Roland TD-50 e-drum pad alternatives: PD-140DS vs drum-tec pro series 14"

www.drum-tec.de
In this video, we compare the drum-tec pro series 14" electronic snare drum to the new Roland PD-140DS digital pad in terms of looks, features/functions & playability.
Although the PD-140DS introduces a new digital trigger generation, the conventional mid-trigger technology is still 100% compatible & up to date for use with the new Roland TD-50 sound module.
You can find all of the components from the video in our online shop:
www.drum-tec.d...
www.drum-tec.d...
Please feel free to leave a comment or ask any question you might have. For further product information, you can also get in touch with our service team directly through [e-mail]
Video shot @ drum-tec West / Spytunes Recording Studio, Mainz
Drumming by Ralf Schumacher

[@GrantEllman]

drum tec snare sounds more dynamic. digital seems unnecessary to me, especially since they could have included a digital throw off for that price

[@TC-ps9sd]

I like the format of your videos where you get to hear the differences between the products without someone advocating for a particular brand. Great job.

[@drumtecTV]

Thank you for your positive feedback! :)

[@robertlucas9867]

Pro: I like the fact I can play cross stick patterns almost naturally now. And the ride is more sensitive. Con: I cannot justify the price. $699 for just the PD-140DS on MusiciansFriend. I know people will argue research and development costs but seriously think about it. We had piezo pickups for years before electronic drum companies started using them. Roland design on piezo pickups is not rocket science. The brain is where the research and development is. Spending $2500 on a TD-50 brain is reasonable because of figuring out how to make it work with pickups and sensors. Roland is smart for finally using USB for pads but you can most likely buy the parts and make it for a fraction of the cost. This is why I'm upset at Roland. Those pads shouldn't cost more than a custom handmade snare for example that takes time to make. Maybe $300 top for a digital pad but as time passes it should drop in cost and value.

[@karlhungus8841]

Musicians Friend? Oy vie. Check out Elevated Audio out of Van Nuys. Fran will hook you up

[@Drumming-Life]

I am absolutely smitten by Drum Tec. At first, I thought your products were extremely overpriced, however, after a ton of research, I’ve come to realize that you guys are at the top of your game in the acoustic/electronic drum industry. You get what you pay for! Sonor has ALWAYS been my favorite drum manufacturer and it’s a huge bonus that your drums are built by the greatest drum manufacturer ever. I am forever a customer and fan of Drum Tec. God bless you all.

[@drumtecTV]

Thank you very much for your kind feedback, that's very nice to hear. Kind regards& happy drumming!

[@creativ-drumsgermany8592]

Superb test. An accomplished player (like Ralf here) will work miracles with the drum-tec Pro Pad; IMO Roland has just advanced a tad - apart from pos. sensing - above their great RT-30HR trigger (given a properly muffled meshhead and painstaking module settings, i. e. on the -30)...

[@HelenRizzo8FYR]

Drum-Tec blows away everyone. The pads, the drums, the service is insanely perfect.

[@drumtecTV]

Thank you very much! :)

[@Drumming-Life]

100%! I wholeheartedly agree!!

[@trevorbelmont4633]

@@drumtecTV Damn i wish we get a discount same for those diabolo.. its been years since I was wanting them

[@drumtecTV]

@@trevorbelmont4633 Well, you never know maybe some time later this year...? Let's see ;-D

[@trevorbelmont4633]

@@drumtecTV OMG.. i was planning of doing a acoustic convert but if there is discount then cmon! lets see

[@Carriesaglock]

I have the Roland pd140ds love the way it plays and looks but Drum Tec just looks sweet! Can’t go wrong with either really.

[@BB-doc-fan]

Just experience both and play them yourself. And don't forget to check and use all the adjustment possibillities from the 50 module (compared to the 30 module). I've done so @ drum-tec >> IT IS a difference playing the new Roland PD-140 compared to the drum-tec snare. I've played the drum-tec snare few years with the TD-30 module to my full satisfaction, but on the TD-50 module the drum-tec snare cannot deal with the new Roland PD-140 snare. Until this fine piece was released it was the other way around, the drum-tec snare stood out against the Roland PD-120 snares, so it's up to drum-tec now to beat Roland again ;-) And I do understand of course why drum-tec posts this comparison, I would have done the same. I wouldn't be suprised if they're already working on the next best thing. And in the meantime I'm playing my drum-tec stainless snare, as for the looks nothing comes even close..

