Another new one...

[Marto]

Hi all. ;)

First, I would like to aplogize for my bad english writting as I am a pure francophone from Québec, Canada. :redface:

I've been reading a lot here recently and I just decided that it was time for me to say hello. :)

I'm a pretty old fart (42 to be exact) guitar player that want to take the plunge into drumming :D. E-drum will have to do cause my tired ears does not support anymore the high DB made by an acoustic set. :eek:

I recently purchase an HQ practice pad to practice the rudiments while I read and study every bits of infos on E-Drums I can find 'til I am confident enough to make my first and hopfully last E-Drum kit purchase. I'll be playing for my own entertainement only and don't plan to ever leave my house with the kit. I will mostly play hard rock and heavy metal of the seventies and eighties.

While I'm here, I'm going to ask my first questions: I keep reading everywhere that Yamaha is 3 zones on everything while Roland, even on their higher end kit, are 2 zones only. I'm wondering how big of a deal is this? Will I ever "NEED" this third zone if I buy Roland or I can get away with 2 zones only. How often is that third sound required in normal drumming. Could you please elaborate on this ?

Thanks in advance for all the answers. :)

[Scorch Whammin]

Hey Marto!...and welcome to eDf...and yes, Yamaha's top of the line kit, DTXtreme III and now DTX900/950 are three zone kits...I own an older DTXtreme I RHP kit, which came with 2 zones on all the pads and cymbals.....since owning this kit, I have upgraded to the newer 3 zone cymbals and new module (which supports 3 zones)....I REALLY like having 3 zones on my cymbals, especially the ride..to me it makes playing the cymbals a more realistic experience....3 zones on toms and snare is a nice feature, especially if you are going to program loops and other instruments to these zones..however if you are just going to play the kit like you would an acoustic set then 2 zones may be enough..:)

[TAKnipe]

Hi Marto, Welcome to EDF.

I would say that the 3rd zone is quite handy particularly if you have a standard size kit. That zone comes in handy with percussion sounds and special effects. On the cymbals it is very handy as I use it for special effects and chimes on the crash bell sounds. On the ride I use the bell quite a bit. The other thing is when you can spend $65.00 and gets 3 zones for just adding an auxiliary pad it definitely gives you the bang for the buck. The other thing about Yamaha that is superior is the triggering, I almost never get a false trigger or a a zone that doesnt trigger.

Again welcome and make yourself at home. Tom :)

[Marto]

Great comments and keep them coming. ;)

So, on an acoustic kit, you can play 3 different sounds on the snare (head, rim shot and cross stick) and the ride (bow, edge and bell), while on the other cymbals, hi hat and pads, you only can play 2 sounds. Right ? .......

And this is why you take advantage of all your left free zones to programm sound effect, cowbell, etc. on Yamaha module.

Am I missing something else or that's about it ?

[Pink Led Rush]

Great comments and keep them coming. ;)

So, on an acoustic kit, you can play 3 different sounds on the snare (head, rim shot and cross stick) and the ride (bow, edge and bell), while on the other cymbals, hi hat and pads, you only can play 2 sounds. Right ? .......

And this is why you take advantage of all your left free zones to programm sound effect, cowbell, etc. on Yamaha module.

Am I missing something else or that's about it ?

Sure, or you can have cross stick and rim shots on all your toms as well.

[Guinness]

Welcome to the forum.

Since you're jumping into the edrum thing, you may find the Alesis DM10 kits at a better starting price point. That's what I did... Wife wouldn't let me spend thousands on a kit... ok, it wasn't "let me"... I wouldn't let myself. As a former acoustic drummer, I haven't played in years... volume and space concerns... so, moving to edrums to get back into drumming was my choice. Further, as an old fart myself, 41, my ears can't take accoustic anymore. The DM10 kit is a modestly inexpensive choice.

[TAKnipe]

Welcome to the forum.

Since you're jumping into the edrum thing, you may find the Alesis DM10 kits at a better starting price point. That's what I did... Wife wouldn't let me spend thousands on a kit... ok, it wasn't "let me"... I wouldn't let myself. As a former acoustic drummer, I haven't played in years... volume and space concerns... so, moving to edrums to get back into drumming was my choice. Further, as an old fart myself, 41, my ears can't take accoustic anymore. The DM10 kit is a modestly inexpensive choice.


Hey Guinness, I have been seriously considering 1 or 2 of these to add into my setup. I have owned a TD20 and the Yamaha Xtreme 2s and the Xtreme 3 currently. I have been listening to the samples and I have been very impressed with the out of box sound quality and also the importing of samples down the road. There are some deficiencies but the pros heavily outweigh them. I am going to test drive one of these and see where it ranks among active modules. T

[Guinness]

Cool. An unbiased comparison would be good info.

My DM10 (studio) kit is on order, I have nothing to offer but what I've heard (video reviews) and read from others. Going from a DM5 to this will a dramtic improvement (at least these are my expectations).

[Marto]

To be honnest, I am right now, on the fence between the DTX900 and the DM10 Studio. The first for a once and for all purchase or the second for building-up my skills before buying something more expensive.

But if I go the Alesis way, I'll have to replace right from the start the noisy head for quieter mesh ones, as my drumming room is close to my children's bedrooms.

All mixed-up... :redface:

[Guinness]

Changing heads is fairly simple. Check out: http://www.hellfiredrums.com/
to see a tutorial on how to do it for cheap. Billy Blast has $10.00 mesh heads.

I don't know enough about the DTX900, but I assume the DM10 would meet your needs, both in sound fidelity and playability. Alesis is the lesser known brand. I guess, I root for the underdogs. :)

[dauzman]

Kinda hard to compete with the DM10 set for the price ...Even if you want to do some upgrades. Cost is a fraction of the Yamaha set... Hands down winner as a starter set...

[TAKnipe]

I wish the module had a few more inputs, ram, outputs but so far I like the sounds and thats whats important. I could see this as a second module in my kit. I love the expandibility with the Trigger i/o. I would hope Alesis mates up with a decent pad manufacturer and then I think they will have a winner. T

[Hellfire]

Welcome to the forum Marto!

Good bunch of people here that like to help when we can. When it comes to buying a kit, be sure to talk to as many people as you can the own the kits you are interested in. Also, try before you buy if you can. Forums are great places to get information on different edrum kits. Again, welcome aboard.

[Marto]

Thanks for all your inputs guys. ;)

I just got a look at the video on http://www.hellfiredrums.com/ on how to replace the head if this will be the way I go. Really easy. Thank you Phil for this great, in depth, demonstration. :)

While I have your attention here, :D is it correct to say that the equivalent of the DM10, feature wise, VS current Roland module is somewhere between TD-4 and TD-9 and VS Yamaha, is also somewhere between DTXPRESS IV and DTXTREME III ?

[bigpine]

Welcome lots of good advice here.

[pearlygates]

Only my second post.. but this seems like THE place for e-kit owners!

[Hellfire]

While I have your attention here, :D is it correct to say that the equivalent of the DM10, feature wise, VS current Roland module is somewhere between TD-4 and TD-9 and VS Yamaha, is also somewhere between DTXPRESS IV and DTXTREME III ?
You could say that. I sometime think it is somewhere between the TD-9 & TD-12 but most put it with the TD-4 because of price and the fact it has only a single zone hi-hat. You will find out very quickly that the DM10 has features on it that the TD-9,12, or 20 doesn't even have.;)

[Marto]

You will find out very quickly that the DM10 has features on it that the TD-9,12, or 20 doesn't even have.;)

Impressive :eek:

Thanks :)