Author Topic: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!  (Read 174830 times)

Online Hellfire

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh Head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #150 on: August 06, 2011, 10:56:49 AM »
If you own an Alesis DM5, USB, or DM10 Pro kit, here is the best DIY way to convert your trigger pads to mesh.



***Caution, You will Void Your Warranty Once You Do This Upgrade***

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #151 on: October 03, 2011, 07:39:11 PM »
i tried this mod . followed everything to the T .  i have a dm10 studio kit .. with the perl mesh heads...
the sensitivity was so bad with the mod ... i had to jack up my sensitivity to 99 and still would not pick up light hits .

i have sense went back to the original heads ....


any idea why the sensitivity is so bad ?


Offline vtdrummer

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #152 on: October 03, 2011, 08:14:57 PM »
Are your foam/rubber pads rising above the rim of the pad's shell at the top?

They have to be... I think it's around 4-6mm above.

I put the white thick foam rubber WITH the hole cut out on top, then the plate/piezo, and then the bottom thick foam, then some craft foam on the very bottom to raise it all up a bit.

Working great!
DM10 Studio 2011 w/Surge Cymbals added, BB Mesh head conversion w/rubber muffs at bottom, one 12" A-E pad, Simmons DA200S, sometimes using 2 satellite speakers... Simmons SDMP-1 Multi-pad.
See my DIY 12" Acoustic to E-Drum project post here: http://www.dmdrummer.com/index.php?topic=1227

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #153 on: October 03, 2011, 08:32:06 PM »
Are your foam/rubber pads rising above the rim of the pad's shell at the top?

They have to be... I think it's around 4-6mm above.

I put the white thick foam rubber WITH the hole cut out on top, then the plate/piezo, and then the bottom thick foam, then some craft foam on the very bottom to raise it all up a bit.

Working great!


yes..

did that ...  no good.....


Offline Conrad55

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #154 on: October 04, 2011, 08:27:40 AM »
Try cutting the resistors out.

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #155 on: October 04, 2011, 05:01:28 PM »
So why did Alesis put the resistors in if the performance improves when they are removed?  Is it something that was necessary with the mylar heads? If so, what are the implications for the "mesh head conversion" technique while keeping the mylar heads?

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #156 on: October 08, 2011, 11:40:51 PM »
Hi guys. This is my first post on here, read all 11 pages :P

Thanks for the video HF! Thanks for the advice others!
My guitarist has done the mod with a Roland head, I have yet to try it with the Roland but I did notice a positive difference in playability and sensitivity with the foam/internals mod, then putting the mylar back on while he was waiting for the roland to come in.
I am about to try this on my DM10 Studio, it seems there is enough knowledge and advice on this thread to get me through it.

I'm just not sure about what heads to buy. Everybody loves the billy blast, but they are white. The kit is black, surely they would look sooo sexy with black heads, like the stock mylars. Can anybody recommend black mesh heads (Pearl/682drums etc..)??

Apart from the colour, I'm not keen to try the roland heads because of many people complaining about more-than-natural rebound. (and the obvious price tag) - I am a kit drummer, but I use the Alesis for some midi tracking, so the closest to acoustic feel as possible would be awesome (whilst still minimising noise)

any help is appreciated

ps. It might be worth mentioning that I am a reasonably hard hitter (but I'm no Mike Portnoy) - I use 3A wood tips and felt beaters

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #157 on: November 05, 2011, 11:46:35 AM »
I have been looking at all the mesh head upgrade info before I decide to buy a Alesis set . My question is has anyone tried replacing the foam pad under the mesh head with a piece of silicon rubber sheet ? It come in different thicknesses and density.

Paul

Offline vtdrummer

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #158 on: November 05, 2011, 01:08:39 PM »
@PaulShr:  I tried adding a "Muff head" from Billy Blast... added it to the top of the pads, over the existing foam, and it worked OK, but I have since tried cutting the hole in the middle, and put more foam under everything (to push it up a bit, over the rim), and I like it better.  For what it's worth.

Now, I might try putting these rubber muff heads on TOP, with a cutout hole, one day, too!  I like the "more dense" rubber of them, for bounce and feel, I THINK...
DM10 Studio 2011 w/Surge Cymbals added, BB Mesh head conversion w/rubber muffs at bottom, one 12" A-E pad, Simmons DA200S, sometimes using 2 satellite speakers... Simmons SDMP-1 Multi-pad.
See my DIY 12" Acoustic to E-Drum project post here: http://www.dmdrummer.com/index.php?topic=1227

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #159 on: November 06, 2011, 02:05:38 PM »
Did the mesh conversion and what a difference it makes!

I only took delivery of my DM10 a few days ago but realised I wasn't too keen on the realhead pads. I could hear the noise through my headphones and this, along with the sensation of my stick hitting a hard-ish surface was affecting my perception of what I was hearing.

I did the Hellfire conversion (thanks Hellfire!) with a couple of tweeks. All of my pads had a hole in the black foam so, with a little stretching, I could pull this over the thin foam/resonator plate assembly. Also, it was not necessary to trim the thin foam attached to the resonator plate as it was a perfect fit inside the wooden drum shell. So my pads, with one exception, were taking about 10 minutes from start to finish.

The exception was the first conversion I did. On this one I decided to remove the resistors but I found this a little tricky as on my jack sockets there was a little PCB with 3 tiny resistors on board, so I soldered the piezo leads to other points so as to bypass the resistors.

When I tested this pad against another with resistors still connected, it didn't seem to make that much difference so I left the others in series.

I did have to change the curve settings to the pads a lot, but the result is very impressive. They are much quieter, they feel and respond better, and cross talk issues are reduced. I bought Z-ed single ply heads and 2mm eva foam from ebay sellers here in the UK and the cost for the total conversion was £33 (approx $53).

