'How To' Articles, Product Guides

Kick It! How To Take Your Biggest Drum Anywhere

Let’s face facts. Kick drums are not the easiest instrument to transport. Sure, they sound fantastic but they’re bulky, require space and if you’re busking solo, can become cumbersome and might even need amplifying.

On top of that, kick drums can sound wildly different depending on what you use them for. Do you want a classic, Bonham-style acoustic thud? Maybe you want a deep, TR-808 boom! Perhaps it’s a snappy yet simple stomp box sound you’re after? What if you need all of those tones and more for a set?!

Collecting different types of kick drums and shaping kick sounds can become a never-ending task. At a live performance, you’re basically regulated to one sound, unless you bring triggers and samples into the mix. But that’s more gear and more time checking your sound, which can be stressful if you’re on the clock.

With all this in mind, it’s understandable that any artist requiring diverse kick drum sounds will explore other options. This could be for simplicity, needing a large tonal palette, or to cut down on extra gear!

Enter the Roland SPD::ONE KICK.

Ideal for buskers, guitarists, drummers, DJs and other performers in need of kick and percussion sounds instantly, the SPD::ONE KICK bypasses the grief of transporting heavy drums and complicated electronic setups and goes straight for the thump.

Contributed by Simon Ayton and Byron Struck for Roland Corporation Australia

Keep It Simple Stupid!

The SPD::ONE KICK is a single zone trigger pad with 22 built-in electronic percussion sounds. Included are kick drums, stomp boxes, shakers, cowbells, and more for quick and easy use in performance. You also have the ability to add your own sounds!

The heavy-duty metal shell allows you to stomp on it by foot, or hit it with sticks. It’s also sensitive enough to be played with hands.

Integrating It Into Your Setup

The SPD::ONE KICK functions on the floor or tabletop. It also comes with a mounting plate, allowing for clamping like a cowbell to your kit.

On the side of the SPD::ONE KICK are SENSITIVITY and THRESHOLD controls, for quick adjustment without the need to dive into complicated menus.

Headphone and audio outputs on the back provide a connection to your onstage monitoring and front-of-house mixer respectively.

In Use

Four chunky front panel knobs and a small button allow you to choose a sound, or a variation/alternative. Adjust the TUNING, add some Reverb or Distortion via the FX and off you go!

Adjusting the Sensitivity allows you to control the dynamics of the sample. The Threshold allows you to eliminate accidental false triggering.

The SPD::ONE KICK can be externally powered or used with the included batteries, to reduce cable clutter or when busking.

This Goes To 12

For those times when the exact sound is required, Instrument slot 12 is free for your own custom WAV sample. This can be up to 5 seconds long. As with the internal sounds, this user sample can be velocity dynamic and you can change its pitch and add effects to it too.

Importing the user sample into the SPD::ONE KICK is a simple case of connecting via the included USB cable and dragging and dropping any 44.1 kHz, 16 bit WAV file into the SPD::ONE KICK. A simple button push on the SPD::ONE KICK finalises the import. The user sample will remain in slot 12 for your next gig, even when you power down the pad.

Wait, There’s More!

The USB integration allows your DAW to recognise the SPD::ONE KICK as a MIDI input device for using with any MAC/PC sequencing program.

This means that you can program note performances directly from the SPD::ONE KICK. It’s much more fun than using a keyboard and often produces more authentic results!