We already covered some benefits of using electronic drums, and there are some great reasons why you should use them, but there can also be some annoyances that come when playing electronic drums – especially with the older kits.
6 Reasons Why Most Electronic Drum Kits Are Annoying
1. The module usually has poor sampled sounds. Let’s be honest, unless you are buying a high-end kit and dropping a lump sum, you’re not getting all the bells and whistles in terms of features and quality sounds. You will have a few standard kits and basic options to choose from, but there’s a great frustration that comes with not having the right sound for the right song.
2. Triggers could stop working at anytime. This personally happened to me. We were on tour and this church insisted that we use their setup. They had an electronic kit and the kick trigger “died” in the first song of our worship set. I was obviously not happy and had to figure out a quick solution (I ended up reconfiguring the kick to my floor tom and played “kick” with my right hand).
I realize this is probably not gonna happen on every occasion, but it can get to a point where it becomes annoying when your trigger decides to call it quits.
3. They usually have cheap rubber pads. I know that nowadays, churches have started to upgrade their electronic kits, but I’ve seen many churches who still use the kit featured above. The cheap rubber pads have limited abilities. For example, you can only have one snare sound at a time. That means you have no simple option to play rim clicks or to play with snares off.
Another dilemma that I’ve seen arise is between the rubber pads and the triggers. For example, you hit the floor tom. It causes a vibration that also triggers the crash cymbal at the same time. NOT FUN!
4. They require a power outlet and headphones/amp to be heard. Contrary to your acoustic drums, where playing requires only drum sticks and a human with a heartbeat, an electronic kit requires you to be close to a power outlet. But don’t stop there, you will also need a decent pair of headphones
5. Cymbal swells suck! I’ll never forget the time when we had to do a special at this one church. Of course, I was using their electronic kit and, of course, the song started with a beautiful cymbal swell. Well, it wasn’t beautiful and it didn’t swell well. It sounded more like accented 16th-notes on a crash cymbal! #FAIL
My momma always said, "Electronic drums are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get!"
6. They can be homemade. Yes, never rule it out! There may be times when you will come across a homemade electronic drum kit from a flat-out geeky nerd-drummer. Take my word for it, they exist and they’re annoying [most of the time].
What’s Your Experience?
So there you have 6 reasons why most electronic drums are annoying but i know that there are many more. What other things annoy the heck out of you when playing on electronic drums? I’d love to hear your stories!
[This post is part of a series of posts on Electronic Drums In Worship]
Yep E-Drums suck and if you play a gig somewhere you should always use your own gear no matter what. If you are a professional band and have pro gear don’t ever let some church talk you into using their carp e-drums cause churches will never spend any real money on getting good ones(If there is such a thing). I grew up in the 80’s and played plenty of e-drums from the old simmons pads to top of the line v-drums and now as a musicians I refuse to play an electronic set. I still use pads to the side sometimes to trigger but not a full set. If I show up to do a gig with $5000.00 worth of drums I am gonna use them.