Expense vs. Compromise

I don't really know anything about e-drums but I can share with you my general thinking. I apply this to audio gear, furniture, clothes... whatever.

1) I don't have enough money to buy cheap stuff. Old timey phrase... just means that cheap stuff often needs to be replaced. Measure twice, cut once.

2) That said, we live in times (especially in audio world) where sometimes you're paying for things that aren't real. It's one thing to "get that extra 10%", it's another to just be paying for a brand. My favorite go-to is my Epiphone Masterbilt guitar which is just simply better than guitars costing 2x that much. I don't care if those guitars have a "better" name on the headstock, they're not better. Same applies to cars and a lot of other things. I don't mind paying for things I think are better (I own Neve gear, Neumann gear) but I don't mind buying things that are good and cheap (I use my DBX 160x on literally every mix). The two favorite cars I've owned were a Honda Fit and a BMW 328i. I loved them equally.

3) I'm starting to think that there are some things that you just get what you pay for. Those things are shoes and microphones.

4) I'm starting to think nobody gives a shit if my shoes are Goodyear welted or not and I'm wondering if everyone I know is tired of me trying to push the Beyer m160 on them.

5) Most of my shoes and most of my mics will still be great 20 years from now. And I could very easily never buy another pair of shoes or another microphone and be just fine.

6) MOST IMPORTANT... does it get multiple uses? And if I hate it can I get rid of it? Those are the real keys, especially the first one. I really don't like specialty gear. For anything. Yeah, yeah, I know... every tool for its purpose. I get that. But some tools have a purpose of having multiple purposes, I prefer those tools.

7) Last point...and this might seem contradictory, I myself don't want to be a multi-purpose tool. So yeah I want versatile things but those things are all driving towards a very specific vision. It's just the way I am. I have a specific way my home looks, a specific sense of clothing style, a specific way I think hockey/baseball/football players should play, a specific taste in food, a specific way I want my music to sound, and a specific way I want YOUR music to sound if you're recording with me. If you don't like it, that's fine... go eat/wear/listen to/look at something else.


So what does this mean for you? Who knows. Just don't buy shit you can't sell later, that's my main advice. Other than that, follow your gut.

Absolutely consider resale, sometimes that means spending more or finding sleepers or sticking to name brands. I’ve built almost my entire studio by buying and reselling, not for huge gouge profits, often times giving stuff to friends for free, but the appreciation of classic gear is very real and it has paid for nearly every piece of kit I have at this point. Before you buy see who else is buying, and for how much…if you think something is cool and they’re rotting on eBay and reverb, maybe reconsider

Am I seeing correctly - $3k+ for a fancy electronic kit and you still need to buy a brain for it?!!!

I recognize this is not my lane, but I am genuinely curious about what benefits this route provides over an acoustic kit with or without triggers and BFD for a whole lot less $$?

I think it's a personal question, so not sure what anyone else can add, unless they can describe their own personal view on what's "necessary." Like for example, my need for 'shoes' is pretty utilitarian, and low budget, not even needing a philosophy.

Objectively, from an outside view, many of us have gone WAY TOO FAR already, to some arbitrary viewer. Do you really need all that stuff? No, not really. Could you do more with less? Almost definitely.

It nearly becomes a question of ethics or responsibility. Are you properly spending the money that's allotted to you? Are you neglecting other necessary things?

Many of us are "professional hobbyists," with some exceptions, so in that context, what do YOU want or need? Are you having fun yet? You should be!

I am at the same time satisfied and unsatisfied with my Yamaha DTX502 Frankenstein kit. It will never equal my medium-high end acoustic drum set in the other room. But it allows me to work silently, which is why I use it. Half of what I play on there is unusable. And half of it comes out "OK" for what I would be "OK" with releasing to the public. I guess that's not bad. I use Superior Drummer 3 and sometimes other software. I end up playing more than if I didn't own E-Drums so it's a net positive. My e-drum rig is about $1,000 worth of hardware, and $400 worth of software.

Vocal microphones. Largely unnecessary to have more than one, once you have one that's ideal. UNLESS you are working for the public. Then yes, you need some options. Again "need" in some sort of quotation marks. This is not the kind of thing where you need different sounds like guitar gear. The voice just needs to sound good. Be the audience darling singer that carries their preferred mic around with them to studios. Just pick one!! Carefully, yes, but just one.

That said the Serrano 87 is the best sounding mic I have and it’s literally one of the cheapest ones I have so... go figure

That's why I love the shoes analogy. I don't really like buying shoes but I like having nice shoes. I have three pairs that are probably way more than most people would ever spend but I went through a few years where I needed to dress up for work and didn't feel like buying new shoes ever again! 

