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US$10
Edition 20 - NOVEMBER 2014
The global electronic drumming e-zine
Hail to the
Queen DM Dock
OCD Adam
EZdrummer 2
Š2014 Avedis Zildjian Company
THE NEXT GENERATION
OF reduced volume cymbals
Introducing the NEW Gen16 Buffed Bronze series Zildjian has created the next generation of reduced volume cymbals. Zildjian craftsman used their expertise to make subtle but important changes to the Gen16 cymbal which increases the lower fundamental overtone structure. The most noticeable change is the stunning, buffed bronze finish that produces a warmer tone. Visit zildjian.com for more information.
SOUND LEGACY
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--from-the-editor-is published by
DigitalDrummer
ABN: 61 833 620 984 30 Oldfield Place
Brookfield Q 4069 AUSTRALIA
editor@digitaldrummermag.com
www.digitaldrummermag.com Editor & Publisher Allan Leibowitz Sub-Editor
Solana da Silva
Contributors OCD Adam Jonathan Atkinson Peter Erskine Scott Holder Pat Kennedy Russ Miller Stanton Moore Johnny Rabb Michael Schack Wolfgang Stolzle Dirk Verbeuren Cover Photo Neil Zlozower
Design and layout ‘talking business’
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digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
WELCOME TO OUR 20th edition, marking the culmination of five years of publishing. And what a ride it has been so far. Since our first edition, we have seen the arrival of some new brands like 2box, Mark Drum and XM and the disappearance of at least one big name, Hart Dynamics. We’ve witnessed some significant cross-over activity, with Zildjian moving into the e-cymbal space, first via a collection of its cymbal sounds as a VST collection, and then with the Gen16 AE cymbals - already in their third iteration. Pearl made the jump into electronics with its drop-in triggers and module, produced by Hong Kong-based Medeli, one of the silent achievers of electronic percussion. Our five-year timeline has seen a complete overhaul of the ranges of both major players, with Yamaha introducing its DTX 500, 700 and 900 modules and its DTX M12 multipad, while Roland’s module range has been refreshed with the TD30, TD-15 and TD-11 brains, and new multi-pad variants. What’s the biggest trend we’ve seen? Without a doubt, it’s hybrid. Initially, that meant adding triggers to acoustic kits, and we saw the proliferation of acoustic-looking kits together with a new generation of manufacturers like Diamond Electronic Drums in the UK and ddt and Drum-tec in Germany – along with an ever-growing choice of internal and external trigger add-ons. More recently, however, hybrid has evolved into acoustic+electronic solutions in which electronic sounds and effects are added to and mixed with acoustic percussion. Sure, it’s not new, but its popularity is unprecedented. And there are also a range of products aimed squarely at the hybrid market, like Aquarian’s inHEAD and Roland’s TM-2 module reviewed last edition. Perhaps the biggest change we have witnessed in the past half-decade is the pervasiveness of the most unlikely computing device, the Apple iPad. Initially a novelty for reading electronic books and playing games, the iPad has rapidly matured into a serious musical instrument. Backed by an army of developers flooding the market with free or dirt-cheap apps, the iPad is being seen on stages and in studios around the world, not just replacing music books and lyrics sheets, but acting as fully fledged amplifiers, mixers, DAWs and sound processors. And as we show in this edition, when paired with an Alesis DM Dock, the iPad now becomes one of the most versatile and portable drum modules around. So, as we learn to make the most of the technology around now, the big question is where we’ll be in five years’ time. Stick around and we’ll find out together.
editor@digitaldrummermag.com
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The global electronic drumming e-zine Edition 20
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12 20 22 30 44 4
November 2014
GEAR
What’s up Dock?
Much to the surprise of a large army of naysayers, the first iPad-powered drum module is now available. Allan Leibowitz has been testing the Alesis DM Dock.
Stepping up ito the middle
Yamaha has a new line of kits built around the updated DTX502, and Scott Holder checked out the changes.
Sure-footed
Roland’s KT-10 bass drum solution made its debut earlier this year, and Allan Leibowitz has been putting his foot down.
Stand and deliver
The growing popularity of two-piece electronic hi-hats and of hybrids means that hi-hat stands are becoming more important to e-drummers. digitalDrummer spoke to a number of professionals to find out about their weapons of choice.
Hybrid on show
The hybrid wave has hit Germany, with a variety of solutions on show at this year’s Electronic Drummer Meeting in Langenfeld.
Way to GoPro
We generally deal with the sounds, but now it’s time to take a closer look at capturing e-drum video, as Allan Leibowitz explains.
www.digitaldrummermag.com
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32 40 42 47 50
profile
Hail to the Queen
A music store competition kick-started a career which has included stints with Prince and Beyoncé. Queen Cora Dunham shares her story with digitalDrummer editor Allan Leibowitz.
PERFORMANCE
How I use e-drums
Originally a solo side project for drummer OCD Adam, Tenth Amendment combines heavy metal and electronics in new ways to create something refreshingly new.
Hybrid is happening
In the last edition, Michael Schack explained that although hybrid drumming is hardly new, there is fresh interest in combining acoustic and electronic drums.
VST
EZer for non-drummers
Toontrack’s EZdrummer has long been an industry stalwart, and Allan Leibowitz checked out the newest version to see if it still has its edge.
MONSTER
My Monster Kit
This month’s kit, assembled by Eric Linder from Spartanburg, SC, is a real monster. Check out this huge array of pads and cymbals.
ws ... Get the latest e-drum news at www.digitaldrummermag.com/news ... digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
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What’s up
--Gear--
DOCK?
Much to the surprise of a large army of naysayers, the first iPad-powered drum module is now available. Allan Leibowitz has been testing the Alesis DM Dock.
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I FIRST SAW the DM Dock at NAMM four years ago and was told it was a few months away from release. My persistent enquiries were generally answered by “in another three months” until the winter 2014 NAMM Show, when it was suggested that the product was actually a ‘proof of concept’ rather than a commercial product. So no-one was more surprised than me when I was offered a review opportunity.
The background
The iPad is increasingly being adopted as a professional performance tool in a variety of guises, and it was only a matter of time before it was transformed from a drumming toy to a full-blown instrument.
The thinking behind the DM Dock is simple: many drummers already have in their iPad the core element of an electronic drum module – a compact, powerful controller that handles MIDI and a range of other applications. There were two missing links: a trigger interface and a decent sample set. Alesis is offering both in the form of the DM Dock and the accompanying DM Touch app.
What’s in the box
The DM Dock is a housing which accommodates a full-size iPad of almost any generation and a bunch of trigger inputs via standard 6.5 mm jacks.
The iPad slides into the unit (with an adaptor plate for newer, thinner models), but unlike other iPad docks, the connection is made via a cable rather than a click-in mount. This approach was adopted to accommodate any
digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
changes in the main connector, so the device can currently work with both the 30-pin and Apple Lightning iPad connectors.
The back panel has 12 stereo trigger inputs and a slot for a variable hi-hat controller as well as the usual MIDI In and Out and separate Left and Right Outs. There’s also a footswitch input and, of course, full-size headphone jack. Finally, the unit is also equipped with a USB port that provides audio and USB MIDI.
There are only two dials on the face of the unit – a headphone volume level and a main output level adjustment - as all the other controls are done on the iPad screen. At last, a touchscreen module! Well, not quite an industry first as the high-end XM modules actually have touchscreen controls – but nowhere near as cool as the 10” iPad display.
The dock is a two-tone affair, made of grey and black plastic with nice bevelled edges reminiscent of the iPad itself. It seems sturdy and well built and comes with slots to attach to a regular module mount. I used a Roland mount and the screw holes matched up perfectly. The Dock is powered by an external 6 volt adaptor which also charges your iPad when it’s powered up. Besides the physical ‘box’, the DM Dock offering includes an app download – currently free (grab it while you can) – dedicated to the iPad. You can’t load it on an iPhone and there’s no Android version.
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Plugged in
One of the measures of a module’s capability is its ability to accommodate input triggers. The system is clearly designed for Alesis triggers, but the manufacturer claims it works with “nearly any other trigger pads”. We tested the DM Dock with a range of drum, cymbal and aux triggers including a Roland PD-128, a Padtech TR-12D 12” kit, a Hart 10” Accupad, a Quartz harness trigger, an Aquarian onHEAD, a 682Drum t-Rigg and various Roland, XM, 2box and Triggera cymbals. There are a variety of parameters that can be tweaked for each trigger. You can set them as either two- or three-zone, select from piezo or switch input types and then adjust the sensitivity, threshold, retrigger cancel time and Xtalk (both send and receive) and select from five velocity curves.
Those basic controls provide an arsenal of adjustment which accommodated all of our test triggers – admittedly, with different degrees of success. Some triggers, like the PD-128, were relatively easy to dial in. Others, like the Quartz DIY drum, were fiddlier. But I’m confident that with enough time, patience and trial and error, good responses can be obtained with almost anything. The exception was the hi-hat controller, where there are no editing options and I was not able to get any variation – just a closed hat. Perhaps this would work better with an Alesis control pedal. Overall, sensitivity was good – but not great. But I believe that more tweaking time may well have provided further improvements. Rim/head and edge/bow detection was excellent and the cymbal chokes worked well. Bell triggering on the ride was good when the sensitivity was pushed way up, but I struggled
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with edge sensing – possibly because the tested ride cymbal has a combination of dual piezos and a switch.
Interestingly, there’s no “save” function on the trigger settings but the device appears to retain its settings after being shut down. I also tested the Dock as a MIDI interface, playing a Zendrum through it. This produced good results, with a reasonable velocity range – although there was nowhere near the sample depth of my usual VSTs. Finally, the onscreen mixer is a joy. Each trigger has its own slider as well as reverb and panning and there are a few general kit reverb global settings – all of which are tweakable.
And the sounds
This is where the app comes in. It provides 10 drum kits that include rock, jazz, electronic and percussion (alas, no brushes!) and an instrument library of 145 sounds from SONiVOX. Interestingly, the pre-launch screenshots showed some of the instruments as locked add-ons requiring in-app purchase, but the app was initially published with all the sounds available for free. Perhaps any additional samples added later will be behind the paywall.
All kits are editable and you can mix and match instruments from the sound library and either save or rename them. There doesn’t appear to be a limit on the number of kits you can create, and presumably, the only barrier will be the size of your device’s memory. The sounds are certainly good enough for most applications and I used the app with another interface for some time before the Dock arrived. In fact, I even did a couple of Zendrum gigs using the DM Touch app.
