VST vs Module vs Anything else

BlindRacer

Junior Member
I started drumming a couple years ago with a pretty cheap electric kit. Over the last few months though, I've become a lot more serious about it, and have joined the worship team at my church.

I'd like to get a new kit for home, and will definitely be going electric. The two sets at my church are both acoustic. I'd like it to be as much like an acoustic as possible in feel, but not necessarily looks.

I've been researching, going to the stores, and trying to dig into it as much as I can.

I just can't get past whether it's better to go with a module, or using something like Addictive drums or whatever. Or whether I should get a set with a module, and use software on top of that.

What are the pro's and con's of each, and why would someone choose one over the other? And is there a big difference in the end cost to get everything up and running? Then also, do the actual pads/triggers/cymbals matter for triggering software? Are things just more compatible with the module that goes with it? I guess I'm just a little lost with regards to these different types of set ups.
 
vst's sound a million times better. more realistic.. better sounds. more options even.

cons are you need to bring a computer with you wherever you go too. and a midi input.. i own a tascam us-122l and a saffire pro 40 so its not alot of work for me

you can get a cheap midi device for $50 or so ... if you look used there are great deals out there.... your gonna need a pc with a few gigs of ram for your vsts....(most expensive part) and then there is software... Which basically depends on how you feel about pirating software or its a few hundred more bucks

also.. midi can have a few milliseconds of latency but once you get the settings right its not noticeable

I prefer to use the vst's whenever possible as they sound better.. I always use em at home.... but i have an extra computer i keep beside my td20

all modules have midi out.. which you plug into a midi input you select your settings and your going... addictive is pretty good.. also look at superior drummer 2.. that's what i ended up with
 
I own a TD-9KX and also Addictive Drums but when I just want to practice - what I'm using my E-kit for mostly - I usually just switch on my TD-9 and play. It's faster, a few less proceedings and I don't have to keep switching between the PC and TD to switch kits. The lesser audio quality is not that important to me while practicing.

Keep in mind though that you would need a module (or something like a MegaDrum) anyway to hook up the pads, kick and cymbal. You cannot connect them directly to an audio interface. So you could first get the E-kit first and later switch to using VSTs, just check the module has a MIDI out port.
 
All good things being said.

Just a side thought: You can buy EZ Drummer for $100-150 and it already has a very useable drum kit. You can then wait for sales and buy add on kits for under $50. The Nashville kit is one of my favs. You can then 'sidegrade' to Superior Drums which has much more flexibility - if you need it.


JIm
 
having tried almost ALL vst programs i found superior 2.0 to be my favorite. ezdrummer seemed very basic. slate was good if you want a produced recorded sound. addictive was ok.. but superior seemed more easy for customization in my opinion.

abby rd seemed ok but to me superior was very easy to use and set up.. and the customization is endless. lots of samples..

I guess its preference. but their also seems to be many more add ons in superior. i wouldn't consider it to be a "sidegrade" at all
 
Thank you everyone. I think I'm starting to understand what it is, and how it's used.

From what has been said here, and what I've learned from my previous research, It looks like picking up a complete kit with it's own module, might be a better start.

After I have a quality set up of rack/frame/pads/pedals...then I'll be able to plug the module into my computer, and go the VST route.



When using a VST, is there much of a difference between a middle of the road module, and a top of the line flagship module? At that point, it only seems like a trigger controller, and just sends the midi info to the comp.

If this is the case, then for instance, I buy a Yamaha. Would I have any differences between their DTX500 line vs the DTX900 line, when using a VST - Addictive or Superior etc? Same for a middle and high end Roland and any others.


I have around $2k that I'm setting aside to get the best kit that I can. Can possibly push that up a little if it's really worth it.



Another kit that I came across, that looks like it is supposed to be released in the US in the next month or so, is the 2box. If I'm understanding the DrumIt5 module correctly, It is almost like having a VST, but within the module. So it will play samples as opposed to synthesized sounds. Along with a vast amount of expansion.


I've not been able to find what the cost of the 2box model will be in the US. Does anyone know if it's near the $2k that I've got? And would it be worth it to get something along these lines?


Something else that I've seen regarding VST's, is that I could get a dedicated netbook or similar, and only use it to run one of the VST's, and keep it mounted to my rack. Would there be any issues with something like this? Given that I could find one with a good amount of ram and processor speed.
 
Thank you everyone. I think I'm starting to understand what it is, and how it's used.

From what has been said here, and what I've learned from my previous research, It looks like picking up a complete kit with it's own module, might be a better start.

After I have a quality set up of rack/frame/pads/pedals...then I'll be able to plug the module into my computer, and go the VST route.



When using a VST, is there much of a difference between a middle of the road module, and a top of the line flagship module? At that point, it only seems like a trigger controller, and just sends the midi info to the comp.

If this is the case, then for instance, I buy a Yamaha. Would I have any differences between their DTX500 line vs the DTX900 line, when using a VST - Addictive or Superior etc? Same for a middle and high end Roland and any others.


I have around $2k that I'm setting aside to get the best kit that I can. Can possibly push that up a little if it's really worth it.



Another kit that I came across, that looks like it is supposed to be released in the US in the next month or so, is the 2box. If I'm understanding the DrumIt5 module correctly, It is almost like having a VST, but within the module. So it will play samples as opposed to synthesized sounds. Along with a vast amount of expansion.


I've not been able to find what the cost of the 2box model will be in the US. Does anyone know if it's near the $2k that I've got? And would it be worth it to get something along these lines?


Something else that I've seen regarding VST's, is that I could get a dedicated netbook or similar, and only use it to run one of the VST's, and keep it mounted to my rack. Would there be any issues with something like this? Given that I could find one with a good amount of ram and processor speed.

I use a macbook to run vsts.. it works but its all in how you use it.

If i record something and mix it down with Vsts i can make it sound better.


A basic set of samples is no big deal.. if you want to eq them, mix them down, have reverb, effects and all that, bleed in the mics, it starts to take up ALOT of memory.

not uncommon to be up to 4GB of memory used in my laptop running a vst... sometimes quite a bit more... without the memory you get latency issues which sucks.

you would need a decent laptop and you should be fine... a solid state drive helps too.

any module that has midi out should work.they all send the signal the same as the other. Roland vs 2box vs Yamaha. td10 vs td20 vs dtx500 . they are all the same ideal.
the only difference will be the ONBOARD sounds. if your going vst route that makes no difference. also.. search 2box. there is alot on this..


you can also put your OWN sounds on a 2box.. thats why they are like a "vst" but you will still be better with a real program like superior for sound quality.
 
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