Malletstation, MalletKat and Other MIDI Mallets Discussion

[Rob G.]

I'm not sure how much discussion there is about MIDI mallets here, but I'm doing percussion in a band and got a Pearl Malletstation. I've always been interested in these things and after realizing my sonic ambitions outweighed my money, stage plot, storage space and ability to move gear, it just seemed like a logical decision. I'm still bringing some acoustic hand percussion, but I'm shifting more and more to the Pearl. I feel I still haven't even scraped the surface of what I can do and it's always fun to drop something new (and appropriate) into a song at practice. The band was primarily a recording project, so gaining the flexibility to add so much, even synth parts, with this is pretty cool.

So, who else is playing MIDI mallets? For someone who is pretty green to playing live with this setup, do you have any tips and tricks? I'm very basic in what I'm doing. I feel I'm still learning, not to mention I'm shaking the rust off my mallet skills, heh.

 

[bpaluzzi]

Used a MalletKAT extensively with one of the WGI groups I taught with. It’s a really powerful piece of gear, but an absolute bear to program. It makes Yamaha electronics look downright user friendly

Two pieces of advice:
1. Bring your own personal monitor. Something like a Galaxy Hotspot or a Behringer m207 (or the Mackie equivalent) should be fine, but don’t rely on the venue always having adequate monitoring for you.

2. Get a MIDI panic switch. MIDI mallet instruments have a tendency to get stuck notes, especially when playing fast with pedal articulations. The panic switch sends an “all notes off” message and will cut any sticking notes.

Have fun!

 

[TrickRoll]

I also have a MalletKat. I agree with the recommendation above to have your own monitor(s). I use powered speakers by Alto for a stereo set up.

For me it's been great for jazz gigs where I can have vibes and marimba sounds at hand. I'll sometimes use synth or piano sounds, but not too often.

 

[wolfereeno]

I have a 2 octave mallet kat express with 1 octave expander. I love it but am very much a beginner.

Before my wife and I moved, i had an old Musser I intended to learn on. I sold it when we moved but missed it terribly. So I bought the malletkat. My studio's kind of small so I have it mounted to the wall at an angle, above my workstation. But I can easily stand and play it.

My next step is to get around to taking lessons.

I mounted it using something like this:

SW-CC0K919 Keyboard/Accessory Rack 19in Arms | Reverb

SW-CC0K919 Keyboard/Accessory Rack 19in ArmsSW-CC0K919SW-CC0K919 Keyboard/Accessory Rack 19in Arms Features 15 different display angles The arms can be hinged from any of the top 3 holes Sold in pairsUniversal650106401654NVRSL-T8DUYXLS

reverb.com

 

[Rob G.]

Re: monitor. I have a weird setup where I also have some other instruments I’m playing and I run through my own mixer. So I’m using in ears off my mixer and hoping that will be ok. But yeah, first time I set up with my band, I couldn’t hear myself at all. If the iem don’t work, I appreciate the monitor suggestions!

 

[James Walker]

I had a Malletkat for a few years, but switched to a Xylosynth twenty years ago. No onboard sounds, so I use a combination of Roland and Yamaha synth modules. I tend to use it to play synth sounds, rather than vibe/marimba sounds; if I need a vibraphone sound, I'd rather play a vibraphone.