Sensitivity: As a drummer, I do not think the SamplePad Pro measures up enough in terms of detecting subtlety, in comparison to the high-end Roland and Yamaha models. For example, if you play fast double-stroke rolls or rudiments with ghost notes, it just feels a little clunky to play. While this may not be on the level of the Roland V-Drum module, having two velocity layers per pad allows you to play more dynamically with your sounds. If you’re confused by what this means, allow me to explain. Multipad’ is a catch-all term for pads that include multiple functions and quite literally: multiple pads. Each multipad will have different qualities and functions; for example the Alesis Strike MultiPad has a large library as well as 32GB of space for uploading your own samples.

The Yamaha DTX Multi-12 does not offer anywhere near that much space, but it supports finger and hand drumming, with mutable pads, meaning it feels much more realistic to play. Then you’ve got the Nord Drum 3P - also filed under ‘multipad’ - which is a drum synthesizer. Still with us? Okay, let’s get into it. With the exceptional high quality we’ve come to expect from Nord, the 3P displays a vast array of sonic capabilities. It has 200 sounds and a large variety of modulators, oscillators, reverbs, filters and various other FX on-board. You can use these to alter specific aspects of each sound and save them as your own in one of the 400 available banks. There is also a sequencer app for iOS, called Nord Beat, which will make beat-makers and producers feel at home. The six rubber pads are smooth, responsive and a joy to play. The unit comes in at a modest 4lbs (1.85kg) but feels sturdy and road-ready. The downside to the Nord Drum 3P is that it’s priced relatively high when you consider what you can do with it. However, what they are offering is a high quality drum synthesizer for use in live and studio environments. With the SamplePad's easy-to-use interface, you won't be rifling through endless submenus and categories to find the sound your looking for. Simply strike the pad you want to change, dial to the sound you want and you're done. If you discover a great combination of sounds you want to keep together, simply designate it as a kit and the SamplePad will save it for easy recall anytime you want. The Alesis Sample Pad Pro comes pre-loaded with over 200 individual drum and percussion sounds that are versatile and realistic sounding. These sounds are definitely a good platform to get started with into the world of hybrid drumming.

Contents

The SamplePad 4's built in library contains the most commonly requested percussion and drum sounds available, but you can also load your own samples via the front SD card reader.

Featuring 4 highly responsive, LED illumated rubber pads, dual-zone trigger input, and 8 kit presets, the Alesis SamplePad 4 is the ideal solution for all of your drum-effect needs.

Specifications

The Alesis SamplePad is a compact four-pad instrument with 25 sounds built in plus the ability to add any sample to it. Any sound of your choice can be assigned to the four velocity-sensitive pads via way of a standard SD Card - this is perfect addition to you kit or studio setup.

This is particularly useful for modern live performances. Live drummers are learning to adapt to keep up with changing times. Drum triggering is experiencing a revival in modern music, and drummers are required to use sample pads to replicate sounds that appear on a record. However, from using it, it feels like the firmware update just automatically reduced the sensitivity of the problematic pads. When I manually increased the sensitivity again, the cross-talk issues persisted for me. Is that an issue? If you’re using this for more basic playing and drum beats, you might be fine. If you’re expecting this to respond like a snare drum for very fast playing (or an electronic mesh pad) then you might be let down.Importing samples is as simple as dropping them to an SD card and plugging it into your Sample Pad 4. The samples need to be in the root directory of your card. Please note that this extended warranty is currently only available on products sold within the UK, EU or EEA, and is subject to the terms and conditions as detailed on the extended warranty certificate provided. The size and functionality of the SamplePad 4 make it an incredibly useful and flexible piece of gear. With the SD expansion slot, you can load up all of your own samples ready for gigging. Or, you can just play for fun anywhere without having to be tied to a machine. The maximum capacity for SD card storage is 32GB or 512 samples - plenty of space for a wide range of sounds. This means it is fully expandable and you can add your own sounds and loops, so the sound potential is limitless for whatever music you desire to create and play.