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the cymbal sounds – if you cough next to the hi-hat, that’s what will be amplified. Similarly, if your pedal squeaks or if you hit the cymbal stand, expect that through the front of house. And the mics will even pick up the stick noise on your mesh head drums if the volume is turned up. Those using the AEs with a drum module have two output options. You can either take separate left and right feeds from the module into the DCP where they can be mixed with the cymbal sounds or you can go the other way, and take the separate left and right feeds from the DCP into the “mix in” input of the module. Of course, if you have the capacity on your external mixer, you can take separate outputs from both the module and the DCP and mix them on the desk - a preferred option.
Sounds like? The brain of the system, the DCP, has five inputs, designated for hi-hats, ride and three other cymbals from Zildjian’s range of crashes, splashes, chinas, etc. Each input has 20 presets which, according to the maker, allow you to shape the cymbal sounds. Now this may be the root of some of the confusion out there, especially with some of the online demos throwing around terms like “this setting creates a sound like a Zildjian K”. Yes, there is sound shaping, but nothing that I heard jumped out as any specific cymbal sound and I’d challenge any buff to match the tones to real Zildjian offerings. The sounds are merely tweaked versions of the base cymbal sound – some more resonant, some deeper, others more trashy, a few of them brighter and there are even some e-cymbal-type sounds. Imagine a mixing desk where you can alter the pitch, attack and decay and you get a sense of what’s happening inside the controller.
If you’re expecting COSM-style editing capability, forget it. There’s no scope for editing the pre-sets – what you get is what you’re stuck with. The only tweaking possible is panning for each cymbal and reverb for the overall mix. Auditioning through headphones, I was underwhelmed. The sounds were mostly thin and anaemic and inferior to the module sounds to which we have become accustomed. Plug the DCP into an amp – even a humble PM10 - and the sounds blossom and fill out. The processor adds depth and body to the shine of the acoustic sounds, producing very pleasing tones. There were a couple of hi-hat settings that would fit in well with my current repertoire, with the ability to dial up larger-sounding cymbals as well as some more delicate ballad-style tones. Admittedly, some of the settings were a bit synthetic. It also required quite a bit of additional bass on the amp to produce rock-style hats. The 18” ride, also thin in Direct Out signal, chunked up with amplification, but I didn’t really hear too
What’s good
What ’s bad
Specifications
Great looks
Limited sound palette
13" AE Hi-Hats w/Pickup
Fantastic playability
16" AE Crash w/Pickup
Articulation range
Limited editing capability
Natural bell action
Limited inputs
Future updates
Needs amplification Risk of feedback Potential bleed
18" AE Ride w/Pickup AE Digital Cymbal Processor AE 5 Channel Cable Snake AE Digital Cymbal Processor Mounting Kit Recommended price: $1,249
Disclaimer: digitalDrummer tested a pre-production 220v-powered sample which had an audible hum not evident under 110v. Gen16 has committed to resolving this issue. 10
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