[@cookie135]

I went for the Roland digital snare but the drumtec snare is also good but the side stick on the digital snare is a winner for me.

[@GoranRista]

Great playing. I love the groove, dynamics and the chops!

[@drumtecTV]

Thank you very much Goran! :)

[@soultrain1973]

100% elimination of hotspot is never possible.. also with best settings and tensions with center trigger but is not a problem! 14 snare are the best choice...and 3 ply mesh i play this with drumtec

[@joaodepaula]

You use the PD-140DS? And you still have the Hotspot problems?

[@johnkrummrich4948]

The Roland tracked the positional sensing much better Don't know if you could hear it in a full mix But just drums big difference Thanks for doing this

[@johnkrummrich4948]

Mark king That's cool I just have better results with velocity switching What will the Roland snare do when you hit the head while having your hand on the head.

[@johnkrummrich4948]

Mark king So if my hand is on the head the mesh head will not trigger?

[@johnkrummrich4948]

Mark king That makes it unusable for me One step forward two steps back in my opinion May be great for others

[@johnkrummrich4948]

More people need to know this

[@journeyseb]

Great vid guys!

[@gregwilliams2764]

Drum Tec....winner!

[@PeterMosley]

Would be nice if any reviews including Roland's own would show the midi response of the new set.

[@drumtecTV]

Hi Peter, what do you mean by "midi response"? The midi data that comes out of any electronic drum sound module equals the same "playing quality" as using the module´s internal sounds. That means, the better your module triggers & the better you have adjusted the trigger parameters to your kind of playing, the "better" the midi output quality. Midi basically is a 1-127 control/impulse value, if you are using an appropriate external midi mapping for triggering samples f.e. and assign every single trigger zone & control value (HiHat opening, positional sensing etc) correctly, then you have done everything you can. Bigger modules bring more "midi features" like the positional sensing on snare/toms and now with TD-50 on ride cymbal also. But midi itself will always be the same midi :) Kind regards!

[@olivierdardillac6322]

the thing is : in the new pad pd140s you don't have to change the way you play crossstik, rimclick, or even rimshot. with almost "DIY pad" like drum-tec pad, karrace pad or jobeky pad you can't. You can't place your hand in a middle of the pad without triggering the snare itself. this is the advantage of electro static component ...but the question is is it worth the 699 $ or 699 € ?????

[@drumtecTV]

Hi Olivier, what do you mean by "DIY" like pads? drum-tec does not sell DIY products, but has been offering high quality, fully Roland compatible electronic drum pads for more then 15 years now (hand made in our factory at drum-tec north, the pro series offering a 5 year product warranty). If you consider conventional mid-trigger pads as "DIY", then you would also have to consider Roland PD-108, 128, PDX-100, PD-125, PD-85bk (and so on) as DIY too. This is what we have called "conventional" or "mid-trigger" technology for the comparison. The new side stick feature of the PD-140DS is explicitely shown and mentioned in the video, apart from this the general trigger functionality of both pads is identical (head/rim functionality, positional sensing etc). The main reason for us to do this video was to distract any fears, that the conventional trigger pads might not be compatible or "up to date" with the arrival of the new Roland TD-50 anymore. But they still are fully compatible & work flawlessly, main feature difference being -as stated above- the way you play a rim click. Hope that clears things up a bit. Thank you & kind regards

[@graviton9282]

olivier Dardillac yeah i don't think jobekey is nearly in thesame class as drum-tec. 5 years warranty! you gotta have a really nice product for that. and prices are less than Roland and shell's are customized from Sonor. The triggers you can't just buy yourself. More than 8 or 10 brackets on some of those triggers, if I'm not mistaken. Built like tanks. The list goes on. thank God for a company like Drum-tec having the passion, expertise, and wherewhithall to fill that nitch in the market ! Yay for drum-tec! haha. no really tho...

