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Thread: New Yamaha Mixer & Other Items..

  1. #1

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    Default New Yamaha Mixer & Other Items..

    Well, I got these last Friday but only got the chance to upload these photos just now:





    Got my hands on a Yamaha MG82cx mixer (for my hybrid electronic/acoustic percussion & MicroKorg keyboard set-up), a Gibraltar percussion tray (clipped onto my rack, it will hold the mixer), a Korg damper pedal (for the Korg MicroStation) and a couple of Gibraltar clamps with L-rods (for my two e-kits, they're for holding a couple of Roland BT-1 pads).

    I'm at the moment waiting for the store to bring in a Rode NT55 microphone (as the overhead mic for my bits of acoustic percussion....cowbells, windchimes and shakers), a proper carry case for the Microstation (the other keyboard already has its own) as well as a number of leads for the various instruments that will be connected to the mixer....a Roland HDP10 Handsonic e-drum, a Roland SPD-20 Octapad, a Korg Microstation (which saves me having to carry tuned percussion) and a MicroKorg mini-synth (using this plus the MicroStation is now part of my emerging dual-role as percussionist and keyboardist in the band). Plus the shop is seeing if Korg have any spare vocoder mics for the MicroKorg (as it had one when I bought it second-hand, but it wasn't in great shape, so they're going to see if there are any brands that make a similar mic with a 1/4" jack plug).

    And the best thing? The mixer plus tray fit exactly in a silver hard case that I have available! That case will also hold the power pack for the mixer plus the leads I have on order. I already put the Handsonic, its power supply, two Roland PDX-8 pads (used as kick pads for the Handsonic and Octapad) and a variety of power leads and patch leads in two similar cases. The Octapad and other items in my set up already have their own cases and bags....at the moment the MicroStation is carefully wrapped in a padded cloth covering. Can't wait to get this whole lot assembled!
    Last edited by Drumbledore; 07-22-2013 at 12:14 PM.
    "...it's the Paradigm Of The Cosmos!" Stewart Copeland on Youtube

    668: The Number Of The Guy Next Door To The Beast.

    "A random act of kindness; it keeps my heart in shape!" - Late8

  2. #2

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    Default Re: New Yamaha Mixer & Other Items..

    That sounds like a really interesting set-up! I'd be interested to know how it all performs once it's totally finished.

  3. #3

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    Default Re: New Yamaha Mixer & Other Items..

    Very cool stuff!

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    Default Re: New Yamaha Mixer & Other Items..

    Quote Originally Posted by pcs90 View Post
    That sounds like a really interesting set-up! I'd be interested to know how it all performs once it's totally finished.
    Well, a slightly earlier version of the set up is this (I couldn't really call it a drum kit as such because....well, you'll see, lol....)



    Looking at it left to right, there's obviously the two keyboards (bottom one being the MicroStation, the top being the other MicroKorg with the crazier sounds on it)....since this particular setup, I've shifted the top keyboard a bit more to the right to open up a space on the top tier to add the tray and mixer). then there's some percussion, with two stacked splashes (done with a DW Short Stacker arm and a Tama clamp with an L-rod cymbal arm...this is now replaced with a Wuhan 12" Mini China but I moved the smaller splash a bit to the right). Next are the cowbells and blocks clamped above two old-style Alesis DM5 pads (these are nice and compact) that are connected to the Roland Octapad. Above these are a Paiste 4" Accent Bell (again, using a DW Short stacker and a Tama mini-armed clamp), to the right of that a Fisaggi 14" crash (Italian made) on another Tama boom arm clamped to the rack....all this makes up the "timbales" part of the set up...with the luxury of assigning any other drum sound to the pads via the Octapad.

    Immediately below it, the funny looking device is the Roland HDP-10 Handsonic.... a great bit of gear that allows me to have all manner of hand drum sounds, without physically crowding too many hand drums and all their attendant mics (and resulting feedback on gigs!). Above the timbale assembly I have some real windchimes and a suspended triangle....these things, no matter the technology, still have nuances that a percussionist can only coax from the real article, even though the Octapad has these as sample in its bank of orchestral percussion. Of course, the rectangular object on the right is the Roland SPD-20 Octapad itself, and even though I have people saying "Oh, you should get the SPD-30, blah blah blah"....for my purposes, it's still a pretty nifty piece of gear. I also get to use it as a "drumkit" courtesy of two attached pedals and pads, as in a song of ours I 'become the human drum loop' whilst our band's drummer will play on top of what I do. Below the Octapad I've attached an LP traps tray that holds a variety of hand held percussion....a guiro, clave sticks, shakers, cabasa and so forth. Often I'll throw my timbale or drum sticks quickly here so that I can then use my hands for the Handsonic to to play keyboards. Sometimes the sticks will be placed on the Roland amp below the keyboards, just depends at the time!

    Now the pedal arrangement. With a new arrangement, the first pedal will be the Korg damper pedal for the MicroStation (essential for the piano and string parts that I now play). However the first left pedal in this earlier picture is a Pearl kick pedal to which I've attached a Gibraltar foot bracket that holds an LP 'Cyclops' tambourine.....which allows me to free up my hands to play other things. right of that is a Roland FD-8 hi-hat pedal (connected to the Octapad). Right of the Handsonic are two DW5000 pedals, again each attached to a Gibraltar foot bracket. Attached to each bracket is a Roland PDX-8 snare pad....what I do is I wind the tension down quite a bit so the feel a bit 'bass drum-like'. The left pad is connected to the external trigger port on the Handsonic which allows me to have low end drums sounds in some patches, such as the low bend note of a tabla, a doira (type of frame drum sound that goes well with all the Middle Eastern drum sounds in another patch), a surdo (Brazilian type of low sounding drum) that goes with the samba sounds, and so on and so on. The right Roland pad is connect to the Roland Octapad....that allows for all the bass drum sounds of course, but a lot of the time I have a good deep cowbell sound that I need for when I play the conga and bongo patch on the Handsonic, which cuts through the band a lot better than the ones I find on the Handsonic.

    Another view, showing the pedal arrangement and devices attached....


    So as you can see, this outfit allows me to choose a good variety of percussion combinations, without having to carry the sheer amount of percussion in order to get that range of sounds. I can have a pop-sounding conga pattern with a straight cowbell (if I feel up to it, I'll change the offbeat left foot tambourine into a clave-ish pattern). The very next song I can pick up the sticks and play Latin timbales, solo with it and not worry that I'll lose that driving quarter note cowbell (can't do that with a regular timbale set-up). I can turn to the MicroStation and play vibraphone, marimba and there's even some exotic gamelan sounds. By tapping a few buttons and playing a chord or notes on the MicroKorg, I can set up a rave loop then play hand percussion along with it, or turn to the Octapad and play a kit rhythm against it. The MicroStation has an onboard sequencer...hit a few buttons, loop something, then play the Handsonic or Octapad or MicroKorg against that....I can then choose to play foot patterns with the various pedals. Heck, the MicroStation has some wicked bass and guitar sounds that I've already been fooling around with....add to the fact that the toggle/joystick on it acts as the whammy bar for the various electric guitar sounds...we can even rock out a twin guitar assault for a song or two, the way I've been getting into improvising of late, lol.
    Last edited by Drumbledore; 07-22-2013 at 03:04 PM.
    "...it's the Paradigm Of The Cosmos!" Stewart Copeland on Youtube

    668: The Number Of The Guy Next Door To The Beast.

    "A random act of kindness; it keeps my heart in shape!" - Late8

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