Author Topic: Alesis DM10 Mesh head Pad Upgrade Video! (Read 181627 times)

Th3R00st3r · « **Reply #325 on:** February 18, 2014, 10:57:51 AM »

MRTL,

Were the resistors you removed just in line resistors, or were they on the little circuit board attached to the jack? Mine were on a circuit board and I didn't want to touch that, so I left them on.

MRTL · « **Reply #326 on:** February 24, 2014, 05:16:03 PM »

Quote from: Th3R00st3r on February 18, 2014, 10:57:51 AM

MRTL,

Were the resistors you removed just in line resistors, or were they on the little circuit board attached to the jack? Mine were on a circuit board and I didn't want to touch that, so I left them on.

sorry for the late reply

i removed the circuit board attached to the jack. Im not a 100% sure butt i think u dont realy need to remove it, u can remove the wires from the board and soldier the them directly to the jack.

Can someone confim this ?

Greetz

Trondster · « **Reply #327 on:** February 25, 2014, 02:06:26 AM »

Quote from: MRTL on February 24, 2014, 05:16:03 PM

i removed the circuit board attached to the jack. Im not a 100% sure butt i think u dont realy need to remove it, u can remove the wires from the board and soldier the them directly to the jack.

Can someone confim this ?

I haven't examined the circuit board in detail, but if the resistor there are like the "ordinary" resistors, then it wouldn't be the same. With the older resistors there is not only a resistor in serial with the piezo, but also one in parallel, between two of the pins.
I'd recommend removing the board all together, although I haven't tested how the pad responds with only a parallel resistor in place.

Th3R00st3r · « **Reply #328 on:** February 28, 2014, 11:08:24 AM »

Thanks Trondster!

MRTL - Did you notice a difference when you removed it. I feel my Kick pad could be a bit louder, I really have to smash it to get a descent level out of it.

MRTL · « **Reply #329 on:** March 02, 2014, 05:22:04 PM »

Yes for sure!!!!!!

After removing i had to change the sensivity levels from 50-60 to 20. It feels more sensitive and natural...

Th3R00st3r · « **Reply #330 on:** March 03, 2014, 02:02:02 PM »

Weekend Project!. I also need to stabilize my kick pad. I have double bass pedals and that thing rocks (as in moves, not as in rock and roll) when I hit it. I read on here somewhere (I tried to search, but couldn't find it) where someone (Trondster?) just used bigger rubber feet. I also read where someone attached it to the lower cross bar on the frame, but I would assume that would cause unwanted (and unnecessary) vibrations.

Khes74 · « **Reply #331 on:** March 03, 2014, 03:12:59 PM »

Quote from: Th3R00st3r on March 03, 2014, 02:02:02 PM

Weekend Project!. I also need to stabilize my kick pad. I have double bass pedals and that thing rocks (as in moves, not as in rock and roll) when I hit it. I read on here somewhere (I tried to search, but couldn't find it) where someone (Trondster?) just used bigger rubber feet. I also read where someone attached it to the lower cross bar on the frame, but I would assume that would cause unwanted (and unnecessary) vibrations.

I would cover the bottom tube with foam or something then place the kickdrum in front of the tube with foam. Also use bigger rubber feet.

AlanK · « **Reply #332 on:** March 05, 2014, 09:16:21 AM »

And add a couple of pieces of velcro on the bottom of the foot pedal and the base of the kick pad frame (assuming you've got your gear on carpet). I added some rubber gromets (or washers) to the rubber feet so I could lower them down a ways, which helped stabilize.. the only reason I added the rubber pieces was so that I could tighten the rubber feet.. I figured if I simply unscrewed them enough to reach the floor they would eventually shake loose and fall off.

Trondster · « **Reply #333 on:** March 06, 2014, 01:11:35 PM »

Quote from: Th3R00st3r on March 03, 2014, 02:02:02 PM

Weekend Project!. I also need to stabilize my kick pad. I have double bass pedals and that thing rocks (as in moves, not as in rock and roll) when I hit it. I read on here somewhere (I tried to search, but couldn't find it) where someone (Trondster?) just used bigger rubber feet.