[@luke_sz77-49]

drumtecTV i think he means that you can't do the cross stick on the pro series pad like you can on the roland digital snare. On the drum-tec pad it doesn't sense the static electricity in your hand. Other than that, I do think that the pro series snare looks nice

[@sierratrey]

Excellent video as usual from drum-tec. Also, as usual, Ralf making it look easy only adding to my theory that he could use plastic knives to hit paper plates and they’d sound good. We are not worthy!

[@drumtecTV]

:-D thank you so much!

[@JasonWelchMusic]

If i could afford a pro set of Drum-tec, 8,10,12,14 toms, 14 snare, and a nice 18x22 kick, I would definitely choose them over the Roland. Drum-tec keeps the look of the traditional acoustical drumset in mind, while Roland keeps putting out uglier electronic kits. Roland is also going backward in pad design. The td8 kit had some decent looking e toms. The new td17 may have a better brain, but chose a toyish feeling pad with a ridiculous white ring around the head, which gives you an even SMALLER playing area. And they're about as loud as a practice pad. Worthless to me. I vote Drum-tec as the winner. Easy choice. The only downside to Drum-tec , is that there are no American Dealers who can offer us products locally without us paying additional import fees.

[@drumtecTV]

Thanks Jason for your nice review. You can get in touch with our service team through [e-mail] at any time for an individual quote incl. int. shipping! :) kind regards

[@mel2401]

Clearly it isn't worth the £2700 upgrade cost over a TD-30. Shame really that it is so expensive, once you open up a Roland pad you can very quickly see just how much you are being ripped off, the profit margin for them must be supreme! Very frustrating.

[@eddieresquivel3544]

Buena dia mi gente de Drumtec, una pregunta: venden las bases donde montan las camaras de movimiento que filman al baterista?? saludos desde Colombia (laitonoamerica)🥁

[@JamesMaxwell-b1o]

There was one brief moment in the Roland "Rim click" section where it seemed like you can mute the drum with your hand. Is that true? If so, it's a huge plus for me as I quite often use hand muting. The natural side-stick technique (i.e., butt of stick on the head) is just way, way better, imho. I wouldn't want to have to learn to play it in a way that just doesn't work at all on an acoustic kit.

[@g.j.haycock1064]

I’m so glad I waited around for electric drums to get this good before I spent that kind of money! Does anyone know if Drum-tec sells through Sweetwater? I love their 3-pay plan, it almost makes spending this kind of money doable!

[@drumtecTV]

Hey G.J. - we distribute our drums ourselves. So as of right now that's the only way to get them. Please get in touch with our team at [e-mail] and included the products you're interested in and we'll provide you with a quote. You can also ask about your payment options!

[@DDandrums]

I think the Roland looks nicer. I love the chrome. Never been a fan of wood finishes apart from the classic Bonham thermogloss.

[@drumtecTV]

Hi, the drum-tec pro snares are also available in stainless steel ;) www.drum-tec.com/drum-tec-pro-snare-14-x-5-5-stainless-steel Kind regards!

[@Captain-Mayday]

I'm completely torn, my TD20 module is faulty and my VH12 is also faulty in its triggering. I don't know what to do, to get a TD27, TD50 (used) or a DrumTec.

[@drumtecTV]

drum-tec diabolo series with TD-27 DP is a great pairing! :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4CUi4ubnpKebLs kzbin.info/www/bejne/jYTTq3eEer-cnrM Kind regards!

[@NBsTube]

2:08 I see what you did there, is not a fair comparison if you place the bottom of the stick in the rim for the drum tec but in the digital snare you can place it in the mesh head directly, I guess that was on purpose because a common double piezo system might try to trigger both the stick and the head sounds, while the digital snare I guess with its 8 or so sensors can figure out your intention of a rim click better.

[@drumtecTV]

This feature is mentioned in the sum up of the comparison actually at the end of the video. The PD-140DS has a pressure sensor, so you can put your hand on the head for rim click. It's basically the most obvious feature which sets it apart from common piezo trigger systems, that's why it is shown. Kind regards!

[@NBsTube]

@@drumtecTV oops commented too soon, thanks for the clarification!

