charts for play-along songs

[OSloots]

Hello Dann,

Greetings from Holland ! Your course arrived a week ago. I worked through the first 2 sessions and I am very impressed with the quality and the presentation of the material. Excellent ! I have a little experience playing the drums (1 year). Nevertheless, sessions 1 & 2 gave me some helpful new insights. Looking forward to the rest !

I have two questions:
- Where on the website do I find the drum charts for the play along songs on the cd's ?

- The ride cymbal on my Roland electronic set just doesn't feel right to me; it lacks the bounce and feedback that an acoustic cymbal offers. Are there any makes/models that you could recommend me to check out ?

Bye,

Oscar

[gjones]

Oscar,

Hello and Welcome! I am not Dann, but am happy to offer some input.

1) Charts for play-along songs are not available. Here is a previous post about it:

http://community.legacylearningsystems.com/drums/viewtopic.php?p=318&highlight=charts#318

2) I use (plastic) Pintech cymbals. They are okay but loud and feel like...plastic . I have researched other electronic cymbals but have not had a chance to try any. You might be interested Smartrigger Cymbals, which take a real metal cymbal with dual-zone trigger and some kind of sound-dampening coating. You can purchase those directly from their website. Alesis Surge cymbals are similar, manufactured under a license from Smartrigger and can be purchased through distributors/stores that carry Alesis.

Welcome and again and good luck! Let us know if you find or buy a cymbal you like - it is always good to get a first-hand review.

Bing

[OSloots]

Thanks Bing !

I overlooked the earlier post on drum charts.

I will do some research, try out some e-cymbals and keep the community posted !

Bye for now,

Oscar

[cascada_cats]

The lower level Pintech cymbals are pretty cheesy looking, but they trigger well for me. Mine have rubber pad area which is very quiet, but as you say, the rebound is not good. Possibly because I have the wing nuts cranked way down to keep them from rotating. Perhaps a better mounting system and/or a higher level Pintech model (Visualite perhaps) would be better. Or maybe not; best to 'try before you buy'. I'll probably use them to trigger sounds for 'stationary' things like cowbells.

Ion cymbals are not bad in the lower level class. They mount on a 'bar' washer rather than a flat washer, to permit a bit of swing and prevent rotation. Their rebound is better than the bottom Pintechs and they look better too. I can't imagine they would be better than Rolands, though.

The rest of my cymbals are older Yamahas, and I like them a lot. They seem to have good rebound, good swing and good anti-rotation hardware. Of course, never having played either Rolands or a 'real' cymbal, I can't say how they compare.

The 'Surge' style cymbals seems like a good idea; I mean what could be closer to a real cymbal than a real cymbal? I was told that they dent easily, but some of the other information from the source of this statement has turned out to be inaccurate. I'd say try it; if you like it, get one and whack on it for a while to see if you still like it after it is 'well used'. That's what I am thinking of doing.

John (Yamaha DTXpress IV)

[gjones]

Oscar,

Did you have a chance to try out cymbals?

Take Care,

Bing

[cascada_cats]

I had a chance to play on Roland cymbals, and yes, they are pretty dead. All my Yamaha e cymbals (the older 'wedge' shaped, the first round ones and the latest round ones) all have a nice feel, rebound and are quiet. And I found a used Smartrigger, which is 'in the mail''; will let you know how I like it when it gets here.

Also got a chance to whack on a real cymbal. What a difference from the e cymbals. In order to get the 'edge' sound, you actually hit it on the edge, not 'near' the edge like a multi-zone pad. And the sustain is amazing. I hit it yesterday and it is still ringing (ok, I've been known to exagerate on occasion ) Even 'choking' does not chop off the sound instantly like the e cymbals. Just mutes it considerably (unless I use both hands, one on each side). I may have to consider a mixture of electronic and acoustic...

John (Yamaha DTXpress IV)

[cascada_cats]

Ok, tried out a Smartrigger cymbal (the original, not the version licenced to Alesis and sold as 'Surge').

It looks just like a cymbal, and mounts just like a cymbal (probably needs an 'Aquarian spring' to keep it from rotating, a problem with all electronic cymbals I've tried so far), and it acts just like a cymbal. The bottom is covered with a clear layer of something which keeps it from ringing at all.

The triggering was so-so. Worked very well if you hit it between the rivits holding on the sensor. Not quite as well elsewhere. But this one might be somewhat defective, as the company does not claim to make a single zone version in this size, and this one only triggers 1 zone, and it does not 'choke'. Wrote them a note to see if they had any suggestions; no response yet.

It does exhibit one, in my opinion, serious flaw. The top part, where you hit, is metal. The clicking of the stick on metal drives me crazy (admittedly, a short trip ).

John (Yamaha DTXpress IV)