As a beginner I went for the cheapest seat, but the $20 difference is not worth the pain. Those wobbly little noname thrones are hard and weak, so I decided to try a name brand, even if it's a little more. I'm so happy I did! It's much wider and is really comfortable. On the one I returned half of my bottom was in the air... This one has a generous diameter of 13.25" and is almost 3" thick. The cushion is soft, the legs are stable. My only complaint is that it had no instructions inside and no key to unlock the memory lock ring, which seems to require a standard drum key. Amazon gave me a discount to purchase that part, but probably any music store has them under $5. Since it's new, I can't say anything about durability, but it seems to be well made.
