Also doing an A to E conversion

[kaosotis]

So after a lot of time thinking about it but doing nothing, my A to E conversion is finally on it's way.

My brother built some cut toms with Quartz cone triggers mounted to crossbars and Billy Blast 2 ply heads to create customs pads for his TD9. After deciding on how exactly mount everything, he's working on my stuff now!

Here's a pic of one of his pads all done, but with the top head off. This is a cut Imperialstar tom he got used for cheap off Ebay that he cut in to 2 toms.



The cross bar mounts to a lug screw using some cheap L brackets and some rubber washers for height and isolation. The trigger is mounted to an adjustable furniture foot (so the cone can be just the right height) using some double sided tape and the jack runs out the vent hole.

Here are my 3 toms all done with heads on. The mounting inside is exactly the same. As you can see, we used the vent hole to run the jack, no drilling required. I think it turned out very professional looking from the outside and you can't even tell the difference without it plugged.





Once we get the snare done and figure out the kick (the height from lug to head is greater), and I get some new Yamaha PCY cymbals I'll post pics of the whole kit setup. I'm trigger my DTXpress III module, and also Addictive Drums and BFD2 on my laptop.

[yohin]

Looks great, Jesse! That's cool how the jack just fits right into the vent hole.

[Linchpin]

So after a lot of time thinking about it but doing nothing, my A to E conversion is finally on it's way.

My brother built some cut toms with Quartz cone triggers mounted to crossbars and Billy Blast 2 ply heads to create customs pads for his TD9. After deciding on how exactly mount everything, he's working on my stuff now!

Here's a pic of one of his pads all done, but with the top head off. This is a cut Imperialstar tom he got used for cheap off Ebay that he cut in to 2 toms.



The cross bar mounts to a lug screw using some cheap L brackets and some rubber washers for height and isolation. The trigger is mounted to an adjustable furniture foot (so the cone can be just the right height) using some double sided tape and the jack runs out the vent hole.

Here are my 3 toms all done with heads on. The mounting inside is exactly the same. As you can see, we used the vent hole to run the jack, no drilling required. I think it turned out very professional looking from the outside and you can't even tell the difference without it plugged.





Once we get the snare done and figure out the kick (the height from lug to head is greater), and I get some new Yamaha PCY cymbals I'll post pics of the whole kit setup. I'm trigger my DTXpress III module, and also Addictive Drums and BFD2 on my laptop.

Looks great Jesse! I really wish I was able to get those jacks here as well, it would have made things so much easier. You and I are going to have to chat, I'd like to pick your brain on BFD2, I have it but for the life of me cannot get it to perform well on my laptop at all.

[kaosotis]

Lunch I'm not an expert but pm me with your issues and I might be able to help. I'm very solid on the computer side so I can usually figure out anything.

[late8]

Looking good Jesse. Keep them pics coming!

[kaosotis]

THanks Rich. Going to finish the snare and kick this weekend, and I still have to order the cymbals.

[kaosotis]

Some updated pics on my project. All toms are done and my RHH135 is mounted up. PCY cymbals should be here in a few days and I have to play around with getting everything set up, but very psyched.




And here's one of my new Roc-N-Soc with backrest.


Once I get it all setup and wired up, I'll get some better full kit pics up.

[marko138]

Definitely a pro-looking job. Nice!

[mdee]

Looks cool!
I'm curious with everyone doing these A-E conversions how loud are the drumhead/pads?
Are they about the same volume as playing an E-Kit with headphones on?

[kaosotis]

I would say it's a wash compared to the rubber pads on my e-kit, and that's only because I have normal resonant heads on. My drums actually make a quiet sound with tone, but it's certainly nothing that would bother anyone even in the room. You could talk over it.

Comparatively, the rubber pads make a sound that is all impact (or attack) which is actually more bothersome in my opinion and travels much more.

Were I to use mesh resonant heads (or none at all) there would be very little sound coming from my kit.

Cymbals are on the way, so I should have the full kit set up tonight.

[marko138]

Have you given thought to those new Zildjian G16 electronic cymbals? They might be cool.

[kaosotis]

Mark,

They are super expensive (like $700 for a set) and work kind of differently, so I don't think they'll work for me. They use their own module, with a small mic on each cymbal to pick up the hits, so in the end I don't think they are as flexible as e-cymbals in terms of getting new sounds, etc... I've also read kind of mixed reviews on them.

[marko138]

Mark,

They are super expensive (like $700 for a set) and work kind of differently, so I don't think they'll work for me. They use their own module, with a small mic on each cymbal to pick up the hits, so in the end I don't think they are as flexible as e-cymbals in terms of getting new sounds, etc... I've also read kind of mixed reviews on them.

Hmm... I hadn't really read anything on them. They sure do have a cool look to them though. Didn't realize they cost that much either.

[kaosotis]

Some updated pics. Got a DTX500 module for more expansion, and after much learning and settings tweaking I have it working decently. I'm still learning, but I'm hopeful I can get all the triggering working fine. The issues seem to stem from the module wanting 2 and 3 zone drums, when mine are all single.

