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Post by ninworks on Sept 2, 2022 4:56:11 GMT -5
First of all I'm a guitar player who can play drums......a little. I have had a Roland Octapad forever. In the last 7 years it has spent most of its time in a box in the attic. I bought it and a DW 5000 kick trigger pedal so my drummer friends could come over and jam with me using drum sample libraries. I am going to retrieve it from the attic and put it back into service so I can use it to program drums in my DAW.
I have always used whatever drum sticks I could lay my hands on. I don't even remember what size they are or were but I think they may have been too thick. After playing the Octapad for awhile those sticks made my hands and or wrists hurt. It doesn't have much give to the surface where you hit it.
My question is, would using thinner sticks be a better choice and minimize the impact pain on my hands? Maybe something with a longer taper so the stick will absorb more of the shock and bounce better?
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Grizbear-NJ
Wholenote
"I'll do the BEATING around here"
Posts: 217
Age: 71
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Post by Grizbear-NJ on Sept 3, 2022 0:46:08 GMT -5
OK my friend, I think I can help you out here.
If you are using Electronic Drums; the general recommendation and consensus is to utilize wooden sticks with wood heads (round or olive bead heads). My recommendation regarding size would be either 5A or 5B. (Standard size for Rock) Stick length is up to the individual, and doesn't reduce the shock effect.
If you are experiencing hand discomfort when playing the ED batter surface, you may want to adjust your grip and playing technique, you might be hitting the pad to hard. If you are looking for a louder sound, increase the volume via the control module. Standard drum dynamics only work for acoustic drums.
FYI: marching bands (snare drums) use 2A or 2B; jazz bands utilize 7A or 7B. Specialty sticks like mallets, brushes, timbale sticks, and "Rods or Bundles" are useless on ED pads (plastic tips also) because the sound you are looking for is programed or controlled by the "module". I think the latest generation of Roland products has a snare that recognizes brushes and "rim shots" like an acoustic snare; and the ride cymbal can sense the "Bell", "Center" & "Edge" hits for different cymbal sounds.
My experience with any of the "multiple pad" ED set ups was always in conjunction with an acoustic drum set. The pads were always pre-set for different percussion sounds.
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Post by ninworks on Sept 3, 2022 13:02:51 GMT -5
Not being a proper drummer, I don't have good enough technique for it to be very adjustable. My ultimate drum trigger setup would be something I could tap my fingers on like a table top. My percussive rhythm technique is light years better with my fingers than with my hands and feet. I can do it with a MIDI keyboard but I can never get the velocity sensitivity set to where it does what I want it to.
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Grizbear-NJ
Wholenote
"I'll do the BEATING around here"
Posts: 217
Age: 71
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Post by Grizbear-NJ on Sept 4, 2022 11:38:12 GMT -5
My friend, you hit the nail right on the head: you are addressing the changes that occur as technology advances. In some of my past postings, I emphasize the fact that my experience is "mechanical, not electrical". What you are describing and eluding to is occurring every day. From my point of view there are definitely a lot of pro's & con's regarding these advances in technology.
My past experience leans more towards the "acoustic" side of the issue. Simply because the technology was not there when I was playing. When I was involved with the Community Theatre Groups; many of the show scores were very specific regarding the drum & percussion parts. In many cases you were actually doing sound effects for the show. With that in mind; regarding drums & percussion; you had to "Mechanically" modify what you had to work with to create the needed sounds.
Point in fact; I now have a large inventory of specialty "percussion toys" I would not normally incorporate into a drum-kit. That same inventory can be consolidated into a multi-pad ED unit.
Two Examples which stand out in my mind:(#1) Just recently a musical director friend of mine showed me a "Computer System" program/design used for creating & arranging musical scores. This system had the capability of creating the sound, and printing out the musical notation for the individual instrument(s). The input(s) were a musical keyboard and a drum trigger unit (part of the keyboard). After the initial phase, the score could be modified with a standard PC keyboard. My interest was the drum & percussion print outs. After hearing the computer recording & reviewing the printed score; I can honestly say, I could not play them in a live situation. It sounded great on the recorded sound system though. Pro or Con?
(#2): I attended a friends gig at a small pub and I was checking out the sound system. For those of you with the technical understanding of wireless; the vocal mic's and instruments were "hard wired" into a "box", and there small monitors (hard wired) on stage. After that the system was "wireless". The sound man was walking around the room with a tablet adjusting "ALL" of the settings. Without giving my age away; I remember sound boards the size of an executive desk and a "BIG" trunk on wheels to carry the various wires needed for set-up. I can't imagine what tomorrow will bring.
How does all of this effect us. A music professor, I know from a local University, highlighted a problem he was coming across. The professor teaches: jazz guitar & classical guitar (on an individual basis); he also teaches music theory, and music composition on a college class level. He owns and operates his own Guitar & Bass Academy which preps students for entry into noted Musical Schools. He has done a lot of "session" work, (is still involved) and many of his students have gone on to play Broadway in musical pits. (and make a living at it) I could go on but I will stop there; you get the idea. His observation; many of the students he gets, come to him with a 7th grade ability regarding their instrument skill (or lack of). He feels the technology they are learning and using in school (K thru 12) is holding them back in certain areas regarding their instrument skill level. I find that an interesting statement and food for serious thought. Again: Pro or Con?
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