Electronic Drums with Live, any users?

[aisling]

My kid is into drums, and I am tempted to get an e set. I hear the Roland, and yamaha, are superior to Alesis.
Then I started thinking about the possibility of routing this with live, and expanding my studio potential, and even in future live performance situations if they arrive.

I'll prob spend less than $1000, but I see many modules in that price range have usb out, leaving my imagination to run wild....

Any users doing this, experiences, live situations, product and rig recommendations, amplification, the works?????

thanks so much for sharing feedback and experience

[gjm]

I use a Roland TD-4K and Addictive Drums. I am happy with that combo.

[Ajbbklyn]

Roland and Yamaha are indeed the leading manufacturers for e-drums. I have a Roland TD-4KX2 (discontinued) that works well with Live and Pro Tools. The beauty of these kits is that you can route audio and MIDI simultaneously - audio via the internal sounds of the kit, MIDI triggering either Live's Session Drums or a third party plug-in.

I use Toontrack's Superior Drummer. Also popular are BFD, Addictive Drums, and Steven Slate Drums. All of these programs work well with e-kits. And, they can be used either in standalone mode (which is useful if you want to trigger drums onstage without using a DAW) or as a plug-in.

If you plan to use electronic drums in Live, be sure that your computer is sufficiently spec'd to allow recording at lower latency (128ms or less).

Good luck. I know you and your son will both have fun.

[nathannn]

I think if your kid is in to drums and you really want to buy your kid an instrument you should ask your kid what he wants. He may rather have acoustic drums.
Remember you asked something about what he or she wants not what you want to merge with what you already have and be nice enough to let him tinker with under you supervision once in a while. If you are going to buy some one a gift, that gift is suppose to be theirs. holy shit!


Maybe what you really want is to buy him a set and also you a set.
If you are looking for electronic drums or accoustic you could buy both of you a set ddrum for just a tad over 1000.


Then again you could be wanting to merge something with your kit as a project for you guys to spend some time with eachother on. If thats the case... ooops


When I read this I became enraged with a childhood memory of every other weekend dad suggesting that we leave our presents at his house so we have something to play with over there.

I also remember him asking me what kind of guitar I wanted and me picking out a les paul copy and then me opening up some fucked up sears press board shit with a radio shack amp bought at a pawn shop.
Fucking disappointing bastard.. I hate you every other weekend dad!!

[beats me]

I think if your kid is in to drums and you really want to buy your kid an instrument you should ask your kid what he wants. He may rather have acoustic drums.

And then ask the neighbors how they feel about it.


I had a set of roland vdrums back in the early 00’s. They were quite fun to jam on. It's also nice you can bang away on them using headphones. Also quite mobile and smaller than an acoustic set if you don’t have a lot of space or need to move them out of the way frequently.

[aisling]

I think if your kid is in to drums and you really want to buy your kid an instrument you should ask your kid what he wants. He may rather have acoustic drums.
Remember you asked something about what he or she wants not what you want to merge with what you already have and be nice enough to let him tinker with under you supervision once in a while. If you are going to buy some one a gift, that gift is suppose to be theirs. holy shit!


Maybe what you really want is to buy him a set and also you a set.
If you are looking for electronic drums or accoustic you could buy both of you a set ddrum for just a tad over 1000.


Then again you could be wanting to merge something with your kit as a project for you guys to spend some time with eachother on. If thats the case... ooops


When I read this I became enraged with a childhood memory of every other weekend dad suggesting that we leave our presents at his house so we have something to play with over there.

I also remember him asking me what kind of guitar I wanted and me picking out a les paul copy and then me opening up some fucked up sears press board shit with a radio shack amp bought at a pawn shop.
Fucking disappointing bastard.. I hate you every other weekend dad!!

All points noted I cant resolve your childhood, mine was not perfect either...my mom sold my drums cause they bothered her, and badmouthed me for playing them to the point of a complex to not want to play them.....i did get into guitar, and got quite accomplished, so maybe the story had a happy ending.
Really the idea is noise based out of respect for my neighbors, and futuristic, wanting to encourage my daughter to get into gear and studio production, which e drums will open the door to.....
Thanks for sharing, hug's all the way around.

