Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

--- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "Kevin Richard" <kevin_richard@b...> 
wrote:

> Glad you aren't trying to rub anything in ;)
> 
> I have also never had problems online THOUGH I have a great 
> relationship with local dealer and I would just buy through them 
for 
> new... when I don't and I tell them the deal I got (used) they say 
> damn I wish I would have found that ;)
> 
> Good luck and keep us updated!
> 
> OH, I did have an ENGINE stand get lost but UPS made it right and 
> paid the guy to send me another one!

For those of you who are relatively new to the game, Musician's 
Friend is the web version of Guitar Center. They keep a large 
inventory and generally have competitive pricing. However, like all 
high volume, impersonal stores, MF has its share of horror stories. E-
drummers are well advised to get acquainted drumbalaya.com, which 
specializes in e-drum equipment from almost every manufacturer under 
the sun, as well as many of the ancillary products. It's as close to 
one-stop shopping for drummers who plug into the wall as you'll find. 
Not only is the selection extraordinary; you can also communicate 
directly with the people who sell it. And they know what they're 
talking about. Ed and Charlotte Morin started the store from scratch 
out of a love for music and electronic drums. You can't do better 
than that.

This brings up another point. Many of the best and most interesting e-
drum gear is made by cottage-industry companies that are not 
represented at many, if any, local brick-and-mortar dealer. Many of 
us have had to rely on the web for years to buy components from 
Pintech, Hart, Visu-lite, Drum Tech, and any number of other 
companies. One of the drawbacks is that we often cannot try before we 
buy. But places like Drumbalaya, as well as forums like this one and 
others, can make remote decisions less risky. Cultivating a 
relationship with a local deal is prudent, ethical, and convenient, 
but sometimes it won't help, especially when the gear is esoteric.

Ed