Deciding on first electronic drum set - need advice

jfrey

Junior Member
Hi, I'm brand new so if this is in the wrong place let me know.

I'm getting my first electronic set soon (first drum set of any kind). I'm debating between three models and I'd like some feedback.

Alesis DM6
http://drums-percussion.musiciansfriend.com/product/Alesis-DM6-Electronic-Drum-Set?sku=620364

Yamaha DTXplorer
http://drums-percussion.musiciansfriend.com/product/Yamaha-DTXPLORER-Electronic-Drum-Set?sku=490906

Simmons SD7PK
http://drums-percussion.musiciansfriend.com/product/Simmons-SD7PK-Electronic-Drum-Set?sku=585852

Thanks.
 
Look also at the Roland TD-9 with mesh heads (if your budget goes that high).

Roland seem to have the best resale value.
 
Look also at the Roland TD-9 with mesh heads (if your budget goes that high).

Roland seem to have the best resale value.
I wish I could afford a Roland. From what I have read those sound like the best. My budget is pretty limited, and I'm only able to buy a set because of the sales going on right now.
 
The high end e-kits are only just OK at best.
The low end e-kits are something that one soon becomes bored with.

I got an email last week to play some freestyle music on a low end e-kit with some cats that are heavily into electronic music.
I flatly turned the invite down.

I told them that I would play as long as I could play my acoustic kit.
They said OK and we played yesterday.

They played all of their electronically enhanced keyboards, Flutes, Saxes, guitars,
vibraphones, and several other things that I don't even know WTF they were.

I played my acoustic kit.
They loved me!
I anchored them with my organic sound.
We are playing again next week.
 
An ekit is a temporary solution. Because of my living situation I can't get an acoustic set, and because of my current budget I can't get an expensive set. I'm trying to put together a solo album though, and drums are the last bit I need. I play guitar, bass, piano, violin, viola, and if I can do the drums too then everything can finally be finished up.
 
Why not just take your project to a studio and play the drum parts on an acoustic kit or a high end e-kit?
Why buy a low end e-kit for one project?
You could possibly rent or borrow a high end e-kit to use for your project
 
Being a one man band makes working in a studio difficult as well. I'd have to make 3 trips to a studio just to bring all my equipment. I also rewrite music on the fly, spending sometimes days refining just a few seconds of instrumental. Studio time would cost me a fortune. Apart from that I do my practicing and writing during the night as I work 10 hours a day for my job, and then do freelance work on top of that as well.

A studio just doesn't work for me, for time or budget.

Also it isn't really just one project. I have in total probably 4 or 5 solo projects in the works, because I like to play everything from classical to tech death.
 
I know that you, (being as musically accomplished as you are) will not be happy with a low end e-kit.
 
Like anything in life you get what you pay for.........I've mentioned this many times before but I got the Yamaha DTXtreme III which in my eyes is a high end kit. Equivalent to a TD-12 even the TD-20

Now I have run Toontrack Superior Drummer 2.0 through Pro Tools as a VST plug in and well the module I have bought is just a MIDI controller, I am not using any of the module sounds

This kit is around $5000 Aus Dollars so not cheap and yet I'm triggering another module really...

But all of this is not cheap...........youtube some kits you are considering and looking at higher end ones and you'll hear the difference by a mile

You get what you pay for...
 
I get what both of you are saying, but it just isn't in my budget right now. I'd like to hone my skills though so that when I can afford a better set - hopefully after my next raise, and after I finally get an 8 string guitar - I can make use of it. And if I eventually end up in a different apartment maybe I'll be able to get an acoustic set. That's all in the future though. All I can get for now is a starter ekit.
 
The thing that surprised me the most about the electro musicians that I played with that I mentioned in my earlier post is this.
I don't think that they really understood my position on playing real drums.
I think that they got the concept of my feelings.
I think that they respected my playing ability.
Deep down inside, I really think that they would have been just as happy if I had played the crap e-kit.
I don't think that they could really hear the difference in the sound of my perfectly tuned maple drums and my hand made Istanbul cymbals.
I think that they are so into the electronic gizmos that they play, that they don't hear the difference.
They are intrigued by electronics, not musical sound quality!
 
Yamaha all the way. Simmons feel super cheap, I don't have any experience with Alesis, and with Roland you're just paying for a name. E-kits don't feel like acoustic kits, plain and simple. Rubber heads are "dead" and offer little bounce back, mesh heads give too much. I own a DTXplorer and DTXpress IV and they have never let me down. I cannot say enough good things about them.
 
