ATV corporation

The aD5 is an electronic drum module designed for the following types of people:
- People who want electronic drums they can use as full-fledged drums
- People who want to enjoy playing electronic drums that are in no way inferior to acoustic drums
- People who would actually prefer to play acoustic drums, but choose electronic drums for reasons such as their living situation
- People who are dissatisfied with their current electronic drums made by another manufacturer
- People who want superior sound and performance, but do not require a large number of added functions
- People who want an "instrument" they can use for a long time without tiring of it
- People who want to record the sound of acoustic drums into a DAW, but don’t have the ability to do so.

- The aD5 is optimized to produce acoustic drum sounds. It features realistic sounds, with natural decay.
- Instead of synthesized sounds or sounds recreated from different elements, the aD5 contains the sounds of specially selected instruments, recorded in studios all around the world.
- The recorded drum sounds are high resolution; the sound quality is stunning.
- The dynamic range (between loud and soft) is extremely wide, allowing the player a full range of expression—from delicate taps, to intense strikes.
- Sounds can be added. Numerous drums and cymbals are available from the ATV Sound Store, with more being continually added.
- The aD5 is the first drum module to support the use of pads and triggers from the other major manufacturers.
- The sound you hear captures the character the of the original recorded instruments, without loss of sound quality.
- To preserve the tonal integrity of the original acoustic instruments, parameters such as pitch and decay cannot be edited.

The aDrums artist series drums, made by ATV, natively support the aD5. aDrums are designed to take full advantage of the aD5's potential.

In addition, the aD5 can be used in conjunction with drum pads and cymbal pads made by other companies. For the detail, see the PDF below.

pad compatibility list[PDF:253.7KB]

The aD5 development team concentrated on quality rather than quantity. Pursuing quantity would have inevitably lead to diminished individual sound quality.
We provide hand-crafted sounds, sounds that take a great deal of time to produce. Rather than ship the unit with a bloated sound set, using the ATV sound store we have made it possible to add sounds after purchase.
The ATV sound store provides a growing library of instruments that can be added to the aD5. These are purchased and download as individual sounds (instruments). Some of the instruments are provided at no cost, so you can easily experience the enjoyment of discovering new instruments and adding them to the aD5.
ATV will continue create and add new instruments to the ATV sound store for a long time to come—the aD5 will never lose its freshness.

When the unit is shipped from the factory, it contains five preset drum kits. Users can add as many drum kits as they wish.
The aD5 development team does not recommend counting sounds in units of "drum kits." Simply swapping out the snare drum can result in a genuinely different kit.
Rather than selecting and playing preset kits, we suggest you focus more on the individual instruments. For example, by freely combining a kick, snare, and ride cymbal that match a specific song, you can experience the true enjoyment of drums. Use the concept of "drum kit" as a location in which you store your unique instrument selections.
In the same way, the sounds in the ATV sound store are provided not as "drum kits," but rather as a lineup of individual instruments. By adding one new instrument at a time, you can assemble an original drum kit that reflects your own ideas, desires, and needs.
We also provide

drum kit examples[PDF:206.9KB]

in case you need some inspiration—simply clone an existing kit, rename it, and swap out some instruments!

Up to ten pads can be connected.

<Standard trigger input configuration>
- 1x Kick Drum
- 1x Snare Drum
- 3x Toms
- 1x Hi-Hat
- 1x Ride Cymbal
- 3x Crash Cymbals (Using CRASH, and AUX 1/2 trigger inputs)

<Application configuration 1>
You can also decrease the number of crash cymbals and use four toms.
- 4x Toms (Using TOM 1–3, and AUX 2 inputs)
- 2x Crash Cymbals (CRASH and AUX 1 inputs)

<Application configuration 2>
You can also decrease the number of crash cymbals and add a second snare drum.
- 2x Snare Drums (Using SNARE and AUX 2 inputs)*
- 2x Crash Cymbals (CRASH and AUX 1 inputs)
* Aux 1 input does not support Zone C for side stick technique.

<Application configuration 3>
You can also decrease the number of toms and increase the number of crash cymbals.
- 2x Toms
- 4x Crash Cymbals (CRASH, AUX 1/2, and TOM 2 inputs)*
* Tom 2 input supports Zone A only. A splash cymbal is a great use for this input. 

< If using an electronic drum kit made by Yamaha or Roland >
You can complete trigger setup for each pad simply by loading the setup file that's appropriate for your electronic drums. (Manufacturer, kit-specific setup files are available for download.)
For the procedure, refer to the

trigger setup file loading procedure[PDF:165.8KB]

.
* For details on the electronic drum kits that are supported, refer to the

pad compatibility list[PDF:240.6KB]

.
* After loading a setup file, be sure to execute the crosstalk cancel wizard.

< If making settings individually for each pad >
1. Execute the crosstalk cancel wizard.
2. In the TRIGGER SETUP / MODEL screen, specify the manufacturer and model of each pad.
3. In the HIHAT PEDAL ADJ screen, adjust the hi-hat pedal.
4. While watching the graph in the ADJUST screen, adjust the sensitivity of each pad. Adjust the Sensitivity so that the graph does not exceed "ff" during normal performance.