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Each instrument sound is also editable, with the ability to alter the pitch (up or down), pan and reverb.
One obstacle I encountered early on is limited polyphony which became especially evident in cymbal swells. When the triggering is too fast, the engine seems to simply give up and emits a noise instead. This was also the case with some of the tom rolls – although I couldn’t replicate the problem with the snare trigger.
In action
You’ll notice that there is no Audio In socket and nor are there any play-along tracks with the DM Dock. That’s because you should be able to access other apps on the iPad for recording and play-alongs, especially since the latest iOS versions have vastly improved InterApp Audio which shares audio between applications. In theory, you should be able to access sounds from GarageBand, SampleTank or other drum apps, but in reality, I was not able to do that without a third-party app such as n-Track Pro. However, using that DAW, I was able to trigger sounds in apps like digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
DrumJam, while playing along to songs from my iPad library. n-Track also allowed me to add FX from a variety of other apps as well as enabling recording. Latency was a bit of an issue with DM Touch, but not much more than with a laptop driving VSTs via USB. And apps like n-Track Pro do have a low-latency mode which seemed to improve performance slightly.
So, the playing experience was good, but not fantastic. It was certainly adequate for practice and perhaps as an emergency fall-back for a gigging drummer facing hardware failure on stage.
Overall
I firmly believe that iPad drumming will be the way of the future – and very soon. So this solution is timely, even if it’s not perfect.
So, here’s what I like …
The design, layout and connectivity are excellent – and will only get better since the iPad is so easy to connect to other devices and the Internet. 9
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The onscreen controls are fantastic – just what drummers have been asking for. It’s wonderful to be able to tune a snare with a touch of a finger in real time. The trigger tweaking options are solid – and will no doubt improve with firmware updates down the track.
The sound library is a good starting point. Some of the kits, like the percussion kit, are really good. Overall, the sounds are not VST standard, but certainly no worse than many of the module sounds. But there are gaps in the offering (for example, no brushes sounds, no vintage drums, no Latin kit), and no doubt these will be filled down the track with in-app purchase options – either from Alesis/SONiVOX or third-party sources.
What I didn’t like …
Some triggers were hard to dial in and all nonAlesis pads and cymbals required at least some parameter tweaking. Overall, triggering needs to be tweaked, both in terms of reducing latency and providing more finesse. This is especially true of the hihat controller which needs to be editable, rather than defaulting to the Alesis model.
Polyphony needs to be boosted so that cymbal swells and tom rolls are improved.
I am not privy to Alesis’ long-term plans, but I suspect the hardware will not undergo any changes for a while, so buyers need not worry about obsolescence in the short term. I would expect some firmware upgrades reasonably soon – as well as the launch of an online marketplace for sound samples.
And while Alesis may not do anything to improve inter-app sharing, there have been strong hints that Apple will in its next OS update, which is believed to support multiple apps running at the same time. Provided the iPad has the grunt to run them all, there’s no reason to doubt that you’ll be able to select a song in your music player and run it in the background while you trigger the DM Dock and perhaps run a recording app at the same time. In the meanwhile, you can achieve this using one of the VST host apps which sell for anything from $10 to $60 or more.
The future is here with a device that combines the trigger connectivity of a module, the computing power of an iPad, the easy and immediate control of a touch screen and the versatility of a VST, and while the DM Dock is not perfect, it’s a lot of fun and a lot of potential for less than $300 (if you already own an iPad).
DM Touch needs more sound options – more instruments, more layers, more articulations. The ability to interface with other apps needs to be improved. There are some excellent drum samples in other programs such as GarageBand, SampleTank and DrumJam – and it would be great to be able to access them without having to buy and run a thirdparty app. Similarly, DM Touch needs to integrate better with the iPad’s music player and recording apps.
And overall …
The concept is fantastic and the potential enormous. But there are a few modifications required before the DM Dock can be taken seriously as a professional instrument. Luckily, these are mostly software-related, and they should be easy to fix.
For potential buyers, the DM Dock is certainly something you can take home and use out of the box. If you don’t already own a module, this solution will definitely get you up and running for home practice.
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Click above to watch our video review or on the audio icon to hear sound samples.
Specifications
12 TRS 1⁄4” dual-zone inputs 1 TRS 1⁄4” variable input for hi-hat pedal controllers 2 TRS 1⁄4” balanced outputs Stereo 1⁄4” headphone output Class Compliant USB 1.1 MIDI I/O MIDI In jack; MIDI Out jack Assignable 1/4” MIDI footswitch input Included kits: 10 Included sounds: 145 Street price: $250 www.digitaldrummermag.com
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--Gear--
Stepping up to the middle Yamaha has a new line of kits built around the updated DTX502, and Scott Holder checked out the changes.
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AS YAMAHA DOES with the DTX line, the 502 range has three configurations: the 522K, 532K and 562K. Each kit has an upright KP65 kick, an XP80 three-zone textured cellular silicone (TCS) snare, a PCY135 three-zone cymbal and a RS502 rack. The 522K has two additional cymbals (Yamaha’s newer PCY100, also a three-zoner - one for a crash and one for the hi-hat), three TP70 rubber pads for the toms and a HH65 hi-hat controller. The 532K replaces the hi-hat controller with a HS650A hihat stand and both PCY100 cymbals with a PCY135 for a crash and a RHH135 for the hihat. The 562K also swaps out the rubber toms for XP70 TCS pads. The KP65 has an additional single-zone pad input so you can expand the kit and assign any available sound. I hooked up just about every single-zone pad I own, ranging from an old Yamaha PCY10 to a new Triggera D14 china, and they all worked fine when assigned as a PCY90 in the pad type settings. All cabling is included and there’s plenty of flexibility placing each component. It’s not
digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
unlike any other kit with a similar rack and individual ¼” cables.
Set-up, from opening the box to playing, took a couple of hours – some of that spent on getting it fine-tuned to my playing style. The rack is black, lightweight metal and stable. The entire rig (DTX652K) isn’t as light as the 450K, but the toms are easy enough to remove and the rack’s wings folded in pretty well. Overall, it’s still far more portable than my old mesh-based kits.
The Module
The box is feather-light and compact, due, in part, to not having conventional MIDI connections; instead, it has a USB-to-computer output that does MIDI OUT and is also used to import samples onto the module itself. There are also “only” seven pad inputs (not counting the hi-hat controller input). This seems limiting until you realise you have an eighth input via the KP65 kick pad. Plus, each of the three tom inputs can be expanded via a splitter/Y-cable, thus expanding the kit to 11 inputs.
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The snare, ride, crash and hi-hat inputs support Yamaha’s three-zone pads. Since one input does bell, bow and edge for a ride cymbal, the 502 doesn’t “need” the 12th input required on Roland modules. The sound engine is an upgrade from the DTX900 sound library. Yamaha used “laser technology” to analyse and refine strokes and trigger settings.
There are 50 preset kits and 691 individual sounds (or “voices” as Yamaha calls them). The preset kits are what you would expect: rock, jazz, oak, maple, etc., but there’s also a nice dose of World Music, orchestral and retro electronica. You can copy any of them into an open user kit slot that allows you to edit them. In fact, that’s how you keep changes you make to a kit: either copy and edit or edit the preset and then save it to an open kit slot. About a third of the voices are percussion and effects voices. That seems like too many “only three people on the planet will want this” voices, but I never found myself feeling the traditional drum sounds were left wanting. While there might only be two chinas and two splashes, the module has an additional setting to change cymbal size, so with a little effort, you should be able to dial in any cymbal you want. Plus, with Yamaha’s three-zone cymbals and the potential to layer sounds on any given pad, you get a lot of variability with any given voice/sound depending on the pad.
The DTX502 module includes two features found on much more expensive boxes: layering and the ability to store and play samples. The layering function is similar to that found on the 700/900 series modules as well as the Multi-12 multi-pad, albeit at two layers (as opposed to four, for example, on the Multi12). To load samples, you need to download a separate program from Yamaha and instructions for that also require the download of the separate Reference Manual. Once set up, loading sampled .wav or .aiff onto the module itself is easy. The howls you’ll hear online, however, concern the 1Mb storage limit. There were similar howls over the 64 Mb storage limitation on Yamaha’s M-12 unit.
Realistically, you can put around eight samples on the DTX502. Nonetheless, I found even that little capability was very nice to have. Additional voice tweaking includes the usual: panning, kit volume and pad volume. Like the DTX450, there are nine preset reverb profiles,
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Electronic, acoustic and hybrid drumming
T-RIGG
Electronic, acoustic and hybrid drumming The t-Rigg is a perfect solution for adding an additional trigger option to your electronic or acoustic drum kit.
Alesis mesh head conversion
The 682Drums conversion kit will greatly improve the playability of your Alesis pads, or other kits with Medeli mylar pads, while reducing ambient sound (-20dB).
Drum mics from the specialist
Drum mics for studio and stage. At these prices, no better choice.
E-cymbals
Stereo E-cymbals with choke. Available in 12 and 14 inch sizes.
Mesh Heads
Top quality mesh heads with a perfect, natural bounce.
Triggers
The center placement gives perfect response and crosstalk is eliminated.
How to improve a great kit
Improve your 2BOX with 682Drums mesh heads.
E-kick
The brand new E-kick is now available!
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10-10-2014 20:39:33
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but here you can change the degree to which those are applied. The master equalizer has just two bands, Lo and Hi; that could be limiting to some but I’ve never had to massively tweak a module’s EQ. There are a fair amount of adjustments you can do to the snare - tighten the wires and muffling (which can also be applied to kick and tom voices). Cymbals have adjustable sustain, while percussion is also editable. Adjustable parameters for individual triggers include sensitivity, threshold, velocity curve assignment, retrigger cancel, crosstalk and some technical settings like minimum level/velocity, etc. There’s also a metronome and click track, standard features for any intermediate-level module.
Hi-hat settings include splash sensitivity for heel chics/splashes, the foot close position and clutch position. Overall, the module has a robust technical set of features that should satisfy an e-drummer of any experience level.
The ability to adjust MIDI settings is very impressive. You can set note numbers and channel numbers in any combination, a problem I’ve found in other products that can make using them as an effective MIDI controller problematic. There are no concerns about that with the DTX502. As I do with every potential MIDI controller, I hooked this up to my computer running Toontrack’s EZdrummer. It was plug and play.
