Conference napalm::commusic_v1

    
    Karl, 
    
    The price from Sam Ash is about $550, it's cheaper than an Octapad II.
    It's been in stores here for a few months, haven't heard it yet.
    
    							Brian

    			-< SPD-8 pricing in Canada >-
    
    The Rolland SPD-8 is sold up here for around $650 (Canadian). How much
    is it going for in the U.S.? If the difference is significant...I'd be
    interested in getting one through, say...interoffice mail...say for
    Christmas. (one can wish, can't he...?)
                                               
    By the way, it's got me salivating as well.
    
    Robert
    

    I recently received a small windfall, so I contacted my favorite
    AZ synth store re the SPD-8.  They claim it lists for $695, their
    final price including tax is
    
    $597.52
    
    Nope.
    
    karl

    Well, I take it back.  Dusted off the old Mastercard and bought an
    SPD-8, including 2 pedals and the optional cymbal stand mount bracket.
    Also, as the unit has no MIDI thru, purchased an Anatek Pocket Merge
    and a 1' MIDI cable.
    
    It arrived last night.  My wife laughed when I opened the box,
    extracted only the manual, closed the box, and sat back to read the
    MIDI Implementation Chart.  
    
    I believe her words were, "I married a NERD!"
    
    karl

    re: .4 (Moeller)
    
    I did the same thing with my VFX-SD.  (Took the manual out, took the
    unit out only long enough to listen to the demo, play through the
    sounds, and then back into the box).
    
    I *LOVE* reading the VFX-SD manual - it's like they added everything I
    ever wanted in the SQ-80 or ESQ-1.
    
    Every so often while I'm reading the manual I let an "Oh NEAT!" escape
    and if anyone else is in the room they shake their heads like I was
    crazy.
    
    	db
    
    p.s.  Have to say it: after having read mostly Roland manuals for the
          last 4 years (age of my last Ensoniq purchase), I HAVE to say
          that reading an Ensoniq manual is like a TREMENDOUS breath of
    	  fresh air.
    
    	  Incredibly well written, and at least they TELL you if they make
    	  a forward reference.   They also inject a little humor here and
    	  there as well.

Does it have external pad inputs?  I'm curious.

fyi, I've got a Pad-8  at  home  and  I'm  in the process of constructing
homebrew external pads.   I'm  impressed  with  how  well they work - for
about $5 each.  I'm making them from the "piezo buzzers" that you can buy
at rat shack.  They turn out to have just about the right sensitivity.

The pedals you mentioned sound great.  I'd love  to  be able to switch an
open/closed hit-hat.  As for the kick-pedal, I ended up  buying  a rather
expensive kick-pedal-electronic-trigger which works very well and "feels"
great.

Happy Holidays,
/Mitch

    Mitch, no external pad inputs.  The 'kick' pedal can actually be
    assigned to any MIDI note/channel number.  The A/B switch pedal is only
    useful for the internal sounds, because there is no MIDI event
    associated with it... that is, I set up a 'kit' (kit 'A') and one of 
    the pads is open hihat.  I set up a second 'kit' B, with ONLY the
    closed hihat sound.  Switching the pedal switches kits, but if I were
    recording into a sequencer, only the open sound would be played back
    since the A/B pedal doesn't have a corresponding MIDI event assigned to
    it.
    
    karl

but karl,  if  the  pedal  switches  between  kit  A  and  kit B, then as
you record into a sequencer,  you  would in fact record the two different
MIDI notes (open hat/closed hat).   So  it  IS  useful for external sound
too, no?  (I understand that there's  no  midi event corresponding to the
pedal switch, but you do get the effect externally, no?)

that's too bad about the lack of external pads though.

/mitch

                 <<< Note 2456.8 by RICKS::NORCROSS "Neon!" >>>
                                -< come again >-
>if  the  pedal  switches  between  kit  A  and  kit B, then as
>you record into a sequencer,  you  would in fact record the two different
>MIDI notes (open hat/closed hat).   So  it  IS  useful for external sound
>too, no?  
    
    hadn't thought of that - haven't tested it out much as a MIDI
    controller - the first time I tried... but that's for another note.
    
    thanks for the thought.  karl

    Okay, finally got this thing integrated into my setup as a controller
    AND SGU.  Played some more with the A/B footswitch.  I can have an open
    and closed hihat (yes, it generates different MIDI note numbers for
    each) assigned to the same pad.  The problem is that the open sound
    doesn't truncate in the SPD when a closed sound is struck..
    
    Started me thinking.  I set up my EMAX to listen to the SPD-8.  Two
    notes on the EMAX, one closed, one open, assigned to the SAME DAC !
    So now the SPD-8 A/B switch causes the open sound to be properly
    truncated when the closed sound is struck.
    
    Wouldn't a real hihat have been cheaper ?  Certainly simpler...
    and certainly louder..
    
    karl

>>>    Wouldn't a real hihat have been cheaper ?  Certainly simpler...
>>>    and certainly louder..

