Pearl Midtown Kit

89
WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM OCTOBER 2016 |
VERDICT: Does pretty much what it
says on the tin but lacks projection and
volume. Takes up very little room and
looks good, especially for the price.
BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
RATING
2
LUDWIG
QUESTLOVE
BREAKBEATS KIT
We say: “ A cohesive
package of portability,
sound and all-round
style.”
SPARKLE WRAP
The Midtown is available in just two
wrap fi nishes: Black Cherry Glitter
and Black Gold Sparkle
CLEAR HEADS
The kit is supplied with Remo
UT clear single-ply heads
HOOP CUT-OUT
The hoop on the batter side has a
cut-out which allows the beater
stem room to manoeuvre
fi rst, in a small pub with a very dry acoustic.
From the off it was clear that the kick drum
alone was not going to keep up with the
seven-piece funk and soul band. With no mics
on the kit, there was just too much volume to
contend with and I found myself over
compensating by absolute leathering the bass
drum and toms especially. Unfortunately, this
resulted in the stock heads taking more of a
battering than either myself or the kit had
expected. Once again though, the snare drum
was able to hold its own and deliver a tight
backbeat for all to hear.
Now, crammed tightly into the corner of
my garage between a workbench and a
motorcycle, the kit is doing itself proud. The
tiny space that it occupies on the fl oor makes
it ideal for those whose room is limited, be it
for a practice kit in your bedroom or for
taking to smaller gigs where not much
volume is required. In the bass trap created
by the corner of the room, the kick drum
now sounds punchy and the fl oor tom hums
away beautifully.
Due to the compact size of the drums, not
only does this make a good travel or busking
kit but could also provide a great set-up for
the aspiring drummer. With everything taken
down to its lowest setting and packed nice
and close together, the kit takes up barely any
room and I would wager that even a
fi ve-year-old would have no issues rattling
round it. I have even considered buying one
for my son but must remind myself that seven
months is probably just a little young still!
To recap then, the Pearl Midtown is a fi ne
bit of kit for the money. It may be a little
rough around the edges in places but the
sparkle fi nishes look good, the included shell
hardware is sturdy and well made, and the
drums (particularly that snare drum) don’t
sound bad at all. You could defi nitely get away
with it at a jazz gig but it will also handle
quieter funk and latin gigs, no problem. The
kit creates a lovely natural drum sound which
would sound great miked up for the bigger
stages and will likely record well too. Some
may even consider using it for a hybrid set-up
with drum triggers. I experimented using an
electronic kick trigger with great results.
RHY260.gear_pearl.indd 89 9/7/16 6:14 PM