Pad sensitivity solution

Elektron Gear Analog Rytm
#1

Has anyone found a solution to the lackluster pad sensitivity on the Rytm? Finger drumming is possible (it helps to be quite caffeinated), but inevitably a crucial snare or kick hit won’t sound. You really have to be careful to hit the pad square in the middle, etc.

I hoped the combination of practice and wear would improve things, but it’s really quite a sorry state of affairs with the rytm pads. New OS didn’t help thing either, sadly.

Has anyone tried opening the Rytm up and putting cork slices under there, MPC style? Has Elektron made any acknowledgement that the OS might have an updated velocity setting sometime in the future?

I don’t want to buy an external pad control. Anyone have a solution yet?

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Dying pads
Analog Rytm MK1: repair pads that lost sensitivity
#2

I use the pads only on/off style, with velocity sensitivity disabled from the Sound menu. It’s not a good solution, but helps with the finger drumming a little.

(Otherwise I have to hit the pads so hard, that my Ikea desk makes a louder noise than the machine…)

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#3

Yeah, I play mine with velocity off too. Even still they don’t always register hits. Which is odd, because like others have mentioned, performance mode and muting seem to register pad taps just fine.

#4

Is this something that could be fixed with an OS update?

#5

How long have you had yours? I’ve been rocking my pads most days for a year and they have definitely worn in to a usable state. Not nearly as good as my thick MPC pads but I can get reliable control of velocity. I should add that i’m a drummer so they get plenty of use!

#6

mine are also working better now. IIRC they “broke in” in abt a year of use…

#7

Don’t forget that you can use the trigs for full-velocity triggering, once in a while…
But yes, they do break in after some heavy use :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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#8

I found this solution. Did miracles to my RYTM pads and all my other pad controllers.

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#9

here you can see that some of the AR pads are working really well:

but mine are also far away from that :frowning:

#10

Using two-fingers (re: adamjay) has helped a lot for me.

#11

I’m “glad” to hear others are having similar issues with the pads. I own three other pieces of Elektron gear besides the RYTM and the pads on this thing are definitely not Elektron quality. I dont/cant even use them. At first I thought I had a defective unit and returned it only to have it replaced by another unit with the same crappy pad experience.

#12

the shitty responsiveness, or lack thereof, has been my number one gripe with the AR. It needs to be addressed, no question.

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#13

Which is not to say it’s good. Cause it ain’t.
Maybe it is two different issues here, but in PERF mode the settings respond to the slightest touch and are pretty consistent as you preas. Why is it so different for single hits?

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#14

did rub my shirt on the pads. very hard to tell if it is placebo or not. some sort of grainier feeling afterwards. worth trying.

#15

The biggest problem I’ve been having isn’t the amount of pressure I have to put down, but the amount of impact it’s been having on my fingers (one of my fingers I use for drumming was healed from being broken in 16 places)
This 2 finger situation helped a lot with that. I think adjustable sensitivity is a must for the next update though. Strange oversight since many other products offer it. Seems like a no-brainer.

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#16

I’m guessing that they have problems with pad crosstalk when the sensitivity is too high, perhaps due to the size of the pads.

Sucks. I’ve given up on the pads for drumming. They’re just unusable for me. I mean, yes, they make sounds of you hit them hard enough, but there’s too many silent hits. And don’t get me started on the velocity “sensitivity”.

I know it’s not the musician in this case. I’ve been pad drumming for years and I’m quite decent. 20 years of drumming experience (yeesh–that’s actually scary to admit, I’m getting old haha). The pads on the Rytm just leave a lot to be desired.

I gave up and I just finger drum on the trig buttons now. Less than ideal, but at least I know that they’ll respond when I strike them.

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#17

I have a two-way method for mine,

A) for a better feel & full-size pads, I use an external padcontroller
B) for practice sessions/jams and gigs where I am not carrying all my gear, I use the pads combined with the step trig buttons

pulling off flams with just the AR’s pads = :sob:
pulling off flams with both pads and step trigs = :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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#18

I eventually sold my rytm because it was just a deal killer.
Pretty bummed, actually. All that potential analog expressivity gone to waste…

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#19

have had the AR for a year, and I’m just happy with the pads. if you think they’re too small, switch off chromatic mode for synth/samples and use the entire pad for drumming.

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#20

Damn so it’s kinda like the Akai MPD line from a few years back… Gotta slam um pretty hard?

The MPD “Fat Pads” solution from MPCstuff.com worked really well. They just made a great aftermarket pad replacement with much more cushion on top and a better pad trigger inside.

Wonder if they would do a RYTM version?

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