# An reasonable electronic drum kit



## tomcat ha (Mar 12, 2013)

Hello,
im looking at getting an electronic drumkit for practicing and at home recording. (i have a presonus interface with midi in and out)

Im not extremely rich so i cant afford a really expensive kit but luckily i did not have to spend to spend all my savings on moving and getting new furniture so i have a decent amount of money.
I do play metal and punk mostly.
I guess ill have to buy my own double bass pedal.
I assume most kits are fairly modular? So that i eventually could upgrade to better pads or better drum computer but keep the rest of the parts?

As for the kits ive seen around locally:
The TD11kv. It seems have have a few meshheads people have been recommending.

TD-11KV :: Products :: Roland

yamaha dtx550k
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical- ... mode=model

yamaha dtx530k
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical- ... mode=model

any thoughts?
Im planning to try out these kits but these are seemingly the best ones in my price range.


Thanks in advance


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## Rev2010 (Mar 12, 2013)

Never had a Yamaha kit but always heard good things about them. Used to have a full mesh Roland set and loved it but when the project I was trying to form went nowhere I sold it to make space and get some extra cash. I later decided to get another kit and now have the Alesis DM10 Pro kit. I don't recommend it. It's inferior to the Roland in so many ways. It's cheap yes, and you get a usable kit, but it's loud as hell, wears down fast, and has some problems I never had with my Roland kit.

Yes, these kits are pretty modular with the only thing being the amount of inputs available, though you can expand that still with something like an Alesis IO hooked into the drum brain via midi.


Rev.


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## Malkav (Mar 13, 2013)

You may also wanna take a look at the Mark Drum kit (Same people who make Mark Bass) - I don't know too many specifics but in my country they retail for the same ball park as a TD-15, however there are a few specs that make them rather bitching as a choice.

Don't hold me to this but so far as a I recall the specs that I thought made them awesome were:

* Individual outputs for each drum
* 4 extra inputs for additional pads
* The frame is designed to have the pads plug into it, so less clutter and less wear on cables.
* Best of all it allows importing of 3rd party samples - So theoretically you could have Superior Drummer on your electronic kit 

Markdrum - Home


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## tomcat ha (Mar 13, 2013)

im afraid that the markdrum is too expensive for me.


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## Epyon6 (Mar 14, 2013)

I'm not a huge fan of electric kits cause I kinda hate em....but I do have one for quiet practice. I have the Yamaha DTXplorer, I can attest that its a great electric kit for the price (around 600 new). I'm sure the Yamahas you posted up are great but your best best would most likely be the Roland, I always hear that the Rolands are the best for electronic drums. Also yes you can change out the pads and the module even if you want but the most important thing is the module: for instance.....on my Yamaha when I play double bass sometimes I play too fast for the brain to handle, then I used a DM5 and suddenly all of my bass hits were on and herd. Just giving you an example of how the module has to be good to handle your drumming depending on how fast your playing. However you shouldnt have any problems with these kits especially the Roland. Good luck in your buy, I'm sure you'll be happy with either kit.


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## Rev2010 (Mar 14, 2013)

Techdethdrummer said:


> for instance.....on my Yamaha when I play double bass sometimes I play too fast for the brain to handle



Most likely the reason you had that happen was your retrigger rate setting was too high. No reason the brain should have any trouble handling fast double bass or snare rolls, at least it should be able to handle far faster than you can humanly roll.


Rev.


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## meambobbo (Mar 14, 2013)

i also have the dtxplorer. not sure if the newer dtx has updated tech.

the bass drum tracking issue is for real.

also, while the module outputs a midi CC for the hi-hat pedal, I think it will only output 3 values pertaining to full open, lightly closed, and tightly closed. It's better than straight open/close, but a fuller range is necessary to get a realistic feel of going from open to close.

the faq for the midi says the module can handle additional sends, like cymbal/snare edges vs center. I'm not sure the supplied pads actually support that though - I need to double-check.

