Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

Hi all,

A quick question... sorry if this topic's been done and dusted... I'm a
DTXpress veteran, but new to the group!

Has anyone got any experience using high-end Roland pads with the DTXpress
brain? I realise in theory they should work, but I wonder specifically
whether there are any issues with polarity, and if rim/skin triggers work
correctly on a stereo channel?

Thanks a ton.

Phil

Hi Phil,

I'm stuck in front of a computer for the better part of the day, so 
I'm happy to give whatever help I can. I use mesh heads with the 
Yamaha module but not Rolands'. I've heard from some people that the 
Rolands' signal from the mesh heads to the DTXPU is softer than 
others' out of the box, but I also know that Yamaha people use them. 
If attenuation is a problem, tweaking can probably fix it. I have 
used a Roland stereo cymbal in my kit without a problem, and, to be 
honest, I seem to recall its output being low until I made the 
requisite adjustment in gain, pad type, etc. Remember, however, that 
dual-zone pads (two piezos), as opposed to stereo ones (one piezo 
for the body and a switch for the rim), will only work correctly if 
at least one of the triggers is plugged into input 9/10. You can't 
get Roland's dual-zones, or anyone else's, to work properly using 
inputs 1-8, since they don't use a rim switch as the second voice. 
You need two fully independent mono channels for them.

Roland and Yamaha are at odds in polarity. The only place in which I 
know that polarity makes any difference through the Yamaha is with 
the hi hat controller. But the Yamaha controllers are both pretty 
good, and I hope to report soon that the Visu-lite hi hat will be 
another option for Yamaha users (stay tuned). I can personally 
verify that the Roland cymbals work fine through the Yamahas (I 
think the Yamaha brain can compensate). The three-zone ride, 
however, is not Yamaha-friendly, if only because toggling between 
its options works best with Roland's electronics.

No company's pads are manufactured to be totally exclusive (wouldn't 
that be like shooting yourself in the foot?), though Roland's 
product blurbs sometimes seem to lean in that direction. But there's 
no guarantee that you'll like a particular company's pads through 
your module. Unfortunately, trying them in a store, if you're really 
lucky, or ordering them online and sending them back if they don't 
work is all we can do. Have you tried, or considered, the Pintech 
line? The price is right, and the mesh heads definitely thrive in 
the Yamaha environment.

Ed

--- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "Phil Le Cheminant" <phil@l...> 
wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
> A quick question... sorry if this topic's been done and dusted... 
I'm a
> DTXpress veteran, but new to the group!
> 
> Has anyone got any experience using high-end Roland pads with the 
DTXpress
> brain? I realise in theory they should work, but I wonder 
specifically
> whether there are any issues with polarity, and if rim/skin 
triggers work

> correctly on a stereo channel?
> 
> Thanks a ton.
> 
> Phil