Yes - I added velcro tape and bigger rubber feet (the stock feet were simply too short) - see the dampened rack-link in my signature for details.

bcomisky · « **Reply #334 on:** March 17, 2014, 01:49:59 PM »

I removed my circuit board, but have very little wire left still sticking out.. I don't think I have enough room to resolder it to the jack (with my skills anyway!). So my thought is to solder on a small extra length of wire. Anyone else had to do this? I just going to try and find some thin gauge wire that looks close.

Bill

fenderbasher · « **Reply #335 on:** April 12, 2014, 08:44:56 PM »

Did my DM10 Studio conversion yesterday due to exceeding levels of boredom (and a need to quit procrastinating and get some recording done).
Hellfire - great video! as I do mods on many different pieces of equipment at work I felt very comfortable deviating from your technique, but you helped give me a good understanding of *what* I was doing, *why* I was doing it and *how* to change some of the ideas.
I was fortunate to be able to hoard some really good packing foam in two thicknesses - 28mm and 10mm - high-density plastic stuff (not like the foam rubber type foam). One layer of each, the 10mm at the bottom then the piezo plate and then the 28mm on top which ended up allowing the whole mess to rise about 1/4" above the shell rim.
I cut the CD hole in both plastic layers but didn't trim the thin rubber on the piezo plate as I was just careful to center it properly.
I haven't gone with mesh heads yet as I am the master of the man-cave and noise is not an issue (yet - the 'boss' hasn't complained other than wondering what song I'm playing at any given time).
All I was really interested in was getting some bounce back on the heads which I now have in spades. I still need to do the snare but forgot to bring home an extra piece of the thinner foam so that'll get done this week. I'll be tweaking the settings for a while, and I might have to add another layer of the thin foam as the plate might sit too low in the shell (it might be too hot and getting the settings dialed in will be almost impossible). I might even take notes to see if there's an optimal depth to have the plate at; a sweet spot between the rim piezo and the striking surface.
God I love this stuff. I don't have any guitars anymore that I haven't done extensive mods to; it's what life is all about!

For everyone asking, the 'circuit board' looks like it is just a surface-mount version of the twisted-pair of resistors found on the toms. Bypassing it or removing it, it shouldn't matter which. The odd thing is there's 4 resistors on that board (well, room for four at least) versus the two on the 8" pads; is the circuit board on the snare? (I haven't taken apart the snare yet). I don't know of any differences between the large pad and the smaller; they all seem to be dual-zone pads unless the extra resistors add some extra refinement specific to the snare. Otherwise I don't see any reason not to remove or bypass that board.

Now if only there was a way to easily add my own samples to the brain I'd be perfectly happy with my kit!

Hellfire · « **Reply #336 on:** April 12, 2014, 09:51:11 PM »

I'm glad I could help.

BTW, welcome to the forum!

fenderbasher · « **Reply #337 on:** April 14, 2014, 11:52:05 PM »

I've had some time to reflect on the changes to the mod that I did.
Now, for all intents and purposes, the piezo plates are located about 2/3" down from where they were originally. The dialing in of the settings now is a little trickier as both piezos are very close; I'm thinking of taking one or both of the resistors that were removed and putting them on the frame piezo instead of the plate piezo. I don't rely on the rim piezos as much as the plate ones so retarding the signal from the frame is no big deal to me. Should also make it easier to jack the settings.
I just can't figure out why they did the parallel resistor thing; diminish the signal to the jack tab while also bleeding off signal to ground? I'm gonna have to consult with one of my electrical gurus at work...

bear1962 · « **Reply #338 on:** February 02, 2015, 08:20:06 PM »

New to the forum but have read this post front to back and I'm ready to convert my DM10 Studio. I sold my acoustic set (10 piece Ludwig) years ago when kids were born (twin sons) and now it's time to jam again. I decided to go electronic as the neighborhood would probably not enjoy my heavy pounding. I love the set but I thought I would have to live with the noisy, bad response plastic pads, as I could not justify a Roland set for just banging around ... Now, the BB 3 ply's are on the way and I found the 3 mm foam at the hobby shop. Soldering is not a problem as I've raced electric RC cars for years. Everything should be ready to happen this weekend!!!