I can't really complain though. My drumming skillz warrant a far worse kit.


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## GSingleton (Mar 14, 2013)

Rolands are dependable and track well. gets my vote.


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## Epyon6 (Mar 14, 2013)

Yea I dont believe so because like I said when I used the DM5 with my electronic kit it picks up everything, even went through all the trigger options for the yamaha, I had the same problem when I had a simmons kit for like $300 (but was way worse). Pretty much you get what you pay for.




Rev2010 said:


> Most likely the reason you had that happen was your retrigger rate setting was too high. No reason the brain should have any trouble handling fast double bass or snare rolls, at least it should be able to handle far faster than you can humanly roll.
> 
> 
> Rev.


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## Rev2010 (Mar 14, 2013)

meambobbo said:


> i also have the dtxplorer. not sure if the newer dtx has updated tech.
> 
> the bass drum tracking issue is for real.



I guess I stand corrected! 


Rev.


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## meambobbo (Mar 14, 2013)

Rev2010 said:


> I guess I stand corrected!
> 
> Rev.


 
Maybe not! I'll try to dig into the settings tonight - never got too deep into them.


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## Rev2010 (Mar 14, 2013)

meambobbo said:


> Maybe not! I'll try to dig into the settings tonight - never got too deep into them.



Cool, would be interesting to hear back. I don't know for sure if Yamaha calls the setting "Retrigger rate" but most other brands of module do. It basically confines the trigger to not trigger again until a certain degree of milliseconds are met. It helps to prevent accidental double triggering but also negatively affects fast rolls.


Rev.


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## meambobbo (Mar 14, 2013)

i can do rolls on the snare very fast, which seems to tell me its not the module. and as techDethDrummer said, the bass trigger works fine with another module. so it stands to reason it's just a setting...


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## GSingleton (Mar 14, 2013)

SO how about that roland......


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## meambobbo (Mar 14, 2013)

found a manual online: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...bdW1oxuMSxPM7aHd83iZ34g&bvm=bv.43828540,d.aWM

There are lots of setup stuff I never knew about. Each input jack has its own setup. Page 26 deals with the "retrigger" item, but it is called "rejection". "Self-rejection" covers the amount of time between trigger hits on the same pad/trigger. There are two other "rejection" items that cover "cross-talk" between triggers. You can also set the dynamic range, minimum value, and velocity curves.


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## meambobbo (Mar 15, 2013)

and i confirmed that this does work - the default self-rejection setting was 4/10. I set it to 0. No limit on my double bass speed other than what my feetseses will allow now.


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## Rev2010 (Mar 15, 2013)

meambobbo said:


> and i confirmed that this does work - the default self-rejection setting was 4/10. I set it to 0. No limit on my double bass speed other than what my feetseses will allow now.



Well then I believe a "like" on my post is in order no?  I wasn't talking out my ass, I know a whole lot about this shit  Glad to hear I could help out.


Rev.


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## Epyon6 (Mar 15, 2013)

You prob didnt run into that problem cause you had that kickass roland! 



Rev2010 said:


> Well then I believe a "like" on my post is in order no?  I wasn't talking out my ass, I know a whole lot about this shit  Glad to hear I could help out.
> 
> 
> Rev.


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## GSingleton (Mar 15, 2013)

ROLAND.....ROLAND....ROLAND ON THE RIVER


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## drmosh (Mar 15, 2013)

I really don't think there is a reasonably priced e-kit, you definitely get what you pay for.
best bet is a 2nd hand one, but try it first because those pads stop working!


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## vansinn (Mar 25, 2013)

I've been looking a lot into electronic kits lately, and my take will be to find:
a used interface/drumcomputer
a used double bass pedal
a hi-hat with mechanically activated double dishes, as I cannot possibly imagine how to play the tab-tab-lift-tab stuff on a single dish
research which various pads should be solid rubber or suspension types or build like a semi-acoustic with sensors.

