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Drumming News
By Alan Leibowitz, Drumming News Network
ROLAND HAS RELEASED a new flagship module and new top-of-the-range kits to accompany it.
The Japanese e-drum pioneer is deviating from its past module line with a new name, new functionality and new sound architecture.
At the heart of the new line is the V71 module which features brand new samples recorded from scratch.
The module boasts 200 drum kits, “more than 1,000” instruments and supports up to 500 .wav samples totalling 24 minutes in mono or 12 minutes in stereo.
Based on the experience of its DWe stablemate, Roland now adds Instrument Expansions – packages containing multiple drum kits with real samples from the DW Soundworks library along with sounds from previous V-Drums flagship modules.
Users will also have to learn a new concept, “racks”, which are storage areas in which up to 100 Instrument Expansions can be loaded.
Another new concept is ‘memories’ – a kind of super preset snapshot that includes drum kits, set lists and trigger settings along with any user samples which have been added.
Like the now-discontinued TD-50 module, the V71 supports 14 ¼” TRS inputs, three of which become redundant when you use the three digital triggers.
Those expecting a full digital trigger set-up for the new module may be disappointed that the toms, kick and crash cymbals are still analogue, but there’s a new digital snare, which incorporates a virtual snare strainer developed from the DWe version.
The Roland strainer not only engages snare on/off sounds, it is also assignable, allowing you to virtually tighten or loosen the virtual snare wires, or start or stop songs.
The digital snare also sees the introduction of a more sophisticated form of positional sensing, with the trigger detecting not just distance from the rim and center, but also horizontal and vertical position of the strike inside eight quadrants, changing the sound accordingly.
That positional sensing is also deployed for the digital ride and hi-hat. Although the cymbals are physically unchanged from the current versions, their enhanced capability is unleashed by a firmware update from the module.
V71 module
Roland describes its V71 as its “deepest and most advanced V-Drums sound module to date”.
The user interface and workflow remain the same, but everything else has been overhauled, rebuilt and refreshed.
The V71’s onboard drum library has been created from the ground up with world-class instruments never featured in any previous module. It was originally recorded and mixed at 32-bit/192 kHz resolution in pro studios around the globe, with sessions manned by leading audio engineers known for their great drum sounds. A large part of the collection was recorded in direct collaboration with DW at their studio in Oxnard, California.
Roland’s UK-based global drum head Jules Tabberer-Stewart tells digitalDrummer that Roland went back to the drawing board in designing the sound architecture of the new module.
“We’ve recorded the library from scratch so there’s no … old sounds in there,” he says, adding that sounds from previous modules can be accessed if drummers want them.
Roland has seen the growing demand for VST products and the success of sample-based modules, but the company still believes in the supremacy of its Behavior Modelling technology.
The new module combines that core Roland technology with round-robin sampling across multiple velocity layers.
“So, across sample layers, across round-robins and across Behavior Modelling, when a you play with a digital snare, for example, because of what it can pick up, you can have up to 16,000 sample variations across the pad from one drum,” he says.
“It’s using the best of everything and that is our philosophy for this product going forward. Listening to the market, understanding that people considered our sounds to be technology-based rather than audio-based, which they never have been, but putting that at the fore and using the strength of all the technology that’s out there to make it the best it can be,” he adds.
The new samples can be edited onboard with Roland’s V-Edit tools that allow users to adjust any drum or cymbal just like an acoustic instrument, from head types, dampening, and tuning to snare wire tension, mic distance, and much more. The V71 also provides comprehensive audio connectivity, studio-grade processing, sample import support, and other options for crafting kits, personalizing sounds, and interfacing with external gear.
Some e-drum pundits were expecting Roland to introduce 2box- or mimicPro-style multi-layer sample import in its next-generation modules, but Tabberer-Stewart explains that the company’s in-depth customer research revealed that while the functionality is quite often requested, it is seldom used.
There’s another reason Roland hasn’t bothered to allow multi-layer sample imports: “If somebody was sampling their own snare and importing it with no mixing or compression or anything like that and then it doesn’t sound great in the module, they’ll be disappointed – and they might blame the module’s capabilities,” he says.
Instead, Roland continues to offer its ability to import one-shot samples and blend them with stock sounds, a technology introduced with the TD-17.
Sound expansion
The V-Drums 7 Series platform offers two ways to play: the V71 module’s expandable sound library and DW Soundworks software for computer-based drumming. The included six months of Roland Cloud Ultimate membership provides full access to DW Soundworks and related content, V-Drums Instrument Expansions, V-Drums Kit Packs, and more. Users can subscribe after the trial ends or purchase their favourite selections with Lifetime Keys.
DW Soundworks is a drum software instrument that runs as a standalone computer application or a DAW plug-in. The software’s core library features samples from many DW kits, and there’s a growing selection of expansion packs available on Roland Cloud. V-Drums Instrument Expansions allow users to add new sounds to the V71 module, including complete multi-sampled acoustic drum sets, vintage and modern electronic sounds, and more. Many DW Soundworks expansion packs mirror V-Drums Instrument Expansion titles, ensuring a seamless transition between hardware- and software-based drumming.
New kit line-up
There are three new kits paired with the flagship module: the acoustic shell-style VAD716 and the rack-mounted, pad-style TD716 and TD713.
All three share the module, PD14DSX 14” digital snare, VH14D 14” digital hi-hat and CY-18DR 18” digital ride.
The VAD version has 10”, 12” and two 14” toms along with a 22” kick and two CY-16-RT thin crashes.
The TD716 has a KD-18 18” kick, two 10” and two 12” toms, and two CY-16-RT crashes.
The TD713 has a smaller kick (KD-12), four PDX-100 10” toms and a 14” crash plus a 16” crash.
The Roland V-Drums 7 Series is now available, with US pricing as follows: $2,599.99 for the V71 module, $6,333.99 for the TD713, $7,999.99 for the TD716, and $8,999.99 for the VAD716.
What’s in a name?
The V71 module marks the end of an era in which modules appeared with TD (Total Drums) names.
According to Jules Tabberer-Stewart, Roland’s UK-based global strategic product marketing manager – drums, Roland “wanted to step away from a TD naming convention for a really practical reason”.
There’s some confusion with the last TD-50 generation where the same module was used with the TD50 kits and the high-end VAD706.
Under the new naming convention, the modules will have names like V71 where the ‘7’ denotes the series and the ‘1’ signifies the generation. So the updated module would be the 72.
In the kit names, the ‘6’ in TD716 represents a larger kit while the TD713 is a scaled back kit. Similarly, the VAD716 describes an acoustic-shell kit (VAD), V71 module and ‘6’ the bigger kit, where the VAD713 would be a smaller kit.
Allan Leibowitz discovered electronic drums when returning to drumming later in life, seeking a solution for noise control. Unable to find reliable reviews, he launched digitalDrummer in 2010. As an award-winning journalist, Allan has reviewed most e-drum gear, advised manufacturers, and beta-tested key products.
He continues to use e-drums for practice, rehearsals, collaborations, and live performances, drawing from his diverse instrument collection. Alongside his drumming passion, Allan has had a successful career in business journalism, earning awards in motoring, travel writing, and event organization. He recently hosted the E-drum Labs at the UK Drum Show in Liverpool.
