Synesthesia Mandala USB Drum Video
Synesthesia Mandala USB Drum Video Transcript
[ Music ] [ Background Music ]
>> Hey! I'm Donald Bell, Senior Editor for Digital audio and MP3 and today we're taking a first look at the Synesthesia Mandala USB 2.0 drum pad. This is a virtual drum pad that comes with both the hardware and the software that you can run to have a really interesting practice pad. It's also really cool to create a solution for musicians who wanna have a tool that can transform a simple-looking drum pad into an instrument that can trigger multiple instruments based on where you hit the drum pad. About 350 dollars comes with a metal bracket mount for mounting this to a drum stand and adjusts to low USB jack on the side. There is no media output. No audio output. This is basically just a dumb controller that you connect to a computer. The computer is in charge of making all the sound but there's a lot of technology that goes in the pad that is pretty interesting. There is, actually, within the pad 7 different zones. If you hit it in a different area of the pad can trigger a different sound or a different sample. Software can detect not only how hard you're hitting the pad but where you're hitting the pad and trigger a sample. Things we like about the Mandala USB pad is that is really well built. The software is pretty deep. You can do a lot with the 2 pieces of software that come with it; one is called the "Beauty" snare drum. The other application that comes with it is this called the Mandala brain. Things we didn't like about the Mandala's pad so much is that the software is a little bit difficult to set up and the other thing that we're less than told about is the fact that it's kind of a close system. There is a USB output on here but you can't use this with the media output with a different desynthesizer or a larger drum rig. If you want to expand on this system, you're probably going to be buying other things made by the same company. But beyond that, it's a lot of fun. It's kind of a high price but if your weekend with a drummer and you love having access to a lot of different sounds, a lot of cool toys, this could be just the thing for you. So, I'm Donald Bell, and that was a first look at the Synesthesia Mandala USB drum pad. [ Music ]
Related Videos
Paolo Favati: "Forbidden Flowers"
Mr. Fabio Bianchini did the directing and post-production work. Mr. Roberto Galassini was director of photography and operated the camera, Miss Isa and Mr. Paolo were on production with Miss Luisa Giorgi and Mr. Matteo Zanobini. Paolo ? the hallucinated vision; Isabella ? the hallucinating objectivic support. Miss Isa, aka the Spark, playing with unusual roles, lies down on the genial lightings by Mr. Bianchini, lets herself be moulded with caution, to emerge later on in an omniscient dress into the post-production work, as an eye "other" and the material background for the quivering handiwork images designed by Mr. Bianchini. Actress, hence. Singer, hence. Also. Mr. Alessandro Gimignani materialized further visual rhythm in a fleeting apparition playing his drums. Mr. Bianchini?s impulse towards experimentation, both conceptual and technical, lead the work to expressive purposes quite unique, giving to our glance sprouts of a new vision to come. Mr. Galassini?s photography lived all the visible all around and inside; his investigating pupil gave birth to images through dynamic and elegant luminescent shapes. Thanks to every personal imprint from all these different and non-conform image & sound searchers, this film took his manner within the encounter between pictorial antiquity and electronic modernity.
Should you launch your product at a trade show like Demo or CES, or should you try to drum up interest on your own? This week on the Roundtable, Revision 3 CEO Jim Louderback and Stage Two Consulting's Jeremy Toeman discuss both successful and doomed strategies for introducing new products to the market.
This guy can knows how to rock a heavy beat. Who needs a drum set?
"Drummer Needed," written and directed by John Dole, follows the plight of an alien who plays drums in a rock and roll band.
The Kicker ZK500 Zune speaker system is both physically and sonically intimidating, but it doesn't come cheap.
The Firefly FlyPhone is a solid youth-friendly cell phone that should satisfy the needs of both parents and children.
The JVC KD-AVX77 El Kameleon is a great receiver for system builders, but the touch-screen interface isn't as easy to use as some of the competition's physical control schemes.
Pinback: "From Nothing to Nowhere"
"Autumn of the Seraphs", pushes forward and upward. Its melodies are more dynamic and aggressive, while still gently pulling you back in again and again. While entirely recorded in the band's home studios once again, this record is tighter, the drumming more immediate and crisp. Those duties were shared by Mario Rubalcaba (Rocket from the Crypt) and Chris Prescott (No Knife), and it's a marked difference from Pinback's previous releases Good to Sea is the jam of Indian summer. Walters saunters its way to a buzzy guitar breakdown while Subbing for Eden works steadily toward each climactic chorus. Autumn of the Seraphs is for both rabbits and people, for good days and for ones where you should have stayed in bed. It's Pinback's best yet, and it's going to take you over.
