Pads settings

Every pad setting screen has common fields:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Note: D2 38 

where:

• CH04: - input number
• SnareH - input name where H or B stands for Head or Bow (for even inputs) and R or E stands for Rim or Edge (for odd inputs),
• Note: - pad setting name
• D2    38 - setting value

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Note:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Note: D2 38 

Input's note. D2 is note name and 38 is MIDI note number.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Channel:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Channel: 10 

Input's MIDI channel. Default is 10 on all channels.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Curve:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Curve: Log1 

Hit level curve. Sets input signal strength to MIDI level adaptation function for the input. Can be set to Linear, Log1, Log2, Log3, Exp1, Exp2, S1, S2, Strong1, Strong2, Max.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->ComprLvl:

<Ch04: SnareH >
ComprLvl: 0 

Compression level on the input. Can be set between 0 and 7. Here is an illustration of the effect this setting has on a MIDI note velocity depending on the applied compression level (0 - top line, 7 - bottom line) and input hit strength with a Linear curve setting:

Next screen ChXX: PadName->LvlShift:

<Ch04: SnareH >
LvlShift: 0 

Level shift on the input. Can be set to 0, 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, 48 or 56. Here is an illustration of the effect this setting has on a MIDI note velocity depending on the applied level shift (0 - bottom line, 56 - top line) and input hit strength with a Linear curve setting and compression level 7:

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Xtalk:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Xtalk: 2 

Crosstalk suppression level. Can be set between 0 (no crosstalk suppression) and 3 (strongest crosstalk suppression). If the drum kit has parasitic vibrations transmitted from one pad to another it can trigger signals on pads which were not hit thus producing false MIDI signals. Adjusting this setting you can try to mitigate this problem. Be warn that with a poorly built kit no crosstalk suppression can help to avoid the problem.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->XtalkGrp:

<Ch04: SnareH >
XtalkGrp: 0 

Crosstalk suppression group of the input. Can be set between 0 and 3. By default all inputs are placed into the same group meaning that the Xtalk setting will be evaluated  against signals from all pads. If some of your pads are physically/mechanically isolated you can place pads into 4 different Xtalk groups so that the Xtalk setting only evaluated against within the same group thus avoiding unnessecery suppression.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Threshold:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Threshold: 30 

For piezo inputs: Input threshold level. Sets at what minimum (relative electrical) level a signal will be detected as a hit. This is one of the main settings effecting overall performance of the drum kit and the best actual value depends on types of pads used. It may take a while to find the best value.

For switch Rim/Edge inputs: Input switch threshold. Sets below which level the switch is detected as hit/pressed.  Note that on the switch Rim/Edge inputs actual velocity is determined by signal from a piezo on a Head/Bow input. The best way to set a correct threshold on a switch input is to use MIDI-OX to monitor 'aftertouch' MIDI messages. With a proper threshold value you should see 2 or 3 (dual zone or 3way/3 zone pad) 'aftertouch on' MIDI messages when you press the switch and 2 or 3 'aftertouch off' MIDI messages when you release the switch.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Gain:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Gain: 4 

Gain level for the input. Can be set between 0 and 8. Lower value makes the input less sensitive, higher value makes the input more sensitive. Set it lower for 'hot' pads (pas which produce stronger electrical signals), set it higher for 'cold' pads (pads which produce weaker electrical signals).

Next screen ChXX: PadName->HiLvlAuto:

<Ch04: SnareH >
HiLvlAuto: Yes 

When set to Yes, MegaDrum tries to auto adjust HighLevel for the input. Can be used for an initial setup to get a sense how 'hot' or 'cold' the pad is.  After this, set it to No and adjust HighLevel manually using the auto detected level as a guidance.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->HighLevel:

<Ch04: SnareH >
HighLevel: 855 

High (top) level of the input. Signals with relative electrical levels between Threshold and HighLevel will produce MIDI notes with velocities between 1 and 127 (provided both ComprLvl and LvlShift are set to 0). Any signals with relative electrical levels above HighLevel will produce MIDI notes with velocicy 127. The further Threshold and HighLevel are apart the better, provided you can reliably get MIDI notes with velocity 127 with strongest hits. Having said that, you will loose almost no dynamics until when HighLevel-Threshold<200~300. If you set HighLevel to maximum, 1023, and still easily get MIDI notes with velocity 127 you probably have a very 'hot' pad and you may loose hit dynamics. Try lowering Gain. If it doesn't help will probaly need to use a voltage divider on the input. Don't be scared, a voltage divider is just a trim potentiometer which lowers input signal.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->Retrigger:

