Edrum FAQ

Answers to the most asked questions:

On this page:

What Beater?

Use anything you like the feel of.

Just ALWAYS use a patch[1]...whether you're using wood, felt, acrylic, the skull from your neighbour's dead cat [2], and whether the head is mylar, mesh, rubber, the flayed skin from your neighbour's dead cat...

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[1] Falam slam, Evans EQ, Danmar Metal, etc

[2]

What Sticks?

Use anything you like the feel of.

Just ALWAYS chek the tips before and during play.

Notes on Choosing Sticks

Main takeaway - It's all personal preference. SO

  1. SIZE: Choose the stick size that fits your hands and fingers and is comfortable to you. (we don't all have size 9 feet, similarly we don't all use 7A, 5A or 2B sticks) Then
  2. WEIGHT: Pick the wood that gives you the weight you like for that size stick based on the density of material:
    maple < hickory < oak
    A maple 2B stick can weigh the same as a 7A oak stick.
    The weight is a personal preference.
  3. FLEX: Just as important - flex:
    maple > hickory > oak
    More flex, less vibes and fatigue to your hands and wrists.
  4. TIPS: Use any tip you prefer - just as with acoustic drums, check the tips before and during play.

Ignore all the snake-oil sticks marketed for edrums. Don't need.

As a final note - Me: I use non-big-branded maple sticks at the size that fit my hands and cost £20 for a brick of 12 pairs delivered 🙂 Nearly 40 years of bashing edrums - and my wrists still work and I've never broken a pad or head.

What Speakers?

TL;DR: heapdhones or a PA.

What's your intended use? bedroom, garage rehearsal, pub gig, Wembley Stadium.

Minimum of 12" woofers, speakers on stands, tweeters at ear height. Test by playing Prodigy's Firestarter thru at full pelt. (as for make and model - that depends on your budget)

Avoid cheapo things with Bluetooth and don't be swayed by things advertised as "drum" amps as most are just overpriced active floor wedges/speakers with a badge stuck on.

Oh, and if you see something that says 2000W output - see what its power consumption is 😉 (i.e. it's marketing BS) A PA is the most flexible and can provide multiband EQ, FX etc. And somewhere for your band mates to plug in. And, depending where you live and your patience you don't have to spend much:

PA

How to Record Edrums

No, you do not need VSTs to record your edrums!

Simplest

In essence, thing that makes sounds --> audio cable(s) --> thing that records sounds.

So, plug the audio out(s) of your module into something that can record the audio. In most cases these days it'll be a computer with recording software.

So: 

module audio out(s) --> audio cables(s) --> computer --> recording software

The audio cable can be a simple 6.35mm mono jack x 2 --> stereo 3.5mm jack; plug the mono jacks into the module's L+R outputs and the stereo jack into your computer's line-in.

audio cable

As the audio-interface (what us oldies used to call a soundcard) on many computers may not the the best quality, you may decide to invest in an external audio-interface, from the likes of Focusrite, M-Audio, Roland, Behringer etc. In which case:

module --> audio cables --> audio interface --> USB --> computer --> recording software

Now, you'll need some software - these days often called a DAW - Digital Audio Workstation. Simplest free is BandLab. This runs in a browser so no installation needed. Many people like Audacity. Or Reaper (but make sure you buy this when the trial expires)

Better

This is more involved, but the most flexible result. You can change anything after you've recorded. It's like writing sheet music, then recording the result when played.

  1. Module --> MIDI data --> Software (DAW/Sequencer/whatever the cool kids are calling it these days. I mostly use Cakewalk - which is now free from BandLab.)
  2. Split MIDI data to individual tracks in your DAW if you want individual control of all drums / cymbals - usually a simple button push in your software
  3. Tidy up MIDI data as necessary, remove duff notes, change tempo, etc
  4. Send MIDI back to module[*], whilst recording the audio from the module[*] - this can be done track-by-track, or the whole lot at once, depending on the number of audio tracks you want - every instrument, just a stereo mix-down, or anything in between.

So, now you've got both audio and MIDI. This is most flexible, meaning you can adjust anything in future. Change tempo or instruments or sounds/entire kit, just re-do [3]-[4]

[*] or to your chosen software synth/VST/whatever the cool kids etc...

recording