Last Updated on July 30, 2021 by Danny
Before choosing the best drum set for your child, you need to think about shell sizes, cymbals, drums, hardware, and a hundred and one other things. The many options in the market can cause confusion.
Even the Mendini drum set is available in multiple variants as the Mendini full size drum set and Mendini junior.
How will you know which drum is suitable for your child? If you blindly buy a drum set, you will mostly end up with something that isn’t comfortable for your child. This article will help you understand the Mendini drums and decide which one is best for you.
Our Mendini drum set reviews will help you to choose between junior and full size set for your child.
Mendini Full Size Drum Set
The Mendini full size kit is an ideal drum set for beginners. It will be comfortable for both adults and children who are five feet or taller.
The drum comes with everything you need to get started. This includes the drums, the stands, the pedal, the seat, and even a set of drum sticks. This means you can start playing without having to purchase anything additionally.
The Mendini is also one of the cheaper drum sets in the market, so you can start drumming without a huge investment
The drums have a standard five-piece setup. This will allow your child to learn the right motions and help him easily transition to advanced kits in the future.
The drums included with the kit are pretty good and would sound great with a little tuning. The cymbals are bad, but you will not get good quality cymbals even with other drums.
While the hardware is not that great, it’s alright for the price range. The drum is available in six different colors, and each of these finishes is visually appealing.
- You get all the parts required to start drumming
- Drums sound good
- Standard setup
- Padded and height-adjustable drum throne
- The cymbals included are just terrible
- The hardware is not durable
How does it Sound?
The drums actually do sound pretty good for such a low-cost set. The shells are made of poplar/basswood and are coated with PVC. The default drum heads are quite nice and you do not have to invest money on buying a new set of heads. With a little tuning, the drums can be made to sound even better.
The cymbals are, however, quite a letdown. They do not sound good by any standards. However, if you are buying this as your child’s first drum set you need not worry about this. This is because children do not really care how good the cymbals sound, they just want to have fun playing them.
When your child does learn drumming a little and starts appreciating the nuances of cymbals, you should buy any advanced kit with a pack of good quality cymbals and replace the stock ones with them. While cymbals won’t be cheap, they are a solid investment that will last for many years.
Is it Sturdy Enough?
While you do not get the best hardware with the Mendini, they are what you can expect from a cheap drum set. You however do get all the stands and the drum pedal with it. The hardware included will be sturdy for a while but mostly will not last you long as they are not of high quality.
If your child keeps continuously practicing for months on end, you will have to replace the hardware. The most common issue with the hardware is its bass drum pedal. It tends to come loose quite often and can cause trouble while playing. However, do remember that this is a cheap set that came with the hardware.
Mendini Full Size Review – My Verdict
This makes it an ideal first drum set as you will be able to start learning to drum without having to shell out a lot of money. The Mendini full size drum set is a great starting point for both the children and adults. It is a five-piece drum set that is sized for adults. It offers great features at a very low price point.
The drums sound good and can be tuned. While the cymbals and hardware are not that good, you cannot get better at this price point. Overall, if you want a cheap way of entering into the world of drumming, the Mendini is an ideal drum set for beginners at 5ft or taller.
If you already have a junior drum set for your child and he/she is looking to improve and become a pro drummer, check out the Pearl Roadshow in this review.
Mendini Junior Drum Set for 5 Feet tall kids
The Mendini junior drum set is meant for children who are equal to or below five feet tall. It is considered to be much better than cheaper junior drum sets you will see in the market.
The primary variant of the Mendini junior is their 16” five-piece drum set. Like the regular adult drum set, the Mendini junior also comes with all the components you need to start playing. This includes cymbals, hardware, and drums. It is also set up like a standard drum kit.
The snare and toms included with the kit are pretty good, but the bass drum could be better. The cymbals are also quite terrible. However, the bad sounding drums and cymbals won’t really bother your children as all they want to do is to have fun.
The drum is also quite appealing visually, thanks to its gorgeous finish and multiple color choices. While the hardware is not too good, it should get the job done.
The Mendini junior is also available in two other variants. The 16” three-piece kit and the 13” inch three-piece kit. While both these kits are significantly cheaper than the five-piece junior, their configuration is quite different from a standard drum set.
So, they might end up learning different motions. This means that when they do upgrade to a standard sized kit, they will have to unlearn the earlier motions and relearn new ones. This is quite a long process as it is hard to forget muscle memory.
As in this drum set crash cymbal is not in its normal position i.e. mounted on bass drum rather it is behind the floor tom. So if you want the crash cymbal to at its regular position, see the Ludwig junior drum set.
- Visually appealing
- Low cost
- Good drums
- Complete drum kit with all accessories
- Cymbals are not good
- Assembly instructions are not very clear
Sturdiness?
The hardware included with the kit is quite solid for a junior kit. Your child should be able to practice for long periods of time without having to worry about stability. However, do bear in mind that it is not a high-quality software and it will start to get a little wobbly and loose with prolonged use.
The good thing about the hardware is that it is replaceable and upgradable. So, if you do find that the hardware is not stable anymore, you can buy new hardware to replace. While the stock hardware is not bad, do keep in mind that a few customers have complained that they have had a few missing parts in their set.
Visual Appeal?
Visual appeal of a drum is important to any drummer, especially junior drummers. An ugly looking kit will demotivate your child and they might not be that interested in practicing. The Mendini junior, however, is a drum that has quite a visual appeal.
It is available in red, green, black, silver, and blue colors. The finish and gloss is also pretty good. Just make sure you ask your child’s color preference before you buy it.
Sounding Good?
The snare drum and the toms included with the Mendini junior set are pretty good. However, the bass drum is not that good. But, children don’t really care about the nuances of the sound, rather they just want to make some noise.
However, if you do want to make the drums sound better, you can get replacement heads for the bass drum and snare. If you are short on funds, you can easily improve the sound by tuning the drums a little. You could also improve the bass drum by placing a blanket inside it.
The cymbals included with the junior kit are quite bad. They could possibly be the worst cymbals you’ve ever heard. However, crappy cymbals will surely not bother your child. They could play happily all day long and never complain about the cymbals.
Moreover, if your child height is more than 5 ft, you must consider buying a full-size beginner drum set.
Mendini Junior Review – My Verdict
The Mendini junior drum set is great for kids between 3 and 5ft tall. It has all the components your little drummer needs to start playing and it provides them at quite a low cost. This drum set would be quite fun to play. Yes, the hardware and cymbals are not great, but it will not matter to your child.
Conclusion on both
The Mendini set is one of the best among cheaper junior drums sets. While it doesn’t have the features of high-end custom drum sets, it does pack great value for its cost. From the colors to the drums, you will not be able to find a better option at its price point. Hopefully, the Mendini drum set reviews helped clear your doubts and enabled you to choose the best drum set for your child.