A to E drum conversion : Megadrum + Acoustic drum + Junxion

[Synthex]

Ok great for the drivers,
but the 18F2550 IS an additional board that I MUST build if I want the Megadrum32 to work on a Mac right?

Not necessarily, 18F2550 is on the "All In One" PCB.

[kimouette]

First I wanted to follow this diagram (see picture above), which uses a stereo jack panel on which each piezo has to be soldered.



But now I'm thinking that to avoid a mess, maybe I could use the stereo jack plug I just found (see picture above)



The plug would go directly in the megadrum module and at the other end, the three wires would be soldered to the piezo's wires...
Would that work if I want to use a head piezo and a rim piezo for each pad? I mean, I believe that two wires (so one of each pair of the piezo"s wires) need to be soldered to a single wire (the "sleeve"), but is that possible?

[dmitri]

Yes, it is possible.

[kimouette]

In that case could I simply "twist" the end of the wires together and scotch them or is soldering still necessary...

[Synthex]

soldering is really better.

[kimouette]

Anybody can tell me which criteria I should be looking for in order to find a compatible LCD screen? There are too many choices in terms of ...

- Dimensions
- Number of digits
- Operating Voltage rms
- Operating Frequency
- Supply Current
- Operating Temperature
- Number of pins
etc...
And I dont know which of these criterias are important!

And same thing for the Jacks TRS Panel Mount, what should I be looking for?

[dmitri]

Anybody can tell me which criteria I should be looking for in order to find a compatible LCD screen? There are too many choices in terms of ...

- Dimensions
- Number of digits
- Operating Voltage rms
- Operating Frequency
- Supply Current
- Operating Temperature
- Number of pins
etc...
And I dont know which of these criterias are important!

1. The first most important is that it must be hd44780 compatible
2. It must have at least two lines with 16 characters in each.

All others aren't important although it's better to have a backlit LCD. I used these http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/16x2-LCD-module-W ... 0244567865 and they're nice.

And same thing for the Jacks TRS Panel Mount, what should I be looking for?

Any you like and of the same form factor/size as the cables to your pads.

[kimouette]

Hi everyone!

I used to have someone with soldering skills that wanted to help, but he recently let me down!

I MIGHT have found someone else, but he wont accept to search for any component. Actually, the only thing he COULD be willing to do is the soldering. In other words, I have to figure out the exact way I'll be using Megadrum and then find each necessary component, hardware software etc... So even though I'm not 100% sure that this guy will help me, I still have to be prepared!

So here comes the avalanche of questions....
Thanks to the one that will have the patience to answer all these!

If I buy the All in One v2.7 (we're talking about the complete package : board + ICS + all components) :

Knowing that I wont be needing the External power supply, do I still have to pay for the components required to use this feature?

If I want the Atmega32-16pu, is there an extra charge?

Does the kit include the LCD screen, the MIDI panel mount? and the Jack panel mount?


What's the keyboard section made for?

Also, I would like to use a variable controller for the hi-hat. I know there's an input for that purpose on the Megadrum board, but I was wondering if I'll have any problem since I was planning to use only Stereo cables... and same thing for the kick drum...
Will a stereo cable (soldered like a mono cable) work normally if plugged in a stereo panel mount?

Again about the hi-hat variable controller, I should be looking for a potentiometer of how many k ohm?

About the "Piezo/Switch" thing, I think I dont get it.
I mean, if I use 2 piezos per instrument (snare, tom, cymbals, hi-hat, etc...) then simply linking them to the Megadrum with a Stereo jack cable works right?
Do I really need to build an external switch, or will the Megadrum do the job all by itself?

And finally the question that worries me the most...
Everyone here keeps talking about MidiOx, Edrum Monitor, MidiYoke etc. Actually a big part of the forum is meant for questions about the different softwares that can or HAVE TO be used with Megadrum.
Since I have a Mac computer, will I still be able flash the firmware, or to map all my dual zone triggers and potentiometer or even to define any kind of parameters?

Thanks for all your precious help!

Kim

[Synthex]

If I buy the All in One v2.7 (we're talking about the complete package : board + ICS + all components) :

Knowing that I wont be needing the External power supply, do I still have to pay for the components required to use this feature?

No

If I want the Atmega32-16pu, is there an extra charge?

No

Does the kit include the LCD screen, the MIDI panel mount? and the Jack panel mount?

No, no, no
But I can add a LCD screen if you want.

What's the keyboard section made for?

The keyboard allows to navigate through menus.

Also, I would like to use a variable controller for the hi-hat. I know there's an input for that purpose on the Megadrum board, but I was wondering if I'll have any problem since I was planning to use only Stereo cables... and same thing for the kick drum...
Will a stereo cable (soldered like a mono cable) work normally if plugged in a stereo panel mount?

Yes

Again about the hi-hat variable controller, I should be looking for a potentiometer of how many k ohm?

About 20 Kohm

About the "Piezo/Switch" thing, I think I dont get it.
I mean, if I use 2 piezos per instrument (snare, tom, cymbals, hi-hat, etc...) then simply linking them to the Megadrum with a Stereo jack cable works right?
Do I really need to build an external switch, or will the Megadrum do the job all by itself?

Megadrum works with "Piezo/Piezo" pad.

And finally the question that worries me the most...
Everyone here keeps talking about MidiOx, Edrum Monitor, MidiYoke etc. Actually a big part of the forum is meant for questions about the different softwares that can or HAVE TO be used with Megadrum.
Since I have a Mac computer, will I still be able flash the firmware, or to map all my dual zone triggers and potentiometer or even to define any kind of parameters?

Yes. For example :
- MidiPipe : http://homepage.mac.com/nicowald/SubtleSoft/
- MIDI Monitor : http://www.snoize.com/MIDIMonitor/

[kimouette]

I'm sorry I have another batch of questions!

But I can add a LCD screen if you want.

Could you tell me how much the LCD screen would cost?

About the external power supply...
Is that part of the board made for a battery power supply (a 9 volt battery?) or for an external alim power (wall) supply?

About the inputs that are related to the hi hat...

#3 - Power source for HiHat controller
#4 - HiHat controller input
#7 - HiHat Bow
#8 - HiHat Edge

Inputs 7 and 8 seem clear : I just have to plug the piezo's wires into this input. But are the inputs 3 and 4 also ONE SINGLE stereo input?
And would that input be the one used to plug the potentiometer/variable controller (like the one created by Beatnik)? Or is #4 for the potentiometer and #3 another input that needs to be linked to something else?

What's with the input #6?

The keyboard allows to navigate through menus.

Is that where the 4 pushbuttons will be connected? And what kind of menus do we get? options like Velocity control? effects? or something else?

About the power switch...
Is is better (I mean safer) to have one? Or does simply plugging the megadrum ( with either the USB cable or the external power supply) works fine?

About the led...
What's the use of the led?
Is it also included in the "All in one + components" kit?

Again, thanks for your time and your patience!

Kim