[aisling]

I think if your kid is in to drums and you really want to buy your kid an instrument you should ask your kid what he wants. He may rather have acoustic drums.

And then ask the neighbors how they feel about it.


I had a set of roland vdrums back in the early 00’s. They were quite fun to jam on. It's also nice you can bang away on them using headphones. Also quite mobile and smaller than an acoustic set if you don’t have a lot of space or need to move them out of the way frequently.

Yes, I see the roland has the td-4k model which folds in half....gjm also has this set and his set up is appealing to me.
Headphone practice ability is a must at this time being.

[aisling]

Roland and Yamaha are indeed the leading manufacturers for e-drums. I have a Roland TD-4KX2 (discontinued) that works well with Live and Pro Tools. The beauty of these kits is that you can route audio and MIDI simultaneously - audio via the internal sounds of the kit, MIDI triggering either Live's Session Drums or a third party plug-in.

I use Toontrack's Superior Drummer. Also popular are BFD, Addictive Drums, and Steven Slate Drums. All of these programs work well with e-kits. And, they can be used either in standalone mode (which is useful if you want to trigger drums onstage without using a DAW) or as a plug-in.

If you plan to use electronic drums in Live, be sure that your computer is sufficiently spec'd to allow recording at lower latency (128ms or less).

Good luck. I know you and your son will both have fun.

Thanks for your valuable input. I think your model is now the roland td15? it seems like you have the better mesh heads? I am looking at spending a grand at the most. The model avail at this price is the td11 with only one mesh head on the snare.
In a perfect word i'd like to run Kong from reason, but I hear latency issues, so maybe the BFD, and others you mentioned will have to be considered.

[fishmonkey]

how r u with DIY?

[Ajbbklyn]

The successor to my kit would be the TD-11KV, with a street price of $1,600. At $1,000, the TD-11K is the same sound module as the KV, minus the mesh heads for the rack and floor toms. At this price-point you'll also want to compare with the Yamaha DTX522K. I suggest going to a music store and trying out each kit.

Your original post also mentioned amplification. I've never drummed onstage, being primarily a guitarist/keyboardist. However, here are some thoughts:

There seems to be a certain prejudice against e-drums from the "traditional" quarter (particularly non-drumemrs). The exception to this is when a high end kit is in use since, aesthetically, it resembles an acoustic kit and has a much more realistic sound palette. These kits have the same sonic flexibility as the third party software programs. You wouldn't need a laptop onstage with one of these kits. All you'd need is close to $8.000!

Using a moderately priced kit will get you 85% of the way "there". I would go one of two ways: 1) Use the internal sounds of the kit in order to keep your setup as simple as possible, or 2) Trigger sounds from a laptop using the standalone version of whatever program you're using (e.g. BFD, Superior, etc). Make sure the laptop is well spec'd to run at low latency and that there are no other programs on it to slow down the response time.

Feed the audio (whether directly from the kit or from the laptop's soundcard) into a passive DI and then feed a mic level signal to the mixer/PA/FOH. In a situation where there is no PA or mixer or front of house - feed the DI output into the mic input of a full range monitor (not a guitar amp).

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Others will have additional tips I'm sure.

Check the user forums at V Drums. The site is sponsored by Kraft Music. But, the opinions are not edited or censored. You'll be able to pick up a lot of tips and tricks regarding setup, choice of kits, software, etc.

Good Luck!

[fishmonkey]

All you'd need is close to $8.000!

i guess you are referring to high-end Roland kits? the thing is Roland e-kits are outrageously expensive for what you get.

if you are after realistic drum sounds, and the ability to load your own samples, these days the 2Box DrumItFive module is the one to get.

