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Iyce
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Joined: 07 Feb 2010
Posts: 6
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 Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 1:50 am Post subject: [SOLVED] DIY A to E Head Sensitivity Issues |
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Hey there!
I have followed the tutorial located here: http://www.edrums.info/acoustic_1.htm to convert my acoustic kit to electronic. The first drum I made works perfectly; it'll pick up even the slightest ghost note near the rim on the mesh head with very little hot-spotting in the middle (where the piezo is located).
However, when I put together my second drum, it has next to no sensitivity across the majority of the drum, except where the piezo is located.
Changes from Tutorial to My Kit:
-Piezo sensor is small (not sure exact diameter, but smaller than the first one I used);
-I created a brace for my 1/4" stereo jack so it's hidden in the shell at the bottom instead of ruining the shell (in case I want to use it as acoustic in the future);
Specifications:
-The Piezo I purchased is smaller in diameter (I heard something about 35mm vs 27mm, so it's likely 27mm);
-I bought the Piezos from a local electronics part store in wholesale, so I don't know any of their specifics
-The Piezos I have have 3 small wires coming from the actual Piezo, going to a circuit board, and out to positive/negative. (I found a post here saying that the middle 'bowling pin' part of the piezo was an exciter circuit and not required, but can't find the post anymore). I cut the 3 small wires from the circuit, soldered the exciter circuit wire and the silver area wire together, and then proceeded as normal with the piezo
Does the size of the piezo make that big of a sensitivity difference? Unfortunately, the supplier here in town didn't have more than 2 larger ones in at the moment so I really hope that isn't the issue.
Any suggestions would be extremely helpful!
Thanks!
Last edited by Iyce on Mon Feb 08, 2010 1:04 am; edited 1 time in total |
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jgrills
Rock & Roll Ratchet
Joined: 05 Jan 2009
Posts: 2214
Location: Austin, TX
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| Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 2:16 pm Post subject: |
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You talked about the differences in the tutorial to your kit. However, to solve your problem, I'd be more interested to hear about the differences between your first and second drum since the first works and the second does not.
Things I'd look at first:
- The mounting of the piezo
- The pressure of the connecting material between the piezo and the mesh head
- Check if the piezo is cracked
If you have spares, you might just swap the piezo element in the second drum out for a new one in case if cracked while you were working on it.
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ViciousLSD
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Joined: 16 Dec 2009
Posts: 36
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| Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 7:08 pm Post subject: |
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| actually what you got is a buzzer = piezo with a circuit board. if your piezo has red, blue and black you can combine red and blue as positive and black as negative. this is actually what i'm using because i wanted my smaller piezos (part 073) for the cymbals |
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Iyce
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Joined: 07 Feb 2010
Posts: 6
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| Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 1:03 am Post subject: |
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| jgrills wrote: | You talked about the differences in the tutorial to your kit. However, to solve your problem, I'd be more interested to hear about the differences between your first and second drum since the first works and the second does not.
Things I'd look at first:
- The mounting of the piezo
- The pressure of the connecting material between the piezo and the mesh head
- Check if the piezo is cracked
If you have spares, you might just swap the piezo element in the second drum out for a new one in case if cracked while you were working on it. |
This was quite helpful. I went and changed the foam I used with a new block and it works almost as well as the first one. Unfortunately, I'm still not certain if the size makes a bit of a difference in terms of sensitivity or not. I'm likely to upgrade to larger piezos if that's the case in the near future.
| Quote: | | actually what you got is a buzzer = piezo with a circuit board. if your piezo has red, blue and black you can combine red and blue as positive and black as negative. this is actually what i'm using because i wanted my smaller piezos (part 073) for the cymbals |
I just asked for a piezo. I know there's transducers and buzzers but I don't know the difference (well, I guess I do now, just not the difference in purpose).
I have been doing what you said, there: The 'exciter'/'bowling pin' part of the piezo and the silvered center area's wires are soldered together so I can use the full surface of the piezo and there's no wasted energy. It works well.
Thanks again for the advice! It did help! |
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