trying to build midi drum triggers

I am trying to build something like a malletkat and was wondering how to wire midi. My drummer knows alot about wiring however we can not find anything that helps us in understanding and wiring midi. If anyone on here could help that would be great.

I know how to make the triggers, but not get them converted to MIDI. However, I've been looking at building a MIDI kit for a while now to use with VSTi's...

I'd love more info on making the triggers work for MIDI as well!

Well, you are generally ging to be looking at using something like a Microcontroller to do the MIDI event processing

(you are going to have to do some data processing, it isn't just signal conditioning)

you might be able to find some kits, then again, a better option may be to just pick up an older edrum module (like an alesis D4 or something) and use the MIDI out

That's what I figured the case would be. How much are modules like that? I know the triggers can be made cheap - sub $100 for a whole kit if you shop smart - but modules can be pricey. If they can be had a bit cheaper for a decent one, you could end up with a pretty nice E-Drum set for not a lot of money...

I am wanting something more like malletkat would this work for hat to?

just depends I've seem D4s go from $60 to $150 on the local CL

so it's kinda just shopping around

The old "piezo buzzer" triggers work decently well - it's kind of a question about on what do you mount them (and if you are a drummer) -- mesh head stuff like a pearl rhythm traveller kit (kind of the darling of the DIY edrum comminity of few years back) works decenlty well with the "film canister-buzzer-nerf dart" brew, but they misalign decently fast, so there is some tweakage that needs to be done occasionally (no big deal really)

One nice think abt that approach with the mesh heads...you can read the p-buzzer input as an audio signal too...mix a little bit of that in and it gives a little more "acoustic feel"

Not too keen on the neoprene -over-wood practice pad thing...it doesn't feel right for press rolls and stuff, and if the neoprene isn't bouncey enough it can eventually make your elbow sore (this was a problem with the early hard simmons pads as well)

so for the module, it's just sort of a matter of shopping around. You might be able to hit the microcontroller communites and see if someone has some ready-made stuff

but, to be honest, it's probablly going to be less hascular for a one-off just to source a module

well, in terms of technical implementation, yes

the problem there is the limit on the number of triggers

so what would i use to get enough inputs?

tough one

I mean you are looking at multiple octaves with a trigger for each (now, I suppose you could work some sort of "voice stealing" type system out, but that still brings us back to develop the microprocessing)

for an app like that, you may want to think not so much "electronic drums" but rather hacking the encoder of a velocity sensitive keyboard and that could vary from individual unit to individual unit

I don't have much to offer you there (I'm suck in the J-wire days )

I fear, either way it's gonna cost ya...maybe even try hitting up "make" magazine or some of the (less music oriented) hobby electronics communities too

thanks for the help. I know absolutely nothing about midi. Do you know how to actually wire midi cables?

Well, MIDI cables are really simple they are really no more complicated than mic cables for instance (it's just straight across pin to pin)

MIDI data is serial (the bits follow each other down a pair of conductors and are encoded and decoded by microprocessor)..it's a data STREAM

but that's not really going to help you much with implementing triggers -- all the complexity is in ENCODING the MIDI data

so, if you are thinking "all I have to do is get the signal from a trigger wired to the correct pin on a MIDI cable and it'll drive a synth" -- it doesn't really work that way, it's more akin to how IP packets work across the internet

http://members.cox.net/ampage/triggers.htm

I can't believe how long I've hung onto that link, I'm surprised that I haven't deleted it.

sadly, his/her application (essentially a midi marimba) has some extra complexity...not in the triggers themselves, but in the number of channels needed in the "brain"

thanks I have found how to wire a controller however it is not velocity sensitive and I do not know what makes it so.

Nice.