digitalDrummerfebruary2016 LR (PDF)

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Edition 25 FEBRUARY 2016

The global electro

Brian
keeps
busy

NAMM debuts

US$10

ing e-zine

SDSV still plays Klayton’s choice

GEN16 ACOUSTIC ELECTRIC SYSTEM

EXPAND YOUR SONIC

POSSIBILITIES
©2015 Avedis Zildjian Company

“The Gen16 is like having more
fun colors in your crayon box.
And they don’t bother my
ears, the neighbors, or anyone
is my house!”
- MIKE MANGINI

“I’m now able to apply
DSP and EFX to just one
cymbal. This has never
before been an option.”
- RUSS MILLER

“Adding Gen16 to my acoustic
drum setup has given me access
to new and creative sounds.”
- LARNELL LEWIS

“With all of the electronics I use, it’s
great to be able to process from
a direct source for new textures.”
- ANDY GANGADEEN

Gen16 is a true hybrid system, blending acoustic with electric. It contains
Buffed Bronze cymbals, Direct Source Pickups and the powerful Digital
Cymbal Processor. Discover a whole new world of cymbal sounds with the
Zildjian Gen16 System.
#NEXTGENSOUNDS

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--from-the-editor-is published by

DigitalDrummer

ABN: 61 833 620 984
30 Oldfield Place

Brookfield Q 4069
AUSTRALIA

editor@digitaldrummermag.com

www.digitaldrummermag.com
Editor & Publisher
Allan Leibowitz
Sub-Editor

Solana da Silva
Contributors
Scott Albert
Jim Barber

Anders Gronlund
Gary Sabin
Roger Thomas

Cover Photo
James JR Newkirk

Design and layout
‘talking business’

Support digitalDrummer

If you like what you’re reading,
please make a donation.

Copyright or wrong:

Forget the legalese and just
play fair! We work hard to
produce digitalDrummer.
Please respect that and don’t
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of electronic publishing, it’s
obviously tempting to “borrow”
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are happy to share our stuff —
but please ask first and be
sure to include a link back to
our website on anything

WE START THE year with a bang. This edition includes the
announcement of our annual Readers’ Choice awards, with
some new appearances in the e-drum hardware, software and
retailer categories. This shows the dynamism of the industry –
and the impact being made by smaller players like Pintech and
Drum Drops. It is indeed refreshing to see recognition for
manufacturers that aren’t household names.
This edition also includes coverage of some of the new
products which were shown off at the recent NAMM trade
show in California. As we have seen in the past, some of these
innovative instruments will be on shop floors within the next
few months, but others may take a while to make it into
production. There is still plenty of value in reporting on those
products not yet market-ready because they show what’s
possible, what’s looming and what to look out for.
We also include a few product reviews – a new snare drum
from Go edrums, Alesis’ Sample Rack module and the new
expansion pack for Superior Drummer 2. And our DIY
coverage shows how Zildjian’s popular practice cymbals can
be used with triggers.

digitalDrummer is the result of a dialogue with our readers,
and we include two reader articles which are sure to attract
attention. First, we hear from the owner of the first Simmons
kit in the US – a kit that is still in working order more than 30
years after its purchase. Then there’s an account from a UK
drummer who has embraced multi-pads for a compact,
versatile drumming solution as part of the growing movement
towards tiny kits.
On the pro scene, we talk to one of the busiest drummers on
the planet, Brian Frasier-Moore, the drummer currently
touring with Madonna. Brian is a well-versed e-drummer who
knows his way around some of the most complex gear. He
shares some insights into performance and drumming
success in an inspirational exchange.

We also include a personal account from multi-instrumentalist
Scott Albert, widely known by his stage name Klayton. He is
best known for his current project, Celldweller, for which edrums are an essential element.
So, there’s plenty to read and we hope you enjoy this edition.
Even more so since we have begun implementing many of the
suggestions which were contributed in our survey at the end
of last year. And you’ll notice even more of the ideas making
their way into our website, our Facebook group and future
editions.
So, thanks for keeping up the dialogue.

editor@digitaldrummermag.com
digitalDRUMMER, February 2016

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The global electronic drumming e-zine
Edition 25

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February 2016

GEAR

The chosen few

There was a mix of new faces and old hands among the
winners of the 2015 digitalDrummer Readers’ Choice
awards.

Making e-drums mainstream

Electronic drums have been in retail stores for more than
30 years, but are still seen by many as a poor substitute
for acoustic drums. This prompted digitalDrummer to ask
some industry leaders if e-drums will ever be mainstream.

Racking up a new module

As module capability improves and pricing drops, Alesis
recently boosted its range with its SampleRack offering.
Allan Leibowitz tested the unconventional arrival.

E-drums get NAMMplified

This will go down as the year of the e-drum at NAMM, as
Allan Leibowitz reports from the biggest-ever show in
Anaheim, California.

A Go-to snare

Taiwan’s Go edrum offers a growing range of products,
and digitalDrummer recently tested its 12” dual-zone
mesh snare.

First Simmons still playing

Jim Barber’s claim to fame is being the very first
drummer to purchase and use Simmons in North America.

Profile

Brian Frasier-Moore

Think of the biggest acts around, and Brian Frasier-Moore
is probably driving the beat for them. Usher, Janet
Jackson, Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake all rely
on him when they’re touring, and Allan Leibowitz tracked
him down in Paris, where he was playing with Madonna.

www.digitaldrummermag.com

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40
42
44
46
48
50

PERFORMANCE

How I use e-drums

Klayton is a multi-instrumentalist who has led several cult
status underground bands and has performed under a
variety of stage names since the early 1990s. He shares
his e-drum experience here.

