Carlsbro CSD130 Compact Electronic Drum Kit

Better than you can possibly imagine for the money

Short review: fun fun fun! Buy it!

Longer review. A complete drum kit, of surprisingly high quality: the pads are perfectly good to get the feel of real drums but without all the noise and bulkiness.You can set this up practically anywhere and play away to your heart's content. Obviously it isn't silent for someone in the same room, but in most places it will not be too annoying if you keep the door shut. OK, mesh drums are physically quieter and slightly more represent the feel of a real drum kit, but...well, this is so inexpensive and well-specified that it makes its own argument at its price point. The bass drum pedal in particular is outstanding. You can really learn to drum on this thing!

On a practical note, when set up it's about as small as a practice kit could be. It takes a bit of time to pack it up folded and unpack it; like everything else though, that will get quicker the more you do it, and if quick setting-up times are important to you, being a drummer is not going to suit you. Sensibly, all the setup is accomplished with a standard drum key, supplied, which is a very good touch, since you should always have one of those around or will be able to get one. Don't tighten anything more than it needs, and the fittings will last a lot longer, too. I suspect a lot of people will leave it set up anyway, it looks pretty cool around the place.

OK, it's not the best electronic kit out there, some of the parts could be sturdier, the hi-hat sounds aren't the best, etc etc. But especially for a beginner the law of diminishing returns soon comes into play above this price point. In particular, the included stool and pretty awful sticks are really 'get you started' items, although the headphones are fine for this application.

One thing I'd say is that to get it set up initially, the instructions are pretty good but it really helps if you know what you're trying to accomplish. If drum kits generally are new to you, try to get someone who knows their way around a kit to help you. That will also help for the first couple of times you try to play it. But be prepared to have to prise your drummer friend away from it so you can have a go yourself!

Finally, headphones are fine to start with IMO (and your family and room mates will no doubt agree). If you want an amplifier, the Roland PM-03 is a good choice; it's not too loud, stereo, fits nicely in the space behind the kit, and excellent quality: you can use it with any other kit you subsequently get too. If you want to play with a band, you'll need a couple of powerful amplified speakers. Carlsbro do their own which are reasonable enough but for now you won't need those and they are much heavier and bulkier.Read full review

Excellent Kit when space an issue

Pros - good quality, easy to assemble, easy to use, good selection of kits/voices, minimal space required to set up and play

Cons - everything needs tightening with a drum key which is a bit of a faf, and they need to be tight not to move when you really get going, pads smaller than I'm used to so more precision required

Overall - very pleased with it, great quality for the price and was quickly delivered, I would recommend to anyone for home use.Read full review

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: rockemmusicshop

Bought it for the kids but can't stop playing it myself.

Great kit, punchy sound. Kids and grown ups love to have a play and it folds down to the size of a dining chair. Works with headphknes or an external amp and you can plug your mp3 player in and play along. Get one, you'll be glad you did.Read full review

Great little kit

Great little kit. The build quality seems pretty good although the frame is lightweight and easiky adjustable. It is easy to set up and play either through headphones or amplifier. The range of 'voices' and kits is very good and you can create your own bespoke kits assigning whichever of the 250 voices to any pad you choose.
Highly recomended.Read full review

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: alan4298

Superb Value

Excellent value for money. The preset 'kits' are more than adequate for beginners/practice. The options to create user kits and to tweak volume/tuning of the preloaded kits adds more versatility. I found that it records quite well too andI haven't even started to play around with tweaking any settings or the midi in/out yet! Very compact, which was important for my small studio. Not sure that it would withstand the rigours of the road, but that's not what I bought it for. So far, I am impressed. Read full review

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Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: music-matter

Fantastic budget kit !

Fantastic budget kit, folds up to almost nothing. Superbly made and chunky, top quality !
Only con : Needs headphones with low impedance to play loud, ideally 16 Ohms,
but definitely no more than 24 Ohms.resistance. Otherwise brilliant !Read full review

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: astounded_elect...

CSD130

very good sound cant fault it in any way I have not explored every parameters as I only use Kit number 4

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: simmondsmusic

Brilliant and compact

I have used it for 1 week and it is right up my street with great feel

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: argos

Great kit lots for money

Easy to set up well made and compact to have in a small space. A brilliant little kit for someone who wants just something to plug in and play.

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: simplysound2010

Great for the money!

Good for practicing when accoustic drums aren't practical. True drum sounds 😊👍🏻

Verified purchase:  Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: music-matter