help with 3 zone metal cymbal input

[Mr_Bluesguy]

Anyone have experience using the 3 zone metal cymbal input mode? I began experimenting with it today with an 18" LV cymbal and have the bow and bell zones working nicely, but get no output for edge strikes under any conditions. The edge threshold meter shows no movement at all. Double checked all wiring with a meter, appears to be correct. Probably overlooking something simple. Any ideas what might be going on?

Also, what do the black and white dots indicate on kit piece icons?

Thanks

edrumin 3 zone cymbal screen shot.jpg (79.58 KiB) Viewed 1582 times

[AKA Wayne]

Make sure the plug in edrumin is in all the way. It's happened to me multiple times.

[Rob]

If you choke the cymbal, does the choke indicator light up?

[Mr_Bluesguy]

Yep, checked that all cabling was plugged in completely.
Rob - your last question provided several answers for me. The short answer is no. But it did confirm that use of the 3 zone metal cymbal mode requires a switch. Everyone probably knew that. I have never been clear if that was the case in this situation, because I've not seen it explicitly stated or indicated as piezo/switch/switch, etc. like it is spelled out in the 2 zone metal cymbal mode description. I sort of surmised (hoped) you were pulling off some kind of magic doing it switchless, kind of like edge sense on a single side mount trigger. I began to think that this was the case, because in an earlier attempt, I actually was getting all three actions with 2 piezos, but edge hits were inconsistent. So I cleaned up my kludgy wiring and tried it again, and that's when edge triggering no longer worked. In asking the question, i was hopefully looking for clues as to what in my kludgy wiring would allow the edge hits to function.. So short answer----get a switch! Making dumb assumptions is a great way to get schooled....

[AKA Wayne]

This is the diy page. It's all a learning process here. You definitely want a switch. Myrks are good when they are available. Goedrums are better but more expensive.

[Mr_Bluesguy]

Thanks AKA Wayne. Always love trying new things, but I've really resisted using switches in the past. Probably time to re-examine that. I know Myrk's are good but also like unobtainium. Often wondered who else makes them-thanks for the tip

[Ronyd]

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[Mr_Bluesguy]

Happy to share how I attached bell and bow piezos, but not sure how this will help your current issue. Am I correct in assuming you are you using the 3 zone metal cymbal function with a switch? As you saw in my last post I erroneously tried that without a switch, so I never really got it working properly enough to help diagnose your problem.
I asked myself if I really need 3 zones on a ride. I don't use it as a crash, and the only cymbals I choke are crashes. So I went with a 2 zone piezo/piezo on my 20" LV ride. Use mesh center trigger in stereo mode. It works fabulously. I prefer a stealth approach to wiring up cymbals, so I came up with the scheme in the pictures. It may or may not apply to your set up, but this is how I do it. Maybe you can use some of the ideas.
The little splitter block is available on Amazon for like $7-8 for three. Each block has two male 3.5mm TS inputs and a 3.5mmTRS female output. The 3.5mm size keeps the bulky cabling away from the cymbal. From there I use an adapter cable 3.5mm to 1/4" TRS to get to edrumin. The bow is wired to tip and bell to ring. The cymbal sits on top of the custom trigger that has a 15mm piezo on it. The bow has a Magnatrack Cymbalic trigger. The piezos in them are 12mm.

splitter block

trigger splitter.jpg (61.39 KiB) Viewed 1563 times

LV cym trig wiring.jpg (136.9 KiB) Viewed 1563 times

Custom LV trigger.jpg (171.14 KiB) Viewed 1563 times

[Ronyd]

I'm embarrassed to say that somehow had it switched to Dual Zone Of course before i saw your post I said WTF.... Can't make this stuff up.

But, I'm glad you posted your build. I did use a 3D plate i made last week but decided to just attached piezo directly to the bell. I like how you isolated using 4 foam blocks. I may go back to the plate concept.

So the bell piezo is sitting on the plate correct, plate attached to cymbal using bolt/nut?

thankx very much and sorry for taking your time !!

ronyd

[Ronyd]

I'm embarrassed to say that somehow had it switched to Dual Zone Of course before i saw your post I said WTF.... Can't make this stuff up.

But, I'm glad you posted your build. I hear ya about not needing the Ride as a crash. I figured with Jazz playing, may emphasize the pickup note with a crash. We'll see how things play out with 3 zone.

So i did use a 3D plate i made last week but decided to just attached piezo directly to the bell. I like how you isolated using 4 foam blocks. I may go back to the plate concept. Better isolation for sure.

So the bell piezo is sitting on the plate correct, plate attached to cymbal using bolt/nut?

thankx very much and sorry for taking your time !!

ronyd