How to Buy an Electronic Drum Set
When it comes to buying an electronic drum set, you don’t want to jump in and purchase the first one you see. Electronic drum sets are very expensive, and while you may only be looking at cheaper models, you’re still going to spend several thousand pounds or more. If you’re a professional in search of a new electronic drum set, chances are you’re going to be spending much more. But buying electronic drums doesn’t have to be that difficult. First, you should decide what the purpose of your electronic drum set is. If you’re using it for practice, you may not need one with a fancy interface. If, however, you’re going for a new recording set or performance set, you’ll want a nice interface.
Second, do your homework. While Roland and Yamaha may be established leaders in the world of electronic drum sets, they may not have exactly what you want. Check out all the major brands, and make a list of what features each one has. Not all have the same options. One thing you certainly want to have is Midi Out capability. This is what allows you to connect your electronic drum set to either a sequencer or to your computer so you can record your music. For best data transmission time, be sure your electric drum kit features USB capability as well.
You also want to go with an electronic drum kit that features a flexible V-drum brain. Some Digital Audio Workstations (or DAWs) map V-drums in a different way than others. This means that you may play a snare drum on your drum set but the software may record it as something completely different. Note that as of yet there is no industry standard when it comes to sound mapping software. Some drum sets do allow you to map your drums one at a time to your computer so you know it will record correctly. You may also want to look at purchasing separate drum software. There are a number of different packages available.
Do you want single or dual zone pads? What’s the difference? Dual zone pads allow for different sounds on the same drum. A dual zone snare, for example, can play both a snare hit and a rim hit. However, note that some mapping software can’t handle dual zone pads.
Once you’ve narrowed down your list of electronic drums by features, think about playability. Be sure to test out your final choices to see how they play. You may find some more comfortable than others. For example, some electronic drum sets are designed to feel more like you’re playing acoustic drums. If you started playing on acoustic drums, you may like this setup better.
