hi-hats and one 18-inch crash cymbal) produced by a manufacturer that specializes in the production of cymbals, one hi-hat stand, one crash cymbal stand, one snare stand, and two tom stands. It also comes with drum sticks and other gadgets.

Performance: Although it is also the lowest-end product of "Pearl", its biggest advantage is that it is a product of the world's number one brand. Its hardware is one model lower than the "Rhythm Traveler", but due to the deep shell and double-layer skin, its adjustability is greatly increased, and its tone will be more delicate and moving. It is specially designed for China. Produced on the market.

Fx, Ex, and Elx series: This may be a bit too expensive for everyone, because not only are their online prices high, but they also come without hardware and no cymbals are included. ...I won’t go into details here (American brand, Japanese research and development-all made in Taiwan)

TAMA’s sw series: ordinary five-tom configuration (same as the “target” of “Pearl”). ), the lowest price quoted online is RMB 4,700, without cymbals. Its performance is better than "Target" and "Rhythm Traveler" (both of which are more expensive). Its configuration is the lowest configuration of TAMA (Japanese brand----). All are made in Taiwan).

The low-end models of "MAPEX" are also good. They are authentic domestic products (made in Taiwan), and the high-end models can compete with "DW" and the two brands mentioned above. . Its low-end model seems to be called the "V" series.

"SABIAN" is a cymbal made in Canada. It is a new brand established in Canada by the partners of the original "ZILDJIAN". The B8 series is a very cost-effective series, with many models available in 3-piece packages (two hi-hats, one crash cymbal), two-piece sets (two special effect cymbals), and 4-piece packages (in a 3-piece package). Basically add a ride cymbal), etc. The price is 1700~1900 (pack of 4 pieces).

"Kang" cymbals are produced in Wuhan and cost less than 900 yuan. They are packed with 4 pieces and are really not affordable. The choice is that this brand is currently used in "bistros" in Chengdu. It has been used for several years and has been ruined by Chinese drummers until now - it is durable.

"BASIX": German technology. Brands, drum sets, and high-end models invested in China can be used, but they are also expensive.

The above introduction is what is available in China, and is the minimum configuration for becoming a traditional professional drummer.

The following is the drum set:

If you have 3,500 yuan: go buy the "Pearl" "Target"! That thing is worth it, and there are cymbals, which are better than any cymbals made in China. They are all better (at least more suitable for you to practice). There are stools, drum sticks, teaching materials and other miscellaneous things given to you. Take good care of them.

If you have 4,000 yuan and want to practice basic skills at home, buy it. "Rhythm Traveler" goes! It is absolutely easy to dismantle and carry, and it is light and easy to carry around. With cymbals. No more spending money on accessories.

If you have 6,000 yuan: buy a TAMAsw five-drum set with a "Sabian" B8 set of cymbals, or a "Pearl" fx series with a "Sabian" B8 set of cymbals.

It is definitely enough for any performance you want to do.

If you are a nouveau riche and have enough money: "Pearl" Elx825, add "Sabian" HH series cymbals, add TAMAhp900tw double pedals or Pearl's 2002c double pedals, single with a " Pearl" or "TAMA" signature snare drum----This is the drum configuration of the Chinese drum...