Roland HD-1

Some of the more recent electronic kits coming from Roland have been upgrades to previous incarnations, which have been discontinued and replaced with newer models (as in the TD8, which was effectively replaced by the TD12). The HD1, however, is a totally new 'drums-in-the-living-room' concept. It is lightweight, compact (small enough to be able fit in between the occasional table and sideboard), highly portable, and comes complete with around 70 samples similar to those found other V-Drum models — unlike the other systems though, none of these are editable. Of course there are many other similarities to its elders, but given that this system has the drum pedals actually built in, this is like no other I have seen before, and in many respects it is truly unique.

Opening up the cardboard box reveals a selection of aluminium tubing with three pads attached, the sound module, AC adaptor, three cymbal pads, one mesh snare pad, left and right foot-pedal assembly, a drum key, a screwdriver (with reversible Phillips to flathead), all necessary bolts, screws and, finally, a DVD case which contains the actual DVD plus a set-up guide and user manual.

As the eight-inch tom pads come pre-attached to their own individual supporting arms, it's simply a matter of fitting the three cymbal pads, attaching the pedals, the drum module and the eight-inch snare. Of the four drum pads here, the three toms have thick rubber toppings, while there is a mesh-headed model for the snare. All pads have a single transducer, and therefore will only be able to trigger one sample at a time — features like cymbal chokes, simultaneous rim shot and snare sounds etc, are not possible. But isn't this is a five-drum setup? Well, yes it is, but the fifth 'drum' element is actually part of the integral pedal assembley, and is employed for the bass drum (which is mirrored by the pedal at the opposite side for the hi-hat). Out of the box, the HD1 is set up for right-handed players, but since the pedals are a mirror of each other, all that's needed is to swap these and a couple of pads around, and it becomes a kit made especially for a lefty.

The HD1's sound module is quite small (about the size of a postcard) but, with just two rotating knobs and seven buttons located on the front panel, it is extremely simple to operate. Access to the outside world is via sockets situated on the left-hand side of the HD1 module, and these comprise MIDI Out, Mix In (for jamming along to an MP3 player or other audio source), Output and Headphones, with audio I/O connections via mini jack. To the right-hand side is the on/off switch and the socket for the power supply. Power is by mains only, so I cannot help thinking it would have been great to have the option to use the HD1 with a battery for practice away from a mains power source, to make it truly portable. This little module sits atop the rack/stand (away from where it could get whacked), and by the clever use of a 25-pin D-Sub (similar to a computer printer port, prior to USB), has all the necessary pad and pedal cables pre-wired — further cutting down on the set-up time and requiring much less room than having to house a multitude of standard jack sockets.

Bursting into life at the flick of a switch, LEDs beneath the kit buttons flutter around the HD1's surface. I begin by holding down each of these in turn for a few seconds, starting a small demo sequence of each of the selected kits. With only five selection buttons, but ten actual kits (accessible by clicking on the Variation button) to choose from, it doesn't take too long to have a taster of each of them. The pre-programmed kit sounds are as follows: Acoustic (a standard acoustic kit), Jazz (featuring a sizzle ride cymbal), Power (a huge, powerful kit with tonnes of reverb), Double Bass (similar to the Power kit, but the hi-hat pedal turns into a second bass drum pedal — cool!), Drums & Percussion, World (featuring various percussion instruments from around the world), Electronic (with sounds from Roland's TR808), Dance, Voices and Droid.

To give the HD1 a thorough testing under normal striking conditions, I have gainfully employed the kit at a couple of band rehearsals (playing a mix of blues and rock) — and I have recorded the results too! Sitting down at the kit for the first time, I notice the pedals are higher up than on my usual kit. I therefore have to make a few adjustments to the drum stool, raising it up about three inches or so to achieve my preferred playing position. It doesn't take long to feel comfortable with the small pads and even smaller playing area, and before long I am flitting around the kit with little effort. In conjunction with the hi-hat cymbal pad, the hi-hat manages to work fairly convincingly and pretty much in the same way as its acoustic equivalent. However, without all the mechanics and the associated rebound from a pad or bass drum, the feel of the kick pedal is vastly different to a real bass drum pedal — but then, it is almost totally silent. This does take a lot of practice and 'playing in' before I start to feel relaxed. Some beats that require a rebound (John Bonham or Travis Barker bass-drum beats, for example) are difficult or just impossible to play.

A peculiar aspect of this is that the playing demands a slight alteration to my pedal technique. It seems that different muscles have come into play here and I can actually feel a couple of small aches as my usual dodgy technique is adapted and applied. For anyone who hasn't played on a 'normal' kit though, they would simply not notice, and when they do eventually go onto a normal bass-drum pedal, I am sure they would instantly have an amazing bass-drum technique! This will also certainly benefit anyone living in a flat below a drummer of almost any electronic kit owner — one whose ceiling would have rattled each time the bass drum was hit with a more conventional bass-drum pedal.

As expected, the toms (with their thick rubber padding) and snare pad have different feels and give a slightly different stick response. Both are extremely quiet, but the adjustable fine-mesh head on the snare gives an excellent bounce back and return upon each stick stroke. The toms are still very playable, but have slightly less bounce. For some this would be exactly the same (if not better!) than the response on their own acoustic kit setup, with the snare crispy and tight, and the toms much, much slacker for a more beefy sound.

For practice routines, Roland have thoughtfully provided an onboard metronome with three levels of volume — soft, medium and loud. There are also three choices of metronome sounds, including click, cowbell and maraca. The tempo range is adjustable from 40 to 220 beats per minute but, as there is no graphic segment, it's impossible to determine the speed of the metronome and therefore pretty much pot luck — unless of course you happen to prefer playing at either 40 or 220bpm!

Initially, I was concerned about the individual levels of each sample or voice, thinking that the bass drum was too loud or the hi-hat and cymbals were far too quiet in comparison. This was particularly worrying as there is no individual adjustment of the pad volumes, just an overall control of the triggering velocity. Having listened to a playback of the recording though, the levels seem pretty much spot on. The selection of kits and general sounds is a bit limited, but sufficiently varied, with a mix of four or five very usable kits, and some gimmicky voice samples which sound like they must have been sampled from the hot scene of a porno movie. The Acoustic kit is probably the most useable, with the toms being very well sampled — so well, in fact, that I am sure I can hear the bottom head flapping on the floor tom! This actually does sustain a bit too much for my liking (gaffer tape or Moongel won't help here!), but it's only noticeable when the kit is played without any other music source being present.

Some of the samples are triggered or sounded when the pads or pedals are played just that little bit harder. One particular example of this is a small 'boing' sound appended onto one of the bass drums. Also, the ride cymbal goes from the bow to the bell depending on the velocity of the stick. When you've tired of the onboard sounds — and this is when the MIDI interface will come in handy — you can always record the performance into a sequencer, and play it back using an external MIDI sound module or sample library.

Roland do suggest that this kit is "perfect for home, office, project studio or live performance". As for the 'office' bit, I am not sure if the boss around here would appreciate that very much, but I cannot think of a better relief from stress than having this kit set up permanently, so maybe I'll put this in the suggestion box. Under the right circumstances, this kit would be very useful for live performances — perhaps not Wembley, but certainly at a small club, pub or house party. Unfortunately, although many of the sounds are very good, they are limited, and I suspect MIDI will prove to be a useful companion to expand the system once the user gets cheesed with the onboard sounds. But it's now possible to own something from the seriously cool V-Drums range without shelling out a fortune, and that's got to be good news.  0