The Song Fight Bulletin Board

So, I have an Alesis ControlPad which is okay as a basic drum controller. It has external trigger/pedal inputs for kick, hat pedal, and two cymbals. I keep on looking at electronic drum kits but even the smallest ones (that aren't Yamaha DD pieces of crap) are too big for my studio room, so I keep thinking I'd like to extend the ControlPad into a larger kit setup. But of course the Internet doesn't have very good information about compatibility with other things.

Do cymbal triggers all use the same basic mechanism? Would any velocity-sensitive cymbal trigger work with this?

Same goes for kick triggers.

Also, the hat pedal is labeled as being "on/off" but all the decent hat pedals I can find have an analog output on them, rather than being a cheap momentary switch. Would the ControlPad get confused by this? Like, if it's just a resistor across the wires then wouldn't it see anything short of fully open as being pressed?

The cymbal triggers I can find are just the triggers, also. What other hardware do I need to put them on a cymbal stand?

And is this a stupid way to go? Should I just try to rearrange my studio to make an actual electric kit fit? (Or should I just switch back to a goddamn Yamaha DD-series like I used to have?)

You are limited by your controller as to what kinds of signals it will accept. If your trigger has multiple velocities, but your controller is only on/off it will only do that, if it does anything at all. I think you could buy a cheap kick and high hat triggers and start there. Whenever I look into getting nice kick and snare pads, it always seems so expensive I start looking at entire kits, which seem cheap in comparison. I like the Alesis kits which seem to be a good balance of price and features.

Right, all that makes sense, I was just wondering if anyone knew what the Alesis ControlPad would take. It's not very well-documented, but being Alesis I'd imagine it to be pretty comprehensive. But they suck at actually giving any useful information.

I also don't need a full-on kit or anything. I just want something I can hit to practice rhythms and to record things that sound a bit more natural than my usual mouse-painted rhythms.

I can't help with your questions, fluf. I only know control pads are great studio tools.
But I have a question. I know you're a drummer, so wouldn't you prefer a full electric kit to keep you licks up? Or do you already have an acoustic kit set up in your studio?

Billy's Little Trip wrote:I know you're a drummer

Am not.

so wouldn't you prefer a full electric kit to keep you licks up? Or do you already have an acoustic kit set up in your studio?

I would, but I don't have a lot of space right now, and the electric kits I've tried haven't felt very good. Also by "studio" I mean "bedroom in a condo" so there's the whole issue of noise, too (so no acoustic kit).

Also I don't have licks. I have like three variations of one rhythm and the ability to awkwardly flail about and kinda-sorta do a clumsy fill.

Yeah, I have the space and sound issue too. My old Roland electric kit is falling apart and getting antiquated, so it's not worth fixing up. The technology now is awesome! I played on a few and the new Roland TD-15K Drum Kit is amazing! It feels good to play and the sensitivity and pre programmed drums are very analog sounding. A bit pricey though. But in our situation, a good instrument to have for space and quiet.

And I've seen and heard you play, fluf. You're pretty good.

Albatross was downsizing his kit (a while back) and might still have some triggers, brains, &c. for sale... keep it in the family, as it were.

I did try to sell my kit months ago, when I had just gotten laid off and and was just about to move out of my house. But I didn't get a single offer, and then my moving plans fell through, so I'm keeping the kit. For now.

Besides, it's kind of getting long in the tooth as well - 8 years old now.