some e-drum conversion pics

[boobus]

not pretty but working. save for some problems with the module which need repair i'm having some fun seeing what this can do. next step... do another in clear acrylic with rack mounting.

[Chippy569]

put the bottom heads back on and no one will know!

[moosryan]

that's awsome! everyone is gonna be asking you how you got such a dingy looking set sounding so perfect!

[flurbs]

Nice DIY!

Better get a bass drum patch on there quickly though - felt beaters and mesh heads don't mix very well...

[tcraw1010]

Nice work . . .. I have been wondering what those white Hart mesh heads would look like on a kit. Are those single ply or 2-ply mesh heads?

What module are you using with it? How do they sound?




TOM

[boobus]

Nice DIY!

Better get a bass drum patch on there quickly though - felt beaters and mesh heads don't mix very well...

I didn't know that... wonder why? Will the felt get into the mesh or what?

[Chippy569]

now help me do it!

how much did the project cost you?

[flurbs]

I didn't know that... wonder why? Will the felt get into the mesh or what?

Well, you've two rough surfaces coming into contact, which creates a lot of friction. The felt will start disentigrating against the mesh, weakening the head, and then one hit will just go through the head. Using a patch stops the felt/mesh contact, preventing the friction.

I sell electronic drums in the UK - I've seen guys go through a mesh bass drum head in about 15 minutes! (Because they didn't know what they were doing...)

[boobus]

now help me do it!

how much did the project cost you?

lol,
all the hardware together probably cost less than $80. the mesh heads were like $20-30 a piece. The brain was $300 on eBay. That included all the cords. the crash and ride were $75 total on eBay and the hi-hat and controller was $260.

I guess all total, with a brain, maybe $700 or so, though you can do it cheaper if you opt for cheaper heads and cymbals. In any case, the brain is what's going to cost you... you can get an Alesis DM4 brain for maybe $150 on eBay but won't have variable hi-hat. Just for the hardware to build the triggers.... nickels and dimes, maybe $50. I guess I should add it all up some day.

[boobus]

Well, you've two rough surfaces coming into contact, which creates a lot of friction. The felt will start disentigrating against the mesh, weakening the head, and then one hit will just go through the head. Using a patch stops the felt/mesh contact, preventing the friction.

I sell electronic drums in the UK - I've seen guys go through a mesh bass drum head in about 15 minutes! (Because they didn't know what they were doing...)

thanks for the tip... i'll. put a Danmar patch on there or switch to a wood beater.

[boobus]

for Chippy... e-drum spring mounted bridge plan from a site that I can no longer access... luckily i saved it as a PDF. Please don't distribute, this guy did the work and he looks like a rough fellow if tested...

[tcraw1010]

for Chippy... e-drum spring mounted bridge plan from a site that I can no longer access... luckily i saved it as a PDF. Please don't distribute, this guy did the work and he looks like a rough fellow if tested...


QUESTION . . . .
Does the spring only go on one side (as depicted in the diagram?)

Or, do you put springs on both sides of the bridge?

[weldman]

i dont see any point in the springs on these parts

when i built my drums i didnt put a single spring anywhere

i welded a bar to some L-Brackets and cut a slit in the L brackets

everything int he square here is removed...
http://photobucket.com/albums/y22/moody07747/Music/E%20drum%20set/?action=view&current=bracketplandrawn.jpg

this is it mounted in the drums
http://photobucket.com/albums/y22/moody07747/Music/E%20drum%20set/?action=view&current=bracketalmostdone.jpg


you loosen the screw on the side of the shell and the bar can slide up or down


works really well

[boobus]

QUESTION . . . .
Does the spring only go on one side (as depicted in the diagram?)

Or, do you put springs on both sides of the bridge?

I put themon both sides. I couldn't see why not.

[JLee]

I put springs on both sides of mine, though I did not have a specific reason for doing so, except for uniformity's sake.

[Sirjohn1960]

I wanted to ask a stupid question. Why would one convert acoustic drums to electronic? I always thought that the point of electronics was actually 2 reasons, one being sound (micing the whole kit), the other being easier transport.
Being an acoustic drum player I have always been curious about this. I have played electronics and still like my acoustics better, the feel the sound the dynamics etc..,
Mind you I am not knocking anyone I was just interested to know the reasons why??
I have had 3 electronic sets in my life, the first was the simmons when it came out, the second was a drum Kat (used as a brain with an Alesus sound module) set up with pads on a rack. The third the new ( this one was actually not mine, just got to play it often) Roland V pro series. I felt that all of them had problems and were funny when played very softly missing notes etc, and the dynamics were just not there. Again.. I just want to see the reasons people like these type drums.

[tcraw1010]

I owned a Roland V-Drum Pro kit for about a year, and I found the dynamics to be excellent. Every soft ghostnote was soft, and every rimshot was snappy.

