Reliability and Playability

[TwrBlock]

Hi all,
I recently started looking for an edrum kit and found out about 2box. I used to own a set of ddrums so 2box immediately seemed interesting to me. I am looking for a kit for home use only, so once set up it would very rarely be broken down and moved around.

I have a couple of concerns though. I have been skimming thru the threads in this forum and I've seen numerous people having issues with rubber cracking on cymbals, rack issues, hi hat triggering etc. My options are to buy either a Yamaha or Roland kit and then trigger using Superior Drummer or to just buy a 2box. There is nowhere locally where I can try 2box so I would be buying without trying and worse with no return policy.

Since I don't know a lot about edrums I wondered if some of you might be able to give me some guidance. If we take 2box out of the picture right now and say I buy a Yamaha DTX700 or 750, if I want to set those up via midi to superior drummer would I experience latency issues? The reason I bring Yamaha up is that I sat down at a music store the other day (for like 5 mins) and I really liked the feel of the yamaha pads. This was on a DTX500 as they didn't have the higher end models in the store. The main drawback is that the pads are so TINY, like 7" and 6"? 2box's larger pads are a big plus for me, but while I don't hate mesh (from limited experience with Roland), I don't "love" it either.  The Yamaha silicone just felt really playable. As far as sounds, of course the 2box has better sounds.. 

Anyway, I'd like to spend about $2500-$3000 US and in that range I can get -
2box
DTX7XX
Roland TD15KV

Of those 3 which one will have the most playable/authentic hats? For the Yamaha and Roland I would be using with Superior Drummer so keep that in mind.

Thanks for any suggestions..

[Murgen]

Regarding the hardware the next remarks (have my kit since May 1st 2012):

Rack Mk2 is well designed and stable. Rack tubes are made of aluminum, clamps are metal. IMHO the Roland and Yamaha racks cannot compete with the sturdy MkII (I played and owned a TD3 for 7 years, plastic tubes and clamps).

Just the wobbly 2Box bass-drum as weak spot which I fixed by mounting an extra tube.

If you want to you can replace the rack by a standard Gibraltar, Dixons or Tama. Clamps will fit without issue.

You will probably replace the hihat standard and bass-pedal by your own hardware. All value for money.

Cracks in rubber may happen if the rim-protection is not in place. Just check by lifting the rubber sheet a bit.

Triggering is a matter of your setup, playing style and settings. Every kit needs a bit of tweaking and tuning.

Same goes for setting up the hihat (the most difficult instrument on an e-kit to emulate).

Regarding rubber (kit has rubber rings and rubber sleeves): just keep it out of the sun. Mine is in a home built drum cabin in the house without windows, no issues what so ever.

Regarding the 'feel'  ... mesh-heads work for me. And playing on e-kits since 2005 the rubber PD8 and mesh PD125 make me prefer mesh. I know the touch from the Yamaha pads but size matters here. And trust me, based on only 5 minutes it is hard to make a right decision. Play a kit for one hour and you know how it works out on your wrists and arms. To me the size of the 2Box pads are a big plus. Comfortable in playing.

Then the hihat. I still consider to purchase the Zildjian Gen16 module and 13 inch hats but to be honest, the 2Box hat is not bad when you tweak the settings, the right samples and get used to it. 

In the end the 2Box sounds are incredible and even the Roland TD30 cannot touch the 2Box module kits.

When I play my kit and get into the flow, close my eyes and cannot feel the difference in feel and sound to an acoustic kit I always know I made the right decision. 

[TwrBlock]

Regarding the hardware the next remarks (have my kit since May 1st 2012)..

Thanks Murgen. I've decided to go ahead and purchase the 2box. It seems there is really nothing close to it in the same price range. I was pretty interested in the Mark Drums but haven't seen anyone who has said they are ready for prime time yet.

[lkraav]

I am also on the fence about Mark Drum. Currently they do have a big advantage on price bought as new: 1300â,¬ vs 2box 2100â,¬. But there's the proprietary connection system, uncertain module software development process, noone's really talking about the kit, it's impossible to find anyone who sells their proprietary extra cymbals or bass drum pads, and their website looks like a 5-year old made it.

It's a close call for m on price vs downsides compared to 2box, which has accumulated some real world maturity by now.

[edtc]

I am also on the fence about Mark Drum. Currently they do have a big advantage on price bought as new: 1300â,¬ vs 2box 2100â,¬.

it s more 1900/2000â,¬ for the mark drum ...  no?

[Murgen]

it s more 1900/2000â,¬ for the mark drum ...  no?

People say it is ~ 2.000 EUR.  And 100% propriety with a delicate connection scheme. There is a reason why musicians use Jacks and other heavy duty connectors and not plastic RJ11 connectors.

[lkraav]

People can say whatever they wish, but buying a plane ticket to Helsinki will get you Mark Drum for 1300â,¬.

http://www.soundstore.fi/catalog/product/view/id/7675/s/markdrum-yes1/category/127/?___store=english&utm_source=soundstore&utm_medium=productlink&utm_campaign=uutuustuotteet&___from_store=suomi

I'm not sure if they ship abroad or not.

EDIT: yep they do, if you add to cart and head on to checkout, they have a decent UPS shipping cost calculator available.