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #160 on: November 13, 2011, 07:16:46 AM »
Hi guys,

Is it possible just to replace the Mylar heads with mesh only and not do anything else? Will this reduce the acoustic noise of the pads enough?

Thanks!

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #161 on: November 13, 2011, 07:33:53 AM »
Hi guys,

Is it possible just to replace the Mylar heads with mesh only and not do anything else? Will this reduce the acoustic noise of the pads enough?

Thanks!

Hi,
This question has already been asked here ;):

http://www.dmdrummer.com/index.php?topic=2025.0

Deviljoo

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #162 on: November 13, 2011, 12:22:48 PM »
Thanks Deviljoo I suspected as much, just couldn't find it!

Cheers

Greg

  • Guest
Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #163 on: November 19, 2011, 07:42:28 PM »
I will be doing the video conversion soon. I ordered 3 ply mesh heads from "682drums" in the Netherlands. 125.00 for 2-8", 2-10" and 2-12" heads. They have gotten really good reviews and were about what Billy Blast 3 ply heads cost. I wanted black heads. There seems to be a national shortage of Pearl single ply mesh heads and they didn't get the best reviews.
 Costly but I want my set to be comfortable, professional and as quiet as possible. I thought about getting a sound shield for drums but they are expensive and mainly for gigging which I am not doing with my kit.

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #164 on: November 22, 2011, 10:32:25 PM »
If noise is not an issue, is the mesh head conversion still better (feel, triggering, etc)?  Also, if you were to keep the original mylar head on, does the conversion make it better (sensitivity, bounce, etc)?

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #165 on: November 23, 2011, 11:24:35 AM »
Noise wasn't really a major issue for me, other than I could hear and feel the strike of stick-on-pad, but it seemed to be impairing my perception of the sound in my headphones so I did the mesh conversion.

The trigger settings needed quite a bit of tweaking but the end result is well worth it. Playing feels more natural, stick bounce is better making rolls and ghost notes easier.

The fact that, with my headphones on, I can no longer hear anything other than the sounds from the module is a real bonus (and my wife says she can't hear anything downstairs now either).

Offline einarabelc5

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #166 on: November 27, 2011, 12:59:43 PM »
If you own an Alesis DM5, USB, or DM10 Pro kit, here is the best DIY way to convert your trigger pads to mesh.



***Caution, You will Void Your Warranty Once You Do This Upgrade***

Question:

What will happen in the case of a dual zone trigger pad if instead of desoldering the piezo wires from the connector I simple use scissors to cut through the 2 layers of foam?

Will that make a significant impact on the sound mechanically ?

Thank You

Offline einarabelc5

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #167 on: November 29, 2011, 05:59:34 PM »
I finished the mod this past weekend.
 The new pads look as follows:

8":
From Top to bottom.

Mousepad foam:

Metal pad
Piezo
Resonator plastic pad.
Black foam WITH center hole for resonator.
White foam with small hole for cables.
Resistors connected to cable.

10 ":

Metal plaque
Piezo
Resonator plastic pad.
Black foam WITH center hole for resonator.
White foam with center canal for cables.
No resistors.

I simply cut a canal in the white foam to extract the wires, moved the plaque with the black foam on top of the newly cutted elevation foam and replaced it with the white foam and mesh head. That way I skipped soldering on 5 out of 6 heads. I didn't removed any resistors but am considering it.

I'm having triggering problems with the rim trigger on tom 1 the one that makes the tambourine sound on kit 000.

Does anyone has any example of cabling that reduces crosstalk?

Offline einarabelc5

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #168 on: December 09, 2011, 04:44:29 PM »
If you own an Alesis DM5, USB, or DM10 Pro kit, here is the best DIY way to convert your trigger pads to mesh.



***Caution, You will Void Your Warranty Once You Do This Upgrade***

Question:

What will happen in the case of a dual zone trigger pad if instead of desoldering the piezo wires from the connector I simple use scissors to cut through the 2 layers of foam?

Will that make a significant impact on the sound mechanically ?

Thank You

Answer you will OPEN A HOLE yourself with your sticks in the white foam from hitting the snare.
Unless you are like a pixie when hitting the drums.

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #169 on: December 12, 2011, 10:09:17 AM »
Hey I got one question about the mesh heads, what material are they made off?


-Valter
« Last Edit: December 13, 2011, 11:38:55 AM by Valtsu »

Offline einarabelc5

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #170 on: December 20, 2011, 04:56:48 PM »
Hey I got one question about the mesh heads, what material are they made off?


-Valter

Good ones are made of the same material as the acoustic heads: mylar

Offline ks

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #171 on: December 27, 2011, 07:11:55 AM »
I am thinking, that the mesh head conversion will be more elegant, simple and easy with purchasing a trigger set, for example DDRUM DDRSKIT RED SHOT TRIGGER SET 95 EUR, and plug it into module - is this possible? And another question - when it is so nice, cheap and easy to convert to and use mesh heads, why the hell Alesis doesn`t have mesh-kit?
« Last Edit: December 27, 2011, 11:48:41 AM by ks »

Offline Conrad55

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #172 on: December 27, 2011, 01:29:56 PM »
Because Roland still holds the rights to sell mesh head drums, in the USA.

Offline ks

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #173 on: December 27, 2011, 05:28:58 PM »
Well, I see PINTECH have some ugly mesh-head-kits for sale, and they are US company..?

Online Hellfire

Re: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video!
« Reply #174 on: December 27, 2011, 07:55:07 PM »
Well, I see PINTECH have some ugly mesh-head-kits for sale, and they are US company..?
Hart and Pintech pay a licensing fee (a very large one at that) to sell drums with mesh heads on them. Keep in mind also that those two companies typically sell their drum sets with Roland module anyway.