Perhaps there was a problem with your friend's drum module, amplifier or the V-Drum sensor itself.


In my opinion, the reasons why many people enjoy supplementing their acousitc kits with e-drum kits are several . . .

1. Ability to practice at home (especially in an apartment) without driving everyone around you insane.
2. Versitility (sounds)
3. Easier transport/set-up


To be honest, I think there are very few drummers who have completely replaced their acoustic kits/playing with electronic kits. E-kits are, more or less, very nice supplements to an acoustic kit - with dynamic advatnages you just can't get on an acoustic kit. (Check out Neil Peart for a clear cut example of this).


TOM

[JLee]

In all fairness, Roland represents the "upper end" of edrum kits, so it would also be fair to say that their quality, responsiveness and attention to detail is not indicative of all, or even most of the kits out there.

I have to say, I read about someone on Ebay who converted his DW set to an electronic, and I will admit that it bothered me a little to read that. Pearl Exports? No problem, but DW's?

Me thinks someone may have a little too much disposable income on his hands. I could never carve or drill up a nice DW set for this purpose.

Before starting to build my own set, which I am pretty sure would still not compare to a Roland in these areas, I went and played a variety of edrum sets at a couple of different Guitar Centers. You know what? Many of them were not very impressive - even some of the choices costing thousands of dollars. I think it is all how they are put together, as far as piezos, bridging and the adjustments on the module. I found Rolands to be substantially better than the other kits on the showroom floor as far as playability is concerned.

Having said that, I agree to an extent with Tom as far as the advantages -

I can slam down pretty hard on my edrum set and the neighbors, and in fact my girlfriend, would not be too bothered by it (and we live in a pretty small house). Of course, with the cheap heads I am using, I have to retension them pretty quick after this. to me, this is by far the greatest advantage.

Variety of sounds? Sure they have an advantage here as far as versatility, though I can't really see anyone buying a two thousand dollar plus kit for just this reason.

Transportability? Well, yes and no. I currently do not have a matching case for the Gibraltar rack I use, nor do I have one that represents a good fit for the shells themselves. Packed individually in a car, they would represent a much lighter load, even with the bridges inside them - if you can keep them from rolling all over your transportation.

[torre_awesome]

i think the only reason someone would convert an existing kit to an ekit is you dont have to buy and finish off new shell pack, and your bridge system is protected to a far greater extent than just the shallow, one head e-drum shells would do. once i had my shells at the point were they were ready to have the electronics mounted and wired (which is where a conversion would start) it would only take 1.5 - 2 hours per drum to get everything up and running.

[Sirjohn1960]

Yes I do understand the variety of sounds the electronics offer which is why I have played them. And yes I also understand the small practice situation stuff as I also live in an apt. However, I do practice on my acoustic kit with silence pads on the drums and cymbals. I have yet to get a complaint from anyone. Pads total cost 50 bucks.
I also am a big fan of Neil Peart and applaud his ability to be current and always explore new and fresh ideas.
You cannot tell me though that the feel is the same, it simply is not. For the sake of argument, and again I am not all that knowledgable on electronics however, I feel that if I was to build a set I would make it as compact as possible because the triggers would work no matter what the size of the head, Isn't that correct?
What I liked best about the drum kat set up I had was that all the pads around 10 11 of them fit into a trap case and the sound module and Kat brain I carried in a suitcase type rig which also accomodated all the wires, the only pain was the rack and even that had the 2 side poles and one accross the front. But in those early days of electronics the "feel" just was not there.
I agree that the Roland is a really great example of what electronics can be and I am also in agreement that as a supplement they are great, but I still think that there is a ways to go before they can be like an acoustic set. The sustain that a cymbal gives and all the varieties of sounds from a real cymbal for example are not there, and hi hats, well you get my drift. How about playing the drum closer to the rim than dead center> I applaud this new innovation, but I have alway been looking to carry less around not more as used to play a much larger set and have cut it down drastically because at 2-3 am after playing 3 sets, I am tired. Its enough to keep track of the set without all the cables and other stuff that is associated with electronics. I just wanted to know what were the advantages of an all electronic kit, and why would someone for example turn a DW or any other kit electronic>?

[torre_awesome]

okay, well, i have a church that has contacted me about converting a low end tama kit into an e-kit. they said the kit is just too loud for their sanctuary. it makes sense from a budget perspective because they already have a functioning shells that are finished and have hardware, and they have no desire to have an acoustic set. therefore the cheapest and easiest thing to do is to put some triggers in there, buy a module and cymbals off ebay, and change the heads.

the only advantages are you have drums that look real, and you dont have to buy any new shiz. and i have no idea why anyone would convert DW's. although the bridge system could be easily removed, and the you can turn the 1/4" jack back into a vent, its really just a dumb thing to do unless you have lots of money and are obessed with the look of DW's but like to play on e-drums.