I'm pretty sure the snare for me should resemble a real drum (i.e. being semi-acoustic), and some of the larger toms should be the semi-suspension types, as those seem to mimic real toms better.

I have no idea yet about which flapping rubber cymbals to go for.. seeing how drummers plays real cymbals hard, soft, hitting the outer perimeter, taps them closer to center et al.. makes me wonder how on earth to get anything sufficiently real out of those rubber dishes 

I'm new to drums, having played air-drums for years, hehe, and will start rehearsing on a big pillow, to work up the correct relaxed hand wrist action and grips. Many pro drummers recommends this for learning not to depend too much on the rebound.
Meanwhile, I'll start looking out for the parts, at used and demo prices..


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## CatEye (Mar 26, 2013)

Awesome things are not cheap friend. You have to pay a little more to own them.


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## tomcat ha (Mar 28, 2013)

so a uncle of mine actually has a td6 he is willing to let go for cheap.
seems like a better options considering i just can replace this td6 part for part


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## iron blast (Mar 29, 2013)

which module is it the blue or black version? If its blue you will not be happy with the sounds just my thoughts from the t6 I used to rehearse with the black version has better sounds


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## tomcat ha (Mar 30, 2013)

i don't know, i will be visiting him next weekend.
Besides does it really matter if the kit is only 150?
I can get a better drum module soon enough instead.


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## iron blast (Mar 31, 2013)

the td6 is a pretty solid module I'd be more concerned of the pads working


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## tomcat ha (Mar 31, 2013)

yeah thats what i thought.
Im going to try the kit out first of course.


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## Rev2010 (Apr 1, 2013)

tomcat ha said:


> yeah thats what i thought.
> Im going to try the kit out first of course.



If it's $150 buy it either way, you could make a decent profit selling the pieces on Ebay if you decide not to keep it.


Rev.


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## tomcat ha (Apr 1, 2013)

i dont want to make a profit off my uncle


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## iron blast (Apr 2, 2013)

the module alone sells used on these for about $350 on average


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## Rev2010 (Apr 2, 2013)

tomcat ha said:


> i dont want to make a profit off my uncle



Nah, I wasn't meaning it like sell the kit so you can treat your girl to a nice night out. If he sold you the kit and you didn't like it you could always sell it on EBay piece by piece and then use the money toward a kit you actually would want to use since you'd mentioned you probably wouldn't like the feel of rubber pads. But then you'd have to fork up some extra cash to get better triggers and the Roland mesh pads are SUPER expensive! The Alesis ones are a lot cheaper and use real drum heads but are dulled with padding underneath. The Alesis pads are also way louder than rubber or mesh pads.


Rev.


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## tomcat ha (Nov 28, 2013)

so months and months later i finally got it working in full swing. My uncle was really busy so he couldnt bring it over and at first i had a sudden case of dried up money!

but now:






the pads all work fine, i had to get a kd-9 kick drum pad separately and i also got an tama iron cobra double bass pedal. (i have been using double bass with drumming since i first started at some random place about 2 years ago.)


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## Bretton (Dec 4, 2013)

DRUM! magazine's latest issue has an article on 7 electric kits for under $500, see if you can find the magazine somewhere, has the kings of leon drummer on the cover blowing bubblegum


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## mrnova (Dec 19, 2013)

I played the Yamaha 550k for a year and own the 522k now for recording and jamming... (I have a quick demo up on youtube under the same user name) I have expanded it with 2 extra pads, I also have a double kick...Imy buddy who plays Roland, actually sold me two Roland pads that I use now with the Yamaha...both brands are good, and from what he tells me you can expand the Roland kits...the 522k can be expanded by a 4 pads btw...just avoid the 400-450 series by Yamaha, I don't believe they are expandable... hope this helps


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 19, 2013)

I have the dtx532k and it works well for me. It took some tinkering to get it working with SD w/o crosstalk on certain pads but it works well.


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