Vintage Simmons Drums (UK) Users Group

I recently purchased an sds-400 brain.  It will be arriving this week.  It is my 1st piece of Simmons gear.  I plan on triggering it with the audio outs of an SCI drumtraks.  Does anyone have any suggestions on working it through to make sure it is fully functioning?  Any tips/ quirks you've encountered with the sds-400?  I am really excited to be adding the Simmons percussive palette to my setup.

bobsvitilla skrev 2010-09-06 21:13:
> I recently purchased an sds-400 brain. It will be arriving this week. It
> is my 1st piece of Simmons gear. I plan on triggering it with the audio
> outs of an SCI drumtraks. Does anyone have any suggestions on working it
> through to make sure it is fully functioning? Any tips/ quirks you've
> encountered with the sds-400? I am really excited to be adding the
> Simmons percussive palette to my setup.

Hi and congrat's on your first Simmons!

Trigger just oe channel and work yourself through the parameters and 
knobs. Every knob should do something. they should not crackle nor pop 
and the output should be clear and noise free. Once done on the first 
channel, continue with the next. Ignore building cool rhythms just yet, 
despite it being the goal later and except it being very tempting. :)

A look through a manual might be worth it if you're really new to the 
world of vintage electronic percussion...

-- 
electronically yours, jesper

- -- --- ---- ----- ---- --- -- -
www.electronic-obsession.se

I have an SDS 400. A fantastic unit, but the 2nd input on mine does not
function, and the volume knobs do not work either. I'd watch for those, but
as already mentioned, plug into all inputs and test all the knobs.




On Mon, Sep 6, 2010 at 1:13 PM, jesper <jesper@...>wrote:

>
>
> bobsvitilla skrev 2010-09-06 21:13:
>
> > I recently purchased an sds-400 brain. It will be arriving this week. It
> > is my 1st piece of Simmons gear. I plan on triggering it with the audio
> > outs of an SCI drumtraks. Does anyone have any suggestions on working it
> > through to make sure it is fully functioning? Any tips/ quirks you've
> > encountered with the sds-400? I am really excited to be adding the
> > Simmons percussive palette to my setup.
>
> Hi and congrat's on your first Simmons!
>
> Trigger just oe channel and work yourself through the parameters and
> knobs. Every knob should do something. they should not crackle nor pop
> and the output should be clear and noise free. Once done on the first
> channel, continue with the next. Ignore building cool rhythms just yet,
> despite it being the goal later and except it being very tempting. :)
>
> A look through a manual might be worth it if you're really new to the
> world of vintage electronic percussion...
>
> --
> electronically yours, jesper
>
> - -- --- ---- ----- ---- --- -- -
> www.electronic-obsession.se
>  
>



-- 
late young
+++


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks for all the tips.  It arrived today.  Nice and minty fresh.  I doesn't look like its ever been out of the box.  Every bit of printing on the front panel is sharp and intact.  All ins and out work perfect.  The pots are clean.  A little loose in movement, but tight in rotation.  It came with the manual, registration card, and the overlay to mark up patches.  Sound completely bangin'.  I take it the sesquencer in, though a DIN socket, has nothing to do with MIDI?  This box is pure tweakers delight.

--- In Simmons_Drums@yahoogroups.com, "bobsvitilla" <bobsvitilla@...> wrote:

>
> I recently purchased an sds-400 brain.  It will be arriving this week.  It is my 1st piece of Simmons gear.  I plan on triggering it with the audio outs of an SCI drumtraks.  Does anyone have any suggestions on working it through to make sure it is fully functioning?  Any tips/ quirks you've encountered with the sds-400?  I am really excited to be adding the Simmons percussive palette to my setup.
>

bobsvitilla skrev 2010-09-09 23:55:
> Thanks for all the tips. It arrived today. Nice and minty fresh.

Great news! There are a lot of smashed up Simmons gear out there...

> doesn't look like its ever been out of the box. Every bit of printing on
> the front panel is sharp and intact. All ins and out work perfect. The
> pots are clean. A little loose in movement, but tight in rotation. It
> came with the manual, registration card, and the overlay to mark up

Cool with all the extra goodies. Certainly adds to the value if nothing 
else.

> patches. Sound completely bangin'. I take it the sesquencer in, though a
> DIN socket, has nothing to do with MIDI? This box is pure tweakers delight.

Correct, it's just where all the trig inputs are brought together if you 
want to make a cable of your own to use with a trig sequencer like the 
SDS-6 or similar.

Analogue drums synths are great!

-- 
electronically yours, jesper

- -- --- ---- ----- ---- --- -- -
www.electronic-obsession.se