But your ethics question is one of my favorites. There are definitely things that are just silly to spend money on and that's really more of a personal thing. Hard to answer for someone else. I think about that a lot though.

It helps my conscious to hire real people to do things and to try to buy from local artisans and such. You know... see if a handyman can repair that table. Buy that piece of gear from people you know are contributing to the economy positively (like so many of our forum friends here!). It's not the only answer but keeping money in local circulation I think is a real thing that makes a difference. 

I like the car one too as you saw in my original reply.

There are also people (like my wife) to whom cars just don't matter. She only cares about one thing... is it safe? (Yeah I know, what a cliche.) So for her buying a car because it's fun to drive and makes her happy would be utterly stupid no matter how much it costs and she'd be the first to tell you that.

In other words people need different things, people are themselves different, and people have different ways of doing things. 

Back to music!

I can't believe how much e-drums seem to cost these days. Or maybe they always were that expensive? I clicked around a little bit and holy crap. So I have a suggestion... this seems like the sort of thing where someone with more money than sense (or talent) might have a super-awesome electronic kit and is looking to unload because it's taking up space.

Kind of thing where you can get a $4k kit for $2.5k if you'll pick it up today.

I got a very playable Gretsch kit that way. "$400 if you'll get it today." Catalina Birch in mint condition with snare... yeah, not a custom DW or anything but I've had more than one drummer decline to load their kit in and just play mine instead. Dude who sold it lived in a place that looked like the White House and just didn't want them anymore. Drums and pianos, they take up space if you don't love 'em.

Lol... Sorry I know I've taken this out of context but that's funny and probably the primary issue. I wouldn't bat an eyelid at a U67 if it was perfect for my voice and I kept it for the next 30 years or so.

The prices of them are a bit silly and they are ever changing.. The Pearl mimic is essentially SSD5 in a module, somehow it sounds better than SSD for whatever reason (probably because the kit samples were made by drumtec) and it works with most e-drum hardware, you can swap mic's out, EQ, add compression etc. and save it all to a preset. Use it live, for practice against new songs, use it as a recordable acoustic drum replacement and once you've got your e-drum set up you just hit record.. It's simple, straight forward, there's no messing around with VST's or potential midi issues.

Plus, y'know what custom sample packs for the modules sound different at least.

One thing I've gained from experience is get the source right and the mixing part is steady away, so I recon the mimic is the ultimate module for me.. On its own fine, added to an e-drum kit hmmm.. That's where we start talking big $$$'s, however whenever I start looking at cheaper kits I get flashbacks of screw joints constantly coming loose, bass drums travelling across the floor etc. 

It's good either way for me, I've no issues with challenging assertions and heated debates. Not that this is one, it's all rather tame.. Cup of tea and a cucumber sandwich anyone?

Yeah it's not meant to be anything serious.. I'm a bit too logical for my own good sometimes but the fact is there's no venue's left to play, I'll be lucky if even my friends / family listen to my demo and music is just a financial pit. That's when I sort of shrug my shoulders and say what's the point?

However ultimately I suppose one concedes to the fact they're a music nut and will do anything they can to be happy with what they create. Plus drumming / recording is good exercise, it's a challenge and it allows for a reprieve from the stresses of the world.. I've tried to quit audio completely on more than one occasion and it never works.. I suppose it's one of those hobbies where logic and reason has to take a sideline for a bit.

Personally, having been doing this professionally my entire adult life (which isn't that long, I'm 34) I've acquired more than enough equipment to "do the job". But, I run a studio and the clients I work with are often familiar with gear and will ask "do you have a U67" or "do you have a U47" or whatever piece of gear. And when I don't, I can tell that they feel like that may be making a compromise with their recording. Now, sometimes you put up your alternative and it sounds great and they are happy, but when they've heard the best (or whatever they've been told or believe is the best) it obvious it in the back of their mind.

The best comparison I can make is with guitars...if you are a say an acoustic guitar player and you make your living doing that, sure you can own a Collings or Bourgeois or whatever D28 inspired guitar and it'll sound great, but you're still going to want a pre-war Martin. And when you pull out a guitar like that, even if it doesn't sound as good as that other guitar, there's some psychological thing that happens as a player and to those around you.

All that to say, if this purchase is something you are buying to make a living and you feel like in the back of your mind you are making a compromise and there's a chance you're going to end up selling whatever you buy now to get what you really want, just buy what you really want now. The exception is, as other have mentioned, if the alternative is at a good price that you know you'll be able to get your money back or make money on when you sell it.

Those sound OK.  I always find electronic kit samples too staccato sounding.  I think the plugin stuff like SSD sound better.

But that's coming from me, a 30 year drummer, who would never personally buy (or use) an electronic kit because I hate the way they feel when I play them.  I'm only just now coming around to using samples in mixing too.