Alesis Pro Pads conversion to mesh

[philfine]

Hello everyone,

I recently bought a USB Pro Kit to which I still did not gave any use since I find it is completely uncomfortable to someone that has already felt any acoustic kit.

Well, for that same reason I immediately started planning to convert all of the pads to mesh head.
I started by doing some experiments with some foams I found but at least with the current heads (low quality alike plastic heads) the triggering is really poor.
A lot of sensitivity over the cone ... almost none out of it.

For that same reason I wonder if the problem is really the foam type or the current head.

Anyway, I still wonder which type of mesh head should I buy for this convertion.
Will roland mesh heads really make the difference here ?

The times I had the chance to play in a roland kit I wasn't able to fell the cone when hitting ... how do they make it happen ?

Anyway since I believe that a picture is worth more than a 1k words ... here it is ...

BTW, the foam is out of the shell for around 2/3 mm or 1/8 inch.
It is still a very rudimentary design and do not have enough space to put the original sized cone.



And without any change ...




Please comment / advise me
Sorry for the topic, and how much it resembles the previous post ...
It turn out to be more like: like: Alesis Pro Pads conversion to mesh

Thanks a lot

[jrcel]

I had no idea there was a wood shell in there.

[bogiesbad]

Mount the cone directly to the piezo (ceramic side up) w/double stick tape. Cut double-stick foam tape the same size as the ceramic (slightly smaller than the brass part) and stick it to the bass side and stick it all to your basket so the cone sits just above the rim and the edge of the piezo is above the surface of your mounting plate allowing the piezo to flex when struck....use aligator clips before you solder to make sure your polarity is OK...try that and report back

[Hellfire]

I'm going to have to agree with bogiesbad, however now that I look at your graphic it looks like you might already have this set-up. I can't really tell by your graphic. Since you are using an Alesis set-up have you considered a reflection plate set-up with mesh heads? I'm thinking something like the old REMO conversion. Foam/Plate with piezo/Foam sandwich. That's not to say the cone set-up wouldn't work, but I have had better results with Alesis equipment using the reflection plate set-up. Just a thought.

[bogiesbad]

I have zero experience with any but the Roland modules...I based my post on the drawing. Hellfire would be the authortiy with the Alesis.

[philfine]

Since you are using an Alesis set-up have you considered a reflection plate set-up with mesh heads? I'm thinking something like the old REMO conversion. Foam/Plate with piezo/Foam sandwich.

Hellfire, where can I find schematics for that similar conversion ?

Don't know if I understood exactly what you said.
As I understood it would be the same design as a regular pad but with mesh heads.

Doesn't I lose on stick bounce if I put some foam under the mesh ?
Originally the pads come with a piezo foam sandwich. Something like ... head, thinner harder foam, soft foam, aluminium disk with piezo, foam again.

Is that it ?

Thanks

[Hellfire]

Hellfire, where can I find schematics for that similar conversion ?

Here's a link:
http://www.toontrack.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=36727

Don't know if I understood exactly what you said.
As I understood it would be the same design as a regular pad but with mesh heads.

Doesn't I lose on stick bounce if I put some foam under the mesh ?
Originally the pads come with a piezo foam sandwich. Something like ... head, thinner harder foam, soft foam, aluminium disk with piezo, foam again.

Is that it ?

Thanks

You will lose a little stick bounce, but a mesh head has more bounce than an acoustic head away. So if done right it should feel more like your acoustics. The trick is using the right kind of foam. You need a foam that is very soft, yet bounces back quickly. The best foam for that is a high density upholstering foam. It is normally a blue-ish or green-ish color. It can be found at most fabric and hobby stores.

The foam is the key here. A lot of times, some DIY'er use what ever foam they scrounge from somewhere. They then put it together and they don't like. This is because most people think foam is foam, but it is not, it make a difference.

You want the plate to be about a third of the distance down from between the head and the bottom of the cavity of the drum. The trick with the plate is getting enough foam on top of the plate so you don't bottom out when you hit the drum, but you want more foam under the plate than on top to isolate it from the rim triggering. You may have to play with this distance. Keep in mind, no matter what you decide to do you will have to tweak your settings on the I/O to get the best performance.

[uglybassplayer]

Here's a link to an earlier thread with some pictures of a similiar conversion I did on my Alesis type pads about a month ago (and it worked out great... much better stick bounce, no problems with triggering on my TD-8)...

http://www.vdrums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44758

BTW, as far as mesh heads go, just get a set of these DYI style mesh heads. $30 for a set of 5 (including bass drum head). I used these heads for my conversion:

- Ugly.

[philfine]

The foam is the key here. A lot of times, some DIY'er use what ever foam they scrounge from somewhere. They then put it together and they don't like. This is because most people think foam is foam, but it is not, it make a difference.

Hellfire,

I will be visiting today a factory of foam for car seats ... do you think I might find the right foam there ?
I have no clue where to get foam nearby my place which best feats for that.

Thanks

[Hellfire]

Hellfire,

I will be visiting today a factory of foam for car seats ... do you think I might find the right foam there ?
I have no clue where to get foam nearby my place which best feats for that.

Thanks

They might have the right foam. I don't know enough about car seats to know for sure. It doesn't hurt to try. If they have two different foams, try to get some of each. At this point it is going to be trial and error to get it right. That is because it depends on you and how you like the feel. DIY by nature is trial and error. What works for one person doesn't always work for another.

[philfine]

Yesterday I finally received with mail the mesh heads I was expecting for a week.
I bought two brands of mesh (roland, ddt) both 8''.

Since I did not have much time I have just installed the roland one to test for bouncing.
I must say that even with around 3mm of foam out of the mesh I still got a lot of bouncing when well tighten. I guess it would be around original heads.

I will be testing for triggering maybe during weekend and I will post some pictures of the conversion + reports on triggering.

Hellfire, thanks for the tips

Regarding going to foam factory ... in fact I wasn't able to go there still.
Will try that next week.

[Hellfire]

Yesterday I finally received with mail the mesh heads I was expecting for a week.
I bought two brands of mesh (roland, ddt) both 8''.

Since I did not have much time I have just installed the roland one to test for bouncing.
I must say that even with around 3mm of foam out of the mesh I still got a lot of bouncing when well tighten. I guess it would be around original heads.

I will be testing for triggering maybe during weekend and I will post some pictures of the conversion + reports on triggering.

Hellfire, thanks for the tips

Regarding going to foam factory ... in fact I wasn't able to go there still.
Will try that next week.

It's good to hear that your project is moving along. I look forward to your updates and pictures.

[Billkwando]

Yesterday I finally received with mail the mesh heads I was expecting for a week.
I bought two brands of mesh (roland, ddt) both 8''.

Since I did not have much time I have just installed the roland one to test for bouncing.
I must say that even with around 3mm of foam out of the mesh I still got a lot of bouncing when well tighten. I guess it would be around original heads.

I will be testing for triggering maybe during weekend and I will post some pictures of the conversion + reports on triggering.

Hellfire, thanks for the tips

Regarding going to foam factory ... in fact I wasn't able to go there still.
Will try that next week.

So, how'd it work out?