REVIEW: Cherub DP-900 Electronic Drum Practice Pad

INTRODUCTION The drummer's world is an interesting one, with many choices. From pedals to sticks and heads, stands, gloves and all sorts of accessories, we're pretty much spoilt for choice when it comes to things to hit. One such example is the practice pad - basically a rubber pad on a solid surface, practica pads come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. The Cherub DP-900 Electronic Drum Pad is a new offering by the manufacturer Cherub. Basically an electronic practice pad, it incorporates many features for the student and professional alike, making stick practice and rudiments entertaining and effective, all in one package.

OVERVIEW The drum pad is basically a single unit, combining a metronome, rubber pad, speakers and a sensor below the pad. Made out of black plastic, the yellow rubber pad makes for a striking contrast and it is lightweight enough to be carried to school or classes. The unit has a small screw at its base for use with any standard cymbal stand which allows it to be mounted. There is also a volume control for the metronome, a headphone out jack and several buttons to control the LCD interface. FEATURES The Cherub DP-900 Electronic Drum Pad comes with 2 built-in features; a metronome and a "train" mode (you'll understand when I go through it). The metronome feature is basically what it is, a metronome so you can practice in time and tempo. The BPM is adjustable from 30 to 280, and you can select quarter notes (crotchets), eighth notes (quavers) sixteenth notes (semiquavers), triplets and a bunch of mixed articulated notes. The beat can also be selected from 0 (no strong beat) to 11 (11/4 time signature for the more, um, rhythmically-insane).

An interesting feature is the "train" feature; this mode calculates each beat on the head - sort of a stick meter to measure your speed. In this mode you can select up to 4 different times (15 seconds, 30 sec, 45 sec and 60 sec) and the timer begins after the first stroke registered. This is an excellent way to train your sticking and even makes as a challenge among friends or students! My personal record stands at 254 beats in 15 seconds (which would average out to 1,000 beats in a minute) - a long way off from Mike Mangini's record of 1,247 in a minute!

CONCLUSION

The Cherub DP-900 Electronic Drum Pad is indeed an economical way to build up stamina and speed

at the drums. For the student, this is an invaluable practice tool that every serious drum

student should own; for the teacher this serves as a mobile, portable practice surface that

can be taken from class to class (might even create some rivalry among students...!) and is

worth at least taking a look at to augment their teaching material.

The Cherub DP-900 Electronic Drum Pad can be purchased at Mama Treble Clef Studio located at Lot 3015, 3rd Floor, Endah Parade, Sri Petaling, Kuala Lumpur or visit their website at http://www.mamatreble.com.my for more information. Now go hit something!