Gear

Feeling the Delay: Latency and its impact on electronic drumming

In the world of electronic drumming, few topics generate as much heated discussion — and player frustration — as latency. It’s the invisible gremlin that can turn a tight groove into a sluggish mess. But what exactly is latency, and why does it matter? What is Latency? In simple terms, latency is the time delay between hitting a drum pad and hearing the resulting sound. It’s usually measured in milliseconds (ms), and while a few milliseconds may seem trivial, drummers — especially those with a good sense of timing — can feel the difference. Too much latency can make playing feel disconnected and unnatural. Latency in acoustic vs. electronic drums Even acoustic drums have latency because sound takes time to […]

DIY, Gear

Is a cheap trigger plate worth it?

Budget-conscious DIYers may have noticed some drop-in trigger plates on Alibaba with a tempting price tag—under $45, including shipping. Even factoring in a 100% US tariff, the final cost is still significantly lower than the better-known alternatives like the Diamond Electronic Drums Easyfit 14″ multi-trigger plate (£139/US$185) or the Jobeky Fast-Fit Premium 14” system (£99.17/US$135). So how do these no-name (Dongguan Feiming Musical Instrument Co) Chinese trigger plates measure up? What’s in the Box My 14″ trigger plate arrived in Australia just over a week after ordering. It was wrapped in heavy-duty plastic, in a box oddly labelled “CYM 15”—a confusing moment until I opened it and confirmed the contents. Available in 10″, 12″, 14″, and 16″ sizes, the plate […]

Gear, Performance

Big Names, Big Ideas: E-drum Labs Return to the UK Drum Show

If you’re passionate about electronic drums, the E-drum Labs at this year’s UK Drum Show is the place to be. On October 18 and 19, head over to the digitalDrummer Room (Hall 12) ACC Liverpool for two full days of pure e-drum inspiration, innovation and interaction. With e-drums gaining ground in music stores and on stages around the world—and so many exciting new models launching lately — there’s never been a better time to dive into the electronic side of drumming. And we’ve lined up some of the biggest and brightest names in the game to help you do just that. Who’s in the Spotlight? Adam Tuminaro – The Orlando Drummer (Alesis) He stole the show at last year’s European […]

Gear, Performance

Tony Le Rhodes: How I Use E-drums

As the drummer of a touring synth pop tribute band, Tony Le Rhodes uses a vintage Simmons kit – but with some  contemporary add-ons. We have a very complicated kit set-up, which results from a lot of engineering. Firstly, we’ve got a custom-designed rack with a floating hi-hat. I even had the cable specifically designed for me by a hydraulics company. Then, we have the Simmons SDS 9 pads from 1983 and a Roland SPD-SX SE limited edition multipad. For cymbals, we’re running the Efnote cymbals. Behind the original Simmons kick drum, I’m using the Roland KT-10 trigger pedal, which feels and responds much better and is totally reliable. In this production for (‘80s synth pop band) Voxneon, we’re using […]

Gear, Review

Roland digital handpan: first impressions

With plenty of competitors nibbling at its core market, it’s not surprising to see Roland venture beyond traditional instruments for new offerings, but no-one would have predicted the Mood Pan, an electronic handpan, background music source and Bluetooth speaker system – all in one. What’s in the box The Mood Pan is a 12” convex playing surface mounted on what looks like an inverted salad bowl. Inspired by traditional handpans, it has a ring of eight dents surrounding a larger central indentation – each one being a separate trigger zone. The casing is also triggered, so you can add slaps and taps while you play the notes on the top. In action The Mood Pan is powered by six AA […]

Gear

Zildjian discounts ALCHEM-E

Zildjian has slashed $1,000 off the price of its mid-range ALECHEM-E Gold kit and $500 off the base Bronze EX kit, which are now priced at $3,999 and $2,999, respectively. The price reduction comes in the wake of a major software update that consists of new firmware and new sound samples. Enhancements include a note chase feature for trigger tweaking, auto-save for trigger settings and a new mask time setting. Zildjian claims to have improved the response for hi-hat open/close and foot chick as well as bow triggering on the cymbals. There are also general improvements to navigation and screen transitions and various bug fixes. The update also delivers new factory content in the form of five new kits (Bright […]

DIY

New DIY sound source released

E-drummers have a new sound source option, with Italian drummer Paolo Simonazzi releasing the plans and a component list for a new USB sound expander – and the software needed to run it – all for free. DrumPi began its journey in 2011 when Simonazzi, a software engineer, began toying with the idea of using the smartphone as a sound engine for an electronic drum module. Hampered by latency, in 2015, he changed his approach and started coding prototypes on a Raspberry Pi 3. After sitting dormant for a while, the project was revived, with new software developed to transform the audio engine into a full-featured DAW, including a 64-channel mixer, effects, MIDI support, multi-layered samples, multi-velocity samples, a transients […]

Gear, Performance, Review

Beyerdynamic DT 71 review

Much of the activity in the in-ear monitor market has been at the budget end, but established German audio specialist beyerdynamic is not ignoring the growing musician market. The company used the last NAMM Show to debut a new line of in-ear monitors, one of them specifically designed for drummers. The DT 71 IE  is designed to “deliver powerful bass and clear treble, enhancing low frequencies while ensuring detailed reproduction of cymbals, percussion and bass guitar overtones”, according to the launch publicity. digitalDrummer tested the earbuds with a range of modules and VSTs on a MacBook Air via a PreSonus Studio26c interface. What’s in the box The stylish black packaging contains: a pair of in-ear monitors a pair of Comply […]

Uncategorized

Rubber meets wireless: Roland’s DrumLink System expands DWe potential

Allan Leibowitz tests Roland’s new wireless cymbal pack. ROLAND CONTINUES TO reap the benefits of its DW acquisition, bringing more DWe innovations into its mainstream line-up. The latest evolution is the DrumLink wireless system, which incorporates DW’s wireless triggering technology into Roland’s broader e-drum ecosystem. We first saw DWe tech in action with Roland’s latest digital snare drums, introducing a virtual throw-off for the first time. Now, that same wireless tech is front and centre in Roland’s new WT-10 Wireless Trigger Adapter and DH-10 DrumLink Hub — the latter being a rebadged version of the DWe hub, used to receive signals from wireless drums and cymbals. Wireless expansion begins Roland’s first official foray into wireless expansion comes in the form […]

Samples

Producer launches free MIDI mapping app

Akhil C S, a software developer and music producer, has launched a free online tool designed to solve a common and often frustrating problem faced by electronic drummers and producers: remapping MIDI drum files between different virtual drum instruments. The web app, OnlineMidiRemap.com, allows users to easily convert MIDI drum parts created in one drum library to match the mapping of another — a process that typically requires tedious manual editing or the use of expensive commercial software. “There are many drum libraries out there, and each one uses its own custom MIDI mapping,” Akhil explains. “It can be really time-consuming to manually translate between them.” The MIDI mapping maze For e-drummers and music producers who use virtual instruments (VSTs) […]