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Navigation is, well, Yamaha. It takes getting used to and many things don’t seem intuitive.
The DTX502 carries over all of the teaching/training functions from the DTX400, meaning this kit is a fantastic training tool. You can turn off individual pads, watch how you’re playing on the screen and there’s a scoring system so you can keep track of how you’re progressing. I still suck.
Finally, you can record your performance or “song” as Yamaha calls it. What’s easy (and here the navigation sequence is quite good) is you can pre-record backing songs, set them to loop, then play over them. Store half a dozen of these and you can potentially add a layer of drums or percussion to a live performance. You can also play over the array of fantastic kits included with the module, assign them to pads and even trigger them in parts by striking the pad repeatedly. This is similar to what Yamaha did on the Multi-12 and it’s still addictive to play.
The Sounds Of Silence
We can’t talk about this kit without focusing on the incredibly quiet, silicone TCS pads that comprise the snare and toms. But first, we’ll look at the more conventional, rubber pads.
The KP65 kick pad performs no differently than when we reviewed it (dD May 2013) as part of the DTX450K kit. You can always “upgrade” to Yamaha’s mesh KP125W which also has the input for an extra pad. The PCY135 cymbals for the crash and ride are quiet, three-zone, and respond nicely.
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Nothing’s changed since we first reviewed them back in May 2011. Swells out of the box aren’t quite as seamless as I was expecting; they’re good but not perfect. However, you can layer two cymbal voices, set the “xfade” parameter and the result is every bit as smooth from one zone to another as I find on my Roland TD-12 or how I remember them on the DTX900 module. The RHH135 hi-hat has a virtually identical response as the PCY135, although the module itself only has open/closed, half-open, foot close, the closing HH sound, and heel splash/chic. Some online users have reported getting what they describe as a 3⁄4 open/closed sound.
The hat stand, while basic, worked fine. If you’re using this as a MIDI controller, the module/RHH135 combo will send full HH range to the VST program.
Although the PCY100 didn’t come with the review kit, I put one on the module along with a HH65 controller pedal. It has the same stick noise characteristics of the PCY135 (quiet) and is responsive across all the zones to include a third “cup zone” not found on the RHH135.
The toms and snare are the XP series TCS head pads: the toms XP70 single zones and the snare an XP80 three-zone. I also extensively tested the kit with an XP100SD pad.
Either snare has a head and two rim zones. The rim is divided in half, like the rubber TP70S previously reviewed, with one half producing rim shots and the other crosssticking. The XP80 does not have a separate gain control found on the XP100SD, nor a control knob on the top that allows the user to change certain aspects of the snare like tuning, head tensioning, etc., although that mechanism only works on the 700/900 series modules. The main reason for getting the XP100/120SD for use here would be for size only. The attraction of the XP series of pads is the TCS head. The surface texture is not unlike my old Zildjian cymbal mutes or the strike pads on Visulite cymbals; some have even likened the feel to coated acoustic heads. The pad itself is surprisingly firm, there’s no squishiness as on my mutes. However, the pads aren’t rock hard like a rubber pad or even a severely tightened mesh head.
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How the pad plays is the big question and one that generates a healthy amount of “pad wars” with online comments ranging from “plays like a wet kitchen sponge” to “the closest thing to acoustic!”
The first thing I did was set up rebound/bounce tests with equipment and methodology first used back during our cymbal review (digitalDrummer Feb 2011). I would drop a stick and start measuring the time from when the tip first struck the pad head to when it stopped bouncing. Hard rubber pads like the PD-7 or TP70S had the least rebound. The XP100SD (and any other TCS pad) were noticeably bouncier, followed by mesh pads which were the bounciest. The second thing I did was to play various pads side by side. I played fast single rolls on each and didn’t have any trouble adapting to each surface; each is different, obviously, but nothing any decent drummer can’t handle. I’ve had a harder time on rubber pads doing fast single roll fills over three toms when simulating my monster ‘70s drum solo; it’s easier for me to do on mesh, with the TCS pads somewhere in between. Then I did fast single rolls but had one stick playing on one surface, the second stick on another. That’s when you really notice the bounce difference across the surfaces. What I can say is that the TCS pads were sensitive, ghost notes were easy to play and there was no dreaded “hot spot”. When Yamaha tells you how quiet the TCS pads are, they’re not overstating the claim. A formal stick noise test confirmed those findings. At 2’ with a controlled hit, the TCS registered just 60 dB. That’s a full 10 dB quieter than our tests on a PD-7 pad and 4-5 dB quieter than my Diamond Drums pad with the single-ply Drum Tec mesh head. At 2’ with a full hit, the TCS registered 74 dB. However, the type of sound generated by each and how they propagate make the TCS pad far quieter. Stick 18
hits on the TCS have a softness to the tone, whereas mesh has a boingy, tennis racket sound. I let two sticks drop simultaneously on each pad and while I could hear the TCS pad (my ears were about 3’ away), the mesh pad’s sound cut through and drowned out the Yamaha. So, they are that quiet.
To conclude, you’ll either love the TCS pad technology or hate it, there doesn’t seem to be any middle ground. Regardless of where you fall on “pad wars”, these pads (XP70/80s that came with the kit or the larger XP100/120SD) are sensitive, dynamic and have no hot spots.
The Sound Of Voices
I’ve been playing the Oak Custom kit either on the DTX400 or now on the DTX502 module for almost two years. It’s one of many preset kits that carried over. Obviously, Yamaha did some additional fine-tuning of the individual module voices based on the data they collected. In headphones and out of the box, I’d say the differences are subtle. Cymbal voices have always been a strong point in the DTX900’s sound engine, so I heard less difference there. The tom voices, however, are now on par with the cymbal quality.
What really stood out was how everything sounded through a PA. Here’s where I felt the refinements that went into the DTX502 are noticeable. The kick and toms have a deep resonance and, for the first time to my unsnare-tuned ear, I was getting a realistic “crack” sound that I’ve not had in any of my beginner modules and definitely not in modules with an older sound engine. These refinements also have resulted in all the kits being created equal. Unlike what both Allan Leibowitz and I have found testing beginner and intermediate-level modules over the last couple of years, there aren’t any kits in the DTX502 that are significantly poorer sounding than the others. It bears repeating that judging onboard module voices/sounds remains incredibly subjective. However, Yamaha has tried to take some of the variability out of what goes into 600+ voices on a module and the results are consistent and a marked difference to what I’m used to hearing at just about any module/kit price point.
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SPECIFICATIONS
Overall…
The module alone makes this kit attractive. You get a sound set that’s at least comparable to - if not better in quality than - Yamaha’s far more expensive DTX700/900 modules, with enough editing capability to suit just about any drummer. If you opt for the higher-end DTX562K with the TCS pads, you’ll have the quietest e-drum kit out there. The cymbals will make you rethink what it’s like to play “only” two-zone pads. The downside is that the additional input you get through the kick drum is limited to a single-zone pad: thus, if you want two three-zone crashes, you’re out of luck. The module has the excellent teaching tools from the DTX450 with the added capability of recording. The ability to load samples is very useful although the 1 Mb space limit restricts what you can do. If Yamaha could just squeeze another couple of Mb of sample storage space onto the thing…
Drum Sound Module: DTX502 Max Polyphony: 32 notes Expansion: 1 additional pad No of kits: 50 preset; 50 user-defined No of voices (instruments/sounds): 691 Instrument Parameters: Kit, volume, reverb, velocity curves, gain, layers, crosstalk, decay, panning, tuning, double-kick, min level/velocity, reject/wait times, Effect Types: Reverb (9 preset types; 2-band EQ) Songs: 60 Wave memory: 1Mb storage (imported .wav/aiff files + user-defined kits) Wave memory Sample Rate: 16bit/44.1kHz (but can be changed) Sequencer Capacity: 104K notes Note Resolution: Quarter Note/96ppq Recording Method: Real-time overdubbing Click Tempo Range: 30-300bpm Pad Connection: ¼” to ¼” mono/stereo depending on pad type Interfaces: MIDI USB Outputs: 1 x ¼” stereo (headphones), L/R ¼” mono (TS unbalanced) Inputs: 1 x 1⁄8” stereo Drum Pads: 1 x 8” three-zone XP80 TCS, 3 x 7.5” TP70 single-zone rubber (if 562K, replace with 3 x 7” XP70 TCS) Cymbals: 2 x 13” three-zone rubber; 1 x 10” single-zone (if 522K) or 13” two-zone rubber (if 532/562K) Kick: KP65 upright rubber pad Hi-hat: HH65 controller pedal (if 522K) or HS650A stand (if 532/562K)
Now you can find all the digitalDrummer Head2Head reviews in one place. Mesh heads? All in one PDF. Looking for information on internal, external and aux triggers? Again, one click and you get it all. And the same with e-cymbals. And much more...
Everything you need
Just a click away
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--Gear--
Sure-footed
Roland’s KT-10 bass drum solution made its debut earlier this year, and Allan Leibowitz has been putting his foot down.
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stock set-up with no need to adjust my style in any way.
DRUMAGINATION OWNER MARK Steele questioned the “traditional” approach to edrums in an article in digitalDrummer a couple of years ago, knocking the approach of simply adding a trigger to the established drum design techniques.
Sounds like
On the outside
Triggering was exceptional on all modules, with no need to adjust any parameters on my test array of Roland, Yamaha, and 2box modules. It even worked out of the box with Alesis’ DM Dock.
At last, we’re seeing one of the mainstream manufacturers thinking outside the box with Roland’s new kick trigger. The new thinking, which results in a beaterless solution, is evidenced by the new “KT” designation in place of the “KD” nomenclature (kick trigger, as opposed to ‘kick drum’). The KT-10 is a sturdy, solid and well-built piece of gear that looks like it’ll be beating for many years to come. It consists of a reverse-action trigger which emulates the feel of a regular pedal without the need for a beater. The pedal activates a metal hammer which strikes a vertical pad in which the trigger sensor is mounted. It’s an elegant solution and certainly looks the business.
In action
Under foot, the KT-10 feels like an upmarket kick pedal. Weighing in at 1.4 Kg, it is a substantial pedal, with a full-size base plate.
