Author Topic: I Expanded My New Nitro Mesh Kit... (with introduction and pic!)  (Read 813 times)

New member here.   Hello fellow drummers!

My name is Solipstix and this is my first electric drum set.

I started learning to play when I was 14.  I had just started going to a "Full Gospel" church that had a beautiful TAMA drum set.

The worship-team drummer didn't have time to give me lessons, but he told me I could practice on the set every Wednesday night between 5-7pm when nothing else was scheduled to be happening in the sanctuary.

He gave me a few tips every now and then, but for the most part (and to my detriment) I am self-taught.

I am a left-handed person.  The kit I learned on was set-up for a right-handed drummer.   I made it work, using an open-handed approach.   It probably wasn't the best way to learn... but here I am 35 years later, still playing open-handed.

I was able to get a nice little Gretch Blackhawk set when I was 17, and became the drummer for the "house band" of a local tavern for a couple years.   

I have lived in an apartment (or other restricted living spaces) for most of my life.  After the house-band thing fizzled away, I put my Gretch kit in storage and 30 years kinda slipped through my fingers without laying a finger on a drumstick. 

About 4 months ago, I saw an Alesis Turbo set up for sale on my local FB marketplace.   The seller was trying to sell a 2 yr old kit for just under the retail amount he originally paid for the set.  Of course, I did not buy the kit, but that ad re-ignited a spark inside me that used to burn so bright when I was a young man.  Playing music used to mean so much to me.

I began researching electronic drums and was delighted to find that intermediate kits have become much more affordable over the past 30 years.   Of course, I wanted to buy an Alesis Crimson set, or something nice like that, but after a long and honest assessment of my playing abilities (and my budget options), I decided that the most practical purchase for me would be the Nitro Mesh kit.

Although the 8" toms/snare seem a bit small to me...  and the entire kit sits too low for my 6' 3" body... with some adjustments, I suspected that I could make it work.   

I purchased the Alesis Nitro Kit on January 3rd (just a few weeks ago).

A few 4" furniture risers quickly took care of the low-height issues...  and the more I get used to the pad-placement(s) the less of an issue the 8" toms are.   The more I play, the fewer unintentional rim strikes occur.

I am falling in love with playing the drums again!     

After owning this set for a week, I found a great deal on a 2-pack of Nitro toms on Amazon.  I have read that ALL of the tom-inputs on the Nitro/Surge modules support dual-zone pads, so I planned on splitting a couple of the tom-inputs with a "Y-splitter" cable to accommodate the 2 new toms, but for now...  I'm just using the "tom #4" input and the extra cymbal input to accommodate the 2 new pads.

This Nitro kit fits my skill-level perfectly!  I am glad that I chose this kit.  If I continue to embrace the long, lost drummer inside of me, I can always upgrade to a more "professional" set-up in the future.

For now...   I couldn't be happier with my purchase!




I look forward to meeting other like-minded people here and sharing tips, tricks, stories from others who own this kit.

Happy to be here!    :)

Offline DannyM

Re: I Expanded My New Nitro Mesh Kit... (with introduction and pic!)
« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2021, 11:47:12 AM »
Looks Fantastic !!

The risers to make it taller is something I have been thinking about doing myself on my kit.
Enjoy !

Re: I Expanded My New Nitro Mesh Kit... (with introduction and pic!)
« Reply #2 on: January 23, 2021, 02:03:17 PM »
Welcome! Looks great. It's really nice Alesis offers mesh on their kits across the board. It wasn't that way just a few years ago.
A2E 5-piece | Bum Wrap Drum Co maple burl wrap | Jobeky & UFO triggers | Drum-Tec real feel heads | Strike module | VH-11 + Strike cymbals | EZD2 + EZXs

Re: I Expanded My New Nitro Mesh Kit... (with introduction and pic!)
« Reply #3 on: January 23, 2021, 08:01:11 PM »
Thanks guys!

I read how Roland held the patent for 2-ply mesh heads for quite awhile.

I would've been pretty disappointed to buy a rubber-head version a couple years ago only to see the mesh heads available shortly after that.

Personally, I love the way the mesh-heads feel.   They're like little trampolines for my drumsticks, lol.

 ...and I really like being able to move the components around to fit my unorthodox playing style.

I just got back into playing and I already have Gear Acquisition Syndrome.     

I want a Bass Station keyboard/synth now.

...and a USB interface.

...and a nice mixer.

...and some powered monitor speakers.
« Last Edit: January 23, 2021, 08:05:33 PM by Solipstix »

Re: I Expanded My New Nitro Mesh Kit... (with introduction and pic!)
« Reply #4 on: February 07, 2021, 01:36:30 AM »
I am a left-handed person.  The kit I learned on was set-up for a right-handed drummer.   I made it work, using an open-handed approach.   It probably wasn't the best way to learn... but here I am 35 years later, still playing open-handed.

In many circles it's actually encouraged for right handers to learn to play open (left hand on the hats)...

I prefer playing open, but my left hand is worthless, so my acoustic kit has an Aux hat on the right side, set just shy of closed.
66SAMUS (youtube) does the same thing.

The kit looks good.
Enjoy!