Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

Hey guys!

Just got a DTXpressII for X-mas, and it is all that and a bag of 
chips. :) Like most people, it was a choice between the V-Club, and 
the DTXpressII. The big reasons the DTXpress won: lower price, 3-zone 
snare, and a big kick pad that can accomodate a dual pedal (which I 
already had).

I've been skimming this group, which has already helped answer alot 
of questions. On in particular from 'emf' which answered my hi-hat 
pedal sensativity question. Thanks!

But, like any noobie, I still have a few more:
1. I saw the link to drumbalaya.com (wow! great store!) for the 
DTXpressIII. How much better will the basic III be than my II? Will 
the sounds be worth the wait? I can still crate mine back up and 
bring it back to Guitar Center in about 25 more days. Unless we're 
talking more than 3 months for the release of the III.

2. I've tried hooking up using MIDI to my EMU XL-7 to use the XL-7's 
drum kits/sounds. After some fiddling, I figured out how to change 
MIDI note values on the DTX to correspond to the XL-7's kits. But, 
one thing it does not seem to transmit is the cymbal chokes. Is there 
a setting on the DTX that I'm missing?

3. For an extra pad (cymbal), should I just stick with Yamahas? I 
want to keep it under $100. Also, is there another hi-hat pedal I can 
use with it? Any brand pads I should not or could not use?


Hoping to contribute something soon,
Bill