[@PhatSimey]

Can you play cross stick on the Roland the same way as on the Drum-Tec in that video? I have a PD125 as my snare, and like playing cross stick with the stick on the rim at both sides, as it's easier to pick up and play regular snare- for me, anyway!

[@drumtecTV]

I think you'll trigger the "rim only" articulation instead of the "cross stick", if you don't put your hand on the head with the PD-140DS (because of the pressure sensor), but I'd have to double check to make sure :) kind regards!

[@HelenRizzo8FYR]

You guys need more exposure in the US...

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Helen, we do ship to the USA... www.drum-tec.com/shipping-costs-und-payment-options Feel free to spread the word! :) kind regards

[@Crazy-Roland-vDrums]

k so what's the bottom line / verdict ?!

[@dans.4222]

Also wenn man sich das so anschaut scheint der Unterschied so marginal zu sein, dass es kaum ins Gewicht fällt für welches Pad man sich letztlich entscheidet.

[@cookie135]

Would be very interested in checking out your snare. What's the price in the UK?

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Brian, please get in touch with our service team directly through [e-mail] for any product and/or shipping info. You can also check out the online shop on www.drum-tec.com KInd regards

[@cookie135]

drumtecTV will do, thanks.

[@marcalmerasmusic]

Hi guys i have a tricky question please. I’m now using an old td20 module (might,upgrade in the future) with toontrack SD3. With my current set up, i’m not satisfied with positional sensing,, cross stick and rim,shot detection. I’m considering upgrading my diy e-snare with your drum tec pro one OR with a r-drums RTS II snare trigger. i use your real feel 3 ply mesh. Is your trigger system (within drum,tec pro,serie) any better than R-drums, and ir so why please ? I already have the snare shell so it’s not really a + argument for me ;) Thanks in advance guys.

[@drumtecTV]

Please get in touch through [e-mail] for more detailed product info on the pro series triggers. Kind regards!

[@alexhykes3319]

I have a stupid question: is this snare sound possible on the TD-50X as well? Cannot find that sound tbh

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Alex, should be there actually, but cannot tell for sure which one exactly it was that I used. It's been too long ago since I shot the video :) Kind regards!

[@chuckschwartz2194]

Can the usb out on the Roland pad be converted to 1/2 inch to be used with other modules other than Roland?

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Chuck, why would you want to do that? :) no other module would be able to support any of the PD-140DS unique features (positional sensing, pressure sensor for cross stick articulation). Have you had a look at the 100% Roland/ATV/PMP compatible drum-tec diabolo & pro series yet? www.drum-tec.com/pads Kind regards!

[@mazzingazmazzinga5419]

Does drum-tec pro series 14" cross stick need double touch of the rim to work? If yes, it is very difficult to achieve with a 14'' pad.............not comfortable

[@drumtecTV]

What do you mean by "double touch"? Rim click functionality is the same as with the conventional (non-digital) Roland pads. Kind regards

[@mazzingazmazzinga5419]

With "double touch" I mean that stick must touch rim and rim ONLY (not mesh head)?

[@drumtecTV]

Ah now I got it right, sorry :) yes you are right. But you can either play just the upper right side of the rim without laying your hand on the pad, or when playing the rim "correctly" (with your hand reclining on the snare), you can move downwards to the right a little, which makes it a lot easier to play both ends of the stick on the rim. Hope that helps! Kind regards

[@Havron]

@@drumtecTV Hey, question: Why exactly is playing cross-stick in this way necessary in the first place? What happens if you try to do rim clicks while resting your hand on the head of a conventional pad? Does it confuse the head trigger?

[@drumtecTV]

@@Havron Rim click won't trigger accurately & you might cause unwanted triggers on the head with your palm resting on the mesh. Kind regards!

[@josuegutierrez4001]

Do these snares work with the Roland tm 6 Pro ?

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Josue, the Roland digital snare only works with TD-27 / TD-50(X) modules. The drum-tec pads would be compatible generally speaking, please feel free to get in touch through [e-mail] for further assistance. Kind regards!

[@soultrain1973]

@drumtec,hotspot?

[@ZFXJ]

So if you use cross-stick then your palm cannot rest on the head with drum-tec?

