Techniquest

Exhibit: Beat It

Hit the drum pads with the drumsticks and use the pedal to hit the bass drum.  By pressing the buttons on the drum kit you can change the type of drum and the sound.  Real drums have a skin stretched across the top of the round frame and may be the oldest type of musical instrument in the world.  The sound is produced by the skin vibrating.  When you hit the drum pad in Beat it!, a sensor under the pad sends an electrical signal to a sampler which produces the sound required electronically.  When the sampler receives the electrical signal it plays a short recording of the drum sound you have recorded through the loudspeakers.