Dub Trio: "Casting Out the Nines [Live]"
TThree distinct personalities functioning as one unit, Dub Trio seems capable of making all manner of sounds. The three gentlemen collectively known as Dub Trio bring noises into this world that are unique, decidedly new and fresh. Drawing on music at large, rather than forcing a marriage of two things that were never quite divorced, they bring an eclectic and attractive take on the term "new music." Primarily just drums, bass, and guitar, but the "job description" for each member varies from track to track. Staying away from overtly clich?d genre restrictions, Dub Trio is free to bring you to the dance floor, to tears or at least give you a peek at the three minds at work. The drums function as a section, rather than as one instrument in the hands of Joe Tomino. You will hear this section transform over the course of a record or live show, the pulse never wavering yet morphing into drum machine-esque sounds, then suddenly, to big rock drums assault. The inspired moment to moment decisions acting as a foil to the three way cat and mouse game that the band brings nightly to the stage. The bass is the foundation. Stu Brooks delivers low end like it is a weapon. One moment like a telephone pole swinging towards your gut and the next moment a playful rump shaking pulse locked in with Joe as they let it roll. The bass also changes faces many times in a performance, but never loses the pocket. Amazing that "feel" is measured in milliseconds when Stu is at the controls of a big oceanic sound. The guitar in Dub Trio, played by DP Holmes, always seems to be the device for cueing a response in the listener. Dave makes shapes, colors and devices for emotional control one moment, then is careening down the highway at 120 mph in a rusty Chevy Nova the next. The medium becomes the message when the distortion kicks in. Aggressive, dreamy, liquid and solid. There is a command of the elements in the guitar section. With this second record, New Heavy, Dub Trio shows us a more aggressive side of life. Special guest vocalist Mike Patton (Mr. Bungle, Faith No More, Ipecac Recordings) lends his voice to "Not Alone," the album?s standout hit. Heavy, moody, melancholy music at its best. This is a record to be enjoyed LOUD!
Three distinct personalities functioning as one unit, Dub Trio seems capable of making all manner of sounds. The three gentlemen collectively known as Dub Trio bring noises into this world that are unique, decidedly new and fresh. Drawing on music at large, rather than forcing a marriage of two things that were never quite divorced, they bring an eclectic and attractive take on the term "new music." Primarily just drums, bass, and guitar, but the "job description" for each member varies from track to track. Staying away from overtly clich?d genre restrictions, Dub Trio is free to bring you to the dance floor, to tears or at least give you a peek at the three minds at work. The drums function as a section, rather than as one instrument in the hands of Joe Tomino. You will hear this section transform over the course of a record or live show, the pulse never wavering yet morphing into drum machine-esque sounds, then suddenly, to big rock drums assault. The inspired moment to moment decisions acting as a foil to the three way cat and mouse game that the band brings nightly to the stage. The bass is the foundation. Stu Brooks delivers low end like it is a weapon. One moment like a telephone pole swinging towards your gut and the next moment a playful rump shaking pulse locked in with Joe as they let it roll. The bass also changes faces many times in a performance, but never loses the pocket. Amazing that "feel" is measured in milliseconds when Stu is at the controls of a big oceanic sound. The guitar in Dub Trio, played by DP Holmes, always seems to be the device for cueing a response in the listener. Dave makes shapes, colors and devices for emotional control one moment, then is careening down the highway at 120 mph in a rusty Chevy Nova the next. The medium becomes the message when the distortion kicks in. Aggressive, dreamy, liquid and solid. There is a command of the elements in the guitar section. With this second record, New Heavy, Dub Trio shows us a more aggressive side of life. Special guest vocalist Mike Patton (Mr. Bungle, Faith No More, Ipecac Recordings) lends his voice to "Not Alone," the album?s standout hit. Heavy, moody, melancholy music at its best. This is a record to be enjoyed LOUD!
Synesthesia Mandala USB Drum Review
The good: The Synesthesia Mandala USB drum system turns your computer into a professional-quality electronic drum rig, for an affordable price.
The bad: Ugly software that's hard to install; no standard MIDI jack.
The bottom line: The Synesthesia Mandala USB drum system is a fun product that is both physically and technically solid. However, the software interface and installation issues need work.
Synesthesia Mandala USB Drum Specs
Manufacturer: Synesthesia Corporation
Part number: MDA02-USB