The unit is designed as a stand-alone and does not need a drum surface of any type. It’s perfect for rack set-ups or even behind a full size drum for an acoustic/electronic hybrid. The footprint is reasonably compact – around 18 cm x 40 cm. The KT-10 is adjustable, with a couple of weights that can be moved to different slots in the beater mechanism to alter the profile and feel. It’s also possible – but a bit fiddlier – to adjust the pedal tension by moving the spring to different hook positions. The unit has two audio jacks – a mono output for the module connection and an input for daisy-chaining pedals together, for example, if you needed two units for a double pedal set-up. The pedal required no physical tweaking at all. It felt totally natural and balanced and I have been using it for some weeks in
digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
The first observation is the lack of acoustic noise. Most of my strikes registered just above 65 dB and I had to stomp with all my force to get much above 75 dB. Most of the solutions tested in our last e-kick line-up scored in the 80s, with the exception of the Triggera Krigg (71-73 dB).
Overall
With a US street price of around $230, the KT10 is certainly not the cheapest kick drum solution out there. But it is a stand-alone unit, so you don’t need an additional pedal, nor would there be a need to replace heads or other parts. So it’s a one-time, fully inclusive price. And I’d venture to say that it’s a sturdy, wellbuilt and durable trigger that performs flawlessly to produce excellent performance – almost silently. For that kind of performance, it’s well worth the investment.
I can see this pedal appealing not only to mainstream e-drummers tired of the thump of their mesh or rubber kick drums or looking for an extra kick trigger alongside their existing one, but also to the new generation of hybrid drummers adding e-drums to their acoustic rigs. This trigger is a perfect add-on to the Roland TM2 module, or any of the multi-pad solutions out there. In the interests of balance, we like to include any negatives, but the KT-10 had us floored: there simply weren’t any. So, the KT-10 is a hands-down winner – or should that be feet-down?
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--Gear--
Stand & deliver The growing popularity of two-piece electronic hi-hats and of hybrids means that hi-hat stands are becoming more important to e-drummers. digitalDrummer spoke to a number of professionals to find out about their weapons of choice. 22
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Daniel Schlep
Preferred stand: Stock 2box or Ludwig Atlas
Hi-hats are, of course, the Achilles heel of e-drums. In my book, I talk about the common use of “simulation” in e-drums – where the instrument often not only tries to simulate sounds, but also a realistic physical feeling while beating on surfaces like mesh or rubber. The hi-hat is often recognised as a weak spot of this procedure, but many advances have been made. The best solution for the user is to find a mix of software and hardware that fits his or her needs - a module that is capable of producing the right sounds, a responsive hi-hat pad and the right stand for it.
I use a combination of products from the electronic and the acoustic scene. 2box is my choice for the electronic part. I really like the quality of the sounds and the new kind of open technology that powers this module, especially for the fair price it’s sold at. With the MK2 rack, you already get a great lightweight hi-hat stand. When a more solid version is needed, I combine my e-drums with a product from Ludwig’s Atlas hardware range. There is a choice of a Standard, a Classic and a Pro version. While the first one offers great features for its price, the last two meet the needs of a professional. The Pro version has a two-leg design, but the Classic combines modern ideas like the Aerodisc bottom cymbal tilter with traditional Acculite sustain feet.
Pat Kennedy
Preferred stand: DW 9000
For my Roland TD-30KV set-up, I prefer the DW 9000 series hi-hat stand. The chain-drive features and smoothness of the action allow for a consistent triggering response from the V hi-hat pads featured on the TD-30KV drum kits. Conversely, the release of the pads is equally consistent with the DW 9000 hardware, which can often be overlooked when dealing with electronic pads. Both the onset and release of sonic signals are vital in the production of digital sounds, and this hi-hat stand accomplishes both goals extremely well. As far as set-up is concerned, I have found that the proper clearance between the pads is very important. I usually keep about a 1” gap between the top and bottom hi-hat, to allow for complete separation of the pads. Similarly, I also tighten the clutch to the top hihat pad to reduce the rocking of the cymbal, which may result in additional and unwanted contact between the pads. To ensure their continued quality and function, I maintain a clean surface by wiping with a dry, soft cloth. Also, when transporting the pads, I place them both "bell up" on a flat padded surface inside a protective bag or case to prevent damage to the pad and to protect the electronic components and triggers inside. digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
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Johnny Rabb
Preferred stand: Gibraltar 9607DL-LD
I use the Gibraltar two-legged hi-hat stand to allow room for a double pedal. I usually use lightweight models to save on taking up a lot of room on the road. I have really gone back to a basic design that simply works and is simple to transport. Of course, it is very reliable and well made, too.
I feel it is important to keep the hi-hat rod inside the tube when transporting. It helps to keep it straight and avoid being bent. It is also important to prevent metal-to-metal contact with your hardware. The life of your hardware really depends on how you treat it between gigs.
When choosing, I look for a sturdy set-up. It should not wobble or rock at all. It can be frustrating when the stand moves or has a springy feeling to it. Sometimes, this is due to the legs being extended too much and the base plate not being on the floor. Also, try out different models to see if you like the action of the pedal and chain/strap. This is the key thing to look for. You want the open and closing motion to feel good. All hi-hat stands are different. Be sure to test drive them at your local store.
Russ Miller
Preferred stand: Mapex Falcon
I use the new Mapex Falcon hi-hat stand. A couple of the standouts are that it is a two-legged stand with a support plate. Some other cool features include legs that can be completely removed to tie into a rack or a second kick drum. There is a pedal board clip, which allows you to clip the pedal board to the stand when you put it in your case so it won’t be damaged when transferred. The thing that I like the most is it has a very smooth and quick feel. Besides the pedal board clip, other care tips include always removing the hi-hat rod with the clutch attached for transport so it won’t get bent, and we place a small rubber band around the bottom cymbal seat for transport. This holds the cup washer and felt in place.
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Of course, the most important thing to look for in a stand is the playability and how quickly and smoothly it reacts. I also look for stability of the stand so it won’t rock or move. Proper tilting of the bottom cymbal on the hi-hat cup is also important. Some stands on the market don’t allow you to tilt the bottom cymbals and this can cause an odd vacuum sound when closing the hats. The other thing is mobility of the bottom cymbal. I actually remove the “Tri” rubber seat that ships with the Falcon and replace it with a standard seat felt for better cymbal movement.
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Jonathan Atkinson Preferred stand: DW 9000
I mainly use the DW 9000 series three-leg hi-hat stand, although I also have a couple of Yamahas and a DW 5000, but the 9000 is the one which I use most and is my favourite.
The DW 9000 hats stand, like the 9000 series bass drum pedal, is beautifully made, and has a wonderfully smooth action. It needs very little tinkering to make it perform brilliantly, whereas with some other stands I have found that I need to really adjust the spring tension to make it feel smooth.
I use the three-leg version over the two-leg version purely because I've always found that the stability of the two-legged versions (particularly on a riser which might have a bit more 'flex' in it than a solid floor) is sometimes not up to it. The only two-legged version which I've found works really well is the Yamaha HS1200T. I'm not sure what they did with the design of this that works so well, but it doesn't seem to suffer from the wobble which plagues other two-leg stands. If you need the two legs because you are fitting in a double pedal, this is a great option and worth checking out.
The most important things to protect on your hi-hat stand are the pedal linkages and also the pull rod. The linkages on the DW 9000 are pretty bomb-proof, so I feel confident that they'll survive even the most cavemanlike drum tech. The pull rod on any hi-hat stand is the weak point as it's necessarily pretty thin metal, and in amongst a traps case of very heavy stands, it's definitely vulnerable. To counter this, I always make sure that the clutch is attached at the very top of the rod, and the rod is inserted inside the top tube of the stand so that the rod is fully protected. They do bend quite easily, and if a traps case is upended (to be put on a truck or whatever), then the rod can be bent by the weight of other stands in the case. Otherwise, just keeping the stand clean of dirt and stick sawdust by wiping it down every so often, you should get a lifetime's use out of a stand if it's of decent quality.
Peter Erskine
Preferred stand: DW 6500
I love the DW 6500 flush-base hi-hat stand. It’s lightweight, dependable, sounds great, and it simply works!
I’m not a fan of the two-legged hi-hat stand (they tend to wobble in my experience), and I prefer lighter-weight hardware to heavier-duty in general. That said, all of the DW three-legged stands work great.
The DW hi-hat clutch is terrific. I also like the Remo hi-hat clutch which is so simple to use and works on any make or model of hi-hat stand.
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Stanton Moore
Preferred stand: DW 7000
For jazz gigs and gigs around New Orleans, I use a three-legged DW 7000. For touring and festival/clinic backline, I use a two-legged DW 9000 The 7000 is relatively light, while remaining very stable. The 9000 is rugged and even the two-leg configuration is stable.
On the road, my traps case is big enough so we don't take the hi-hat apart; we just fold up the legs. That helps minimise wear and tear. Also, be careful with the rod - don't let it get bent, don't lay it by itself... and don't let your band mates step on it! When choosing a hi-hat stand, the action of the pedal must feel comfortable to you. Look for a weight that is heavy enough to be stable, but not too heavy to carry around. A good clutch that won't come apart while you're playing is essential!
Dirk Verbeuren
Preferred stand: Tama Speed Cobra HH915N
I’m very happy with my Tama Speed Cobra HH915N hi-hat stand. It’s strong enough to resist road roughness and Tama’s lever glide system makes for a super smooth, lightning-fast response. Most of all, you want your hi-hat stand to feel good and this one certainly does! The longer footboard allows me to use the sliding technique, just like on my Speed Cobra double pedal bass rig. I usually play with the hats half-open, so maximum tension is ideal and easy to adjust using the rotating slider. The spring seat allows me to raise one end of the lower cymbal, adjusting the width of the sound to my liking.
To position the stand comfortably next to my left kick pedal, I turn the stand’s dual legs to the left, which is also very quick and easy. Each leg has a sliding spike, so the stand stays firmly in place, even on a wobbly stage. All in all, setting up the Speed Cobra takes just a few minutes, and I honestly couldn’t imagine a sturdier, more practical hi-hat stand!
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ATK
INS
ON ’S
TIP S
Standing orders WHEN CHOOSING, FIND a hi-hat stand that you feel suits you. If you're carrying your own gear, then maybe a heavyweight stand like the DW 9000 isn't for you, but maybe try something lighter. There are so many great options out there (the DW flush-base stands are great lightweight options, as are the lighter Yamaha models).
