American drum maker DW, now a division of Roland, has released its wireless convertible DWe line in Australia – the first market outside North America and Japan to get the product which began shipping in January. Launch events included two shows at Drumtek in Melbourne and Billy Hyde Music in Nunawading, and a demonstration by session drummer Gerry Pantazis at Just Percussion in Brisbane. All variants of the DWe kit are available in Australia – four- and five-piece kits in three finishes: Exotic (Candy Black Burst over Curly Maple), Lacquer (Black Cherry Metallic or Midnight Blue Metallic), an ..read more

French Pink Floyd tribute band drummer Sylvain Cottet has been using e-drums for decades. I started playing drums at 15 and started performing in small concert halls around the age of 22 in the late ‘80s. I had the chance to play in France, Europe and in the eastern United States between New York city and Boston. I also taught for 25 years. I like and play a lot of different styles, but I especially prefer anything related to ‘70s and ‘80s grooves. I particularly enjoy playing Pink Floyd music in the footsteps of Nick Mason. In the same spirit, I love Jimmy Cobb with Miles Davis, Howard Grimes ..read more

Alesis has unveiled its new Strata Prime electronic drum kit, a 10-piece mesh kit with 360 degree responsive cymbals and hi-hats. The kit consists of a dual-zone 14” snare; 8”, 10”, 12” and 14” mesh toms and a versatile 20” kick drum. The cymbals are all triple-zone (two 16″ crashes and one 18″ ride). The all-new Strata Prime drum module features a BFD engine and a 10.1” touch screen. With 128 GB of internal storage, including over 40 GB of pre-loaded content for user customisation, drummers have access to over 215,000 samples and more than 75 kits. Coupled with extensive sound libraries, the ..read more

digitalDrummer will be collaborating with the UK Drum Show 2024, with the first showcase of electronic percussion at a major music event. Show organiser Neil Golding says: “We are super excited to welcome a brand new feature and experience to The UK Drum Show. At the event at ACC Liverpool on 28 and 29 September, digitalDrummer will introduce the world’s first E-Drum Experience Lab.” The Experience Lab will include a series of presentations, workshops and masterclasses over both days. Hosted by digitalDrummer founder and editor Allan Leibowitz, this exclusive presentation stream will feature e ..read more

ddrum has confirmed the imminent release of a new drum module, the ddrum5, developed in collaboration with Bengt Lilja. Lilja contributed greatly to the development of the ddrum4 in the early 90s and, more recently, created the 2box brand. The new module, seen at NAMM, appears to be a modified version of the latest DrumIt3 module with custom sounds. “More than just an upgrade on previous models, the ddrum5 will be a completely new system leveraging cutting-edge technology and production techniques to provide next-level experience when it comes to audio performance, sample dumps, and playback f ..read more

Former Simmons Drums engineer Martin Wheetman has teamed up with a couple of former colleagues to revive the iconic ‘80s drum brand. Wheetman recently released a range of SDSV piezo pads, using the same methods employed back in the ‘80s. “Dave Simmons has been consulting on the project along with other Simmons veterans from the SDSV era,” Wheetman tells digitalDrummer. “Colin Schofield has been doing a fantastic job putting the pads together.” The pads are available in two versions –the original “wrist-breaker” polycarbonate playing surface or a rubber surface. The new pads offer a variet ..read more

digitalDrummer often gets questions about adding drums and cymbals by splitting inputs. It’s a common challenge: connecting more triggers when you have maxed out your drum module. In theory, since most inputs on most modules are stereo (TSR), you should be able to connect two pads or cymbals to each input with a simple cable. But, unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case, and we continue to get questions from readers who don’t understand why they are not able to assign different instrument sounds to the connected pads. In this article, we will delve into the concept of input splitting ..read more

The last Simmons equipment rolled off the assembly line in 1999 – and many e-drummers are kicking themselves that they didn’t grab spare drum pads before they disappeared. Now, 25 years later, there’s a resurgence of interest in original analogue e-drum gear and any pads that appear in the second-hand market are quickly snapped up. But the scramble will soon be over, with a few key former Simmons guys collaborating to resume production of the iconic hexagonal pads. We’ll bring you all the details when the project is officially announced, but in the meanwhile, here is a picture of the new pads ..read more

BFD has added eight new expansion packs for its free BFD Player. The new kits are drawn from different genres and musical styles, from jazz to heavy metal. The new packs are: Jazz Sticks Jazz Brushes Americana Sticks Americana Brushes Dark Copper Vintage Rock Metal Essentials Pop Essentials The expansions join the London ‘70  and Dark Mahogany kits launched with the VST last year. They sell for $29 each. The new kits accompany a software update which adds mix presets and grooves for songwriters and music producers. In October 2023 , BFD released its first new product since its April 202 ..read more

digitalDrummer tests a new aux trigger designed for acoustic shells. ACOUSTIC DRUMMERS WILL be aware of Russ Miller’s Groove-Wedge, a Yamaha rim enhancer which disappeared a few years ago, much to the disappointment of many fans around the world. The hiatus was actually due to Miller’s change of direction – he went on to found his own company, Gruv-X, specialising in drum accessories. The ARC is the latest product offering, combining Miller’s fascination with enhanced rim sounds and his interest in electronic percussion. What’s in the box The ARC-MK1 is an auxiliary trigger in the vein of the ..read more