Thanks for all the great info!

nickap · « **Reply #339 on:** April 02, 2015, 02:25:13 PM »

Hi guys - just wanted to report in on another successful Hellfire mesh conversion ... I got a used DM10 studio last week (a $349 score from Guitar Center!) and did the upgrade last night. I used the Pearl MFH mesh heads; I've used them in the past (on a DYI kit I made from acoustic shells cut in half) and they worked out fine, and they're really inexpensive. One slight change from the method as described by Hellfire; I happened to have a bunch of 1" black foam on hand and I decided to try using that instead of using the included black foam plus the 1/4 'funky foam' or whatever they call it. So instead of the layers being as follows:

1/4" funky foam > white foam > trigger plate/rubber > 3/4" black foam > mesh head

my setup was like this:

white foam > trigger plate/rubber > 1" black foam > mesh head

Same overall height, but a little less space between the trigger plate and shell, and a little more between the plate and the mesh. Concerns were that the thicker foam above the plate might cause triggering problems, and/or that there might be increased crosstalk because of the plate being closer to the shell.

Glad to say that I'm not experiencing either of those issues. The 10" snare pad (which did not have resistors) was triggering perfectly from the moment I did the conversion. The 8" pads had the resistors; I tried doing the first pad with them left in place, and I had some triggering issues - softer hits not being picked up. I'm sure I could have fiddled with the triggering settings, but I figured I'd go the approved route and remove the resistors. Once I did that, the triggering was perfect - and no crosstalk to speak of across any of the pads.

I didn't do a full conversion for the kick pad - I was concerned about getting too much springiness from the mesh plus the foam, and also about how well the mesh would wear with foam underneath it. So I simply replaced the mylar head with the mesh one - left everything else exactly as it was. This reduced the acoustic volume of the kick enormously, and left the triggering and the 'feel' pretty much the same as before.

Needless to say, the upgraded pads feel great, are super-quiet - and the Pearl heads are pretty sharp-looking. Definitely very happy with this mod - thanks Hellfire!

AlanK · « **Reply #340 on:** April 16, 2015, 09:52:59 AM »

I opened up my two 8" pads last night to do some maintenance, noticed there were no resistors.. unless I missed the spot. I followed the wiring from the piezo to the 1/4 connector jack.. popped those out, just wired directly to a small circuit board attached to the jack casing. Was there another PCB somewhere in the pad?

On another note, I was wondering if we can mod the kick pad to become a dual zone. I see how they've got a piezo stuck to the shell of the dual zone 8" pad that I bought, and the wires seem to go back to the same area on the 1/4 plug housing circuitry.. I didn't look as closely as I should have but I'm wondering if they use the same parts, but there are a couple of spare pins to solder a second set of wires to that would make it dual. Could it be as simple as that?

nickap · « **Reply #341 on:** April 16, 2015, 10:00:36 AM »

I'm guessing it probably is - the pad triggers are really very simple. The only thing might be that you might have to add or rearrange the foam between the main trigger plate and the shell, so you don't get the shell piezo triggering when you use the kick pedal.

AlanK · « **Reply #342 on:** April 16, 2015, 10:56:07 AM »

Hi Nickap, I already do have it setup that way from when I did the mesh conversion. I don't think I'd use dual zone on these 8" pads (I'm using them like concert toms over the hi-hat and because they're split from two of the Perc inputs I can only use one zone anyways but if I ever buy a sample pad or other device that gives me more inputs I may want to have them both dual zone). But I thought it was cool that I could possible add one to the kick pad and make it a dual.

Trondster · « **Reply #343 on:** April 16, 2015, 01:50:26 PM »

I wouldn't make the kick dual zone - I'd rather either use a double beater on a single kick pad or use two beaters on two single pads connected to the kick input with a Y splitter.