Drumming outside the box

Roger Thomas recently returned to drumming via e-drums
and discovered he prefers them oblong.

VST

Behind the 2box sounds

E-drummer Anders Gronlund discovered that the sounds
in his 2box module were produced about a kilometre from
his home in a small Swedish town, so he went around to
see how it’s done.

Progressive Foundry SDX

Is this really Superior Drummer 3 by stealth? The 63 GB
package certainly dwarfs the SD2 offering of 20 GB, and
the new “expansion” boasts far more kits and individual
drums than the core product it is augmenting.

DIY

Multiple uses for practice cymbals

For many, the holy grail of e-drums is ‘real’ cymbals
triggering samples. Allan Leibowitz checks out Zildjian’s
L80 line to see if it fits the bill.

MONSTER

My Monster Kit

This month’s kit is the work of Jerry Langenfeld (AKA
Jman) from La Jola, California.

ws ... Get the latest e-drum news at www.digitaldrummermag.com/news ... G
digitalDRUMMER, February 2016

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The chosen few

--Gear--

There was a mix of new faces and old
hands among the winners of the 2015
digitalDrummer Readers’ Choice
awards.
PINTECH MADE ITS award debut, with
the accolade for e-drum product of the
year (hardware) going to its Jaguar kit.
The US-made, sub-$1,000 kit is
Pintech’s first true hybrid kit which can
be played acoustically or electronically.

This kit comes with Pintech’s electronic
triggering system pre-installed, but it
can easily be removed to convert it to
acoustic.

The set-up consists of a 22” bass drum;
10”, 12” and 16” toms; 14” dual-zone
snare; 14” PC Series hi-hat cymbal and
control box; a 14” PC Series dual-zone
cymbal with choke; a 16″ PC Series
ride with bell; kick pedal; throne;
cables; cymbal stands and mounts.

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Purveyors of the finest sounding
natural Drum Samples
Compatible with Kontakt 5, BFD and
many other formats.

Winner of the digitalDrummer Software product of the year

The Slingerland Classic Rock Kit
Mixed by Alan Moulder

Other great kits available from Drumdrops

The 1960s Gretsch
Round Badge Soul Kit

The Rogers Big R
Dub Kit

The Ludwig Super
Classic Kit

The Mapex Heavy
Rock Kit

15
20

And
many
more…

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www.drumdrops.com
great
eat collection of
Head to www
.drumdrops.com for a gr
multi-tracks.
single hit kits, drum loops and m
ulti-tracks.

Software
Softwar
e pr
product
roduct
oduct
of the year

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Drum Drops, the UK sample producer which recently started
offering BFD-compatible versions of its drum VSTs, picked
up its first Readers’ Choice award for its 1970s Slingerland
Classic Rock Kit, voted e-drum product of the year
(software).
The pack was Drum Drops’ second expansion pack for
FXpansion’s BFD and the samples were mixed by Alan
Moulder, the producer behind Nine Inch Nails, The Killers,
Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys and many more.

The kit consists of a 24” kick drum, five toms - 12”, 13”, 14”
and 15” rack toms and a huge 18” floor tom - and a
signature 14” x 7” deep Radio King snare. The cymbals
used were 14” Zildjian New Beat hi-hats, a Zildjian K
Custom 22” ride, a Zildjian K Dark thin 18” crash and a
Zildjian Vintage 16” crash. The kit was recorded at Miloco’s
The Pool Studios in London using vintage pre-amps and
ribbon mics.

Voting was close in the e-drum retailer of the year
award, with Sweetwater (showroom shown
here) winning the title for North America for the
first time; Germany’s Thomann repeating its
performance from last year and winning in
Europe; and Melbourne’s Cranbourne Music
taking the title for Australia.

Johnny Rabb, digitalDrummer’s inaugural e-drummer of the year,
reclaimed his title from two-time winner Michael Schack in a very
tight contest.

It was an interesting win as it came in the year in which Rabb has
had the least publicity after parting company with Roland, for which
he had long been its best-known demonstrator and endorsee.
Rabb is an active live and studio drummer. Last year, he toured
and recorded with Collective Soul and recently joined the NFUZD
Audio team as a product advisor and clinician. He continues to
design and develop new sounds and innovations for his unique
concepts on the drums.

Percussionist and innovator Mario DeCiutiis, owner of Alternate
Mode and the driving force behind the KAT products line, joins
the digitalDrummer Hall of Fame in recognition of his
contributions to electronic percussion.
DeCiutiis joins industry luminaries Roland Corporation and
Simmons founder Dave Simmons.

Besides a string of percussion products like the malletKAT,
trapKAT and now the jamKAT, DeCiutiis has been one of the
pioneers of the FSR trigger technology found in the Aquarian
inHEAD and onHEAD products.

His artist stable includes some of the biggest names in
drumming globally and when he’s not designing products,
DeCiuttis has a regular percussion gig at Radio City Music Hall.
digitalDrummer congratulates the winners and the worthy nominees for the 2015 awards
and thanks all the readers who took the time to cast votes in our online ballot. We are also
grateful for the feedback about digitalDrummer and the various suggestions which
were offered, many of which are already being implemented.
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