What you’ll need:

• 5 piece drum kit
• Playstation 3 (or 2)
• RockBand 2 (or original RB)
• Rock Band Microphone and two guitar controllers
• 5 acoustic drum triggers, appropriate cables (cable connector types depends on the triggers and interface, just make sure they are compatible with each other)
• drum trigger interface
• Midi to USB Rock Band Adaptor
• RemO’s Tone Control Rings
• Hart Dynamics Magnum mesh heads (optional)
• Blue, Red, Green, Yellow spray paint
• polycrylic spray coating
• 3M mounting tape
• orange construction paper
• Elmer’s glue
• Pintech cymbal triggers (optional)

(see more photos here)

1. Get the gear and the game

Get the Playstation 3 or 2, and the Rock Band or Rock Band 2 pack that comes with the drums, guitar and microphone, and game disc. Even through you will not use the drums, this pack is less expensive than buying the game, two guitar controllers, and the microphone separately. And if you want to return you drum kit to a normal later, you can use the included Rock Band drum kit to play the game. We used the Guitar Hero World Tour controller for our second guitar.

2. Get the Special Adaptor

Buy a USB Rock Band adaptor. We bought ours from Rock Band Forum user sethmeisterg. (This will not work with the XBox 360 because of Microsoft’s interface licensing restrictions, this is why it must be a Playstation 2 or 3).

3. Take Measurements

Measure and write down the diameter of your toms and snare (or you might already know). If you are going to use cymbal triggers also, measure them as well. We bought the Pintech TC Cymbal Package which includes a 14, 18, and 10 inch cymbal triggers. It does not matter which size you pick.

4. Get the rings

Get the appropriate quantity and size of RemO’s Tone Control Rings at a drum accessory store. They come in packs, but sometimes dealers will sell the rings individually.

5. Optional: Get the mesh heads

Buy the appropriate size and quantity of mesh heads. This is optional. Using mesh heads will be quieter than the regular acoustic heads. This will let you hear the music track of the game more easily. You will only need one mesh head per drum. You can keep the original bottom heads. Remove the top rims, then the top head, mount the mesh heads, and re-mount the rim. We used Hart Dynamics Kontrol Screen Magnum.

6. Paint the Rings

Lay out the tone rings on your kit and note which color you will need to paint each one. Then, take them outside and paint each one the appropriate colors. From left to right it should be: red, yellow, blue green. You may need to apply several coats until you cannot see the white through the paint.

7. Coat the Rings

After the paint dries, apply the polycrylic spray.

8. Mount the Rings

After the polycrylic coat dries, attach each ring to the head with the 3M Mounting Tape. If you are using the cymbal triggers, glue the rings to the them. We cut the bottom part of the rim to accommodate the foam pad on the trigger.

9. Apply the Orange Construction Paper

Apply the orange construction paper to the kick drum in some way do designate its color. We glued to strips to the bottom inside rim of the kick drum.

10. Mount and Connect the Triggers

Mount the triggers to the drums and connect them to the trigger interface. We used the Alesis DM5. You can also use the Alesis Trigger I/O, Roland TD-3 or Roland TMC-6. Connect the trigger interface to the USB adaptor, and the USB adaptor to the Playstation 3.

11. Configure the Interface

Set up your drum trigger interface to trigger the correct midi note numbers as described by the USB adaptor interface. You can start the game to test the triggers. You may want to put the game in the “no fail” mode so you will not need to keep restarting the song. Adjust the crosstalk and gain setting in the drum trigger interface.

12. You’re done! Start playing!

Invite some friends over to sing and play the guitar and bass parts, and rock out!

Photo Credit: Mcikey.

Joe Mazza, Dixon rockstar, has 25 years of drum and percussion experience under his belt. Joe is passionate and dedicated to his music. His successful music career was built from talent, genuine relationships and professionalism. Here are some of Joe’s tips for aspiring drummers and musicians:

1. Be professional:

Being a professional doesn’t start and stop with each gig. Being a pro means handling yourself in situations on and off stage. Keep a good schedule. Don’t double book yourself. Keep up a good appearance. Keep good lines of communication open with club owners, promoters, band members and other musicians in your area. You can be the greatest player in the area but if people don’t like you or you have a bad reputation, you won’t get the job.

2. Bring pro gear:

You’ve already got enough going on before your gig.

There’s nothing worse than your gear breaking before or even during your gig. When this happens, it makes your whole band look bad. If your gear is built well and in tip-top shape, it’s one less thing for you to worry about. Try Dixon Drums and Gibraltar Hardware.

3. Be on-time to your gig:

If the drummer is late, the band is late. Which means sound check is late or could be missed all together. If that happens, NOBODY is happy. Other band members can’t hear themselves in the monitors and any issues with sound reinforcement can’t be worked out. Nothing worse then howling feedback when a band starts (which scares people off). A personal note: I prefer to be early to the gig so I have SPACE to set-up. There is nothing worse than having to step over guitars and amps to get your drums set-up. They never leave you enough room either. So get there early, claim your space and get a good sound check. It may leave you time to actually RELAX before the gig starts.

4. Be courteous to everyone:

The last thing you want to do is aggravate, annoy or offend a staff member of a club or restaurant. They are there to work as well. I can guarantee you’ll need something from one these folks at some point throughout the gig: a glass of water, something to eat, directions, help from an irate patron, you name it. They may be reluctant to help you if you came in the door with a bad attitude barking orders at them. Don’t forget about the sound guy. Cross the sound guy and he will make your gig miserable! Remember, all of these people have an effect on you getting another gig.

All of these little things really add up and help you build your reputation as a musician and/or band. Whenever your name is mentioned, you want people to say, ”Yeah I worked him/her, they were easy to work with.” Remember that building a good reputation takes time but ruining your reputation takes less than seconds and takes much longer to build again.