[@drumtecTV]

Hi, yes the PD-140DS is the only pad available that has a pressure sensor inside so you can put your palm on the head for cross sticking. Other Roland / ATV or drum-tec pads do not have this feature. The digital PD-140DS snare is compatible with the TD-27 and TD-50 sound modules only. Kind regards!

[@ZFXJ]

@@drumtecTV Thanks for your response!

[@lowag3144]

Hi i have a question, can you use pdx12 snare on td27 module?? im planning to upgrade from td17 to td27

[@drumtecTV]

Sure, all Roland pads & modules are compatible, TD-27 has a trigger preset for the PDX-12 pad. If you get your TD-27 from drum-tec, you'll get the drum-tec Live Sound Edition for free: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4CUi4ubnpKebLs www.drum-tec.com/roland-td-27-sound-module-incl.-live-sound-edition Or you can even get the TD-27 digital upgrade pack right away :) www.drum-tec.com/roland-td-27-upgrade-pack-incl.-live-sound-edition TD-27 modules will be in stock again soon, please get in touch through [e-mail] for any further questions! Kind regards

[@lowag3144]

@@drumtecTV hi thanks for your response, actually i also sent email yesterday but no response. Do you offer trade in plus cash?

[@drumtecTV]

@@lowag3144 Oh sorry to hear that, hope you get a response quickly. I am sorry I cannot give you any further info on trade in, please try again via mail or call up our hotline in Germany if you like [phone] Kind regards!

[@acastic493]

Can you plug this snare into a Roland TD17kvx

[@drumtecTV]

The drum-tec pro series is 100% compatible with all Roland modules (the TD-17 won't support positional sensing though), while the Roland PD-140DS is only compatible with the TD-27 & TD-50(X) modules. You can find more info on all drum-tec pads here: www.drum-tec.com/pads Feel free to get in touch through [e-mail] for further assistance if you like. Kind regards!

[@Miesn]

Also Digitalpad hin oder her aber einen wirklichen Unterschied gibt es zwischen den beiden Pads ehr nicht.

[@tibormagyari5270]

Drum tec!!!!!!!!

[@drumtecTV]

:-D

[@remsim]

All electronic pads are overpriced. Very overpriced... I have Drum Tec Pro series snare drum and I don't understand why its so expensive.

[@drumtecTV]

All drum-tec pads are handmade in Germany, they are compatible with all common sound modules, play great & you get 5 years of warranty with the pro series in addition to the individual drum-tec customer service that you can make use of. :) Kind regards

[@GabrielGuilhermeBateria]

I found that the test was not performed with complete exemption. Its clear that the musician played better with the Drum-tec pad. The cross stick function is worse too. At the begining os the video i was very excited with the new pad, but when i realized that the test isn't precisely honest when the drummer was playing both pads, My interest totally fell... Honestelly, I felt cheated. (I'm from Brasil, so please do not notice the english errors)

[@drumtecTV]

Dear Gabriel, be assured that there is absolutely no intent in "cheating" anybody here. Those are two different pads with different trigger technology & different mesh heads (resulting in different rebound & playing feel). So even a robot would have problems playing exactly the same on both. I´m only human, so please excuse if I made you feel cheated (why should you? there is no "this pad is better than the other conclusion in the video, is there?) Best solution as always: come to one of our showrooms and test both for yourself. Might be difficult from Brasil though, as we are situated in Germany ;) kind regards

[@Sissling]

How about brushes ??

[@drumtecTV]

No brush sweep patches on TD-50 unfortunately, with TD-30 you can use very basic brush sweeping. Kind regards!

[@BigBurgerBoy557]

I like the roland more

[@drumtecTV]

Because of what? :)

[@joepereira7967]

Roland any day

[@drumtecTV]

Hey Joe, why exactly? :) apart from the fact that you can put your hand on the head when playing rim click with the Roland PD-140DS, there is no actual difference in functionality. You can also check out a more recent comparison demo if you like: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jGiVn2uPiqt3l7M Kind regards!

[@stevengrantofthegiftshop1549]

Wait less than a year guys. I'm sure Roland will introduce a cheaper version of this where we can actually afford the module :) (Or at least more so than this £2K module!)

[@Qogicx]

What trigger is install on the drum-tec 14" pro series?

