Help a Newbee Please

New to the group. Haven't picked up sticks in over twenty years. Bought a couple of video's along with a pair of sticks and it's starting to come back. Question:

At the local drum store I am looking at a set of Pearl Exports (love the colour) Bass, Floor Tom,TomTom's x 2,Snare, HiHat,Crash14',Ride18' Ziljans. They want about $1800Cad for the set.

They also have a set of Pearl Forums on sale for around $900 other than the colour I can't really tell the difference between them although I like the color scheme on the exports more. Is it worth it? I'm only going to be a play at home drummer anyway have no intention on turning pro.

Thanks

You can buy the standard five piece set of exports for around 650 US$ anywhere in the states.

Sit down, and have a listen to both kits. Listen to the sounds of each. Play with the tuning a little bit if they'll let you. You'll find that there are some subtle differences in the 'voice' of each drum. I'd suggest spending a little extra, and getting the one that you like the sound of better. If it turns out that you like the Forum series better, ask if the shop can order the other kit in a color you like. Most Pearl resellers can do that pretty easily. I took an 8 year hiatus from playing myself, and when I got back into it, I was thinking of a 5 peice Export myself (cheap, easy to find, etc), then I found an old Pearl BLX (birch shelled) 8 peice kit buried back in the used section...checked it out, and willingly paid the $400 price difference. I love the sound of those drums. Remember, YOU're the one who has to listen to the sound when you play. Buy something you'll enjoy listening to for a long time.

You can definitely get both of those sets much, MUCH cheaper. I just purchased a 2000 TAMA Rockstar, brand new for $599 after alot of shopping around. Search around on the Internet alot. I was considering the Export series for some time and ran across many great deals in the process. I know for a fact that I was offered a deal on an Export Select series kit for only $835, which is a great deal for the ES. There are some places in the US that take international orders so I would look into that before paying that much for either kit. Shop around. Good luck.