DIY eDrum Build: Upgrade!

So I upgraded my eDrum kit this past week:

^ I replaced my old, not-so-good kick drum pad with a vertical pad and an actual kick drum pedal!

^ That gusset supports the pad when the beater hits it.

^The pad.

^ I didn't get a beater with the pedal, so I improvised one with an old marshmallow stick and part of an old bandsaw belt. :-)

This setup looks, triggers, and feels so much better than my old setup!

Special thanks goes to my construction and power-tool loving brother who helped me out on this upgrade and provided tools and building materials :-)

~Mac

DIY eDrum Build: In Action!

Well here it is folks . . . a VIDEO of my eDrum Kit in action! :-)

I'm using the MIDI output on my drum module to trigger DrumCore 3 FREE drum software on my computer. I'm not much of a drummer :-P, but you can see how well it turned out! :-)

~Mac

DIY eDrum Build: Part 5 - FINISHED!

Well, it's done . . . I'm FINISHED! :-)

It was a blast to make (the only casualty - I sliced my left index finger open with a utility knife), and even more fun to play - nice and responsive yet it seems durable. Hopefully it will give me years of use :-)

Special thanks to my brother who helped me out with the construction, and lent his construction and power tool expertise to the project, as well as his tools and some hardware :-)

~Mac

DIY eDrum Build: Part 4 (continued)

Wow, I really was rolling today :lol:

DIY eDrum Build: Part 4

My brother and I worked on the eDrums again yesterday, and so today I tested out the hi hat pad - and TOOK PICTURES! :-D

^ This is the 1/4" jack on the end of the cable going into my audio interface which converts the analog signal to digital so my computer can understand it.
^ It's kinda hard to see, but that's the piezo and cable taped to the underside of the hi hat pad.

And the last picture is the top of the hi hat pad on the rack and connected to the interface. This isn't the final setup, but I wanted to test and see what kind of signal I got when I hit the pad. So far so good! :-)

DIY eDrum Build: Part 3

Well, the piezos got here a few days ago, and yesterday I soldered my first piezo pickup assembly together!

^ The 1/4" jack that will plug into the drum module.

^ The piezo pickup element.

Then I tried it out and it works! :-D It picks up drum hits very well, and I can also pick up my acoustic guitar with it - a nice bonus! I may have to get a few more and make a dedicated guitar pickup with them :-)

~Mac

DIY eDrum Build: Part 2

Well, my module arrived - and didn't work :-( I found out that they had included the wrong power supply with it. However, they were very nice about it and refunded all my money - so it worked out fine! I'm now waiting on another power supply to arrive, as well as my piezos and drum rack. So far, I have my module, cables, and jacks to solder to the cables. Now it's time to wait . . . so I should get to the other things on my plate, like studying and work and stuff :-D

~Mac

DIY eDrum Build: Part 1

So I've decided to build my own electronic drumset for my studio. It's getting so playing drum parts with my MIDI keyboard just doesn't cut it anymore, so I've decided to upgrade.

A few days ago, my adventure began when I won a used Alesis D4 drum module off of eBay. This will be the heart of my rig, that will convert the signals from my pads into drum sounds and MIDI notes. I just ordered 10 piezo pickup elements that will convert drum hits on the pads into electricity. These will be soldered to cables, which will be plugged into the drum module. I'm probably gonna grab a used drum rack off eBay as well to hold the drums.

In a few days my module and piezos will get here, and it will be time for some experimentation with different pad materials and designs. Hopefully when this is finished, I will have a kit that I can use for practice, recording, and possibly live performance.

Should be fun! :-)

~Mac