First Electronic Kit Help

milkthistle

Junior Member
Could someone give me some advice on a good starting setup for an electronic drum kit?
After a few hours of trying to find reviews, buyers’ guides, and so forth, I’m no smarter than when I started.

Ideally, I’d like to spend no more than $600 USD altogether (including a throne, all I have right now are sticks). Beyond that price range, I’ll just need to upgrade the kit piece by piece.

Some notes on what I’m looking for:
* I don't have any acoustic equipment. This is my first drum kit and I will not be using triggers.
* I absolutely need USB/MIDI connectivity; I’m computer-savvy and I have a recording sound card and a DAW. Are there any decent drum modules that just function as interfaces, don’t have any pre-loaded sounds or audio output?
* Dunno what the term for it is, but I want a kick that triggers through a real pedal, no simulated electronic pedal.


Some questions I have to ask:
* I’m thinking about buying all the parts separately, in which case I’d start with realistic hi-hat and buy just two tom pads. Could I make that work or should I just go with a kit?
* Should I worry about buyers’ guides/models that are over a year old? How quickly does e-drum technology become obsolete?
* Are any manufacturers particularly good for specific parts?
* Are there any parts I can be cheaper with than others?

I dunno if the style of music I’d play along to makes any difference, my tastes are predominantly groove metal and really chaotic electronic music.

Thanks in advance folks.
 
There are probably other people who know more about all the different options than I do, however, I was in a similar situation (multi-instrumentalist looking for a 'good' e-kit) just a few months ago and I can tell you what I learned and what I did:

1. Brands: Yamaha and Roland absolutely dominate the market, and with good reason. Some other mfr's make toys and a few make ridiculously high-priced high-end stuff. Most people seem to prefer Roland, but there is a pretty steep price premium to be paid for that. That's one reason I chose Yamaha. I figured it had to be 'good enough' for me, and I just couldn't justify the price difference.

2. Surfaces: Basically there are three choices: hard rubber, Yamaha's textured cellular silicone (TCS), and Roland's mesh. The rubber is generally cheapest, but most people seem to like it the least. So, by default, you're probably going to indirectly choose a brand by choosing a surface. Go to a big music store and play on both the mesh and the TCS to see which you prefer. I preferred the TCS, lucky for me since those kits are generally cheaper.

3. Electronics: This is where it gets complicated. I think most people prefer Roland because the user interface on the device is more graphic and simpler, and they seem to prefer Roland sounds. I'm a computer guy, so the 'simpler' interface was a non-issue for me. Plus, I bought mine primarily for recording with a DAW (like you), so the sounds are also almost irrelevant. I just wanted decent sounds for casual playing, but when I record, I'll use something far superior on my computer anyway. Each company makes many different models with varying numbers of kit sounds, and varying number of trigger inputs. You'll have to figure out what you need vs what is available.

4. USB/MIDI/DAW: Almost any e-kit will do in this regard, if you have any kind of understanding of MIDI.

5. Buying parts vs kits: It seemed to me that you get much greater bang for your buck just buying a kit. Individual parts are pricey, and nobody is going to guarantee you that every individual part you bought is completely compatible with every other part. Even if you stick with one mfr, it could be dicey, across different mfr's - forget it.

6. Alternatives: The Roland SPD's and Yamaha Multipads are a possibility. I wanted the experience of playing 'like a real drummer at a real kit', so I eventually got a Yamaha DTX-562. However, these multipad devices are capable of quite a bit. You might want to look into them.

7. Kick pedal. You're saying you want this:
DV019_Jpg_Regular_446653_with_pedal_V.jpg


NOT this:
DV016_Jpg_Large_449919_R.jpg

That is going to depend on the kit, but shouldn't be a problem. Only the very cheapest kits have the "e-pedal".


Are there any decent drum modules that just function as interfaces, don’t have any pre-loaded sounds or audio output?
I bought one about 20 years ago (the second OCTAPAD), but I don't think anybody makes anything like that today. No market for it. (I could be wrong)

How quickly does e-drum technology become obsolete?
Good question. In one sense, my 20 year old OCTAPAD is still viable, but the newer stuff is much more sophisticated. It seems like 5-year old stuff still gets plenty of interest on ebay. Even 10-year old stuff is far from what I would call 'obsolete'.


My advice to you would be to first determine what kind of surface you like, rubber, mesh, or TCS. Then go to ebay and craigslist. If you plan on using computer-based sounds, then you probably don't care so much about module-based sounds, and therefore, any older cheaper kit is probably fine. You should probably be much more concerned about the physical condition of everything.
 
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