Electronic drums

[Jayme]

I've been thinking about buying them....
I guess i just want some advice?
Can you plug them in to your computer as if they were a midi interface?

[deepwater]

The Roland V-drums are great. I've found that it's still best to use real cymbals. If you plan on using them live you need very nice PA to get a sound. I use mine with Renkus-Hienz and EAW. Yes that are midi compatable

[mikeh]

Most if not all e-drum kits have MIDI in & out which allows you to send MIDI performace to a software program and then use that program to trigger the sounds out of the machine (or to trugger other machines/samplers).

The pads serve as triggers (just like keys on a keyboard) the drum module (brain) acts a both a converter and as a sound module.

As indicated in the previous post, e-cymbals are weak samples at best (cymbals have too many harmonics and too long of a decay to sample well) so accoustic cymbals normally sound better, however mixed low enough in the mix with proper processing, e-cymbals can be functional (if not great).

Candidly, I have heard some awful sounding accoustic cymbals, which in my opinion were far worse than some e-cymbal sounds I've heard.

[MichaelM]

E-Drums are fine.. The Roland (and others) with the mesh heads are much nicer to play. They feel more real, although have a lot more stick rebound than regular drum heads. You might be able to change this with 'tuning' though, you can adjust the head tension with the Roland ones. But yeah, the cymbals are crap. They just have too many nuances that cannot be replicated. They are fine for practicing, but live or for a proper recording I'd use good acoustic cymbals.

I missed this place.. I got annoyed with never being able to afford any of the stuff I wanted so I haven't visited here for a couple of months... Good to be back..

[mekkab]

Originally Posted by MichaelM

I missed this place.. I got annoyed with never being able to afford any of the stuff I wanted so I haven't visited here for a couple of months... Good to be back..

Thats funny, same thing here!

Until I can afford building a sound-proofed practice room in the basement, I think roland v-drums are my best bet.