The worst problem you'll ever find with a hat stand is that it doesn't stay where you put it. The DWs deal with this by having industrial strength velcro on the bottom. Others use spikes. Some work better than others, so if you're checking them out in the shop, make sure it doesn't go walking away from you easily. If it does, buy something else!!
Also, make sure you check out the stand with the weight of cymbals you're actually going to be using.
As a general rule, if you put the cymbals on the stand and press the top cymbal down and it moves freely and bounces up and down a few times, then it's probably well made with a smooth action. Same as if you check out a good quality kick pedal, you're looking for the least amount of friction in the action.
Buy the best quality you can afford without breaking the bank. As I say, if you buy quality, you'll only need to buy it once. When setting up a hi-hat stand for the first time, the only two things I ever change are the cymbal height and the spring tension. There are no right or wrong ways to do this, but pay attention to how comfortable you feel on the gig. A stand set too low or high for you can play hell with your posture as you try to get your hands out of the way to play the snare.
Only you can decide where is best, but good posture is vital to a long career in drumming, so pay attention to how you hold your body while playing. If you're twisting your shoulders or lower back, your hats aren’t set right.
Spring tension is a matter of personal taste. I like mine so I don't have to push down too hard to close the hats really tightly, but they also open easily and quickly. Finding that balance is very easy if you have the right stand. Jonathan Atkinson
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"Triggering was superb across the entire surface of the head .... The head picks up every nuance – but only the intended hits. There’s no false triggering or crosstalk."
digitalDrummer, August 2014
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Hybrid on
show
The hybrid wave has hit Germany, with a variety of solutions on show at this year’s Electronic Drummer Meeting in Langenfeld, as organiser Wolfgang Stölzle reports.
THE THEME OF the third edrumtreffen (edrum meeting) was Hybrid Set-ups and the event offered a rare opportunity to play and test those kits which are harder to find on the floors of local music stores. Exhibitors this year included Wronka Drums, drumtec, 2box, Mark Drum and Nord.
Dennis Brzoszka, drummer of the German electro pop band Susanne Blech, demonstrated his minimalistic kit featuring a Wronka metal bass drum pad with a DMX-controlled illuminated band logo. The duo Step Beyond from Koblenz did a great Drum&Bass performance using custom samples and Ableton. Ludwig and 2box endorser Daniel Schlep demonstrated the brand new 2box external trigger and shared his philosophy of combining modern communication devices such as smartphones or tablets with electronic drums.
Mark Drum endorser Markus Ostfeld brought his band, Groove Elation, and performed on a kit consisting of Mark Drum 30
toms and bass drum with an acoustic snare and cymbals which sounded great .
Marcel Bach accompanied his Sakae acoustic kit with a Nord Drum 2 and Nord Pad. He demonstrated the Nord gear’s looping capability, layering tracks on top of each other using chromatic percussion sounds or effects and then he started jamming along on his acoustic kit in a really musical solo performance.
The last demonstration saw Thomas Panthel of Hyperactive/2box showing how “the drum module (acts) as a whole toolbox for the working drummer“. Besides the live performances, visitors also got to put some of the solutions through their paces on a test kit loaded with a range of VST plugins from Toontrack, XLN and Native Instruments. For the vintage fans, there was the original Briefcase of Saga's former drummer, Steve Negus, plus a complete working Simmons SDX system, the most expensive e-drum system ever built.
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PHOTOS: Wolfgang Stรถlzle
Wronka and Nord gear (previous page) and the Simmons SDX, 2box/Ludwig, Mark Drum and Nord hybrid set-ups.
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PHOTO: NEIL ZLOZOWER for VATER
--Profile--
Hail to the
QUEEN A music store competition kick-started a career which has included stints with Prince and BeyoncĂŠ. Queen Cora Dunham shares her story with digitalDrummer editor Allan Leibowitz.
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digitalDrummer: Did you start at a young age and how important is formal music training for a drummer?
Queen Cora Dunham: Actually, I think I started fairly late compared to a lot of musicians that we know. I started playing drums in the marching band in ninth grade and didn’t actually start on the drum set until 11th grade in high school. You know, Allan, I think formal music training can be very important. Although everything that is taught in school can be developed in an informal environment, the cool thing about school is that the curriculum indicates that you should learn a certain amount of information in a certain amount of time. Formal training can help you see the bigger picture of your role as the engine to a band, orchestra, ensemble or track, based on the style of music. When I studied at Howard University, William Richards, Harold Summey and Grady Tate were my private drum/percussion instructors. They all offered different perspectives to music and between the three of them and all of my other classes, my understanding of theory, arrangement, discipline and versatility expanded. Then, of course, there were people like Clyde Adams, Aaron Spears, Tim Steele, Greg Grainger, Jay Jay Williams, Chris Dave who I learned from in a way that school wasn't teaching me. There is a thin line between studying to do something and actually DOING IT and these guys were DOING IT. I joined Sigma Alpha Iota, a music fraternity for women and that kept me connected to other girls as well as our frat brothers who were serious about music. Formal training is a great way to learn how to read music. For those drummers who are trying to figure out whether they should take the time to learn how to read music, think of it like this: You can function in regular life without being able to read a sentence. You can follow your feelings, listen well, interpret the signs and follow the people around you, but if you take just a little more effort to expand yourself, reading gives you so many more options and opportunities to function in different environments with clear understanding. Reading music is the same and it’s good to have balance. Don’t be so stuck to the music that it sounds like you’re reading; it’s also nice to be able to sit down and express yourself without a “chart”. I think a balance between formal education and being mentored by people who are doing what you want to do makes for a good balance. digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
dD: Tell us about your early work, which I gather was in the classical area.
QCD: Well, my high school band director, Mr. William Portis, exposed me to several genres of music, plus my dad’s vinyl collection was pretty vast. So in the band room, we had a set of vibes that I started experimenting with. I also started playing at a church in Houston where my godmother, Mamie Johnson, was the Minister of Music. That was a new experience that exposed me to traditional and contemporary Gospel music. So, throughout my junior and senior year in high school, I was learning jazz and continued playing under Fred Irby at Howard - plus I stayed connected to classical music in orchestra at Howard, American University, Howard Percussion Ensemble, Washington Symphony Orchestra and just playing around DC. I played timpani, four-mallet marimba, snare and all of the other fun toys and percussion instruments, as well as drum set. I had the opportunity to apply my timpani and percussion skills to Richard Smallwood’s Gospel album, Persuaded: Live in D.C., on the songs Procession of the Levites and Coronation, so my classical experience definitely opened more opportunities, taught me about tuning drums and developing more “touch” to my drum set playing and really understanding how to make the drums “sing”.
dD: Let’s talk about the Guitar Center DrumOff. What did your win do for you and how important are competitions like this? QCD: The Guitar Center Drum-Off was an awesome experience and definitely a super blessing! Well, I grew up being very competitive in swimming, diving, softball, basketball and academics, so I think competition can be great. It first makes you strive to compete with yourself and to just have inspiration to be better. The cool thing about being a drummer is that we generally hang out with other drummers to learn and get better already, so the Guitar Center competition is so awesome because it brings more drummers together on a national platform. Winning the Drum-Off first of all was the answer to a prayer. After graduating from Howard, my car had an oil leak and the engine basically locked, so I was without a car. So when I moved to LA, I would just in-line skate, ride the bus or one of my Godparents, Edward and Bettie Horne, would help me rent cars. So winning a Jeep and all of the awesome prizes was beyond awesome! On top of that, the competition really 33
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PHOTO: BEyONCé TuMBLR
Hybrid heaven - Queen Cora's River Nile kit is augmented with yamaha’s DTX range
pushed me to be creative, exposed me on a national level and, of course, introduced me to so many drummers. It was through that experience that I learned even more from Chris Hart about what endorsement relationships really meant and the importance of playing equipment because I truly loved it and not just because it was being offered to me. The competition is great because every year, if you choose to compete, it inevitably pushes you to be a better player and grow that much more connected to your instrument and the drumming community. dD: your big break, I guess, was when you were discovered by Prince. How did that come about and develop?
QCD: After living in LA for two years, I was making efforts to build a positive reputation for myself and had worked with P!nk, Il Divo, Michael Bearden, Frank McComb, Zac Harmon, Tom Schuman, Phil Upchurch, Lalah Hathaway, Richard Smallwood, Dr. Diane L. White, Goapele and several others. Apparently, Prince had heard about me and on Raymond McKinnley’s recommendation, Prince and Rachelle Farrell came to hear me play with 34
Frank McComb and Raymond at a supper club in LA. At the end of the second set of the show, Prince’s assistant came up and asked for my contact information because Prince wanted to buy me the “drum set of my dreams”! I was already in a relationship with DW, so they made me an incredible red and gold, spider pine seven-piece set. After about five weeks, while my husband and bassist, Joshua, who I was dating at the time, and I were rehearsing with Frank McComb for a Blue Note Japan tour, my drum set came in. I called to tell Prince and thank him and he invited us over to jam at his house. It was amazing! After we returned from Japan, Josh and I started playing for a lot of his after-parties and a week before we got married in 2005, we recorded on the 3121 album!! Talk about a wedding gift! We continued working with him through several tours, TV shows, recordings, Super Bowl 2007 and five-and-a-half years of many memorable adventures. We love him dearly and he has been such a blessing to our lives.
dD: Let’s talk about electronic percussion. I know you used an SPD-S with Prince. Was that your first encounter with electronic drums?
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PHOTO: MARIELLE MCQuITTy
QCD: Winning the Drum-Off in 2002 included a custom set of Roland V-Drums, so that was my first exposure to electronics. It was a new world and I had to respect and appreciate that if there can be acoustic piano and electric keyboard, acoustic bass and electric bass and other instruments that had both acoustic and electronic counterparts, electronic drums were just as awesome and worth exploring as acoustic. I spent time learning, which made me more comfortable applying it to live performance experiences. dD: How did electronics help with Prince, especially on your tours?
QCD: Soooo, becoming comfortable and applying electronics and becoming comfortable and applying electronics with Prince are two different things. (laughs) It was definitely a process. In addition to learning so much of his catalogue of music and songs that he loves playing, incorporating intricate electronic songs added even more to my plate! It pushed me in a great way. He is definitely an advocate and icon for “Real Music by Real Musicians” and so electronics were always triggered through my SPD-S in the moment and not pre-recorded or looped. We were often capturing a lot of the original Linn Drum sounds that he used to record the albums we were playing live, as well as 808s, claps and other memorable effects that added to his sound. So it made me understand the art of capturing the music as 36
people recognise it from recordings while still giving a dynamic, ever-changing creative live experience. He can be very spontaneous in live performances because he is always inspired, so it was important for my electronics to become one with my kit so I wouldn’t miss cues or changes in the music for being so consumed with triggering and changing patches.
dD: More recently, you’ve been working with Beyoncé. How have you used electronics on that gig?
