eDRUMin 1.3 BETA now available (again)

[monospace]

I did some more testing and it looks like I'm going to have to make changes to the hotspot suppression algorithm in version 1.3.1. And unfortunately, it'll have to be adjusted whenever changing drum sticks. But on the plus side, I should be able to make it much more precise.

Really, sticks make that much of a difference? I switch between a number of different weight sticks (all teardrop tips though) all the time and beyond ease of attaining certain velocities I can't see how they make that much of a difference on a mesh head. Then again, I'm not writing code to interpret waveforms so what do I know. Looking forward to new developments on the hotspot front though, I have not had any luck getting it to work reliably for me.

[jacko]

I did some more testing and it looks like I'm going to have to make changes to the hotspot suppression algorithm in version 1.3.1. And unfortunately, it'll have to be adjusted whenever changing drum sticks. But on the plus side, I should be able to make it much more precise.

Really, sticks make that much of a difference? I switch between a number of different weight sticks (all teardrop tips though) all the time and beyond ease of attaining certain velocities I can't see how they make that much of a difference on a mesh head. Then again, I'm not writing code to interpret waveforms so what do I know. Looking forward to new developments on the hotspot front though, I have not had any luck getting it to work reliably for me.

Yeah - for someone completely ignorant of the tech side that's surprising. But I don't care at all because I only use one stick size and would be surprised if many drummers swap stick sizes very much at all. Just out of interest mono, why do you swap stick sizes?

[Rob]

I'm not entirely sure if it's the weight or the shape of the tip. I'll buy some more sticks and find out. I've always used the same sticks and that's why I've never noticed this before. But now that I'm experimenting with different sticks, I see how I can generalize my algorithm to work well will all the sticks I have, but the thresh control will probably need to be adjusted when changing sticks.

[monospace]

Just out of interest mono, why do you swap stick sizes?

Like I said, to easily and consistently attain different velocities, just like you would on acoustics. Back in the early days of edrums, that wouldn't have made much of a difference (just crank up the sensitivity and/or the volume and be done with it) but it does with sophisticated software and hardware like SD3 and eDRUMin. I can get a constant, even, heavy attack by using my Vic Firth "Rock" sticks (baseball bats, really), or play as light as feather with Vater's Sugar Maple Jazz sticks. And everything in between.

The Sugar Maples are fantastic by the way. Really lightweight with good balance and no annoying vibrations, and I am constantly amazed at how smooth and realistic the response is with SD3 and the eDRUMin. Playing really soft buzzrolls is my favorite way to test my setup. (Curse you, BT-1!)
You can't do a heavy backbeat with those though; that's what the baseball bats are for.

[Mylo]

And don’t forget mallets and rods. Some drummers prefer to get the ultimate feel for what they are playing. If they are triggering mallet articulations from SD3 they want to have mallets in their hands.

I read up on waveform analysis once... I walked away with a headache.

It does make sense though. Dropping a bigger, heavier rock in a pond is going to generate a different attack, decay, sustain and release than a smaller, lighter rock. That’s an extreme oversimplification but I think the analogy is correct.

[Polyphonics]

Back in the early days of edrums, that wouldn't have made much of a difference (just crank up the sensitivity and/or the volume and be done with it) but it does with sophisticated software and hardware like SD3 and eDRUMin. I can get a constant, even, heavy attack by using my Vic Firth "Rock" sticks (baseball bats, really), or play as light as feather with Vater's Sugar Maple Jazz sticks. And everything in between.

This is interesting stuff, just like the type of pick you use for guitar. Is it worth us making a list of stick types and in future, guidance on how to adjust the settings to suit the stick? I only have 5A dowel stagg sticks and then these other sticks with a nylon tip, also 5A. Not a drummer so I'm open to recommendations on what sticks to buy to have more options available.

[Rob]

I'm pretty sure differences I'm seeing comes down to stick weight more than anything else. There's no point in giving guidance, the thresh has an indicator that provides all the guidance users need.

I made a new hotspot suppression algorithm today which performs extremely well. Tomorrow I'll revisit the old algorithm and do some A B comparisons.

I also fixed some positional sensing issue when doing light taps on the edge of a pad. Should make for more stable rolls.

Version 1.3.1 is going to have lots of polish.

[Polyphonics]

Sounds good Rob! I'll be eager to give it a try.

I hadn't mentioned this but I find when I went into beta my cymbals (Yamaha's) were performing really well compared to before, especially with zone separation. I feel the scaling feature had also improved a lot, just really had a good feel to it.

I also have a dual zone medeli pad I have been using in single zone mode (aka Alesis DM6 pads too), would you like me to send you a spare one for your testing?

[monospace]

And don’t forget mallets and rods. Some drummers prefer to get the ultimate feel for what they are playing. If they are triggering mallet articulations from SD3 they want to have mallets in their hands.

I do use rods, yeah. But the heavier kind, otherwise your hits barely register. Not only does it feel more realistic, it also plays more realistically because rods behave and rebound very differently from sticks.

[jacko]

Just out of interest mono, why do you swap stick sizes?

Like I said, to easily and consistently attain different velocities, just like you would on acoustics. Back in the early days of edrums, that wouldn't have made much of a difference (just crank up the sensitivity and/or the volume and be done with it) but it does with sophisticated software and hardware like SD3 and eDRUMin. I can get a constant, even, heavy attack by using my Vic Firth "Rock" sticks (baseball bats, really), or play as light as feather with Vater's Sugar Maple Jazz sticks. And everything in between.

The Sugar Maples are fantastic by the way. Really lightweight with good balance and no annoying vibrations, and I am constantly amazed at how smooth and realistic the response is with SD3 and the eDRUMin. Playing really soft buzzrolls is my favorite way to test my setup. (Curse you, BT-1!)
You can't do a heavy backbeat with those though; that's what the baseball bats are for.

ok - thanks. on acoustics and e-drums i get the range of velocity i want with a single stick size, but i don’t play any metal or even hard rock these days. i used to play 2Bs when i was much younger but switched to 5As a long long time ago and have never swapped around between stick sizes. my son is a pretty good metal drummer and he can happily use whatever he picks up, but has settled on 5As because that’s what i use and it’s easier for me just to have a single size and to be able to pick up any stick laying around the house.

the comments re playing rods and mallets on edrums are really interesting- i have the roots sticks sdx but didn’t get the rods brushes and mallets one - i have always saved all that for acoustics. i will experiment with this - thanks.

also, just to clarify lest there’s any misunderstanding, when i said “for someone completely ignorant of the tech side“ in my earlier post, i was referring to myself