[@drumtecTV]

Hi, for any product related questions, please get in touch with our service team through [e-mail] directly. Kind regards!

[@gatlinproduction]

Roland

[@ctld5266]

2500€ for a td50 wich sound like machine gun, I still don't get it... Better to get a pc with rme sound card, dsp trigger pro and Superior drummer. My 2 cent.

[@drumtecTV]

Hi Christian, well but how would you feed your pads´signals into the computer then? :) you need a well working sound module as trigger interface in any case for the midi output, and apart from the onboard sounds, Roland module triggering & playability is state of the art & the best working solution available (in combination with great pads/cymbals and the right trigger settings). You can go with the much cheaper TD-17 f.e. if you don´t need all of the inputs/outputs & extras that the TD-50 comes with. Kind regards!

[@ctld5266]

@@drumtecTV the piezo in the pad transmit a signal you can get in your sound card, no need for a drum module at 2,5K€ just to convert into midi... That is what I do, and it works perfectly fine. Just put triple ply mesh head on your drum, a trigger, connect that to your pc and you're fine. No need to put 5K for that

[@drumtecTV]

@@ctld5266 How do you transmit a stereo trigger signal into your soundcard, through a preamp? How do you convert this electric signal into midi? And how do you trigger multizone cymbals & hihat controller? You should probably upload a full playing & sound demo of that setup :) kind regards

[@ctld5266]

​@@drumtecTV I don't really get your remark... stereo means to signal 2 out => transmitted to 2 inputs of your card with Y cable. pretty simple. Regarding cymbals, you can do what you want, you won't get the feel of real hi hat. My preference is to go with low volume cymbal and hats miked under for live or studio use, so i have no need for multizone cymbal. The question is more about what you it to sound like, and feel, than anything else. If you go the trigger way, you can treat the signal before the conversion in midi. If you want to know, I used to have a full drumtec e kit (1 kik, 1 snar, 1 hat, 2 crash 1 ride, 4 toms with td 30. And at the end of the day, the shell goes the trigger way inside my rme multiface with 2 inputs for the snare, and a berhinger ADA 8200 Octo pre, to deal with cymbals, that I miked with audio line cm3. Everything goes into reaper, and superior 3. Works like a charm

[@ctld5266]

Regarding to conversion into midi, I use a vst called dsp trigger

[@petrovslot4070]

Only yamaha dtx drums

[@alanvaughan2937]

Drum Tech sounds natural compared to the Roland ..quite surprised by that

[@rexross6808]

this is absolutely pointless

[@drumtecTV]

Hi Rex, the video clears up basic questions concerning trigger compatibility with the new Roland TD-50 sound module & delivers an honest comparison of new digital and conventional mid-trigger systems. What´s pointless about that?

[@rexross6808]

Ah I guess I misunderstood the purpose

[@jackhwthorne]

this video is so biased lmao. why make a video comparing a product you made to something you didn't? leave the comparing to someone who isn't involved

[@drumtecTV]

In what concern is the video biased? It shows general playability & basic functions of both pads, as we had received many questions concerning the similarities & differences between the "conventional" and new digital trigger systems in practical everyday use, so making a demo video was the logical conclusion. There neither is any biased sales opinion nor rating inside the video, just a demo of both pads, so how can it be biased? We sell both drum-tec as well as Roland pads, so it would make no sense to be biased. Kind regards

[@jackhwthorne]

well it looks to me like the guy playing used different techniques comparing the pads such as zoning, when he clearly played the center louder on your pad than roland's, or used different sounds for each drum. also, i think it would make sense to be biased because if you sold a roland pad as opposed to yours, one would assume that you would profit more off of yours than roland. I could be wrong and don't mean to be rude in any way, just expressing my opinion. Kind regards

[@drumtecTV]

Well, the guy is me & being human & not a roboter, I tried my very best to be as neutral as possible. And there were no different sounds used, it is the same sound preset in both cases. What do you mean by "different techniques"? :) I used the same stick techniques in both cases and play comparable stickings as well, honestly no idea what I could have done better or in a more "neutral" way. Sorry & kind regards

[@imrvn]

Isn't this free marketing for Roland as well?

[@drumtecTV]

absolutely :)