QCD: Yes! I worked with Beyoncé for two-anda-half years and it was a powerful experience! I learned so much as it related to drive, dedication and really seeing production from a massive perspective, as well as how my role as the drummer impacted the show. I was initially using the Roland SPD-S multipad, which was a great supplement for her music from the fourth album which was very drumheavy, as well as some of the music from her previous albums. On The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, she also started incorporating songs from the Beyoncé album, so I needed more to complement the electronic presence. The Yamaha DTX900 came right on time for expanding my options. dD: So, you’re now a yamaha DTX artist. What gear from the range do you use and how do you use it?
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PHOTO: KRISTyN BROWN/FLyBEHINDTHELENS
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Follow Cora on:
Twitter: queencoradunham
Instagram: queencoradunham
Facebook: Cora Dunham
Company website: www.vivoclub.com
Cora and Joshua Dunham on the Drum-Off red carpet QCD: I am very excited to be a part of the Yamaha DTX family. Right now, I am using the Yamaha DTX900 Series and the Multi-12 pad. The playing scenario determines how I use the gear. For example, with Beyoncé, I developed my DW “River Nile” acoustic kit (positioned in size order: 10” side snare, 13” primary snare, 8”, 10”, 12”, 14”, 16” with 18” gong drum over my right shoulder and 20” gong drum over my left shoulder, 20” double kick drums, each with 8x20 added woofer kicks). Immediately to my left (on the East side of “Nile”), I positioned my Yamaha DTX900 module and included one 12” XP 120S snare, three XP 100T toms, KP125 kick and a portion of my RS130 rack system. In other environments, I just use my Multi-12, which gives me the option for sampling in a more compact way.
dD: With the demands of international touring, what do electronic drums allow you to do that you couldn’t do - or at least which would be much harder to do - with acoustics? digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
QCD: Having electronics definitely expands the possibilities for your kit, and in situations where you need a smaller set-up but still need a big sound with variety, electronics is the way!! In other environments where you have the tour support to bring all of the bells and whistles of a full electronic set-up to complement an acoustic kit, that’s just as awesome. In addition to international touring, I'm also the drummer for an annual youth empowerment awards show called The Black Girls Rock Awards (BET) where, under the Music Direction of Kim Burse, I've been able to work with Ledisi, Alicia Keys, Brandi, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Keisha Cole and a host of international artists and electronics give me the expansion I need to capture the colours and tones that complement each artist's music. In addition to that, Josh and I have been producing a TV talk show and other video productions with producers like Myriam Léger among others, where the electronic element really comes in handy for scoring music! 37
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PHOTO: QuEEN CORA DuNHAM
There is so much that electronic drumming has to offer to your playing and the key is to know what the balance is that will give you the final results that you are hoping your listening audience will experience. Sound effects, spoken word, claps, samples, loops, bombs, snaps, explosions, triangle, bongos, chimes, and over 1,000 internal sounds plus unlimited sampling and expandable options … electronics give you endless possibilities.
dD: And what are deficiencies with electronic kits - the things that you just can’t do and are easier and better done with acoustic kits? QCD: There is always room for growth and continued evolution of interactivity, dimensions and other aspects of electronics in the drum community, but the progress so far has still been incredible! I think it’s about knowing what the music calls for and choosing the tools that best capture that sonically and not just for the heck of it. dD: What advice do you have for kids starting out in drumming - especially girls who are not always encouraged to get into percussion?
QCD: The advice that I would share for kids who are just starting out is to have fun! I say that to those who have been playing for a while, too. Don’t stop having fun! Learn and be open to new musical experiences and then balance that with understanding business. Don't get so lost in being creative that you don't properly manage the creativity and become another "starving artist". You can play
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music, travel the world and enjoy life but everything that lasts has balance.
Notes and rests | Sound and Silence | Up beats and Down Beats …Life is rhythm and rhythm is just patterns. So be intentional about your patterns, setting small goals that lead to greater goals, know yourself, know your equipment, understand your business and have fun!! People sometimes ask me what it’s like to be a “girl drummer”. The truth is I only know what it’s like to be a drummer who happens to be a girl because I’ve never been a guy! (laughs) What I do know is how to stand out, how to be myself, how to be unique. As valedictorian of my high school, I know what it’s like to push hard, to be focused and to be proud of myself. To have performed at the Super Bowl twice. So to girls who are interested in playing percussion, I encourage you to be driven but be the unique, amazing, intelligent, classy, delicate yet powerful being that God created you to be, and strive to be not the best girl, but be YOUR best! I am not just a drummer: I am a musician, producer, video producer, author, endorsee, clinician, speaker, brand specialist, multi-business owner, teacher, director, wife, sister, daughter, cousin, niece, friend, and a student for life – ever-learning, ever-evolving and, most importantly, passionate about impacting the rhythm of lives across the world and I am thankful and excited that drumming has been a platform that I have been able to do that with everyone from three-year-olds holding sticks for the first time to some of the most influential people in the world! www.digitaldrummermag.com
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Select the best to win the best Voting is now open in the digitalDrummer Readers’ Choice awards to honour the best new products for e-drummers and those who have made the greatest contributions.
Have your say by clicking here. Readers are asked to vote for the best: New product of the year (hardware) New product of the year (software) E-drum retailer (by region)
E-drummer of the year
Hall of Fame inductee.
Win hybrid heaven
Just by voting, you also go into the running to win* a package containing some of the most innovative drumming solutions around:
Aquarian’s inHead Kick & Snare pack includes a 14” inHead electronic/acoustic snare head, inBOX, rimSHOT trigger and a kickZONE bass drum trigger.
A Roland hybrid starter kit consisting of the revolutionary TM-2 trigger module with two stereo inputs and a range of built-in sounds - and the versatile BT-1 auxiliary trigger bar. FXpansion’s BFD3 gives you a huge array of sounds and presets, seven new kits (recorded in two locations) - all the tools and sounds you need for any music project - regardless of genre.
* Competition terms are detailed in the poll
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How I use e-drums --Performance--
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Originally a solo side project for drummer OCD Adam, Tenth Amendment combines heavy metal and electronics in new ways to create something refreshingly new.
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OCD Adam’s equipment: Laptop with Ableton Live and Superior Drummer Alesis Trigger-iO Hart Dynamics Pro Series Drums Roland Cy-8, PD-8, and FD-8 yamaha KP-65 WHILE I PREDOMINANTLY play industrial metal, I love all styles of music. Over the years, I noticed electronic drums gaining popularity with a lot of drummers in other genres because of the great sound, portability and flexibility. I started to wonder why heavy metal drummers were not following suit and taking advantage of everything that e-drums can offer. I decided to make the switch to an entirely electronic kit early in my career and am glad I did. I started Tenth Amendment in 2008/2009 as a solo studio side project to experiment with new drumming styles and learn new recording techniques. As popularity for the music grew, I completed the line-up for the band and we began touring. In the past few years, Tenth Amendment has become my primary focus and has also been an outlet for me to experiment with the capabilities e-drums can offer in the studio and on tour. All of the percussion in Tenth Amendment’s upcoming album, Conviction, was recorded entirely with e-drums. In the studio, e-drums have made recording an amazing experience. Because the drum tracks are captured as MIDI, the performance and the sounds are handled separately. I can modify drum sounds without having to replay the song. With Superior Drummer, I have access to a whole arsenal of kits and drum sounds. I’m not confined to one specific kit as I would be with an acoustic. If the sound of a 24” bass drum isn’t working in the mix, it can be changed to one that is more suited to the sound we need. We don’t need to compromise the overall mix to accommodate a drum sound that might be too boomy or cymbals that are too bright. The drum sounds can be modified right up until the final mix down. digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
E-drums have been a dream come true on the road, too. Before the last tour with Tenth Amendment, I knew that I needed a kit that was portable, easy to set up and would consistently sound great. In addition, I needed a set-up that could replicate samples and control synths so the live performances sounded just as full and diverse as the albums.
I also wanted the ability to hear a metronome and my own mix of drums, samples and synths, while having a different mix go to the venue sound board. E-drums provided the perfect solution. Using Ableton Live and the Alesis Trigger-iO, I can use Superior Drummer, launch recorded samples and control synths, while still having the flexibility to adjust my mix and the main mix with a few clicks. I can also change the sound of a single drum or the entire kit on stage with ease. Acoustic drums just could not offer that flexibility. The e-drum rig I use allows me to control all of the variables of the live show relating to drums and sampling. Nothing beats handing the sound tech one cable and saying, “Just turn it up”. The portability of e-drums can’t be understated. I can replicate the sound of an 18” floor tom, 24” bass drum or a 22” ride cymbal and still keep my kit compact. The 12” Hart Pro Series drums can handle anything I throw at them and capture every nuance of my playing. The Roland pads and cymbals are small enough to fit anywhere I want on the kit and the gear has held up over years of punishment on the road. As e-drums continue to evolve, so will drummers and their roles as musicians and band members. The more they can do, the more we can do with them. I can’t wait to see what we can do next…
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--Gear--
L S: RO
TO PHO
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IA
In the last edition, Michael Schack explained that although hybrid drumming is hardly new, there is fresh interest in combining acoustic and electronic drums.
AL uSTR RP A
CO AND
hybrid is happening
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ONE APPLICATION OF hybrid drums is to meet specific amplification needs. For acoustic kits in particular, drummers are often required to set up in space that is too small (such as cafes or bars) to warrant a full microphone setup. Unfortunately, this often causes a disconnect between the drum kit and the amplified instruments in the band (such as vocals, guitars and keyboards).
However, the more creative application of hybrid technology is the addition of sounds not available with an acoustic kit. When playing acoustic or electronic drums, you might need to add a totally different sound to your set-up, like triggering percussion sounds or electronic handclaps from an extra pad. This is true sound expansion, where you add extra sounds to your set-up, not just layer underneath or on top of a sound you’re already playing.