AlanK · « **Reply #344 on:** April 16, 2015, 02:51:13 PM »

I agree Trondster. I was interested in the possibility of making it dual zone someday because I've switched out my 8" kick for the 12" snare that came with the DM10X. I bought a Hart Dynamics snare so I had the 12" as a spare.. wanted the look of a larger kick drum. Then I bought an extra dual zone 8" pad, put the two 8's on a concert tom stand. I'm not using the 8's as dual zone but was pondering the idea of that some day if I really wanted extra zones.. I don't currently have enough triggers left to do it tho.

cquiz14 · « **Reply #345 on:** August 17, 2015, 11:26:44 PM »

i converted mine and now on my kick the beater does a double it off of one foot motion. it kills my control..anyone else have this issue?

docadiddle · « **Reply #346 on:** February 13, 2018, 07:13:59 AM »

Well I'm really sorry to have to report a failure of the Hellfire method. I bought a lightly used 2011 DM10 Studio kit a couple of months ago with the standard mylar heads. Couldn't believe how acoustically loud they were and how bad the triggering and crosstalk were despite trying the recommended methods on this site. I had always intended to do a mesh conversion and, being someone who likes to do things his own way, I initially tried a side trigger with the piezo touching the underside of the head and supported on a soft foam pad for isolation (a la 2box) but it didn't trigger well enough. So I decided to take everyone else's advice and do the Hellfire conversion. I'm pretty sure I did it exactly as advised including removing the resistors but it just wouldn't trigger properly and sensitivity needed to be way up in the 80-90s. I even tried making a circle of sanding block foam to fill the hole in the black foam ring but only marginally better and still inconsistent.

So I decided to ditch the black foam and the Funky Foam base layer, turn the plate over, make a sanding block foam cone and stick it on the piezo. It now works fine, triggers well, sensitivity 25-30 and crosstalk virtually disappeared in an instant. It now feels like a useable kit whereas before it wasn't. Not sure why it didn't work for me but I just thought I'd report it. Only problem now is I'm using Perc 3 for my 4th tom but it's still triggering the rim sound randomly and even with the pad unplugged! I've moved to Perc 4 and seems to be sorted just need to reprogram all the kits!

Unfortunately I haven't been able to do any firmware upgrades as I don't have a computer with an old enough OS to work with the program.

LWMatos · « **Reply #347 on:** September 06, 2024, 06:13:45 PM »

Quote from: Hellfire on January 12, 2010, 10:46:28 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.

Alesis DM10 Pad Upgrade Video!

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

Quick FAQ (Thanks Recess):
Quote from: Recess on August 12, 2012, 05:52:30 AM
Just spend half an hour reading this entire thread, and it strikes me that it could probably do with a FAQ on the very first post - as there's a lot of repeated questions. I've put something together in case you want to edit your initial post Hellfire? I don't know if you'll use it, but wanted to do something as a way of saying thanks.

FAQ

1) Why remove the resistors? When you get a stock pad, the sensor plate is way at the top and thus the piezo element produces a much hotter signal, but once you do the conversion, it is no long at the top of the stack. It is below a much more adsorbent piece of foam and further down the stack. The result is a sensor with a much diminished signal output. That is why the resistors are removed. (if you leave them in, you may have to crank up the sensitivity - and that could cause issues)

*That also answers 'Do I really need to break out the soldering iron' - you may not need to remove the resistor, and could just cut slits in the foam to enable re-ordering.

2) My 'thick black foam' has a hole cut in it, making it like a donut - do I need to fill it in with something? No, the pad will still work just fine. Some folks report that it feels a lot better in the centre without the foam, with more rebound. However, others have taken the circle of white foam that is cut out, and (after trimming) put this inside the hole of the black foam, and report no problems.

3) Why put the funky foam at the bottom? Because it's used to raise the internal stack up primarily, and won't sink into the frame at the bottom of the drum.

Hello Sir! How are you?
Your website is off

Do you still have the files (images and videos) to share with me, please?

Thank you!!

Hellfire · « **Reply #348 on:** September 06, 2024, 10:16:14 PM »

Quote from: LWMatos on September 06, 2024, 06:13:45 PM

Hello Sir! How are you?
Your website is off

Do you still have the files (images and videos) to share with me, please?

Thank you!!

I am sorry, I do not.

Chaser · « **Reply #349 on:** September 07, 2024, 12:13:55 AM »

I archived a number of pages from HellFires HELLFIRE DRUMS site years ago.
I am sure a number of others may have participated over the years also...the majority of the pages work...unfortunately the Alesis DM10 Pad Upgrade Video! didn't save , however there is an illustrated Version of Hellfire Mesh Conversion in the Forum..