Ben Kuchera at Ars Technica wrote a great piece on rhythm games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero driving interest in real instruments. This is great news! Games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero are not only fun but expose people to classic rock songs, give people a chance to test out the waters and find their musical passions.

We’re all for it! Rock on!

Joe Mazza not only sells drums, he lives and plays them. In fact, he’s been drumming for 25 years. He currently plays drums in The Kenny Mehler Band, an acoustic driven rock band with a lot of funk, jam-band and reggae influences. Joe and Kenny also play duo gigs together. The full band (6 players) comes together once or twice a month to play the acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, drums, tenor/soprano sax and a percussionist/scratch DJ. He also plays drums in The Psychedlic 60’s- a power trio playing ALL the great Rock-n-Roll from the 60’s: Cream, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Doors, The Stones, Jimi Hendrix etc. Mazza does all of this while juggling his wife, child and Dixon Drums.

Joe’s inspiration comes from many artists including John Bonham, Keith Moon, Stewart Copeland, Dave Weckl, Vinnie Colaiuta, Vinnie Paul, Mitch Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis and John Coltrane and even hip-hop music. But Joe’s core inspiration comes from his family. He says they have a huge impact in what he’s doing.

Joe first played the Dixon Outlaw at On the Rocks in Hartford, Ct. It was their house kit and he was blown away; since at the time, he was rockin’ on a set of 61 Ludwig’s. He said the sound was exactly what he had been looking for. As the gig went on, he said “I could tell the other guys in the band we’re picking up on it too. My playing sounded more musical and the drums were very agile.” At the end of the gig, he says he got a ton of compliments and owed it all to the Dixon kit.

If you’re in the area and want to check out Joe’s band, he’ll be playing at The Ivy Lounge and Quassy Amusement Park in Connecticut. Check out Joes Mazza’s Myspace, Joe’s Twitter and the Kenny Mehler band website for more show dates.

Everyone is drumming for a good cause these days! Troy Yocum of the 100th Battalion/442 Infantry will attempt to break a Guinness World Record. The event will be streamed on UStream.tv starting around 6am Pacific Time/9am Eastern. Yocum will play for 125 hours with 5 minute breaks every hour! Part of Yocum goal is to raise awareness and money for Kentucky Cancer Research Foundation. Our sister company, Sabian Cymbals, is one of the sponsors. You can follow Tory on Twitter @funkymonkeytroy.

You can watch the event live below.

Our last stop on the Beats For Eats Tour is today April 23rd at 5pm to 7pm at Tom’s Music in Victorville, Ca. We need singer, guitar players to rock out, and of course, drummers! We’ll give away our last Dixon Snare drum and more t-shirts Bring your canned goods for High Desert Homeless Services.
Update:
Thank you everyone, for coming out to have fun with Dixon Drums!

This week, one of our two stops on our Beats For Eats tour is in Santa Monica, Ca, tomorrow, April 22nd from 5pm to 7:30pm at Santa Monica Music Center, on the corner of 19th and Santa Monica Blvd. Again, we’ll play Rock Band 2 on a Dixon kit, sing karaoke-style, and tap-tap on those guitar controllers, and just generally do some rocking out. Nom on some grub, win Dixon t-shirts or a Dixon Snare drum, and bring your canned goods for The Ocean Park Community Center. Maybe afterward we can go outside and try to see the Lyrids Meteor Shower of 2009.
Update: thanks everyone for coming out! Here are the photos:

Don’t forget, we’ll be at Singer Music on La Puente, Ca, tomorrow, April 18th at 12 noon to 3pm for the Beats for Eats event. Play Rock Band 2 on a Dixon kit, sing, play guitar (controllers), eats free pizza, snacks, drinks, win Dixon t-shirts or a Dixon Snare drum. Bring your canned goods for The Gary Center. We will be posting photos to our Flickr, live tweeting from Twitter, and posting videos to our YouTube channel.

Update:
Thank you everyone for participating! Here are the photos of the event.

There are more at Singer Music’s fan page on Facebook.

Pitchfork reports that Jack White (better know as the front man of The White Stipes and The Raconteurs) will be the drummer and backup vocalist for his new band, The Dead Weather. You can check out Jack’s great drum sound on their tune “Hang You From The Heavens” on their website. They play NYC’s Bowery Ballroom on April 14th. Tickets go on sale here at 10:00AM Eastern on 4/8/09.

Rock Out with Dixon Drums for a Good Cause!
Dixon Drums invites you to Beats for Eats, a food drive to benefit local food shelters.

RSVP on MySpace or Facebook, invite your friends to the party!

• •Play Rock Band 2 on Playstation 3 hooked up to a real Dixon Drum kit!
• •Free pizza, snacks, and drinks!
• •Giving away awesome door prizes: a Dixon snare drum, drums sticks, t-shirts, and more!
• •Learn free drumming tips and tricks from the pros!

Three Southern California area parties:

Saturday April 18th
Singer Music , 12pm-3pm
1217 N Hacienda Blvd.
La Puente, CA 91744
626-917-9300
Your non-perishable food will benefit The Gary Center.
For details and to RSVP, go to dixondrums.net/singerparty

Wednesday, April 22nd
Santa Monica Music Center, 5pm-7:30pm
1901 Santa Monica Blvd. (corner 19th)
Santa Monica, CA 90404
310-453-1928
Your non-perishable food will benefit Ocean Park Community Center.
For details and to RSVP, go to dixondrums.net/smmcparty

Thursday, April 23rd
Tom’s Music, 5pm-7pm
17180 Bear Valley Rd.
Victorville, CA 92395
760-241-3184
Your non-perishable food will benefit High Desert Homeless Services.
For details and to RSVP, go to dixondrums.net/tomsparty