< Customizing the settings to your taste >
When you perform the trigger setup using one of the methods described above, they are set to the standard response. However, by executing the "trigger setup wizard" you can easily create a custom trigger response that best reflects your playing.
1. Execute the trigger setup wizard for each pad.
* When striking "ff" in the wizard, strike using the force that you would use as fortissimo in an actual performance, not full power.
* For details, refer to the

reference guide[PDF:936.6KB]

.

Execute the crosstalk cancel wizard.
[MENU] > [SYSTEM] tab > [TRIGGER] > [CrossTalk Cancel Wizard]

In the TRIGGER SETUP / ADJUST screen, verify that the meter approaches "ff" when you strike strongly.
If it does not reach "ff," you can either adjust the Sensitivity or re-do the trigger setup for each pad.
* There's no need to strike with full power. Make adjustments with the same dynamic range you use while performing.

If the meter correctly reaches "ff," check the volume or the level settings of the connected equipment.

- When adjusting the sensitivity of the pads, watch the trigger meter* and don't listen to the sound.
- Make adjustments at the location that you strike when performing normally. (Avoid striking near the pad's sensor, since the sensitivity will be unstable.)
- Adjust the sensitivity so the trigger meter indicates "ff" when you play a fortissimo (strong) strike as you would when performing normally. When doing so, don't strike with your full power.
- Verify that the trigger meter indicates the "mf" region when you play mezzo-forte (normal strength). You can adjust the sensitivity in the "mf" region by changing the Curve.

* Accessing the trigger meter
In the main menu, select the [SYSTEM] tab and press [TRIGGER]. Press [PAGE >] to access the ADJUST screen.

Slightly loosening the felt portion of the clutch that fastens the top hi-hat might improve the situation.
* In the TRIGGER SETUP / HIHAT PEDAL ADJ screen, re-adjust Set Close.

The aD5 lets you have as many drum kits as you like. To make a new one, use the copy (clone) function.
<Procedure>
1. In the main menu, select the [KIT] tab and press [CLONE KIT].
2. Enter a name for the new kit, and press [OK].
3. Change the instrument of each pad.

<Procedure>
1. Press the [EDIT] button at the upper right of the home screen. The KIT PARAM / EDIT screen appears.
2. Select [Kit Volume] and adjust the volume.

<Procedure>
1. Press [LEVEL] at the lower left of the home screen. The PAD LEVEL screen appears.
2. Strike a pad to select it, and adjust the volume.
You can also use the [ALL PAD -/+] buttons to raise or lower the volume of all pads in a single operation.

The drum pads and cymbal pads have up to three zones differentiated by your playing technique.
* Pads connected to AUX1--2 support zones A and B.
Conversely, three "tones" corresponding to zones A, B, and C are assigned to instruments (sounds).
This means that when, for example, you assign a snare drum instrument to the snare drum pad, sounds for head, open rim, and side-stick are assigned as a set.
You can take advantage of this to do things like play a tambourine by striking the bow of a cymbal, or use the hi-hat foot pedal to play a cowbell.
By copying an instrument, assigning a name to the copied instrument, and then changing its tones, you can create an original instrument.

You can change the snare drum's sidestick sound to the sidestick sound of a different snare drum, or to a sound such as a woodblock.
When you play sidestick on the snare drum pad, the zone C tone will sound. By changing the zone C tone to a desired tone, you can change the sidestick sound.

<Procedure>
1. In the main menu, select the [INST] tab, and press [EDIT INST]. And then press [PAGE >]. The INST EDIT / TONE ASSIGN screen appears.
2. Press the [ZONE] button at the upper right of the screen to select ZONE C.
3. Select [Tone] at the lower left of the screen, and change the tone. If you want to select a tone from a different tone group, press [GROUP] to select a group.
4. Press [OK].

By combining tones you can, for example, assign the sound of a splash cymbal or a percussion sound to a crash cymbal's bow (zone A). This lets you independently play crash (zone B) and splash (zone A) sounds from a single cymbal pad.
* Pads connected to KICK and TOM 1--3 can play only zone A; they do not support zone B.

<Procedure>
1. In the main menu, select the [INST] tab and then press [MANAGE INST]. You can use the [GROUP] button at the upper right of the screen to change the instrument group.
2. Select the instrument from which you want to start editing, and then select [CLONE] from the sub-menu.
3. Assign a name to the instrument that you want to newly create, and execute the clone operation.
4. Press [EDIT], and then press [PAGE >] to access the INST EDIT / TONE ASSIGN screen.
5. Assign the desired tones to zones A--C.
(Example): Splash cymbal to zone A, and crash cymbal edge to zone B
6. Select [Level], and adjust the volume of each zone while you strike the pad. This instrument will sound regardless of the pad you strike.
7. Press [OK], and then press [HOME] to return to the home screen.
8. Strike the pad to which you want to assign this instrument.
9. Press [INST] at the left of the home screen, and change the instrument.
10. Press [OK].

Since the hi-hat control and velocity definitions differ from those of other manufacturers, it may not play correctly. Compatibility might be attainable after additional configuration.
Also, since the aD5 is not equipped with a 5-pin DIN MIDI connector, it cannot be connected directly to standalone sound module hardware using a standard MIDI cable.

Since the hi-hat control and velocity definitions differ from those of other manufacturers, the aD5 may not respond correctly.

Check whether recording is enabled for "polyphonic key pressure" messages, or that these messages are not filtered out by your DAW.
For details on how to change this setting, refer to your DAW’s owner manual.