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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

Permalink BeatBuddy drum machine pedal

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Came across this today. thought it might have some possibilities. A little pricey at $350 for the pedal and $30 for the foot switch.
Of course the big question is can you do a surf beat?

http://mybeatbuddy.com/?gclid=CImb_ffy4cECFcrm7AodBhUAog

I'll forward this to our drummer. See what he thinks....

I ordered one in February 2014 and it arrived about a month ago. The patterns it comes with do not include a surf beat (snare strikes on 2, 2A, and 4), but it includes a roots rock beat that is ok for rehearsing with.

The company makes a software download available that is supposed to allow making up customized beat patterns. I haven't had the chance yet to use it because my music computer is undergoing recovery from a memory card gone bad. Within a week I should be able to get to it.

The Best Buddy uses an SD card that can easily fall out. I posted a video on YouTube about a quick fix to prevent this from happening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is-y_jxDytk

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

I'm wary of someone who would use a portable sequencer from 20+ years ago (the Yamaha QY10) as an example of an alternative product.

It wasn't designed to be used as a drum machine back in 1991, and it isn't now.

In rehearsing with the Beat Buddy, my guitar duo partner and I have found that while the Beat Buddy has virtues, as it is set up it is overbearing. In this way it is similar to complex guitar effects pedals I have used. With other pedals I eventually found how to get the sounds I like. Finding sounds I like will require learning and using the drum pedal's software, with lots of trial and error, and it may take a long time.

I think it is funny how this resembles incorporating a new real (i.e., human) drummer in the band.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Last edited: Nov 08, 2014 12:50:54

The thing I liked about it in the demo was that you can start/stop it, add fills and change parts with a tap of a foot switch.
I'd also like to see some of these manufacturers create websites where users can upload their beats or loops that they may like to share with others.

Squid wrote:

I think it is funny how this resembles incorporating a new real (i.e., human) drummer in the band.

You only have to punch the information into the pedal once, though.

Wink

I think 350 clams is just too high on this thing. I just purchased a Zoom g1xon that has many wonderful excellent sounding drum patterns plus guitar effects with two pedals for on/off and effects switching plus an expression pedal all for 70 clams. It does not have a drum fill feature and certainly lacks many of the programming/sequencing features of the Beat Buddy BUT it is great for practicing. I suspect, if the Beat Buddy is a success, Zoom, Boss and/or others will do more dedicated feature-laden drum pedals for much less. -Marty

"Hello Girls!"

Apart from having the form of a small effects pedal can anybody tell me what the real innovation in the BeatBuddy is? Confused

I mean: There are quite a few drum machines around that have the possibility to trigger start/stop and fills through footswitches, for example the Alesis SR16, which also has the advantage of being programmable on the spot without any external hardware. These are easily available for a reasonable prize and seem to have a much wider rage of application. So...

Los Apollos - cinematic surf music trio (Berlin)
"Postcards from the Scrapyard" Vol. 1, 2 & 3 NOW available on various platforms!
"Chaos at the Lobster Lounge" available as LP and download on Surf Cookie Records!

simoncoil wrote:

Apart from having the form of a small effects pedal can anybody tell me what the real innovation in the BeatBuddy is? Confused

I mean: There are quite a few drum machines around that have the possibility to trigger start/stop and fills through footswitches...

It is a matter of quality, just as in your choices for guitar and amp. Most drum machines have a robotic presence, a flat personality, and inflexibility during performances. Guitar Player magazine editor Molenda wrote about the Beat Buddy, "You get ten different kits created by Goran Grooves (including hand drum!), and every single one of them sounds as good
as a hit record—they are realistic, dimensional, and impactful."

Molenda gives it an "Editor's Pick" award and you can read about it here:
http://mybeatbuddy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/120_gpr1314_gear_beatbuddy.pdf

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Now that I programmed the Beat Buddy pedal with the setlist for an upcoming 2 hour performance, it is a blast to rehearse with. It is easy to set up and get going for rehearsing, and it feels like playing with the band.

Controlling the Beat Buddy while playing guitar leads is interesting. It is not as complicated as singing while playing notes on a guitar (i.e., not just strumming), but it takes some practice. I particularly like triggering several fills consecutively.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Have you figured out how to customize the beat patterns yet?

Surf_Skater wrote:

Have you figured out how to customize the beat patterns yet?

Since the latest software update there is a huge variety of beat patterns to choose from. I know how to select what I want from them. There is a lot to like. To make my own patterns I need to make a MIDI drum file. That is not difficult but I have not needed to do it yet.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Rehearsing with this pedal at my foot is not just work, it is toil. I am getting the feel of how and when to add drum fills and variations, and they sound surprisingly good. However, and so far, controlling this on top of playing melodies on the guitar feels like arduous work. Maybe with further experience, it will become second nature and I will be able to enjoy rehearsing with this pedal.

On the positive side, the pedal usually sounds better than most drummers I have rehearsed with, but of course not as good as the best few.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Sounds like your tap dancing skills are improving! That's the main reason I'm not so sure something like this is for me. I'm a spaz and I have enough trouble playing and just activating a single effect at the right time.
This sounds like it's more geared towards people that can walk while chewing gum.

I will use the Beat Buddy at the upcoming Insanitizers Duo gig Jan 2, 2015. The venue doesn't permit a group larger than two people, so for percussion it's this or nothing. Now that I have spent more time revising the program in the Beat Buddy for the gig setlist, I have grown almost comfortable with it. I have spent over 20 hours with the device though.

The programs driving the Beat Buddy are buggy but I've managed to work around them. This too took time.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

In our live performance the Beat Buddy definitely added. The audience was moving and bouncing along with the beat. The overall sound was particularly good when the accompanying guitar played bass heavy tic-tics. Simpler and shorter patterns were distinctly better for the drum fills. The longer and more complex patterns were too heavy.

I heard a complaint that the drumming was too loud. There's always that with live drummers too. The drumming was just loud enough so we could reliably hear it.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

TheFintastics wrote:

Curious to know if there's a place online you can find Beat Buddy beats/songs that are strictly surf instrumental classics? Or if anyone is willing to sell their own drum versions to other surf musicians.

After buying the Rock Essentials pack from GrooveMonkee, I enquired about the possibility of a Beat Pack for surf instrumentals. I got this reply from Russ at GM:

"We can look into a surf pack.
The problem is that I don't know that music so the first thing I'd need is a list of potential songs to record (whole or in pieces).
We'd need a variety of beats and tempos and it needs to be comprehensive enough so there's nothing obvious and essential missing.

If you have a list of songs in mind it would help. The users at the Surf Guitar 101 Forum may be able to help also."

Whatever you can send would help.
Thanks again,
Russ
Groove Monkee

So lets start a list and send it to Russ at Groovemonkee!

So i’ll start the list. Our drummer (when we had one) always had trouble with “24 Hours from Tulsa”by the Apemen.

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