Tag: roland

Gear, Uncategorized

My Monster Kit

Dave Plumb from Manchester in the UK shows off his kit. Dave’s kit:  Roland VAD 503 Roland TD-27 module ddrum DDTi interface Yamaha DTX Multi 12  DTXplorer module Additional drums: Three PD-85 toms; 8”, 12”, 14” A2E toms Additional cymbals: Lemon and Roland  Dave’s story: I started playing the drums at 13 years old when I discovered prog rock. The bands I listened to and which influenced me were Rush, Genesis and The Doors.  I was gigging in clubs and pubs around Manchester every weekend from the age of 14 in the early 80’s with lots of different bands. I used to gig with a Pearl acoustic drum kit. In my 50s, I turned to electronic drums, starting with a […]

Gear, Uncategorized

DWe offered with V-Cymbals

If there’s been one criticism of DWe Drums, it’s been the acoustic noise of the metal cymbals. Now, DW is addressing this by offering the kits paired with Roland’s V-Cymbal pads. At the heart of the new offering is Roland’s DrumLink system which brings wireless trigger support to Roland analogue cymbals, drum pads and triggers. When paired with the DWe DrumLink Wireless Hub, the WT-10 Wireless Trigger Adapter converts a wired pad to wireless, streamlining connectivity for DWe kit owners to integrate Roland pads within their kit. The trigger adapters accept two trigger inputs, allowing users to connect either a dual-zone cymbal or pad or two different single-zone pads. The new cymbal packs feature three- or four-piece options with CY-16R-T […]

Gear, Performance

How I use electronic drums: Paul Hannah

Electronics saved the day for musical theatre drummer Paul Hannah. I’ve Been Playing electronic drums since 1984. At NEC, Pat Hollenbeck brought in NYC drummer Ron Tierno to demonstrate the then-new LinnDrum. I was so impressed by the demonstration that for my senior recital in 1987, I used a Sequential Circuits drum machine connected via MIDI to a Yamaha Drum Machine to perform the drum set parts of Vic Firth’s Sonata for Timpani, Roto-Toms and Drumset. I used the SC machine as it had dynamics! I could step-program the rhythms AND dynamics and trigger the better-quality Yamaha sounds. It was a huge pain, but it worked a treat! On my first tour after college, I had a Yamaha DX-7 and […]

Gear

Roland releases new flagships

Roland has released a new flagship module and new top-of-the-range kits to accompany it. The Japanese e-drum pioneer is deviating from its past module line with a new name, new functionality and new sound architecture. At the heart of the new line is the V71 module which features brand new samples recorded from scratch. The module boasts 200 drum kits, “more than 1,000” instruments and supports up to 500 .wav samples totalling 24 minutes in mono or 12 minutes in stereo. Based on the experience of its DWe stablemate, Roland now adds Instrument Expansions – packages containing multiple drum kits with real samples from the DW Soundworks library along with sounds from previous V-Drums flagship modules. Users will also have […]

Performance

Vicky O’Neon: How I Use E-drums

I’m a drummer and percussionist from Finland, based in the UK. Since 2022, I am the touring drummer for the American pop star Anastacia. I also play in the house bands for a variety of different TV shows; the most recent is the American TV show Name That Tune. Other live TV performances include the opening of the Eurovision Song Contest (BBC One), the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee (ITV) and Team GB’s homecoming from the Olympics (BBC) at Wembley. In 2020, I worked closely with Brian May from Queen, releasing two songs, one of which hit no. 13 in the iTunes chart. My first ‘big’ performance opportunity was with Hans Zimmer and friends (including Pharrell Williams and Johnny Marr) in 2014 […]

Samples, VST

Getting started with VST e-drumming

E-drum guru Martin Trommler has prepared a VST primer for those starting out.   Drummers tend to turn to VSTs (Virtual Studio Technology) in search of high-quality drum sounds – otherwise they’d just stick with module sounds which I can describe best as a caricature of acoustic drum sounds. But VST-e-drumming is unfortunately associated with latency (often around 10 milliseconds, which is significant compared to the 2 ms which an acoustic snare drum sound takes to reach the drummer’s ear). So, it doesn’t make much sense to go with the inferior onboard sound chip of your computer, poor audio driver emulations (like Asio4All) and low quality/unsuitable headphones or headphones connected to poor headphone units/amps. And it also makes no sense […]

DIY, Gear

Split the difference

digitalDrummer often gets questions about adding drums and cymbals by splitting inputs. It’s a common challenge: connecting more triggers when you have maxed out your drum module. In theory, since most inputs on most modules are stereo (TSR), you should be able to connect two pads or cymbals to each input with a simple cable. But, unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case, and we continue to get questions from readers who don’t understand why they are not able to assign different instrument sounds to the connected pads. In this article, we will delve into the concept of input splitting, highlighting which inputs are splittable and which are not and what kind of connectors are required. Understanding input splitting Very […]

Gear

digitalDrummer monster kits on show

Roland Australia is sharing the reader kits featured in digitalDrummer in the company’s latest How To guide. Roland’s product expert, Simon Ayton, has posted a blog titled “Build Your Dream Kit!” in which he showcases his own “Frankenstein” kit built from off-the-shelf V-Drums components. The kit boasts two TD-50X modules, 20″ and 22″ kick drums, nine drum pads, four aux triggers and an assortment of e-cymbals. The kit, he says, “is designed to inspire and encourage you to dream big and create your ultimate kit!” While sharing a number of larger kits associated with iconic drummers like Neil Peart and Thomas Lang, the post also includes a link to the new digitalDrummer Monster Kit compilation – a collection of all […]

Performance

Perry Gragas: How I Use E-drums

Increasingly, we see e-drums deployed in orchestra pits for stage musicals. Perry Gragas explains why he went the electronics route. My first experience with electronic drums was in the mid-80s when I purchased an original Simmons kit. Intrigued by the eye-catching hexagonal shape and futuristic sounds, I gigged with this kit for a couple of years until the novelty wore off and musical tastes changed. Fast forward to 2001. I got a call from my old band teacher asking me to play for a big production of West Side Story at the new state-of-the-art theatre. This was my introduction to musical theatre, and the start of a 20-plus-year career playing for shows. For the first five years, I used an […]

Industry

Roland to open store in Tokyo

Roland Corporation will open a retail outlet in Japan, Roland Store Tokyo, in October. This follows the opening of the music giant’s first “immersive retail space” in London last year. The three-story Roland Store Tokyo will be stocked with Roland’s latest electronic musical instruments and staffed by knowledgeable and experienced Roland product specialists. The first floor will showcase a variety of synthesizers, digital wind instruments, Roland Cloud and DJ-related products, instrument accessories, Roland apparel and more. The second floor will offer a more relaxed atmosphere, with an assortment of Roland’s digital pianos, while the basement level will include a mix of Roland V-Drums kits and BOSS brand products. Located in bustling Harajuku, a trendy scene for fashion, art, music and […]