best drum triggers

[heshian46]

Im looking at picking up a couple kick triggers and a snare trigger. Who's leading the market right now, Roland or Ddrum? And what models?

Ddrum has a bunch of new models out but im not clear on the differences between them. What does Roland have to offer?

These will be used in a studio environment only, if that matters.

 

[Studdy]

I think most people prefer the rolands. I honestly still for the life of me do not understand the need for drum triggers in the studio, i have rolands that never get used. I get they can be slightly useful for editing etc. but nothing that cant be achieved without them.

 

[bryan_kilco]

I hear a lot of good stuff about Roland triggers.

And a nice +1 to Studdy. I'd just trigger off the mics instead. 2 birds, one stone.

 

[heshian46]

I'd like to switch to triggers due to ease of editing, less bleed, possibility to blend the splat, etc..

Also, I've got a guy coming in with a dual kick setup and I only have one Beta 52 and no spare mics.

 

[DavePiatek]

Triggers are great for sidechaining gates on toms. That alone is worth the price of admission. I like the Roland triggers, just because they've got more robust build-quality than the Ddrums. Mine have taken many a hit from a sloppy drummer and still work perfectly.

 

[Studdy]

I must just not be in it for speed, it takes no time at all to manually cut toms. Strip Silence and a few hand tweaks. I also sometimes like protools clip gain to lower volume of parts instead of removing it 100%. Have you ever tried using a transient designer first to accentuate the hits then print that track. Nudge it back a few ms and use it as the trigger track for gating. Also the mic tracks will be delayed fro the trigger tracks so now time adjusting has to be done. Sorry i don't get the need for triggers. If you dont have a spare mic just buy a 57 or something that will always be useful, roland drum triggers are not that cheap.

And a nice +1 to Bryan_Kilco, get 2 birds stoned at once. lol

 

[heshian46]

I'm definitely not against triggering from a mic, i've been doing it for years. But it does get a bit tiring having to always go through and get rid of bleed, adjust trigger settings, check again...

With that said. I could probably just buy another Beta 52 for $190 or so (probably less used) and be done with it. At least then the 52 could be used as a floor tom mic on other sessions.

 

[Studdy]

The thing i dont get is we are all so anal anyways, so are we really going to just trust a gate sidechained from a trigger and print it? no, im going to check every last tom hit and adjust, so why not just do it right the first time. My 2 cents anyways. I would rather have another mic than the triggers i have in a drawer. But Dave Piatek uses them so im thinking maybe i should too... He has way more drum tracking experience than i will ever have.

 

[~BURNY~]

The thing i dont get is we are all so anal anyways, so are we really going to just trust a gate sidechained from a trigger and print it? no, im going to check every last tom hit and adjust, so why not just do it right the first time. My 2 cents anyways. I would rather have another mic than the triggers i have in a drawer. But Dave Piatek uses them so im thinking maybe i should too... He has way more drum tracking experience than i will ever have.

I can't see a valid reason to not record trigger signals if you have enough free inputs. I always give priority to mics unless I have a very crappy source but even when you cut the toms mics, you don't have to constantly check if you are indeed cutting the bleed or the source. It's just way easier looking at the trigger track. Same thing if you're gonna quantize. I don't know why it is so hard to understand.

 

[Studdy]

It isnt hard to understand, they just are not needed. And there is nothing to support that they are needed. It like saying you cant record drums without a tunebot, sure its easier and helpful but its not needed to record drums. Also his valid reason is that he has to buy them with his money that could be saved for something else because at the end of the day his final mixes wont be bettered by it. My opinion and it only an opinion, i dont claim to be right ever, especially when it comes to mixing/recording.

 

[~BURNY~]

It isnt hard to understand, they just are not needed. And there is nothing to support that they are needed. It like saying you cant record drums without a tunebot, sure its easier and helpful but its not needed to record drums.

They are not essential, I'll give that, but again, they are huge time savers.
Have ever had to edit+replace+quantize intricate 250 bpm grindcore or some shit?
It can take ages.

 

[Studdy]

They are not essential, I'll give that, but again, they are huge time savers.
Have ever had to edit+replace+quantize intricate 250 bpm grindcore or some shit?
It can take ages.

No not usually but again if i did have to i wouldnt just trust a gate for the whole song. it would have to be adjusted/automated properly time taken to get it just right etc. Id rather just edit by hand. Or like i have said before, duplicate the track, exaggerate with a transient designer , slide back a few ms and use that as sidechain track. what is the difference? Triggers are not 100% fail proof. Plus then the mics and triggers are not time aligned. I truly dont see the time saving , to each their own for sure. Cheers dude.

 

[~BURNY~]

No not usually but again if i did have to i wouldnt just trust a gate for the whole song. it would have to be adjusted/automated properly time taken to get it just right etc. Id rather just edit by hand. Or like i have said before, duplicate the track, exaggerate with a transient designer , slide back a few ms and use that as sidechain track. what is the difference? Triggers are not 100% fail proof. Plus then the mics and triggers are not time aligned. I truly dont see the time saving , to each their own for sure. Cheers dude.

Bleed is the difference and nobody is saying triggers are 100% fail proof.
There's virtually no bleed on a trigger track. You can visualize what is happening.
While you'd spend maybe an hour listening to a single tom track from a six or seven pieces kit to be able to cut it properly, you'd spend 10 minutes to cut only the bleed from the said track just by using the corresponding trigger track as a visual guide.

 

[heshian46]

I have the extra inputs (total of 16 at this point) so that's not an issue. I like the idea of being able to better visualize whats happening a bit better/clearer than an audio track with a bunch of bleed since isolation isn't always perfect.

Also, the project coming up with the dbl kick kit is a grind/death metal band, so there will be a LOT of kick to edit. Not looking forward to sorting through the 250 BPM 16ths.

 

[Trevoire520]

I've been using the ddrum chromes on my last few projects and they've been solid so far, lots of guys still like the Rolands too.

 

[Arsenu,]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10-DRUMDIAL-DRUM-TRIGGERS-NEW-dial-trigger-module-electronic-/220864924393?

Get a bunch of these and don't look back.

edit: i'll specify - Roland, Ddrum and all the rest are all just cheap-ass piezo disks wrapped in a nice package. there's no difference in quality as the audio doesn't play a role here, so by getting Ddrums or whatnot you're mostly paying for the brand name.

 

[HollowmanPL]

t drum

 

[wishtheend]

Had the ddrum reds and Roland. Something about the Ddrum mounts I liked more vs the roland which floated irrc. The new ddrum chromes look like they fixed the design where the mount screw was snagging the wire.

 

[Trevoire520]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10-DRUMDIAL-DRUM-TRIGGERS-NEW-dial-trigger-module-electronic-/220864924393?

Get a bunch of these and don't look back.

edit: i'll specify - Roland, Ddrum and all the rest are all just cheap-ass piezo disks wrapped in a nice package. there's no difference in quality as the audio doesn't play a role here, so by getting Ddrums or whatnot you're mostly paying for the brand name.

These are definitely good value and I've used them in the past, though to me the advantage you get with ddrum is the mounting system, mounting the drumdials involves removing a tension rod from your drum, and you need a way to stick the piezo on the drum head.

 

[Arsenu,]

These are definitely good value and I've used them in the past, though to me the advantage you get with ddrum is the mounting system, mounting the drumdials involves removing a tension rod from your drum, and you need a way to stick the piezo on the drum head.

Just because it shows that in the picture doesn't mean you actually have to do it that way, or at least i never did.
Those things are practically weightless and would stick easily to the top of the moongel (attaching it directly to the head may cause friction noise).