Probably the most common way of combining two drum sounds, an acoustic one and an electronically generated one from a sound module like a sampler, is just to stick them on top of each other. But, this kind of layering does bring some problems, like “sound cancelling” or waveforms which “phase” against each other. When the tuning of the combined sounds doesn’t match or isn’t “in sync”, both sounds end up sounding weaker when combined. Not good. Another potential problem is the unwanted “flam” when kick and snare hits, for instance, sound ‘doubled’.
I personally believe that the major strength of a well produced hybrid drum sound lies in the combination of elements emanating from different sound layers. For instance, use your main acoustic kick sound for the midrange or low end, and then add some high frequency “attack” sound element or low-end “sub” sine waves to enhance its impact. In this case, you keep the general character of the acoustic
digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
sound, but “enhance” it with what could be missing or something that takes it beyond expectation. This way, the added elements and the main sound really become “one”.
So, to recap, here are some applications for hybrid drumming based on the example of adding a sample of a barking dog. If this sample were simply combined with your kick and snare, that would be sound layering. Using just the low-end of the bark to give your kick drum a doggy characteristic would constitute “element enhancement”. And triggering the sampled barking between kick and snare while playing a beat would be sound expansion. So the same sample can be applied in various ways to achieve different effects.
Of course, any sample can be used – in any combination: any crazy idea you might have could be worthwhile to experiment with. But there’s one rule you have to follow: the generated ‘extra’ sound you want to integrate needs to be right there when you play it. Latency and “matching” are key factors in realising a goodsounding, hybrid sound set-up. You would also benefit from some understanding of “phasing” and “sound cancellation”. You can easily train your ears to distinguish a welllayered sound from a poor one. There are a bunch of tutorials on YouTube, and there’s plenty of specialised music production press which can help you through detailed tutorials. So go ahead, go hybrid and be hip with your new, kick-ass drum sounds. It’s going to turn your fellow musicians’ heads, inspire you to play better and get the audience moving. Good luck! To read Michael’s step-by-step guide to setting up hybrid acoustic drums, click here.
And to see how the approach can also be applied to electronic kits, click here.
Click to see Michael’s informative hybrid demo videos
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--GEAR--
Way to GoPro
We generally deal with the sounds, but now it’s time to take a closer look at capturing e-drum video, as Allan Leibowitz explains.
A VIDEO CAMERA may seem an odd topic for a review in an electronic drumming magazine, but you can’t go far in the music industry these days without seeing an “action camera” in use. While designed for action sports and outdoor activities, it’s not hard to see why the GoPro’s neat and compact format has made it a popular option for performance recording. So much so that the manufacturer this year launched a tailored package for entertainers – the Hero3+ Black Edition/Music.
What’s in the box
To understand the product, you need to decipher the name. Hero3+ is the fourthgeneration GoPro offering (think iPhone 4S). Black Edition signifies the top-of-the-line product (above white and silver) and Music designates a bunch of special accessories designed for performers. So besides the basic camera unit, the package comes with some special mounts instead of the standard waterproof case and a special audio adaptor (the mic input of the previous model has gone 44
and a dedicated USB adaptor is now required for an external mic input).
To attach the camera to the special mounts, this model ships with The Frame, a minimalist camera mounting solution that provides access to all ports (well, almost, as you need some dexterity to remove the cover from the USB/card slot) and full exposure to the camera’s microphone. Bundled in are a removable instrument mount which clamps guitars, drums, turntables, keyboards and other instruments; a mic stand mount and GoPro’s Jaws: Flex Clamp.
Setting up
Setting up is simple – once you’ve worked out how to detach the camera from its mount in the box! The first thing you have to do is charge the battery, which is done via a USB connection. Then it’s a matter of choosing your video or stills mode (there’s plenty of advice on which settings to use in different conditions).
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There are only two buttons – a power switch and a shutter release switch, which both double as selection buttons for the menu displayed in the little LCD screen on the back. As with any two-button menu-driven command system, this is a bit clunky, but thankfully there is another solution which I’ll get to shortly.
The next decision is how to mount the camera. Instead of a waterproof case, the Music edition is supplied with a skeleton case – enough to hold the camera in place and provide a connection point to the multitude of mounts available out there. The camera attaches to these via a kind of quick-release buckle that GoPro has adopted as its go-to system. Luckily, it ships with a bunch of adhesive mounts which allow you to stick the camera on virtually anything. The camera is the personification of point and shoot, especially since there is no viewfinder. But that doesn’t mean you’re shooting blind.
There’s a companion app which turns your iPhone or iPad into a wireless remote with the help of the Hero3+ WiFi capability. Using your i-device, you can adjust the settings, preview what you’re shooting and hit record and stop. Sure, there’s a bit of a delay, but it’s a fantastic solution that makes the camera truly handsfree.
In action
This isn’t a photography review, so I’ll limit this discussion to the GoPro’s suitability for e-drum recording. In this look-at-me world dominated by Facebook, YouTube and online forums, edrummers increasingly like to share videos of
their performances and most consumer video cameras have limited audio input options. Most rely on their built-in microphones and few have the capability of handling a direct feed from a module or audio interface. digitalDrummer’s videos are shot using either a Kodak Zi8 or a Nikon DSLR, both of which have Audio In jacks. The GoPro Hero3+ doesn’t have an audio jack per se, but the Music version ships with a special USB audio adaptor (normally around $30 as an accessory), which takes a stereo feed. Interestingly, the built-in camera is mono, but the device is capable of recording stereo, so it can be paired with a module (via the audio output) or any stereo mic set-up. For our tests, we used direct feeds from a couple of different modules and got excellent results using the line level feed. We also used the headphone out on some devices.
The other huge advantage of the GoPro is its exceptionally wide lens and huge depth of field (that, for the uninitiated, means the amount of stuff in focus).
I found it extremely useful for shooting the kit in a confined space – exacerbated by a short audio lead! The resulting footage was crisp and clear and nicely exposed despite the poor indoor lighting. Of course, there was quite a bit of distortion from using the wide-angle lens (think fisheye), but this was easily corrected using GoPro’s uncomplicated (and free) video editing software.
Overall
The GoPro Hero3+ is a compact but capable camera that not only captures extreme activities, but is now documenting the thrills of live music.
The special Music bundle is versatile, providing a number of practical mounting options which allow you to stick the camera on anything from a mic stand to your guitar, drum kit or keyboard.
POSTSCRIPT: After we completed our review, GoPro released a new HERO4. The HERO3+ Black reviewed here is no longer available, but the Silver edition is still on offer. digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
Its brilliant optics mean that the camera is as good at capturing a wide stage as it is for shooting your kit in a tight space. However, this is not a device for shooting a stage from some distance, nor for trying to capture a concert from the audience position in low light.
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It’s easy to use and even more user-friendly when coupled wirelessly to an i-device. The free video editing software is another big plus, especially for those who just want to do simple edits before posting on YouTube. Of course, there’s a premium price for the icon brand in the compact action camera market. There are much cheaper alternatives, but for the assurance of a market-leading manufacturer with strong after-sales support, the $400 price tag may be good value. However, be warned: like your basic e-drum kit, the camera kit may be just the start of your journey, with heaps of accessories available – from waterproof cases to aftermarket stereo microphones. If you’re a compulsive type and like using genuine parts, the extras certainly mount up: a tripod mount costs around $25 and an extra battery costs twice that much.
I loved everything about the GoPro, from its tiny form factor to its huge performance (under the right conditions) and hope to be using the technology a lot more for digitalDrummer videos.
Package contents
HERO3+ Black Edition Camera Higher Capacity Li-ion Battery The Frame Jaws: Flex Clamp 2 Removable Instrument Mounts Mic Stand Mount Protective Lens 3.5mm Mic Adapter Quick Release Buckle Vertical Quick Release Buckle 3-Way Pivot Arm USB Cable
Camera Specifications:
Video modes: Professional 4Kp15, 2.7Kp30, 1440p48, 1080p60, 960p100, 720p120 fps video 12MP photos at up to 30 frames per second SuperView video mode Auto Low Light mode Built-in Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Remote + GoPro App-compatible Ultra-wide angle glass lens
Sound advice FOR E-DRUM RECORDING, the audio in of the Hero3+ is a nifty solution – albeit one that requires an audio/USB cable (supplied with the Music edition) and a stereo mini-jack connector for the module.
But there may also be times when you want to record the amplified sound of your drums or full band sound. Unfortunately, the inbuilt GoPro mic is not the greatest. It’s mono and, generally, music sounds a bit thin when recorded with the internal mic.
There are some aftermarket mics, and one of the most popular – but certainly not the cheapest – is the iGoMic from professional mic maker MicW Audio. The iGoMic is certainly a well-designed piece of gear. It is compact and minimalist and comes with a neat attachment arm that locks into any standard GoPro mount. The unit consists of an X-Y stereo-matched pair of microphone capsules specially designed for GoPro cameras.
I tested the iGoMic in a few settings – for spoken voice, at a small band practice and in a large, loud rock concert.
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The sound was unquestionably better than the native GoPro audio in all applications. Spoken voice was louder, clearer and less tinny.
However, the mic came into its own with fullvolume band sound. Again, it was louder than the inbuilt mic capture, but, more importantly, it was full and detailed with a wide stereo image. Listening with headphones, the quality exceeded what I had expected from the GoPro. The iGoMic ships in a sturdy carry case which is actually big enough to accommodate the GoPro body as well. It comes with a minijack/USB cable and a mini-jack/mini-jack lead for use with video cameras and DSLRs. It ships with a wind shield, a mic holder rod and a spare rubber attachment ring.
The bad news: the $170 street price. But if you use the camera a lot and sound is important, you won’t regret the investment.
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--VST--
EZer for non-drummers Toontrack’s EZdrummer has long been an industry stalwart, and Allan Leibowitz checked out the newest version to see if it still has its edge.
HOT ON THE HEELS of BFD’s recent upgrade, Toontrack has given its entry-level EZdrummer a revamp with the launch of EZdrummer 2.
The developers have given the VST pack a thorough shake-up with some benefits for edrummers, but there’s no doubt that the real winners in this iteration are composers and producers. In essence, there’s even more drummer in the programme.
What’s in the box
Like most VSTs these days, EZ2 is a download – and a much bigger one than the original, weighing in at 3.3 GB where the first incarnation was just 720 MB.
