8 Tips For Playing Electronic Drums

Do you have an electronic kit? Comment with your set-up ⬇️

I appreciate you guys not demoing this with a TD-50 kit. Im tired to seeing how much money I dont have. lol

I bought myself an E drum kit in April of this year at aged 68, something I always wanted to do.I‘ve worked all my professional life with live music and with Lockdown it seemed like a good idea to challenge myself. Learning a lot from you guys and loving every minute of it. I still have to be comfortable with all the Module functions, but I‘m getting there.Facinating learning the Rudiments, and realizing the improvement.Why E drums? Simply because of my living circumstances.

Edit) this comment was like years ago and you should know that this is just an opinion. Don't take my comment too seriously and I recommend reading the replied comments below too To add some of my tips: 1.If you have an edrum that has all mesh heads, tune them(it'll be just adjusting the bolts actually) to the similar rebound that you would get from an acoustic kit. +Edit) what I think I should have written here was to not tune the mesh heads crazy tight, because acoustic heads tend to have less rebound, but not too loose to make the triggering awful 2. If your edrum has a hihat pad and controller pedal separately (usually seen in lower priced kits) make sure to locate you hat controller right beneath the hihat pad, otherwise it'll feel ackward when you're switching between acoustic and electronic. Edit) acoustic hats are usually 14"+ and electric ones tend to be much smaller, so you might want to pull the electric hat a little closer to the throne to make it feel a bit more natural 3.Atv(which is an edrum company along with roland) tries to imitate the acoustics, having real-like sounds with big shells on their flagship(roland recently came up with a kit with big shells too) but gives you smaller range to adjust the sounds of the drums. You can't tune them, the ambience is fixed, however roland drums give you a wide range of selection even on cheaper models. However they do not have real-like sounds which atv drums have.(not a huge difference but still) So learning about what each of the manufactures are focusing on is also pretty helpful when choosing what to buy. 4.if you have a laptop, you can buy a drum vst,(superior drummer3 is great) connect your drum module, and have that super realistic sounds from the vst program. Edit) this might embody latency and dynamic issues, testing with free softwares and sufficient consideration before buying the actual thing is recommended (My english may be awful, it's not my mother tongue :(

My tip: get a kit with mesh heads. Hitting these hard rubber pads will injure you sooner or later, like slapping your hand to a wall repeatedly. I also find that increasing the trigger sensitivity as much as possible (without getting false triggering) helps me practice dynamics better than if I leave the sensitivities on their default levels, since acoustic kits are much more sensitive than e-kits when playing really soft.

As someone who goes between electric and acoustic, I highly recommend spacing your edrums to mimic your acoustic kit. This way way your reach and flow doesn't have to change from one kit to the other.

My tip: • Attach the bass drum to a platform to prevent it from rocking, swaying and (or) moving. Add spikes and (or) Velcro to lock it down. I built a platform with both the drum and pedal attacked, and it made a world of difference. • I switched to lighter sticks. Regal tip Jazz sticks are the same length as 5A, but thin like 7A (nylon) • For some reason, there's a tendency to set up electric kits way to low, I see this in every music store. Your knees are way up in your chest. I ended up raising my kit and thrown several times and still may raise it again. • When MIDI sequencing, I noticed that a few pads were pinning max velocity on most hits. I went through module and using the velocity meter/indicator, pulled back the sensitivity of every pad so that only a very very hard hit would max the velocity. This seemed most common on the bass and crash cymbals

I've been a drummer since I was 3...I'm 52 now. Been playing electronics for over 25 years. I'm on my third kit and I LOVE THEM!!!!

My tip : maybe try playing along to music using the kit not even turned on - It will help with your dynamics and sometimes the pads might miss notes...

"If you live in an apartment..." This only applies if you live on the basement or ground levels, with literally no one beneath you. It doesn't matter how quiet your electronic kit is, the pedal hitting the pad and your foot hitting the hi hat pedal both produce low frequency sound waves and thumps that are just as audible to your downstairs neighbors as anything. I've lived on the third floor of an apartment for 2 years, in LA, and it was by far our biggest mistake that we didn't think through. A tennis ball riser can help, but it doesn't completely eliminate the problem. Also, I'm playing a full mesh set of Rolands w/ upgraded snare, TD-17 brain w/ Mac Mini, Axis-L longboard, KAT HD400 PA system, Yamaha MG10XU Mixer, Gibraltar add-ons to my rack. Cheers.

