Advice - Crimsom 11 or Nitro Pro or will Crimson 111 come to Europe soon?

[richardc]

Hello All
I am completely new to the drum world but my son is the musical guy (12 years, playing piano, and guitar and now wanting to get into drumming.
I have been researching electronic drums and watching and reading alot. Budget is not unlimited, but do not want to buy and then need to upgrade in 12 - 24 months - although we would like acoustic but being practical it is not going to happen practicing at home.
So currently based in Spain - we have been visiting drum stores and looking at
Alesi Nitro Max ?439
Alesis Nitro pro kit ?795
Alesis Crimson ii special edition ?798
Roland TD-07KV ?875

The Crimson was the favourite to date for sound and feel, however I am concerned over the slightly older module and the fact it is discontinued and cannot see a release date for Crimson 111 in Europe. Will it just be using the Nitro module and end up sounding the same as the Nitro range? I cannot seem to locate anything specific regarding modules except the user info so as a newbie the sound comes from the module and I am told the Crimson module is stronger / larger than the new Nitro Pro.

Any guidance or advice would be appreciated - I have seen a second-hand Roland TD17KV at ?1000 including stool, headphones, and bass drum pedal all from the Roland brand but now checking models etc.

Thank you for your help.




 

[Chaser]

Hello All
I am completely new to the drum world but my son is the musical guy (12 years, playing piano, and guitar and now wanting to get into drumming.
I have been researching electronic drums and watching and reading alot. Budget is not unlimited, but do not want to buy and then need to upgrade in 12 - 24 months - although we would like acoustic but being practical it is not going to happen practicing at home.
So currently based in Spain - we have been visiting drum stores and looking at
Alesi Nitro Max ?439
Alesis Nitro pro kit ?795
Alesis Crimson ii special edition ?798
Roland TD-07KV ?875

The Crimson was the favourite to date for sound and feel, however I am concerned over the slightly older module and the fact it is discontinued and cannot see a release date for Crimson 111 in Europe. Will it just be using the Nitro module and end up sounding the same as the Nitro range? I cannot seem to locate anything specific regarding modules except the user info so as a newbie the sound comes from the module and I am told the Crimson module is stronger / larger than the new Nitro Pro.

Any guidance or advice would be appreciated - I have seen a second-hand Roland TD17KV at ?1000 including stool, headphones, and bass drum pedal all from the Roland brand but now checking models etc.

Thank you for your help.

Welcome to the Forum !

The Medeli DD650 Module Re-Brands (Crimson,Crimson II,DM10 Studio,Forge) have All been discontinued (along with the Trigger Design) with the exception of the Command Kit which has a single zone Ride.(Crimson Kits have Triple Zone Ride).
There were also multiple versions of the Command Kit over the past Decade..All discontinued

The Crimson Kits overseas do not have the Dual (Inner/Outer) Piezo Head with the sensitivity knob.
The Original Crimson was released nearly 10 years ago with the older cymbal design DMPad Cymbals (which for some reason the DM hasn't been dropped like it was for all the other previous Kits.)  that came with the DM10 Kits and continued on with the Medeli DD650 Re-Brand Kits as a Top of the Tier Feature...
There is currently a gap in the Alesis Lineup for the Intermediate range.
NAMM is coming up this month  so maybe a New Kit is in the works to fill that gap...maybe not..anyone's guess.
There have been multiple generations of Alesis Kits using the same Module.
The Nitro has always been a Top Seller because of it's price point so naturally the Lineup was continued.
I don't think the Crimson lineup had the same success and I don't see it continuing as All of the New Strata Kits are "Crimson/Red" as are the Newer Nitro Kits.It seems the complete Alesis Lineup is heading this way.
The SE Kits were Sold by Guitar Center and Overseas...info for them was never available on the Alesis site.

The Newer Nitro Kits , while being upgraded to Standard Racks and Toms with Standard mounting use the same module with BFD Samples are still an entry level module and do not support a Continuous/Variable CC4 Hi Hat,Triple zone Ride etc and still use the single zone 10" cymbals which have also been out for a decade or more.

The KD07 is a small Kit and has 6" single zone toms mounted on the uprights..not the crossbar..cymbals are tiny and single zone.Module is more of a beginner Module.The same Module is used for the New VQD106 Silent Kit

The KD17-KV sounds like a good deal with all of the extra Roland Components..stool..headphones..Kick pedal with Tower alone is $250.00..

