My new DTX-3 Special kit
2004-06-29 by purtatoe
Hello out there in E-drum land! I'm a drummer of 25+ years and a working songwriter. I bought the DTXpress 3 special for recording my song demos as getting real drums to sound good in a home studio is all but impossible. I searched for the past couple months and read every review I could get my hands on and decided on the DTXpress 3 special. So, here I am, a week into my new kit and my review.... The stock kits: 1-10 scale (5) In all the preset kits, IMO, you can count the usable ones on one hand with fingers left over! The rest are filler, many sound like the sounds on my very old $250 Yamaha psr-270 cheapy keyboard. Overall I was very disappointed in the stock kits. Cymbals: (4) The "specials" claim to fame is supposed to be the new and improved cymbal sounds and new hi-hat controller. If these are new and improved sounds I can only imagine what the older version cymbals sound like. I've come across only a couple that can reasonably pass for real cymbals. Most of the hi-hat sounds are weak at best and barely acceptable at most. Of course I know I'm not playing real hats, believe me I KNOW! The hats react nothing like real hats. Supposedly Yamaha says you get a full range from closed to open... I hear three levels and to get a half open swishy sound is all but impossible. The ride is "decent," some of the sounds are fairly real sounding, but you can't play fast patterns on the bell, no matter what settings, it just wont pick out all the strikes. Snare pad: (7) This is by far the best part of the kit, I can get a pretty good d- stroke roll going and even something resembling a press/buzz roll. But rim-shots in relation to the snare sound are always too loud. Kick: (4) Most sounds are not real sounding at all and no matter what I do I always get double triggering when I play intricate and sometimes not so intricate grooves. The kick pedal and thrown: (8)(4) Pedal is a cheapy, but I like cheapy pedals. The thrown is a REAL cheapy and I don't like REAL cheapy throwns at all. The rack and connecters: (6) Rack is light, seems relatively sturdy, looks ok, sort of cheapish, marks easily. Connectors are very hard to move on the tubing and makes marks, it seems constantly retightening is required as I'm not a hard player but the toms always move. All the other stuff, the songs... The goofy, gimmickry, almost useless sounds... The lessons, etc., I don't have any interest in. It would seem this kit was designed for a 10 year old just starting out, not a semiprofessional as marketed. As you can see I was not impressed at all. If anyone wants them, make me an offer. Maybe you'll get use out of them. They are in near perfect shape, but for the unavoidable marks on the tubing. Ps. I did not come here to sell them, I'll probably end up putting them on ebay. I just wanted to give my honest opinion.