DIY Ion Drum Rocker Cymbal

The piezo element transfers the stick impact into an electric charge.

Ion is an audio equipment company that specializes in electronic musical instruments, such as keyboards and electronic drums. Their electronic drums and cymbals are similar in construction and appearance to drum practice pads. They are made from toughened rubber, so they approximate the feel of a real drum kit without making a lot of sound. When you hit the cymbal, the internal sensor sends an impulse to the output jack. You connect the 1/4-inch jack to a drum processor, which assigns a sound to the impulse. You can modify a cymbal practice pad to make your own Ion drum rocker-style cymbals.

Things You'll Need

• Piezo element
• Speaker wire
• 1/4-inch jack assembly
• Soldering iron
• Solder
• Heat shrink tubing
• Hairdryer
• Wire wool
• Coffee can lid
• Glue
• Screw clamp
• Standard electric drill
• Rubber practice pads

Instructions

1. Remove a 1/4-inch of the rubber insulation from the end of both piezo wires and both ends of the speaker wire. The piezo wires are attached at one end to the piezo. One end of the speaker wire is braided, the other is split into two parts; positive is red and ground is black.

2. Solder both exposed ends of the piezo wire to the braided end of the speaker wire.

3. Cut a piece of heat shrink tube to a length equivalent to that of the speaker wire and piezo wire combined, minus 1/4 inch.

4. Feed the speaker wire into the heat shrink tube. Pull it out of the other end so it pulls the piezo element flush against the tube opening.

5. Solder the positive end of the speaker wire to the input section of the 1/4-inch jack.

6. Solder the ground end to the ground terminal, just below the input terminal on the 1/4-inch jack.

7. Turn on a hairdryer and direct the heat to the heat shrink tube. Apply the heat for approximately 2 minutes, or for as long as it takes for the tube to constrict around the wires.

8. Drill a 1/2-inch hole in the center of the coffee can lid.

9. Buff both sides of the coffee can lid with wire wool. This scuffs the surface and makes it a better bonding surface for the glue.

10. Apply a thin layer of glue to the scuffed side of the coffee can lid.

11. Attach the flat side of the piezo element to the glue, just to the side of the hole. Place the piezo element in a screw clamp for 2 hours so the glue can dry.

12. Apply a thin layer of glue to the top side of the coffee can lid.

13. Place the cymbal practice pad face-up. Line the coffee can lid hole up with the hole in the center of the cymbal practice pad, on the underside. Glue the coffee can lid to the underside of the practice pad.

Tips & Warnings

• Only solder in a well-ventilated environment.

References

• Drum Junction: The Science of Electronic Cymbals
• Electronic Drums: Build Your Own

Resources

• The Electronics Club; Soldering Guide; John Hewes; 2010
• Gear 4 Music: Softpads Cymbal Practice Pads