I need to buy some stereo Y adapters as well so I can use the 2nd crash. If I use them with the toms, then it might make each tom mono which may solve some of the problems. The most problematic drum is the snare, so worst case I buy a custom A/E snare.

I should be able to figure it out, and when I get my laptop hooked up with Addictive Drummer and BFD, that shouldn't be an issue since I'll be setting the map.

I also have to get the wires cleaned up, but that's the last thing I'm worried about right now. Although my bro did the hardware setup for the triggers, I helped, and I'm learning a lot on the module tech side, so I'm pretty proud of it. Enjoy.

[Linchpin]

Some updated pics. Got a DTX500 module for more expansion, and after much learning and settings tweaking I have it working decently. I'm still learning, but I'm hopeful I can get all the triggering working fine. The issues seem to stem from the module wanting 2 and 3 zone drums, when mine are all single.

I need to buy some stereo Y adapters as well so I can use the 2nd crash. If I use them with the toms, then it might make each tom mono which may solve some of the problems. The most problematic drum is the snare, so worst case I buy a custom A/E snare.

I should be able to figure it out, and when I get my laptop hooked up with Addictive Drummer and BFD, that shouldn't be an issue since I'll be setting the map.

I also have to get the wires cleaned up, but that's the last thing I'm worried about right now. Although my bro did the hardware setup for the triggers, I helped, and I'm learning a lot on the module tech side, so I'm pretty proud of it. Enjoy.

Looks great Jesse, nice job. I had a little struggle getting my kick and snare rim trigger dialed in but it works great now, just takes some patience. You'll soon know your module settings inside and out.

[kaosotis]

That's what I'm hoping. I also might play around with the height of the trigger compared to the head. I'm thinking they are all triggering a little too easily and heavily and that might be why.

Thanks. Your's looks good too. Definitely a learning experience. Thinking that if I want a more portable A/E might try to build a cut tom kit so it's smaller and lighter and put the same trigger setup in those.

[late8]

So Jesse, even with the new DTX500 module, you're still having issues with the 2nd and 3rd zones getting collaterial trigger inputs? Looks really clean. I like the white wrap on the toms. At the 'end of the day' was it worth it? Thanks!

[Russ]

Wow, I can honestly say this is a first for me. First time i've ever seen a genuine 80's tama crestar being made into an e-kit. Very exciting to me at least, I can't even imagine what it's like for you. From one a/e kit guy to another, you did a smashing job! The next challenge you face is those settings - but with a module plus the aid of vst software I think you'll get it very close to the real thing within no time. Hang in there though, it looks great!

[kaosotis]

So Jesse, even with the new DTX500 module, you're still having issues with the 2nd and 3rd zones getting collaterial trigger inputs? Looks really clean. I like the white wrap on the toms. At the 'end of the day' was it worth it? Thanks!

Yeah, I am. My thought right now (other than assigning those zones to the same sounds as the 1st zone, which is what I've done already) is to adjust the cone height. I think they are just triggering too hot because the cone is ever so slightly too high. I'm going to give that a whirl this weekend.

They certainly are playable, just not as smooth as they should be.

What wrap? Those are lacquer my good friend!

In the end it was worth it. For a bit I was 2nd guessing not getting harness or external triggers, but this was a good deal cheaper, and it's been fun and interesting learning new stuff.

[kaosotis]

Wow, I can honestly say this is a first for me. First time i've ever seen a genuine 80's tama crestar being made into an e-kit. Very exciting to me at least, I can't even imagine what it's like for you. From one a/e kit guy to another, you did a smashing job! The next challenge you face is those settings - but with a module plus the aid of vst software I think you'll get it very close to the real thing within no time. Hang in there though, it looks great!

Thanks Russ. Given how rare my kit is to begin with, I'm guessing it might literally be a first. I very rarely see Crestar stuff at all.

I'm definitely getting better with the settings. As I said to Rich, I think the height of the cone might be the issue.

Also, my son has my laptop, so I haven't had a chance to try it with VST yet, but I'm thinking that might be even easier to adjust.

Given that my bro's DIY kit with cut toms and his TD-9 module worked straight away, I'm hoping it's a simple fix.

But they are fun to play and nice and quiet. Can't beat it in terms of playing a normal setup quietly.

Once I get it working perfectly, the next step would be to convert my 16" FT. The new module has enough split inputs that I can easily add it. I might add one of my old cymbal pads too as a wood block or something. And eventually I might sell the PCY100's to get another 135 and a 155 ride. The 10's are fine, but they are small.

Fun, fun, fun.

[late8]

Laquered finish? Wow...no way this kit is ever going back to it's acoustic version right? Cut toms? Thanks...

[kaosotis]

No, no cut toms. That first pic is of a cut tom my brother did, just to show the crossbar system for the trigger. These are just my regular old Crestars with nothing changed other than the jack coming out of the vent hole to hold the badge instead of a grommet.

No way I could cut my Tamas. Too much nostalgia and NR would kick my butt!

[late8]

Whew...what a relief. I remember the pic in the first post and noticed it was cut.

[kaosotis]

For those that might be interested, it turned out that the jack on my A2E snare was causing all the problems on the kit. Swapped the jack for an extra and it's triggering fine now, even with stock settings in the module. Very psyched.