chromatic percussion

[dr sgt pepper]

I'd love to see an affordable chromatic percussion set, like the Mallet-Kat but in the $500 price range. Just 2 octaves that additionally incorporates all the sonic-flavors of a regular trap set- like a midi keyboard does. Wouldn't you all like to rip through a drum solo and add a tuned acoustic run to your drumming... or just to double up on what your bass player is playing. You all know the layout of a keyboard, and this would be so easy work into what you are already doing. Eventhough I have a SPDs, I can't configure the pads in my head to resemble a chromatic setting. Same for the new Yamaha-12, it's just not laid out right...your thoughts?

[mbejackson]

That's a lot of triggers though. Like 40? for a MalletKat, 12 per octave?. My numbers may be wrong but I'm at work right now wolfing down some Pasta. What about 'tap' triggering predefined MIDI sequences with just a few pads. Or am I missing your point.

[dr sgt pepper]

First of all....save me a plate of pasta; i'll be over shortly.....second, being a keyboard player and a drummer, I like to bang out a live percussion riff with the rest of the guys instead of kicking off a sampled sequence; which is what I think you were referring to. Playing something melodic, like a marimba or caribbean steel drum, is a blast...i'd just like to incorporate it into a series of midi-pads....25 for two octaves..but hey...40 is good too....HA! thanks for your thoughts. What sauce are you using?

[mbejackson]

I get what you're talking about now, I sure hope someone else chimes in with something 'cause I think that would be very cool. Oh, and the Pasta's all gone. I hope you didn't read that as 'I eat Pasta all day for work.'

[Hercules]

I get by with the SPD-20
- 8 pads gives you an octave
- copy patch and change the pitch gives you multiple octaves
- an FD-8 as a pitch pedal gives you 2 octaves per patch

[neilpearthart]

Well, I have an Original Malletkat Master 1 octave and
2 expander octaves. It is great to have one,
however, one must also consider the fact that you need
a sound mod. that can cost alot of money for a good one.
Then, you need to add on a pa system, otherwise nobody
will hear you play. THAT in itself can be very costly!
So, I spent $600 on an OLD Malletkat, contacted Mario, and got
2 bottom plates with the 4 screw holes, so I can mount this unit.
(My original did not have any screw holes for mounting it.
I use 2 Tama Stilt stands, without the top cymbal poles).
$40 for those, and then an Alesis DM-PRO for $400.
So, I'm at $1000. I think you would be better off getting a USED
MalletKAT on ebay.
I've seen a couple of them on there lately.
Just keep looking.

[lucastc]

I use a MalletKat Express and love it. My Roland V-synth XT will be in tomorrow for me to run it on (I am not too happy with the Kurzweil PC-2R) They are expensive but worth it. I am considering an octave expander so I will have 3 to play with...

[randallstevens]

I have a 3 octave malletkat. I got it used on ebay... really old model but it was re-padded before I bought it and it works great.

I've used it a good bit, albeit intermittently, and really like it a lot. I'd like to see some nicer mallet libraries produced. I have Dave Samuels marimba and vibes that I use with it a lot. I also use a rhodes sound from Native Instruments Kontakt a lot... it ends up feeling like a vibraphone with pickups.

When I'm not triggering my computer with it, I do have a Roland digital piano with a half decent vibe sound... I feel very similarly about module sounds vs vst on keyboard percussion as I do on drum set. Modules just sound and feel sterile to me.

I would LOVE to get a hold of a wernick xylosynth. I don't really like the feel of the pads on the malletkat, and really miss the feel of wooden keys. They make it in bubinga and birch.

[dr sgt pepper]

The xylo-synth looks incredible...and of course the malletkat is remarkable as well. I'm already midi'd up with a MAC and a keyboard and have a sound source ,but just hoping to see something cheaper come along to bang on...but hey...great stuff that you're all working with. Look forward to more in-roads in the mallet-market in the future and I'll continue to check eBay for an old "kat". Thanks all for the replies and I'll check back to see if any new "news" pops up in this thread in the midi-mallet world.