Ludwig has partnered with renowned Tonight Show and Roots drummer, Amir "Questlove" Thomson to create the Pocket Kit made for children aged 4-10 years old. As such, hardware quality and shell construction are quite good for a junior kit, good enough to meet Amir's standards.

While this set is meant for children, it has good enough sound and feel to be a good compact rehearsal kit for adults. The snare and toms sounds quite full for their size.

It also had nifty extras that aren't usually found in inexpensive drum sets, such as memory locks for the cymbal arm, thread lubricant for the lugs and a rubber protector pad that's used to attach the drum pedal to the kick drum.

It only has one crash/ride cymbal that is quite small, resulting in a thin sound that doesn't reverberate long. It doesn't sound as good as bigger and more expensive alternatives, but it is definitely good enough given their size, and should work well for novices.

In addition to its good quality hardware, it also includes access to a series of web-based lessons to help with drum setup, adjustment and playing technique.

This is a great junior drum kit for beginners with an exceptional value for its price. Just beware that it might be a little too big for kids under 5.

Items Included in this Drum Set

• 16" x 12" Bass drum
• 10" x 6" Tom tom
• 13" x 10" Floor tom
• 12" x 5" Snare drum
• Foot pedal
• Hi-hat stand
• Cymbal arm
• Snare stand
• Drum throne
• Drum sticks
• Drum key
• Hi-hats
• Crash/Ride Cymbal

Specifications

• Hardwood shell material
• Comes in a black, silver or red sparkle finish

The Ashthorpe Drums-S-JA-5327 is a junior sized drum set meant for drummers from 3 to 12 years old. It comes complete with everything needed to play, including snare, two toms, one floor tom, a crash/ride cymbal and a hi-hat.

Overall quality and build is quite nice for the price, good enough for kids and even adults who are looking for a compact and affordable kit to test the waters for drumming. To be able to play it right out of the box, it comes with important accessories like drum sticks and a drum throne.

When properly set up, it doesn't look like a toy kit at all, while still being compact enough for kids of different ages. It also helps that it doesn't look cheap, it comes with a nice sparkly finish and all-chrome hardware and accents. And to accommodate more kids, it comes in 7 different color finishes, including purple and pink.

Being a complete 5-piece package means that assembly can be daunting for first timers, but it is doable with the help of the instruction manual. Like most kits in this price range, the cymbal and hi-hat are small, resulting in a trebly sound that lacks sustain.

If you're looking for a budget friendly 5-piece drum set for your young ones to learn the ropes on, this one is highly recommended.

Items Included in this Drum Set:

• 16" x 11" Bass drum
• 11" x 7" & 10" x 7" Toms
• 13" x 10" Floor tom
• 12" x 5" Snare drum
• 10" Hi-hats
• 12" Crash/Ride Cymbal
• Hi-hat stand
• Cymbal Arm
• Snare stand
• Foot pedal
• Drum throne
• Drum sticks

Specifications:

• 7 Available finishes (Green, Black, Blue, Purple, Red, Silver, Pink)
• Poplar wood shells
• Tunable and replaceable drum heads

As the name implies, this drum set is a slightly smaller version of their popular Roadshow series, meant to save space and make younger, smaller drummers more comfortable while playing.

While its size is small, it does carry with it the same quality shell material found on regular sized Pearl drums. It is not a toy meant to look like drums, it's a real, serious drum set scaled down for kids. This means that it retains the playing feel and experience of a pro quality kit, but at a more kid-friendly size.

For something small, the Roadshow Jr. has a big beefy sound with good volume. It features shells made of poplar, resulting in authentic vintage style sounds. The drum heads are also responsive, great for learning technique and dynamic nuances.

The cymbals and hi-hat are also small, but the ones included in this kit are better than what you'd normally get from similarly priced junior kits. Still if you want to gig with this kit, you'll have to swap them out for something bigger.

Build quality and finish are top notch, as expected from Pearl, it really has the sharp and clean look of a pro kit. If you're looking to get your young children their own quality 5-piece junior drum set then this is one of the better options on the market today.

Items Included in this Drum Set:

• 16'' x 10" Bass drum
• 8" x 5" & 10" x 5.5" Toms
• 13'' x 8'' Floor tom
• 12'' x 4'' Snare drum
• 10" Hi-hats
• 13" Crash/Ride Cymbal
• Hi-hat stand
• Cymbal stand
• Snare stand
• Foot pedal
• Drum throne
• Drum sticks

Specifications:

• 2 Available finishes (Grind Stone Sparkle, Jet Black)
• 6-ply poplar shells
• Tunable and replaceable drumheads