Electronic drum kit HELP!

Drummergirl_loz

Drummergirl_loz

Drummergirl_loz

Associate
Joined
7 Jun 2018
Posts
5
Hi!
I hope someone with more experience can help.
I used to drum for a few years on an acoustic kit but had to get rid due to space. I then bought a Roland td3 but got bored fairly quickly as its just not the same as an acoustic. I'm wanting to get back into drumming but not sure whether to go down the electronic route again. I can't get an acoustic as I have 2 direct neighbours. I realise the td3 that I bought before was cheap and you get what you pay for. I don't really want to pay more than 1k. Is it possible to get a good electronic kit for this price? Does anyone have any advice or knowledge on this?
Any help is muchly appreciated :)
Thank you
 
I have a TD6VX :) mesh pads rather than rubber and a little more on the TD3 in the controller.. but in the end it's still a MIDI machine.

You'll never get the same cymbal feel as a set of metal.

An alternative is use a hybrid - so a real kit but triggers from the skins/metal but then you mute the crap out of it :) Eitherway the sound will still be electric but it sounds like you're more concerned with the feel?
 
Hi NickK, thanks for your quick reply :)

When you say 'triggers from the skins' what do you mean? Sorry, I'm new to all this!

I definitely would want mesh rather than rubber as they do feel better. I've seen all mesh alesis kits for about 600 which is a price I'd be more comfortable with but I know nothing about that brand
 
I've had a TD9KX for about 7 years and love it. Original kick pads replaced with the newer mesh versions as the rubber pads were terrible but the snare and Toms are fine.
Reckon getting a higher end second hand kit a better bet than brand new personally but always a gamble I suppose.
I do miss not playing on an accoustic but at the same time being able to play in the house without driving the family/ neighbors nuts makes up for it!
 
I've had everything from an entry TD-3 through to a completely custom Jobeky setup which uses real drum shells using mesh heads (looks like this stock image) and using a TD-12. I've played various Alesis and Yamaha and each has it's slight benefits/negatives against Roland but of those three main brands I still prefer the Roland if I was on your budget. Sound wise the worst noise from all the Roland kits I've used is the bass pedal thumping for those living around you - the stick on mesh/cymbal isn't that loud at all, similar to tapping on a counter top with your fist.

Of the current Roland kits available the all mesh head TD-11KV at £1k is probably the best but thats not including a bass pedal. However eBay etc will have lots of 2nd hand bargains and I'd probably look there for a whole kit set-up before buying new, because you know you'll want to add more bits over time like more cymbals etc which ramps up the cost.

"Triggers from the skin" - If you already have an acoustic kit you can fit a "trigger" (various types) to each drum and these triggers connect to the Drum Module. They can look something like this External Trigger or an internal one which looks like this which requires taking the drum apart and is much more work. Then you damp the hell of of the drum with foam/cloth etc to make it acoustically quiet but this doesn't work for cymbals so you'd still need electric versions of those.
 
Unfortunately the TD11 module does not sound that great though. If you can scrape together a bit more cash then the new ROLAND TD-17KVX is the answer to your question. Big snare, real hi-hat, latest sound module etc.
 
I would love a td17 but it' just too expensive for how often I would actually play.

I'm liking the look of the alesis crimson 2, it has everything i want/need at a good price. Anyone know much about this kit? I'm hoping they'll have a demo in the shop.

I've looked on eBay and there's not many 2nd hand kits within 50 miles of me so will probably have to buy new.

Thank you so much for all your help. This is my first time posting in a forum so your advice is much appreciated :)
 
Alesis Crimson II - It reviews well for it's price range with no build/sound issues reported yet. Plus it's a "better" spec for the money than the closest Roland kit so that should save you a little for any extras too!
 
Update

So I went to a shop and asked if they had any alesis crimson 2 or TD11 on display. Nope. Apparently the TD11 is being replaced by the TD17 so they had two of these on display (mid and high spec). The hi hat on the mid/low spec was horrendously unresponsive. The high spec is bigger which I liked.

What I discovered:
•Size matters!
•Rubber pads aren't too bad but mesh is better
•I want the high spec TD17 but can't afford it.

So I feel more confused after my trip to the shop. I need to play an alesis crimson 2 just to know what it' like. If it's unresponsive like the hi hat on the mid spec TD17 it would bother me too much.
Maybe my expectations are too high for my price range :(
 
Drummergirl_loz said:
If it's unresponsive like the hi hat on the mid spec TD17 it would bother me too much
Click to expand...

You won't find a "good" feel high-hat on a kit that's under £1k unfortunately as all will be a separate electric pedal and a solid single piece hi-hat. You'd probably need to nearly double that for a kit which comes with a proper 2 piece hi-hat.

For a more realistic feel you really need an actual pedal/stand like a real kit has as the cheaper "just a separate electric pedal and a solid cymbal" types are very poor IMHO. Sadly the prices for a good setup are ridiculous; for example just a stand/pedal & "decent-ish" single piece 11in cymbal alone, is over £500 but for the best "feel" a bigger 2-piece "realistic" cymbal alone is over £600 without the stand/pedal, so you can see the prices get far too silly far too quickly with electric kits.
 
ianh said:
You won't find a "good" feel high-hat on a kit that's under £1k unfortunately as all will be a separate electric pedal and a solid single piece hi-hat. You'd probably need to nearly double that for a kit which comes with a proper 2 piece hi-hat.
Click to expand...

I bought my electric kit a couple of years ago for £700 second hand, a TD9 with upgrades, all mesh heads, all dual trigger pads, a 12" dual trigger snare, hi-hat sensor attached to a proper hi-hat stand which was also thrown in. Single hi-hat disc that moves up and down, feels absolutely fine.

This TD12 has that, including what looks like the same 12" dual trigger PD-125 snare that I have.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Roland-T...829378?hash=item4d74f70c42:g:RykAAOSwgTJbFVC~

Not sure if he's including the hi-hat stand but I bet he will since he's a guitarist and says he doesn't use the kit anymore. It would be worth the OP going for. Can't go wrong with Roland electric kits.
 
One option for reducing the old bass drum pass thud is put the entire kit on a piece of board, then use 1/2 tennis balls underneath to reduce the sound transmitted.

It's recommended that the non-mess bass drum pads, you use a drum pad to protect where the pedal hits.

I have a double pearl eliminator setup - no way they are quiet through the floor, even with a bass drum pad.
 
NickK said:
One option for reducing the old bass drum pass thud is put the entire kit on a piece of board, then use 1/2 tennis balls underneath to reduce the sound transmitted.

It's recommended that the non-mess bass drum pads, you use a drum pad to protect where the pedal hits.

I have a double pearl eliminator setup - no way they are quiet through the floor, even with a bass drum pad.
Click to expand...

I still have my old "tennis ball platform" sat unused from when I lived in a flat. It does help but the rocking movement you get is a bit unnerving!!
Agree though - the vibrations from kick pads / pedals are loud regardless of what measures you take. Best place for an electronic kit is on the ground!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom