Home Made E-drums

Promythia

Promythia

New member
I had this posted over in the cave, but figured I'd move it over here and probably get a little more help.

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=217006

I'm thinking about building a home made e-kit and wanted to get your guys' opinion on drum modules. Really, I'm not even going to be using the sounds on the module, it's just to trigger DFH.

Now...

I'm looking at the DM5 because it has position sensoring, or Expanded Dynamic Articulation as they call it, but no cymbal choking. I'm looking at the older Rolands and those have cymbal choke, but no position sensoring that I can tell.

My question to you guru's is... what would actually be deciphering the position sensoring, cymbal choke, velocity, etc...? Would it be the module, or DFH? From what little I know, it seems the position sensoring and cymbal choking would be at the module level, and the velocity would be at the DFH (it'd determind how loud to trigger the sample on MIDI date from 0-127). So if I get a module that lacks in one of those areas, it won't work in DFH because there has to be data sent to it?

Thanks! Yea, I'm looking to save money. I know I can get a module that is around $800+ that can do all that, but that's out of my price range. I'll sacrifice the cymbal choking for position sensoring if I need to. Thanks!
 
My question to you guru's is... what would actually be deciphering the position sensoring, cymbal choke, velocity, etc...? Would it be the module, or DFH? From what little I know, it seems the position sensoring and cymbal choking would be at the module level, and the velocity would be at the DFH (it'd determind how loud to trigger the sample on MIDI date from 0-127). So if I get a module that lacks in one of those areas, it won't work in DFH because there has to be data sent to it?

With the DM5 i am prtetty all that is controlled by the trigger setting in the module. The actual trigger has a set sensitivity (usually, and definately for most home made jobs) and you can tweakt he parameters in the module.

I buillt a set of these about 8years ago (the remo practice pad stysle) and they worked, but not great. It wasn't much cheaper etiher, after i factored in the hardware to mount everthing in a playable style, and it didn't sound as good as i hoped. These days triggers and pads are way cheaper than they used to be too. Your miliage may vary, but I would suggest you look into a comparison of store bought versus what you can expect to pay building your own.

Daav
 
What is the second hand market like for e-drums? Are they too ragged out to be worth selling? Are they like buying used bubblegum?

I'm not so much building a kit, but more of a trap table. I absolutely don't want one of those things with multiple pads in one unit. I was thinking of using short lengths of PVC or bottles or something to trigger from and just goop on triggers with hot glue. It wouldn't be like you wanted your electronic snare to respond like a snare. I want to make a pop bottle sound like a bigger pop bottle with gated reverb.

It's mostly because I have a bunch of noisemakers that I have been dragging around for about the last 20 years and was trying to think of a way to combine all the crap together to make like a train set to play with.
 
Don't pay full price for the DM5, I own one, paid 250$CAN and can say it's already too much. No choking on DM5 means, if you want a hit to be choked, you'll need to use a different trigger. (In DFH, if your cymbal is at note E2, then the cymbal choke sound is at E#2)
Kinda a pain in the a**.

I you build your own e-drum (which I did), don't bother about cymbals, just use mesheads made with fiberglass screening on a stardard drum of go with remos. These are the 2 solutions That ended to be the most successful.

There are a lot of website about homemade edrums, even one with plans and chematics to do your own trigger to midi, with 16 inputs and 6 way variable hihat, with full choke switch. I'll try to trace it back and post it here as soon as I find it.
 
FYI- i picked up my TD-3 Kit used.


for $400, with a footpedal, throne and a keyboard amp.

i got it through ebay, the guy wanted pickup only and he lived 10 minutes from me!

i scored on that one.

check craigslist, you can get some nice deals on there..
 
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