Here are some tips I wish I knew when I started (e-)drumming! Drum pads acting up? (Zones triggering poorly or over-enthusiastically) Try unplugging and re-plugging the cable on the pad. (Yes, seriously.) Pedalling bothering downstairs neighbor? Buy 2–3 scatter-rug pieces (the type with a hard rubber bottom and softer, semi-rigid fuzz coating) the size of your kit's footprint and stack them soft-side-down under the kit. Easy, cheap insulation; no need for tennis-ball / plywood contraptions. Hard rubber absorbs some of the shock, and soft layer helps insulate it from the floor. Bass drum pad & pedals sliding off position over time? Buy velcro tape and apply to bottom of pad stand, pedals and your rug. I don't recommend using the screws provided with the pad as they might dig through your rug(s) and into your flooring, damage it & act as vibration conduits to your downstairs neighbors' frustration. Want to add pads but out of cables / module jacks? Use Y-splitter cables (and F/F adapters as necessary) and split the rim zones off tom pads. - These new pads will likely have poorer dynamics, but work well enough for things like splashes, bells/chimes or even a china. - Your module needs to support dual-zone tom pads for this; re-assign the rim sounds from the module. - In my experience on a NON-Roland drum, you don't need special "Drum splitter" cables (ones with a built-in 100 Ohm resistor), unless you're splitting off a cymbal pad.

I tend to treat an electric kit vs acoustic kit like a guitarist would treat an electric guitar vs acoustic guitar. Similar instrument, idea, concept, but different technique, slightly different mechanic changes to fit the medium.

Great video 👍 I’ve been playing electronic drums for a few years and it’s good to see you guys starting to recognize electronic drums more and cover them in such depth. I agree that acoustic and electronic drums are completely different instruments, but they do compliment each other. Some tips: 1. Bass drum beater - it’s true that felt beaters will eventually damage and wear through the mesh head. Some felt beaters you can simply spin around and use the reverse plastic side, or just buy a plastic beater. Alternatively, if you like the feel of felt you can just use a patch on the mesh head like those made by Evans to protect it. Either way is fine. 2. Mesh heads feel better than rubber and have less rebound. You can adjust the tension of a mesh head slightly, but not too much as this will affect the triggering of the sounds and shorten the nice of the trigger cone under the head. 3. The stock sounds and kits in the module are just that - stock sounds (templates). You need to dive and edit the sound and trigger settings to your liking. The top tier modules have huge editing capability where you can adjust things like head tuning, head type, shell size, shell depth, shell type, muffling, beater type, reverb (different room types, room size), mic positions, compression, effects - you name it. 4. If you don’t like the synth type sounds on the module, you can trigger virtual drum software (VST) via a laptop that contains actual professionals recordings of REAL acoustic drum sounds - Superior Drummer 3, Addictive Drums 2, Steven Slate Drums 5, EZ Drummer 2 to name a few. 5. You don’t have to buy electronic drums “off the shelf”. You can buy a cheap or second hand acoustic kit and convert it to electronic by installing internal or external triggers on the drums. However, you will still need either rubber e-cymbals or low volume cymbals (triggered) and a drum module to trigger the sounds. This gives you an acoustic sized electronic kit. There are also off the shelf acoustic sized kits from companies like Roland, ATV and Drum-tec etc. Hope that helps.

I’ve been playing electronic drums on stage since I got a Simmons kit in the early 90s. My number one tip: avoid thinking an electronic kit is a “substitution” for an acoustic kit. It’s a different instrument, in the same way than an electric guitar is different form an acoustic guitar. Learn your kit. Learn how it feels, how it responds, in what situations it is best suited for the job, and how to use additional electronics with it (mixers, etc.) to get the best sound, just as a guitar player learns what combination of amps and pedals make the best combination. This instrument is just as valid and useful as an acoustic kit. It’s just different.

I switched to an electric kit 20 years ago when I got old, married, and had kids. I've used wood tips the whole time and never had a problem. My tip is get rid of the rubber pads and make sure you're using mesh heads. Your wrists will thank you as you get older.

I've been playing the Roland TD30 for about 4 years. I've used this gigging, church worship services and let me say this; incredible piece of hardware that creates a new level of versatility for any level of player. It is especially handy when wanting to combine with an acoustic kit for added cabilities, effects, and sound enhancements Great video Drumeo! So glad you and the team finally covering electronic

I've been playing in an electronic kit for about 7 years for practicing and drumming with friends (I lived in an apartment until 2018), and for the first time I see a publication for drummers (or channel, for that matter) giving attention to the public that uses electronic kits... Kudos for that! Cheers (btw, I have a Roland TD-4 kit)

For those who started out on electronic drums and are now exploring acoustic drums: Learn to develop a lighter touch when playing electronic drums. Even when playing heavier stuff, you don't have to lay in so hard into those pads. That way, you develop a better touch and tone on the acoustic drums.

Really appreciate you a) not talking down on electronic players like most store employees will and b) didn't go for a TD-50 or VAD-506 for this. Your setup in this video is even more humble than my own and it's really nice to watch you play on it. Please continue with this, maybe make it a series.

The main reason I prefer acoustic kits to electronic: With acoustics, even the cheapest sets are usually workable for simple gig.  With electronics, a lot of money would have to be spent to get one that I would feel comfortable doing a gig on.