[aisling]

The successor to my kit would be the TD-11KV, with a street price of $1,600. At $1,000, the TD-11K is the same sound module as the KV, minus the mesh heads for the rack and floor toms. At this price-point you'll also want to compare with the Yamaha DTX522K. I suggest going to a music store and trying out each kit.

Your original post also mentioned amplification. I've never drummed onstage, being primarily a guitarist/keyboardist. However, here are some thoughts:

There seems to be a certain prejudice against e-drums from the "traditional" quarter (particularly non-drumemrs). The exception to this is when a high end kit is in use since, aesthetically, it resembles an acoustic kit and has a much more realistic sound palette. These kits have the same sonic flexibility as the third party software programs. You wouldn't need a laptop onstage with one of these kits. All you'd need is close to $8.000!

Using a moderately priced kit will get you 85% of the way "there". I would go one of two ways: 1) Use the internal sounds of the kit in order to keep your setup as simple as possible, or 2) Trigger sounds from a laptop using the standalone version of whatever program you're using (e.g. BFD, Superior, etc). Make sure the laptop is well spec'd to run at low latency and that there are no other programs on it to slow down the response time.

Feed the audio (whether directly from the kit or from the laptop's soundcard) into a passive DI and then feed a mic level signal to the mixer/PA/FOH. In a situation where there is no PA or mixer or front of house - feed the DI output into the mic input of a full range monitor (not a guitar amp).

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Others will have additional tips I'm sure.

Check the user forums at V Drums. The site is sponsored by Kraft Music. But, the opinions are not edited or censored. You'll be able to pick up a lot of tips and tricks regarding setup, choice of kits, software, etc.

Good Luck!

Thanks for your thoughts and feedback. About the "prejudice" issue, I hear you, such a shame, as my tastes are so varied and unconventional....E drums would so compliment....
About amplification, I have a mackie board with 2 qsc k-12 (1000 watt) powered pa speakers, but would possibly need a sub for true low end/kick response...
I am waiting for Namm to see if usb 3 audio interfaces debut, otherwise I have an old motu 828 still chugging along to route signal out.

[aisling]

how r u with DIY?

Depends, I am not following you through entirely, can you elaborate more?

[fishmonkey]

well, if my budget was around a grand, i would consider buying a decent module (i would get a 2Box module) and DIYing some of the drums/triggers myself.

but, it depends what you are after. i played acoustic drums before having an e-kit, and i find the sound of almost all e-kit modules is pretty synthetic (including the high-end Roland ones). also, you lose a lot of nuances and subtlety even with a really good e-kit, however the upside (apart from the relative quietness) is having a bigger sound palette. so to me it is very important that the sound palette is good, and expandable.

yes you can use most kits to trigger drum software on your computer, but it's a real drag having to do that if you just want to sit down and enjoy playing.

and personally i hate those rubber pads...

[gjm]

I don't mind the Roland pads at all. You just have to switch your approach and expectation when moving from acoustic to edrums, just like moving from a piano to a keyboard. I have never owned another brand of edrum other than my Roland so cannot comment on the build of others, but I have set up and pulled down my vDrum twice a week, every week for the last 3 years. It has been absolutely hammered and it has not missed a beat. Only thing is where the power cord goes into the transformer (the fixed end) is fatigued from the repetition of packing it away for traveling. I think this year I will have to replace it. Looking on the 2nd hand market, the Roland have the best resale value so if it does not work out for you there should be a strong second hand price.

You could start with something like this http://www.roland.com/V-Drums/lineup/po ... html#about It uses the same module as the last generation of TD-4 kits, which is what I still use. It does not have a fantastic sound pallet (it is more than adequate for beginners) but it has the connectivity (not sure if it retained the 5pin MIDI or wether they have included USB in this version). Either way, for your daughter to learn on it would be perfectly fine.

If you are running a Mac then hook up to Garageband is super simple, just make sure you are transmitting on Channel 16 for MIDI. Plug in, play and record. Might be a better pathway into production for your daughter than Ableton…

Not sure what your 'playing live' expectation is, but have you considered an Octapad with a few add ons?