Anybody Using Alesis I/O & triggers??

[BLUEZGUY]

Hi,

I need my live drumming converted to MIDI so as to process through BFD. I can't get this Alesis I/O dialed in right to stop the cross triggering.
Any tips please????

We've already spent 8+ hours trying to tweak this thing....

Thanks

[brandondrury]

So basically, you are asking how to use the Alesis I/0. I've never used it, so I really can't help.

I've been close to upgrading to an edrum kit for a while now to use with DFH Superior. So I'll probably be feeling your pain soon enough.

Is there no threshold setting (like a gate)?

What kind of triggers are you using?

Is there any specific drum you are having trouble with cross triggering or is it all of them?

I'm assuming you read the manual for the Alesis I/0.

Brandon

[BLUEZGUY]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

So basically, you are asking how to use the Alesis I/0. I've never used it, so I really can't help.
I've been close to upgrading to an edrum kit for a while now to use with DFH Superior. So I'll probably be feeling your pain soon enough.
Is there no threshold setting (like a gate)?
What kind of triggers are you using?
Is there any specific drum you are having trouble with cross triggering or is it all of them?
I'm assuming you read the manual for the Alesis I/0.
Brandon

Hey Brandon,

Yeah 10/4... read the booklet. Doesn't give you much info except to have fun experimenting. It's quite a nice unit... far superior to the DM5 - BUTTT... the DM5 was much more 'plug & play' friendly.
I purchased Pintech Trigger Perfects - a set of five including a duo-zone snare. The duo zone snare trigger is incredible... it actually picks up the rim shota as well! The system tracks and prints MIDI to my Sonar 7 Producer beautifully. It's just all the !@#^%$#!!! extra notes and after shots that need to be adjusted.
Pintech has excellent support. They are putting together a 'basic settings' map for me. I'll post when I get it. In the mean time, I gotta tell ya how wonderful it is to have my full versions of BFD and BFD XL.
It sounded like my drummer was playing in a NY, Nashville or LA session booth. Aside from my triggering errors, what did come through put goosebumps and boners on this trio.
I will NEVER use mics on drums again.

[brandondrury]

Let us know when you get it figured out. I'll be going a similar direction with this soon, I think.

It sounded like my drummer was playing in a NY, Nashville or LA session booth. Aside from my triggering errors, what did come through put goosebumps and boners on this trio

Assuming that DFH and BFD are similar, I totally know what you are saying. These days I have to program everything in DFH and that's a real pain in the ass. However, I could see myself recording a lot less drum kits if I had an edrum kit or triggers. If I could only figure out how to get bands to actually use them.

Brandon

[BLUEZGUY]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

If I could only figure out how to get bands to actually use them.
Brandon

Brandon... that'll be easy. Technology is the young drummer's most feared enemy. 2nd one is using Guitar Center's .50 cent mics for drums.
Do a demo with the cheeseball mics ( cause that's all anyone can afford); then do one demo using your audio to midi converter & favorite drum software.
Your demo has more air/space, is cleaner/punchier etc.
These software samples are miked with the real deal... Neumann , Sennheisser, ElectroVoice, UAD... the list goes on & on as well as using the finest vintage and contemporary drum kits available to only the elite.
Don't worry Brandon... they'll all come around someday.
About 15 years ago, we were using Alesis DM5s live on stage with triggers on the kick and snare only. That gave a pristine live drum mix through the PA and eliminated all feedback & hums and crap associated with high volume levels on stage.
Triggers, worked properly, are a win /win situation. It's STILL the drummer's real performance; yet that same performance now has big league sound quality. And , if they don't get it, someone else will...

[darthhair]

hey guys, i have been using pintech pads since they came out and i also use a DM5. i got the dm5 when they first came out.

in my years with alesis and pintech i have learned that you cant have anything touching. the trigger settings arent that good. every one of my triggers is on a seperate stand. it looks like a pile of crap but i dont get any cross talk.
i gave up on the dream of a cool looking vdrum type rack with my stuff years ago

im interested to hear how the I/O works. i would love to have a trigger set that is exactly the same as my live kit

[brandondrury]

Brandon... that'll be easy. Technology is the young drummer's most feared enemy. 2nd one is using Guitar Center's .50 cent mics for drums.
Do a demo with the cheeseball mics ( cause that's all anyone can afford); then do one demo using your audio to midi converter & favorite drum software.
Your demo has more air/space, is cleaner/punchier etc.

Well I have quite a few very nice mics. That really isn't the problem. The problem is the drummer's performance, the amount of time it takes to get a great sound, the sound of the drums themselves, and the room. If all of these things are present, I have no problem getting a kick ass drum sound. The problem is that on a local, low budget level seldom do all of these factors come together.

About 15 years ago, we were using Alesis DM5s live on stage with triggers on the kick and snare only. That gave a pristine live drum mix through the PA and eliminated all feedback & hums and crap associated with high volume levels on stage.

Interesting, I always thought he DM5 sounded like a drum sound in a synth. I could always get better sounds of real drums. My biggest problem with live drums was the fact that the real drums were probably making up 50% of the drum sound (except for kick) even in rooms with 600 people with a 20,000 watt PA. So no matter what I did, I was still going to hear lots of the natural sound of the drums.

I've never had problems with feedback in the drum mics. (Lots of feedback in the vocal mics).

Brandon

[BLUEZGUY]

Originally Posted by darthhair

hey guys, i have been using pintech pads since they came out and i also use a DM5. i got the dm5 when they first came out.

in my years with alesis and pintech i have learned that you cant have anything touching. the trigger settings arent that good. every one of my triggers is on a seperate stand. it looks like a pile of crap but i dont get any cross talk.

Hey Darthhair.. there's a guy who Pintech sent an I/O to, just to map out basic starting point settings for guys in the same boat as me. I'll post his answers on this site when I get them. Here is my explanation:

I'm using the full DXI versions of BFD and BFD XL... not the Lite version that came pre-packaged with the Alesis unit. The Lite version is 'quite lite' for my purposes and is set for VST not DXI.
My drummer and I furiously ripped through what we thought was every possible adjustment on that unit and could find nothing that would work correctly - including the presets.

Individually, all 5 triggers worked as they should. At first, the duo zone snare was scary ( when attacked with aggressive fills), but after fine tweaking the sensitivity knob, it worked fine.

After 9 hours of messing around, we scrapped the session and set up mics the next day. Fortunately, we were recording 3 cover demo songs for our roadhouse promo pack - so using mics (although disappointing when you have BFD) was acceptable....BUTTT... to do my originals for airplay & concert venues is a whole different matter.

There is nothing unusual about the drum kit.. it's a top of the line 5 piece Gretsch.
I run Sonar Producer 7 for software through XP Pro.
All drivers used are ASIO.
I appreciate you taking the time!
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