Yamaha all the way. Simmons feel super cheap, I don't have any experience with Alesis, and with Roland you're just paying for a name. E-kits don't feel like acoustic kits, plain and simple. Rubber heads are "dead" and offer little bounce back, mesh heads give too much. I own a DTXplorer and DTXpress IV and they have never let me down. I cannot say enough good things about them.

Agree!..I've owned both (roland and yamaha)...to my ears the yamaha's are a little more realistic in tone (if setup/edited right in the module)...and are more reasonable than roland...both brands are good though..

pluses/minuses:
1. Yamaha three zone capability on all pads (on higher end models [i.e., dtx900, some pads on dtx500 & dtxpress IV]), two zone and single zone on dtxplorer...roland mostly uses two zone pads (three zone on higher end kits for ride cymbal, however this requires the use of two cables..yamaha, on their three zone kits accomplish this with one cable)
2. roland module interface a little more user friendly (at the begining), however, once you get used to either brand they both have good interfaces and are fairly easy to navigate around on...
3. most roland kits have vex packs that you can purchase..that tweak/enhance the already built in sounds of the module...yamaha on the dtx900 has external kits that you can purchase that are complete replacements of the built-in sounds...that are very nice sounding kits (made by VST companies and yamaha europe)
4. yamaha uses real drums from the company to sample their module sounds...the jury's out on whether roland uses real drum samples or their sounds are just synthesis
 
The store I work at stocks Roland, Alesis, as well a used Simmons kit at the moment.

The Roland TD4's have yet to move. They've gotten a lot of floor attention from the demo models, but the price tag ($899) has pushed a lot of consumers towards the Alesis DM6 and DM7s, which sell for $499 and $599, respectively. The DM6 is pretty much a bare bones kit, with its perks being a USB out for recording direct to a computer. It has tar gum tom pads, which in my opinion have a slightly more realistic feel than plain rubber pads, like you find on the toms of the TD4. The DM7 is a much higher quality kit, with a 3-zone snare pad that allows for soft and hard rim shots, in a realistic manner like you would on an acoustic drum kit. It also has a choke on the crash cymbal, as well as a lot more kit and volume capabilities within the drum over the DM6.

For the money, Alesis is absolutely the way to go. As I said above, the TD4's haven't moved yet, but we're completely sold out of DM6's and DM7's and have 4 more of each on the way, one of which has already been paid for and reserved.

Let me also note I purchased a DM7 myself, as my current living arrangements do not accommodate an acoustic kit.
 
The Roland sounds are created not sampled. This is the difference between Yamaha and Roland. Roland sell more kits than any other manufacturer. The Vex kits are amazing but they only provide kits for TD6 upwards.

I agree with Bob that the cheaper e-kits could put you off playing drums. The TD12 + and Yamaha equivalent are a lot of fun to play and will sustain you in your acousticless world.

Davo
 
I agree with Davo.

I've owned a Roland TD-12 and together with the relatively cheap (price wise) V Expressions LTD kits, it sounded great. Much, much better than the stock sounds that come with the Roland module.

There's no need to buy new. Many drummers buy electronic kits either because they are new to drumming or because their living situation wont allow for a loud acoustic kit. Those kits are often temporary and end up being sold cheaply in very good condition. Check out CraigsList first.
 
The store I work at stocks Roland, Alesis, as well a used Simmons kit at the moment.

The Roland TD4's have yet to move. They've gotten a lot of floor attention from the demo models, but the price tag ($899) has pushed a lot of consumers towards the Alesis DM6 and DM7s, which sell for $499 and $599, respectively. The DM6 is pretty much a bare bones kit, with its perks being a USB out for recording direct to a computer. It has tar gum tom pads, which in my opinion have a slightly more realistic feel than plain rubber pads, like you find on the toms of the TD4. The DM7 is a much higher quality kit, with a 3-zone snare pad that allows for soft and hard rim shots, in a realistic manner like you would on an acoustic drum kit. It also has a choke on the crash cymbal, as well as a lot more kit and volume capabilities within the drum over the DM6.

For the money, Alesis is absolutely the way to go. As I said above, the TD4's haven't moved yet, but we're completely sold out of DM6's and DM7's and have 4 more of each on the way, one of which has already been paid for and reserved.

Let me also note I purchased a DM7 myself, as my current living arrangements do not accommodate an acoustic kit.

I've sold 8 TD4's over the last 2 weeks. Alesis doesn't hold up as well as Roland and the modules are not as robust.
 
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