The TD-17KV uses the TD-17 Module which was Updated to 2.0 (New Kits,New Samples) in 2022 and a recent Update 2.10 in Oct 2024..

The TD-KV2 has had Kit pieces updated/upgraded..including a 12" Crash and 14 Triple Zone Ride.

Keep in Mind..The TD-17KV has also been discontinued..and the Newer TD-KV2 with the upgraded Kit Pieces/Bundled with the same as you mentioned (Stool,headphones Kick pedal etc) and warranty for $1,500 USD..in Europe it's higher with VAT Roland TD-17KVX2 E-Drum Set Bundle .
To Upgrade the discontinued TD-17KV to V2 would probably cost more than purchasing the KV2 New..even at the lower price of 1000 you mentioned
...if you want a Ride bell. The Roland 14" triple Zone Ride CY-14R-T alone is around $400.00 New...The Roland 12" Crash CY-12C-T  $200.00 New.
Used prices + shipping etc vary

TD-KV
Drum sound module: TD-17 x 1
Snare: PDX-12 x 1
Tom: PDX-8 x 3
Hi-Hat: CY-5 x 1
Hi-Hat control pedal: FD-9 x 1
Crash: CY-8 x 1
Ride: CY-8 x 1
Kick: KD-10 x 1
Drum Stand: MDS-4V or MDS-COMPACT x 1

TD-KV2
Drum sound module: TD-17 x 1
Snare: PDX-12 x 1
Tom: PDX-8 x 3
Hi-Hat: CY-5 x 1
Hi-Hat control pedal: FD-9 x 1
Crash: CY-12C-T x 1
Ride: CY-14R-T x 1
Kick: KD-10 x 1
Drum Stand: MDS-COMPACT x 1 *1


CON:
Uses the same terrible rack setup as the TD-07..
The Kick Tower is small..No Dual Beater support.
TD-KV - No Ride Bell

PRO:
The TD-17 Module is still being Updated...Roland hold it's resale prices..

The New TD-17KV2 Kit is basically the same as the original TD-17KV..a couple upgraded Kit Pieces.. updated Module to V2.The original TD-17KV Module that can also be updated to V2 as it is the same Module however you won't have a Ride Bell on the TD-KV unless you upgrade the Ride.

Bottom Line...The TD-17 is still being supported and KV2 Released.. There are numerous Kits available for download in the Roland Cloud.
Opinions on Samples/Sound quality etc are based on the ears of the beholder..
Listen to as many examples (Youtube etc) as possible including Live to make your decision.

New Pre-Loaded Samples

All the internal instruments in the TD-17 can be further enhanced by loading and layering user samples.
The TD-17 Version 2 update automatically loads 26 professional quality samples, which are used in the 20 new preset kits.
The samples can also be freely assigned to other preset and custom kits to develop new tones and timbres.

Since you are overseas you also have access to Millenium Drums which are not available in the US as the Kits ..like some of the Alesis....are/were Medeli Re-Brands.
You'll find many Millenium Kits are the same as the Alesis with the exception of the Module which are Re-Brands from multiple manufacturers.
It's a harder decision these days as just a few short years ago you didn't have anywhere near the choices that are available today..The Majority of Manufacturers are taking a Module and offering Kits/Trigger Sizes etc around the Module.

2 of the Kits you picked are Intermediate and discontinued....2 are entry level using the same Module..different triggers..1 is a beginner.
Prices are lower for older Discontinued Tech which may have more Options..Trigger sizes..Features..
Prices are Higher for New tech which may not have as many Options..Trigger sizes..Features..

You'll need to figure out which options are a Necessity...a simple requirement like a Ride Bell eliminates a large number of Drum Modules
along with your Budge amount if under 1,000 and your back to the Discontinued Model you had at the Top of your list..The Crimson II SE...which has all the Features including a Continuous /variable Hi Hat and a Triple Zone Ride....the SE Version of the Older Tech/Discontinued Original Crimson II
 

EDIT:
Added Links

[RRPD4130]

Hey, man...no response needed, just know that somebody recognizes your efforts to help out all comers. Not easy, being a proper example to others, is it?

As the 'Interwebs Enshittification' progresses, folks like you are rare, and rarer.

Thank you for just helping out the often misguided kids who pop in here.

I am a newb in the strictest, edrum-interweb-forum-sense, but otherwise on the far, farthest edge of your...ehhhh, call them 'anomalous demographic distributions'.

-salute-