I just could not control myself...

[Minerman]

Just letting you guys know I'm still alive over here....the new e-kit arrived about 5 p.m. yesterday...I've got it set up ready to roll except for a couple/few little things like tidying the cables up & making adjustments on where the pads are best for me...

So far, it's awesome & I'm lovin' it...

Pics to come...

[Tadpui]

Awesome! I remember that I took the day off work when I got my little e-kit, I was so excited. Give us a taste once you've got it all set up and calibrated.

[WhiskeyJack]

Congrats minernuggs!!! Cant wait to hear this rig!

[Minerman]

Just letting you guys know I'm still alive (again) over here...I've spent the last few days messing with the new kit, adding pads/cymbals, taking 'em off, changing the rack a little, then change it back...lol...I'm making progress with the kit, but the rack clamps are a pain in the ass because if you have 3 on one tube, & need to swap/move one that's in the middle, sometimes you have to take apart half the rack to be able to do so...I'm seriously thinking about buying a bunch of Gibraltar clamps that are hatched, that way I won't have to dis-assemble half my kit just to add/remove a pad/cymbal...

I almost had a meltdown Saturday, whenever I added a pad/cymbal that didn't come with the kit, I couldn't get it to spit out a different midi note, or assign a different sound, but after I sat down & read the manual it was my fault, I should've been doing so on a "User" kit...

I can say so far I'm really impressed, the DTX502 module is waaay better than the DTX400 & is packed with features...

The tom pads surprised me, as I thought they'd be just like my other pads, but they're a tad bigger & mount to the rack with an L-rod, which gives a lot more flexibility to put 'em where I want...

The snare pad is awesome, it's made from the tcs (textured cellular silicone), & is very quiet compared to the other pads...3-zones on it allow me to trigger head, rimshot, & sidestick...

The kick pedal is a little noisy compared to the silent pedal I'd been using, but it's a real pedal, & I can already tell a huge difference using it...

The cymbals are great IMO, 3 zones on each one, & they're quite a bit bigger than I expected...I already had a 10", but the new cymbals are 13" & dwarf it in size, which makes 'em a little easier to play...

The hi-hat is what impressed me the most...It's on a real hi-hat stand, & the pad/cymbal actually moves like a real hi-hat when I'm playing it...I'll have to make a video that shows it doing that...I thought I'd have to use the FSR I had on the pedal from the DTX400, but the daw recognizes all the articulations right out of the gate, so it's basically plug-n-play...

I'll post some pics in a little while, & I've got plans to make a little video showing some of the things I've mentioned here...

So far, the new kit is even better than I imagined, & I'm really happy with it...

Oh yeah, the Roc-N-Soc throne is the shit guys, I can't believe what a fuckin' difference there is between it & the cheap ass throne I'd been using...Love it!!!

[Tadpui]

Awesome! That's a really nice kit.

The "brain" unit always kinda bugged me on the DTX400...it's so flimsy and lightweight plastic feeling. I mean, it's fine for what I use it for, but not having a display and being so lightweight always bugged me.

I might have to invest in a nice throne sometime this year. I got the cheapest thing that could legally be called a drum throne, and it sucks. It squeaks, there's no padding so my tailbone gets sore within a few minutes of sitting on it, and it doesn't adjust very easily or very well.

[Minerman]

Ok dudes, I thought I had everything sorted, but sat down behind the kit yesterday & the pads/cymbals I'd added were triggering the same midi notes as the pad/cymbal they were split with...
After a few hours of online searching, reading the manual a few times, & troubleshooting, I finally figured out the splitters I've been using were wonky...I have no idea how they could work one day, then take a shit the next, & I've pulled quite a bit of my hair out over this, but I've finally got this issue sorted...

I'm way behind on everything here in the forum, so I'm gonna try to catch up, & do a proper review on the kit...

For now, long story short, the DTX532K shits all over the DTX400, even the cheaper tom pads that come with the 532K are a little bigger & more adjustable than the DTX400's pads...Needless to say that the 532K's module (actually DTX502) has a lot more features than the DTX400...

More to come guys...

[Mr Clean]

Thanks dude....Just curious, are you a Roland user??? I've never played a Roland kit, but they're the standard on how all the other brands compare...

I went with Yamaha because they're a little cheaper, but seem to be as good as Roland, quality-wise...If I hadn't bought the DTX400, I might've went with Roland, but since I'd already sunk about $700 or so in what I have right now, I stuck with Yamaha mainly for compatibility reasons...

At first, I'd planned on just buying a few things at a time to expand my kit, & was gonna buy used Roland mesh head pads for the toms/snare, but I've read that mixing pads/cymbals from different manufacturers usually works ok on single zone pads/cymbals, but are all a little different with how they handle the multi-zone pads/cymbals..

Thanks again dude...

Yes mate. I have a Roland TD 6V. Not the best by any stretch but still holds it's own. It's the kind of kit that hasn't lost too much value over the years. I got mine for £500 and it was like new. I borrowed one from a friend initially to see how I got on with playing and then I was hooked so I bought the same kit as I knew it pretty well and it all worked nicely with my set up.

I still only have one mesh pad for a snare but will probably upgrade the others one day. The rubber pads on the Rolands are actually pretty good. They have a nice feel/rebound.

One of the best purchases I've ever made. Learning to play the drums has been an awesome ride so far.....