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I am looking to try PFozz's tutorial for converting some low volume acoustic cymbals to a 2-zone crashes and a 3-zone ride. I'm also intending to use the Keith Raper Circuit to convert bell and edge piezos to switches.

In my research, this is the most detailed and straight-forward tutorial I can find for muting the cymbals, wiring up the piezo sensors, and mounting it all on the cymbal. My concern is that this tutorial is almost 16 years old at this point with the original discussion found in the Toontrack forums.


I have 3 primary questions:

• Have any DIYers on this board tried PFozz's A2E cymbal conversion method?
• Are there other, more modern, tutorials that would offer better results than this method?
• If wired correctly, would either the Yamaha or Roland wiring offer improved triggering over the other option through a DrumIt Three module?  (single TRS with a resistor on one of the switches versus separate bow/edge and bow/bell TRS outputs?

Obviously, the Yamaha would be simpler to implement with only one output jack, but from what I've researched so far, it seems that the Roland style is more widely accepted by third-party modules like 2box.

I understand the gain is to be set so that hard hit resister at (or near) 0 dB.  I that has been fairly simple to dial in. Threshold controls how sensitive the trigger is to the lightest hits. For some trigger type options, I can't get the threshold low enough to register light hits.

My confusion is regarding the trigger type explanations in the manual.  The only types that match my piezo/piezo configuration are PadPP, AcTR 1-3, and RubH 1-3.  From my trial and error, the PadPP option appears to work the best.  The RubH appears to be more sensitive - needing a high threshold (clockwise) and low gain. PadPP type can be dialed in more in the middle, and acoustic triggers need high gain and low threshold (counter-clockwise).

Do the trigger types mainly just adjust the sensitivity, or is something else changing when a different trigger type is selected?

For the Cymbals compatibility, the manual doesn't show any options for piezo/piezo configuration.  I read somewhere earlier that Zourman may have some type of piezo to switch conversion, but I couldn't find that on their website. I did find a DrumIt Three knowledge page, so I will see if those videos and guides are more helpful than the official user manual.

My church recently purchased new triggers and mesh heads for Acoustic hybrid kit. In the process, we also replaced a 12 year old Drumit 5 with a Drumit 3 for the universal trigger compatibility.

The triggers are all from Magnatrack. I've gotten then to work, but still have some confusion about the trigger settings.

The drum triggers are piezo and install internally on the inside lug mounting screws.  I thought the would be considered Acoustic triggers, but with any of the AcTr settings, I can't lower the threshold enough to get consistent triggering, even with hard hits.  It seems that the PadPP setting gives the best results, but I don't understand what differentiates a piezo trigger from an acoustic trigger. From what I've read, acoustic triggers normally use piezos.

The rim trigger is another piezo that is placed against the rim and held in place with a magnet. It worked fine with the Drumit 5, but on the Drumit 3, it randomly triggers rapid fire rim sounds until the trigger is disconnected from the ring of the TRS splitter cable.  If connected to the tip, it triggers the head hits as expected. I'm hoping it is an issue with the trigger setting for the rim, but I'm not sure what to change.

The cymbals are also using piezo triggers. The crashes are set to CyPS and have a trigger and a choke switch that are working as expected.

The hi-hat and ride have a bell and bow trigger in a 2-zone configuration. I don't think we need the bell, which is good because I've only been able to get the bow to trigger no matter which trigger type I choose in the settings.

All 2-zone connections are running into a TRS splitter box where the primary trigger is connected to the tip and the secondary trigger/switch is connected to the ring.

Thank you for the reply.  My order of new triggers finally arrived this week. Still working on installing everything, but so far everything is looking good except for the hi-hat control.  I went ahead and placed an order of the Roland conversion box from your website. I'll update when it arrives.

Thank you for your reply. We are looking at purchasing Magnatrack triggers and interested in their Remedy HC-2 controller.

Based on the specs listed on their website, can you clarify which version of the 2box hi-hat conversion module would be appropriate for this controller?  It looks like there are 5 options available at zourman.com, but only the ATV ad-h14 V3 available at the US reseller e-Drumcenter.

Magnatrack hi-hat controller specs:

• Universal compatibility - "works with all drum modules like Roland, Alesis, Pearl, and now Yamaha"
• mono TS output jack
• passive power - powered by module output 5V

I'm a bass player who has recently started filling in on drums occasionally for my church.  As I have been familiarizing myself with our Drumit 5 module through the manual and YouTube videos, I have a few questions that I'm hoping someone can help me out with.

• Is the Drumit 5 MK1 kit older than the Drumit 3?
  All the tutorials seem to reference Drumit 3 or Drumit 5 MKII. Both of these models have product pages on the 2box website, but the Drumit 5 MK1 is only referenced in the support pages. Other than the physical controls on the front of the module, the Drumit 3 seems to be more advanced than the 5 MK1, but the naming convention is confusing if that's the case.
• Is there a more updated manual for the Drumit 5 on OS 1.3x, or would any of the operations have changed since 1.24? 
  The manual for Drumit 5 on the 2box support page references OS 1.24. There are PDF manuals contained within the "DI5-Content 1.30" download, and they both reference OS 1.24.  On the other hand, the Drumit 3 manual references OS 1.32 while the 5 MKII manual references 1.36, the current OS version. I think we've been running OS 1.30 since we first got this module, but we recently loaded 1.36.30.
• Does the Drumit 5 MK1 have the same hihat controller compatibility as the other 2 modules?
  Drumit 3 has a compatibility list showing "Adjustable resistor, active hall generator, or switch," and the current models have a "Hihat B" input for the controller.
• If the controller compatibility is similar, would a TRS splitter adapter cable be able to combine the signal from a third-party hihat trigger and controller pedal, or would I need a Zourman conversion kit?
• If the controllers we are looking at aren't Roland or ATV brand, how would we know which conversion kit to look for?
  Currently only one is in stock with the US seller.

Info about our current setup:

Around 2011-2012, a 5-piece acoustic drumkit was donated to our church. We were sold the Drumit 5 module along with Aquarian Onhead triggers and a Zildjian Gen16 cymbal system to have low stage volume that could be run through the PA system.

One of the Zildjian sensors has a damaged cable, and replacements are very difficult to locate since the system was discontinued several years ago.  We are looking at adding piezo triggers to the low volume cymbals and running them through the Drumit 5, but we are trying to figure out if we can make our current module work with the new equipment.

Since the Aquarian Onhead pads also seem to be obsolete, we are looking to replace them with mesh heads and acoustic triggers.