Karl, I'm sure you know this and were asking rhetorically, but I couldn't 
resist....

    But real hihats aren't easy to record.  I've NEVER been able to mike hihats
such that they sound anything like they do on records.  With a good sample, I 
can record with minimal noise, no microphones, and save a tape track.  And,
besides, with a big amplifier a sampled hihat can be SOOOOO much louder than
an acoustic hihat.

- John -

    I know what you mean about making sampled HHs sound real.  I think that
    the Roland R-8's Human Feel nuance variations are a BIG win for doing
    HHs.
    
    In the absence of that (I don't own an R-8), I've found that your
    velocity levels are critical to making it sound real.  It's also
    important to open and close the HH occasionally.   Repeat hits on
    a closed or even half open HH sound VERY metronomic if the velocity
    isn't varied.

            <<< DNEAST::SYS$TOOLS:[NOTES$LIBRARY]COMMUSIC.NOTE;2 >>>
             -< * * Computer Music, MIDI, and Related Topics * * >-
================================================================================
Note 2741.0         General help needed with Electronic Drums            1 reply
NEMAIL::MERCIER "Baaabbbyy Snaaaakes"                12 lines   4-OCT-1991 10:37
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    I did a keyword search and couldnt find any info on the Roland SPD8
    drum pads. Can anybody provide me with some general information; 
    how they are, internal sounds, midi comp. etc. I am not all that
    familar with electronic drumming equipment. I am interested in getting
    into more. Currently I play a standard kit, but I would like to begin
    doing some triggering amongst other things. I dont have alot of money
    to invest at this point, so I anyone knows of some cheaper but reliable
    ways of accomplishing this let me know.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Bob

>    I did a keyword search and couldnt find any info on the Roland SPD8
>    drum pads. 
    
    DIR /TITLE= SPD...
    >Can anybody provide me with some general information; 
    >how they are, 
    
    Rugged.  sits on a cymbal stand.
    >internal sounds, 
    
    good quality, built-in and controllable pan position, lots of variants,
    acoustic drums, simmons sounds, some latin, marimbas, steel drums, many
    of the tonal instruments are tuned to an A scale.  32 kits of 8 pads
    each, switchable with a footswitch to 8 other sounds
    
    >midi comp. etc. 
    The MIDI implementation is.. frustrating.  The manual purports to show
    the MIDI note assignment for each 'kit'.. turns out to be not true.
    You have to assign the damn things manually.  Can't switch kits via
    patch change, you have to select the kit manually.
    
    It has 3 pedals - can be assigned as a functioning kick pedal.  Also as
    ahihat switch pedal, plus a 'kit advance' pedal.  
    
    Because of the need to assign MIDI note numbers to each and every pad,
    16 per kit, X 32, it doesn't get much use.  To be fair, after the notes
    are assigned, the unit will remember the settings, and if I were
    ambitious I could save everything in a SYSEX dumpt to my sequencer.
    
    karl

I have an SPD-8, and I'm very pleased with the range and quality of sounds that
it provides. One slightly annoying feature, though, is that I find the pads to
be a little insensitive. They are sufficiently unresponsive that you can't get
a sound from a pad by hitting it with your hand (at least, you'd need to hit it
pretty damn hard!)

Now, I'm not actually interested in playing the thing by hand, but I do find
that when using sticks I have to hit quite briskly, and the stick noise (impact
of the stick on the pad) is very noticeable. For some sounds (snare and kicks)
this is less of a problem, but I find that the stick noise interferes with the 
cymbal sounds quite badly.

Has anyone else found this problem? Has anyone found a solution?


Chris

    I have that syndrome, too - it seems to have only two volumes - very
    soft and very loud.
    
    Another issue I have is the number of tonal instruments - it seems they
    forgot this is a PERCUSSION module and put in bunches of marimbas,
    vibes, xylophones, etc... I'd rather have had a few more ride or crash
    cymbals, or several types of hi-hat hits.
    
    Not exactly recommended by me.
    
    karl

    I assume the SPD-8 pads use the same technology as the PAD-8 and its
    progeny.  To be fair to Roland, these pads were designed to not
    spuriously trigger in high ambient sound level (read "live rock band
    onstage") environments.  As a result they really can't be played with
    fingers, and that's by design.  In the environment they were designed
    for, impact noise is inaudible.
    
    My PAD-8 has sensitivity level and "curve" parameters that can be
    adjusted to provide pretty wide dynamic range and stick response.
    I don't know if the SPD-8 provides equivalent parameters.
    
    len.
    

 But karl, vibes, xylophones, and marimbas *ARE* percussion instruments.

 Chad

   <<< Note 2456.18 by NUTELA::CHAD "Chad in Munich at RTO, DTN 865 3976" >>>
    > But karl, vibes, xylophones, and marimbas *ARE* percussion instruments.

    Yeah, yeah.. not to me, apparently.  
    
    Kudos on the four people that sent me mail on this.  Your cortical
    vigilance is... vigilant.  ;-)
    
    karl