<Ch04: SnareH >
Retrigger: 8 

Retrigger period in milliseconds for the input. Determines how many milliseconds must pass after a previously detected signal for a new signal to be detected to prevent a 'machine gun' effect or false triggering due to vibration after a hit. As a Threshold setting this is one the most important parameters and it may take some time to find the best value. Ideally it should be set as low as possible let 'Dynamic Threshold' to combat the 'machine gun' and false triggering. But if with even highest Dynamic Threshold Levels and Dynamic  Threshold Decay times you stil get this ill effects you may need to raise Retrigger level. On DIY pads and cymbals I have Retrigger set between 4 and 12 milliseconds. Setting it to high will prevent you from doing fast drum rolls.

Next screens ChXX: PadName->DynLevel and PadName->DynTime:

<Ch04: SnareH >
DynLevel: 5 
<Ch04: SnareH >
DynTime: 32 

Dynamic Threshold level and Dynamic Threshold decay time for the input.  Also two very importn parameters. Here is the explanation:
Suppose you hit a pad and it produces a peak signal of say 500. Now if Dynamic Threshold Level is set to 0 than an initial dynamic threshold for the pad will be set to a half of the peak signal, i.e. to around 250. Every millisecond this threshold will now decrease until zero. How fast it decreases depends on Dynamic Threshold Decay Time. It can be set to between 8 and 64 millisecond. If Dynamic Threshold Level were set to 7 than an initial dynamic threshold for the pad would be set to around 750.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->MinScan:

<Ch04: SnareH >
MinScan: 20 

Minimum scan time for the input. Measured/shown in 1/10th of millisecond. Can be set between 1 and 100 (0.1 - 10ms). When MegaDrum detects a signal above Threshold/Dynamic threshold, it will keep sampling it for MinScan period of time before marking the signal as registered and making it ready to be sent over MIDI next MegaDrum scans (scan time is set by 'Latency') all channels for registered signals.
Lowering it will improve Latency (MegaDrum latency is between Latency and and Latency+MinScan) and may worsen level accuracy.
Raising it will worsen Latency and may improve level accuracy.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->DualHead for Head/Bow input or PadName->Type for Rim/Edge inputs:

<Ch04: SnareH >
DualHead: Yes 

For Head/Bow inputs: Can be set to No, Yes or 3Way.
If set to No, Head/Bow and Rim/Edge inputs are treated as separate pads.
If set to Yes, Head/Bow and Rim/Edge inputs are treated as parts of the same dual zone pad or as parts of the same 3 zone pad, e.g. Yamaha style 3 zone cymbals. See more about 3 zone pads below in BNote and BThreshold settings.
If set to 3Way, Head/Bow and Rim/Edge inputs are treated as Bow and Bell inputs of 3way pads, e.g. 3way Roland style cymbals, and the next Rim/Edge input is treated as an edge input of the same pad.

<Ch04: SnareR >
Type: Piezo 

For Rim/Edge inputs: Can be set as either Piezo or Switch. Sets the type of a trigger connected to the input. You can set it as Switch only if the Head/Bow input DualHead parameter is set to Yes or 3Way.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->BNote (only available on Rim/Edge inputs):

<Ch04: SnareR >
BNote: C#3 49 

For piezo/switch/switch 3 zones pdas/cymbals: Note number for the 3rd zone of a 3 zone Yamaha style pad/cymbal.
For piezo/piezo dual zone pads: Note number for a rim shot. Set equal to a note number of the rim to disable rim shot functionality. Note that this feature is still experimental. Right settings for HighLevel on both the head and the rim inputs is very important. Raising MinScan on both the head and the rim can also improve rim shot reliability.

Next screen ChXX: PadName->BThreshold (only available on Rim/Edge inputs):

<Ch04: SnareR >
BThreshold: 15 

For piezo/switch/switch 3 zones pdas/cymbals:Input switch threshold for the 3rd zone of a 3 zone Yamaha style pad/cymbal. Sets below which level the Bell switch is detected as hit/pressed. This level must be lower than Threshold level of the Rim/Edge input of a switch type trigger. If the connected pad is dual zone piezo/switch type, BThrshold must be set to 0 to prevent false triggering of Bell notes.

For piezo/piezo dual zone pads: Rim shot sensitivity. The lower you set it the easier it is to get rim shots and more likely to get false rim shots on cross sticks and vice versa. Note that this feature is still experimental. Right settings for HighLevel on both the head and the rim inputs is very important. Raising MinScan on both the head and the rim can also improve rim shot reliability.