The new offering boasts 21,000 samples – four
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times the initial 5,300 samples. Instead of upgrading samples from the previous 16-bit to the full 24-bit standard, Toontrack has opted for 18-bit to make the package easier to run and less resource-hungry. If it were purely a numbers game, then EZ2 would be a clear winner over its predecessor: there are five included kits (three more than EZ1), including nine snares (an additional six), seven bass drums (four more) and an extra ride cymbal (a total of three), two extra crashes (10 in all), an extra hi-hat among the three included and 10 percussion instruments (up from just one). There are also a number of enhancements aimed at songwriters, which we’ll explore a little later.
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The look and feel
Like its predecessor, EZdrummer 2 is a standalone solution, and does not require a DAW or host. It works out of the box, so to speak. Unlike Addictive Drums 2, EZdrummer 2 replaces the original programme when it’s installed, so you’ll need to kiss EZ1 goodbye when you hit “install”. But you don’t actually lose anything since all of the samples, presets and grooves are still accessible – and all EZ1 expansion packs are fully compatible.
While the engine has had a major makeover, the layout is virtually unchanged from its original format. The graphics have been updated with a more Apple-like gloss, replacing the retro jukebox styling of the old GUI. The new layout is clean and uncluttered, consisting of four main windows, each accessed by a tab.
The drums window contains a kit image in which each piece can be auditioned by clicking the instrument. Like EZ1, each kit piece has a drop-down arrow which reveals alternative instrument sounds, not just from the current kit, but from all the sounds in your library for that piece. The kits load much faster in this version, which also allows you to mix and match sounds from different expansion packs.
The song block dominates the page and, in fact, forms the core of the EZ2 offering. It really comes into play in the browser window, where all the MIDI loops are displayed in their respective libraries. This element has attracted most of the review attention to date and it is clear that EZ2 is primarily a song-writing tool rather than a sound source for e-drummers. Using EZ2 for e-drumming feels a bit like wandering around a gourmet kitchen and only using the toaster.
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The search window is another tool for drummer replacement. Here you can find loop elements with which to build grooves, and there are a variety of ways to search – by genre, by BPM, by time signature, etc. But again, this is an area most e-drummers will seldom visit, so we’ll gloss over it. The mixer window is sufficiently uncomplicated to appease any e-drummer. There are simple volume sliders and pan controls for each instrument, as well as bleed controls.
There’s not a lot of scope to tweak sounds, but that’s no drawback as there are plenty of presets for each kit – including the original EZ1 mixer presets and a bunch of new ones. The main dropdown menu has much of the behind-the-scenes stuff, including limited MIDI control. Like the original EZdrummer, there is no MIDI map editing capability. Instead, there are a few preset maps for Alesis, Roland, Yamaha and “other”. I know the aim of the package is simplicity, but I think the lack of MIDI map tweaking functionality is a major oversight which will annoy a number of edrummers, especially since there is MIDI learning available in the mixer window to allow you to use your computer keyboard to adjust parameters. That said, the stock maps are pretty accurate and EZ2 was one of the few VSTs that was accurately mapped for the Aerodrums virtual drumming application, which is pretty obscure.
The sounds
The versatile sonic palette of the original EZdrummer was one of the reasons for its success and Toontrack has built on that with some sensational new sounds in the new version.
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The core offering is built around two libraries – one modern and one vintage. The modern kits consist of a DW Collector’s Maple, a Gretsch USA Custom and a Yamaha 9000 in various configurations with up to five toms. There are also a dozen snare choices. These are augmented by various Paiste and Sabian cymbals in hi-hat, ride and four crash/splash combinations.
The vintage kit is a five-piece kit with Ludwig ‘60s and Vistalite drums and Sabian and Paiste cymbals in a ride, hi-hat and two crashes configuration. The snares consist of a Ludwig 400 and Gretsch Chrome over Brass – both of which also have dampened versions. But those are just the tip of the iceberg. The vintage kit is available in a dozen preset versions which sound as different as night and day, while the modern kit has almost 20 variants ranging from disco to metal. The sounds are certainly a step up from the EZ1 samples – rich, detailed and varied, with deeply layered samples to prevent machinegunning.
The two stock kits are extremely versatile and would cover almost any genre, from classic rock to indie. Of course, there’s no jazz, Latin or electronica – but those are readily available as add-ons in the extensive Toontrack library.
In action
I tested EZ2 in a few different set-ups ranging from a Zendrum to a Roland TD-30 and, as mentioned, the quirky Aerodrums application.
With the Roland TD-30, the stock EZ2 Roland map worked a treat. Head and rim triggering on the drums was perfect, cymbal chokes and edge detection were spot-on and the hi-hat calibration was good – although there didn’t appear to be as many steps of openness as the native Roland module. There is some tweaking room for hi-hat calibration, with four additional settings available besides the “none” option.
For the Zendrum, I used the EZ2 Roland map, which turned out to be a plug and play solution. The playing experience was excellent, with minimal latency for all the applications tested – direct from the Roland module or via firewire for the Zendrum. The depth of sample layering gave a natural feel to playing, and I was particularly impressed with the rim triggering which somehow felt even more natural than Roland’s own processing engine.
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The lack of MIDI mapping does, however, detract from the overall appeal, especially when you know that some of the libraries have articulations that you can’t access. For example, it’s really useful to be able to select roll, drag and flam articulations for the Zendrum, but these are not selectable in EZ2 – even where they are available in the sample bank.
Overall
Toontrack has come up with a fresh new look, a lively and capable new engine and some great sounds, but it is clear that the power of EZdrummer 2 lies in the “drummer” part of the name. Like the drummer function built into Apple’s Logic Pro X, this pack is really designed to replace real stick-wavers. Much of the innovation in this offering centres around the powerful MIDI loops and sequencing.
A non-drummer can easily create a drum track by dropping loops into a timeline where they can be customised on the fly and, importantly, recorded in the app itself without having to jump backwards and forwards to a DAW. And the drum tracks which can easily be produced in EZdrummer 2 are certainly impressive.
While there is a lot of new stuff in this offering, e-drummers have largely been overlooked in the process. But, nevertheless, there’s still plenty of appeal for those of us just looking to use the toaster. There is a neat, easy-to-use display, excellent and versatile sounds, an idiot-proof mixer and a programme that gets along with most input options (luckily, because of the lack of MIDI editing options).
EZdrummer 2 is available as an upgrade for around $90 or $150 for a fresh install. EZX expansion packs sell for around $40 and cover a multitude of genres, from Americana to funk and percussion. For existing users, it’s certainly a worthwhile upgrade, if only for the new sounds and the cleaner interface. For edrummers starting out, it’s an excellent VST on which to cut your teeth – especially since its main rival, Addictive Drums, has also gone the drummer replacement route with its new offering. But for those with more patience, I suspect (and that’s just a guess) that there will be something worth waiting for when Toontrack applies its innovations to the more drummerfriendly offering Superior Drummer 3.
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MONSTER My
kit
This month’s kit, assembled by Eric Linder from Spartanburg, SC, is a real monster. Eric’s story
I started playing drum in 1974 and drummers like Peter Criss, Nicko Mcbrain and Alex Van Halen stimulated my need to build a monster kit. A couple of years ago, joining Drums, Drummers and Drumming as an admin led me to Ryan Guard of Pintech USA. Pintech’s electronic conversion package allowed me to create a kit that covered all the bases – and appeased my complaining neighbours. Each drum, cymbal and pad can sound like anything I choose and, as a percussionist, that is sweet. Now, I have one mean Monster Kit I call Black Masses. I don’t think I will ever stop adding to it. I tell people I will stop drumming when they pry the sticks from my cold dead hands.
Kit details:
Drums: Two 8” toms, one 10” tom, three 12” toms, three 13” toms, three ddrum DD1 tom pads, 6”, 8” and 10” overhead roto toms, two 16” floor toms, 14” snare, ddrum DD1 snare pad, three
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22” bass drums and a ddrum DD1 bass pad. Shells are triggered with Pintech conversions or Pintech Trigger Perfects Cymbals: Eight Pintech PC crashes, eight Pintech PC splashes, three Pintech Visu-Lite custom 6” splashes, Pintech PC ride, two Pintech Visu-Lite rides and two Pintech Visu-Lite chinas. Effects: Four Pintech NR6 Nimrods, one Pintech DB12 Dingbat
Hardware: Gibraltar Road Series Rack System, Gibraltar Clamps Pedals: Two sets of Pearl Power Shifter Eliminator double bass pedals
Modules: DD1M module, SDHB2 module, two Pintech EZ Modules, 24 input Ultra Patch Pro, Rane ME15 Equalizer, Samson S-Com Stereo Compressor Limiter, QSC GX7 Power Amplifier fed through 2 Wharfdale 2,000 W Bass cabs with two Harbinger APS15 loudspeakers. MIDI support powered by BDF2 & BDF3 premixed on a Yamaha MG102c and Yamaha AW16G Recording Mixer. www.digitaldrummermag.com
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Share
your kit
digitalDRuMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
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gear Guide
KIT SUBSTITUTES
AUXILLARY TRIGGERS
New & improved
Robust and affordable auxillary triggers, now with improved sturdy mounts and new custom surfaces for hand and stick responses.
CONVERSION KITS
For purchase information, please contact Dave Peck: Phone #303-414-6363 Email: thecowpaddy@Gmail.com
DRUM WRAPS
e-Conversion made easy Transformation
Stealth Drums turns acoustic cymbals and drums into responsive triggers which bring out the best of most modules. Carefully built components shipped with easy-to-follow instructions for the perfect e-cymbal or drum that looks and plays like the real thing. Now, also offering custom readyto-use 2BOX hi-hat kits. And Stealth Drums’ new memory expansion kits boost the 2BOX module to 32 Gb - enough to accommodate a range of hi-definition VST kits.
Bum Wrap Drum Company creates affordable drum wraps for any drummer. Absolutely the best company on the market for drum wraps with the sharpest designs, easiest fitting and most affordable prices in the industry.
Visit us online today
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www.stealthdrums.com
www.digitaldrummermag.com
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gear Guide
E-DRUM RETAILERS
DRUM TRAINING
&7&3:5)* /( &-&$530/* $ %36..* /(
$06
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1IPOF
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CUSTOM KITS
Perfect match
Diamond now offers a 2BOX-optimised side-mounted internal trigger in each drum. This custom option ensures you get the very best performance from a winning combination for perfect triggering.
www.diamondelectronicdrums.com
digitalDRUMMER, NOVEMBER 2014
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DEALER
GOING
MARKETING
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for less than $200 CLICK HERE 53
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Your definitive guide to e-drum gear