Question Regarding Drums

[scarlet]

Okay so I've had a question regarding drums because I main Guitar, always had since Guitar Hero 2 and 1 days but when I got into Rock Band I've gotten my drumming skill up to expert... before quitting. Same thing with GH:WoR before my drum set broke because it was cheap lol xD. But I've wanted to get into drumming now ESPECIALLY because it looks like an extremely fun thing to do. So if I could have any help I'd love it

1st, What drum set should I get? I've heard midi drums work, but they're way too expensive. I'm looking at the Rock Band 4 drum set and it looks reasonable compared to everything else and it has 4 pads and 3 cymbals which is what I need.
- If I were to get this drum set, would I have to buy a second pedal or does that come with it? I remember RB, RB 2, and both GH drumsets did not come with them. Unsure about RB3, but does RB4 come with two? If not I might have to pick one up.

2nd, if there are cheap midi drumkits with at least 4 pads and 3 cymbals then can anyone link me some? The cheapest I found was like 350 and I'm saving like 150 by just switching to the RB4 drumset.

3rd, do the RB4 drums come with a USB dongle or something? Because that's something I will need. Or is there a way to plug it straight into the PC for example without needing an adapter?

4th, if I were to end up getting midi drums... how do they even work with the game?

Thanks, sorry for the questions but I'm trying to get help where I can and nobody I know plays phase shift lol.

[vandorb12]

1. Grab a RB2/3/Beatles Wii or PS3 kit and either RB2 or RB3 cymbals (RB4 cymbals only work with the RB4 kit). Check your local thrift shops first before going to big box stores for used gear. Make sure it comes with the appropriate dongle!. Reddit and the Harmonix blog are saturated with comments on how much the RB4 drums under-perform, so if you are aiming for 6 stars and FCs, avoid that kit like the plague. You could go Xbox360, but then you have to buy the XBOX360 wireless adapter.

2. That's not my forte. Check the Rock Band Reddit and Harmonix blog for purchasing guides.

3. No. PS4 needs bluetooth and XBONE instruments don't work even with the XBONE adapter (currently).

4. Typically with a MIDI-USB adapter or the XB360 MIDI-PRO adapter. Don't cheap out on the MIDI-USB adapter, either... you need to spend at least $35USD for something that will work out of the box.

[raynebc]

Rock Band drum kits are generally considered toys compared to a real e-kit. I have an Ion drum rocker (wired controller, has 4 pads, supports up to 3 cymbals), which is considered to be similar to a very low end electronic drum kit. Even so, it is leaps and bounds better than the Rock Band 1, 2 or 3 drums. It has a drum "brain" to which each drum trigger connects via 1/4" cable, and the brain serves as the video game controller when it's connected to the game console. RB3 (and RB4 on PS4) support using other electronic kits by using MadCatz's MIDI pro adapter, which accepts a traditional MIDI cable (from the instrument) and connects to the game console as the game controller.

One problem with the Ions though is they've been (still are?) discontinued and prices/availability varies. Also, Xbox One doesn't support wired controllers, so depending on your console family you could have some limitations.

I haven't personally used the RB4 drums, but from what I've heard I think it's a safe assumption they are still lacking in quality. The Ion drum kit is probably about as low end as you want to go if you're serious about playing drums in Rock Band. If you are serious about drumming outside of video games (or want to go into a higher end drum game like DTXMania), you should probably consider buying a better drum kit.

Edit: Ninja'd

[scarlet]

Mar 4, 2016 22:04:50 GMT vandorb12 said:

1. Grab a RB2/3/Beatles Wii or PS3 kit and either RB2 or RB3 cymbals (RB4 cymbals only work with the RB4 kit). Check your local thrift shops first before going to big box stores for used gear. Make sure it comes with the appropriate dongle!. Reddit and the Harmonix blog are saturated with comments on how much the RB4 drums under-perform, so if you are aiming for 6 stars and FCs, avoid that kit like the plague. You could go Xbox360, but then you have to buy the XBOX360 wireless adapter.

2. That's not my forte. Check the Rock Band Reddit and Harmonix blog for purchasing guides.

3. No. PS4 needs bluetooth and XBONE instruments don't work even with the XBONE adapter (currently).

4. Typically with a MIDI-USB adapter or the XB360 MIDI-PRO adapter. Don't cheap out on the MIDI-USB adapter, either... you need to spend at least $35USD for something that will work out of the box.

I had a rockband 2 drumkit, and I had rb 2 yellow and blue cymbols but if I remember correctly rb 2 cymbals connected straight to the actual corresponding color and not as a seperate "cymbal"? Also if the RB4 drumset underperforms then does that mean if I stick to an RB3 drumset it'll be better?

[scarlet]

Mar 4, 2016 22:04:50 GMT vandorb12 said:

1. Grab a RB2/3/Beatles Wii or PS3 kit and either RB2 or RB3 cymbals (RB4 cymbals only work with the RB4 kit). Check your local thrift shops first before going to big box stores for used gear. Make sure it comes with the appropriate dongle!. Reddit and the Harmonix blog are saturated with comments on how much the RB4 drums under-perform, so if you are aiming for 6 stars and FCs, avoid that kit like the plague. You could go Xbox360, but then you have to buy the XBOX360 wireless adapter.

2. That's not my forte. Check the Rock Band Reddit and Harmonix blog for purchasing guides.

3. No. PS4 needs bluetooth and XBONE instruments don't work even with the XBONE adapter (currently).

4. Typically with a MIDI-USB adapter or the XB360 MIDI-PRO adapter. Don't cheap out on the MIDI-USB adapter, either... you need to spend at least $35USD for something that will work out of the box.

Okay so now I've figured out doing what you said but now I have the issue of double bass. Are there any proper double bass couplers that I can use?

[absorr]

I would recommend you buy a decently priced MIDI drum kit anyways. It may cost a lot, but it will allow you to learn to play drums properly and you can use it outside of the game. I bought a kit and have been learning songs through Phase Shift.

If you go MIDI here is what you need:

- If the kit has an output to USB, Phase Shift is likely already compatible with the kit. You won't need further equipment.
- If not, get the Xbox 360 MIDI-PRO adapter.
- A lot of kits do not come with all of the cables you need, so you may need to purchase either the USB cable or the MIDI cable depending on which of the above two options you go with

Here is all of the things I use in my setup:
Alesis DM7X
USB-A Cable

I also own the Xbox 360 MIDI-Pro Adapter and I've found that actually better than just plugging my drums in directly for Phase Shift, however that will be more than just buying a USB cable.

X360 MIDI Adapter
MIDI Cable

Hope that helped! Happy drumming!