<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">Hey<BR>
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I've been lurking for a while but this is the first post I think I've made...<BR>
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Anyway, there are a number of people who do DIY drum trigger pads (being a drummer and engineer, I naturally had to try it).<BR>
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There are free plans on these sites:<BR>
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<A HREF="http://www.sospubs.co.uk/sos/1995_articles/diydrumpad.htm">http://www.sospubs.co.uk/sos/1995_articles/diydrumpad.htm</A><BR>
<A HREF="http://www.electronicdrums.com/">http://www.electronicdrums.com/</A><BR>
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This is probably one of the best sites on homemade electronic drum triggers:<BR>
<A HREF="http://www.derksens.com/Beatnik_mirror.htm">http://www.derksens.com/Beatnik_mirror.htm</A><BR>
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I know you don't want to build "real drums", but the principle is the same. You can get piezo triggers (maybe a couple of bucks each, at least at radio shack...you could probably buy them cheaper elsewhere) and put them under some sort of foam (mouse pads work well) or gum rubber pad (the majority of rubber drum pads work in this manner). The trigger response is great with drumsticks, so it would probably be flawless if you had, say, 1" round gum rubber disks over your piezo trigger. If you're looking for a larger pad area or just to beef up the trigger, you can hot glue it to a sheet of thin metal (coffee can bottom or the like) to help transfer the impact directly to the piezo. One of the major problems is cross triggering with the pads (this is a problem on commercial drums sets as well). There are two options to solve this: either build a mounting box to isolate each trigger or dial down the sensitivity of the trigger-midi converter, or both. You might be able to work out some sort of screw/spring shock absorber:<BR>
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Rubber pad<BR>
Trigger<BR>
| ______| <-- Screw head or nut <BR>
|__| |__|<BR>
<|-----|> <-- Spring<BR>
<|-----|><BR>
__|___|___ <-- Screw head or nut<BR>
Mount to something<BR>
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Foam or rubber might also do the trick...you'll have to experiment. I know this is a DIY group, but if you're looking for a cheap commercial version, you could find an old Casio DZ (or DT...I can't remember) trigger to midi interface. They work really well and are probably the same price as the PAIA trigger interface.<BR>
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This sounds pretty cool...maybe I should build one too :)<BR>
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Hope this helps. If you need any more info, drop me an email at Drumboy5@aol.com.<BR>
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Morgan<BR>
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