Strike A Light!
The most fun is to be had in the Light Menu. I say fun, but this is also absolute genius, unique as far as I know, and provides an incredible amount of visual feedback. When you're confronted with nine black rubber pads, it's not always easy to remember which sound is on which pad. Adding user–configurable LEDs to each pad means you design each kit to mean something to you.
Each pad has two different modes — stop and play — and each can have its own LED state, which comprises a colour and an animation. LEDs can be a solid colour (dim, medium or bright). They can flash in time with the kit bpm, 'ping pong' left to right at the kit bpm, and 'fill' from left to right as the sample plays, to show where you are in the sample (this would work particularly well for long loops and backing tracks). The 'Audio Breath' and 'Audio Meter' options cause the LED to change intensity as you hit the pad, or pulse in keeping with the dynamics of the sample. I'm not entirely sure why, but you can also configure the illuminated Alesis logos on the side and rear of the unit to show custom colours and animations.
Bring The Noise
One of the most significant features of the Strike is the ability to import samples. The v1.1 firmware update expands the WAV formats supported to 16- or 24-bit samples, recorded at sample rates from 44.1 to 96 kHz.
USB sample import is via the Sound Menu page. Selecting the Import soft key interrogates your USB device and summons a list of WAV files, which you can scroll through with the data knob and audition using the Play soft key. To add a single sample to a pad, select the pad and press the Single soft key. The sample is then saved to internal memory and assigned to the pad. To import multiple samples, select them with the data knob and hit the Multi soft key. This imports all selected samples and conveniently puts them in the user sound category called 'New Samples', so you can find them easily when you're ready to use them.
If you want to go 'old skool' and record your own samples, simply connect an audio source to the record inputs and press the Sample Menu button. Level meters show the incoming signal and you can adjust gain using a rear-panel knob. To record your sample, either press the Record soft key, or set a threshold level and let the Strike automatically start recording when an input exceeds it.
The Save soft key now saves your sample to the 'New Sample' user memory location. The screen instantly switches to the Sound Menu edit screen, where you can rename and edit your sample — tidy! A massive 32GB of memory is available for your own samples, by the way.
Nip & Tuck
Most samples imported via USB will probably have been edited so that loops are the correct length and single hits have no unwanted content before or after the sample. That won't always be the case for samples recorded via the audio inputs, of course. Fortunately, pretty comprehensive editing features are provided. Normalise, Pitch, Reverse, Copy and Delete functions are available, and start and end points of the sample can be edited — with the capable assistance of the large LCD screen, which can be almost filled with the waveform. The two A-Link knobs (see 'The Tweakest Link' box) now double as trim knobs for the start and end of the sample, which can play back in Loop mode as you edit. Edit resolution is adjustable from coarse to fine which, in conjunction with the Zoom soft key, allows you to work very accurately.
Editing completed, files can be saved in three different ways. 'Save' writes a file to memory with edit points, so if you load the sample to a pad it will play back in its edited form, but all original content remains, so you can re-edit the file at any time. 'Trim' takes any portion of the waveform outside left and right edit points and deletes it, saving only the selected portion. 'Slice' will save only the selected portion of the waveform but as a completely new file. This is ideal for chopping a loop into its constituent parts and assigning them to individual pads.
"A drummer wanting to integrate electronics into their acoustic setup would be hard pushed to want for more."
In The Loop
Another way of creating a new file is to use the Looper. From the Perform screen, select the Looper functions by pressing the View soft key. The effects bypass buttons are now replaced with the Looper controls — Play, Record, Measures and Settings. The number of measures can be set from 1 to 16, and the Looper can either drop out of record after the selected number of measures or continue overdubbing. To record a loop, simply press record, hear a one-bar count in the headphones and play the pads! The Save button writes the new loop to the New Samples memory area, so you can assign it to a pad.
My only slight criticism here, which extends to the sample editor too, is that new files are saved with a default name — 'Loop000867', for example. Of course, you can rename the sample in the Edit page, but you have to make a mental note of the default name when saving, so you know what to look for.
Striking Gold?
I like the Strike MultiPad... a lot. It's incredibly well thought-out and very easy to use. The large LCD is fantastic and offers exceptional visual feedback when you're assigning samples to pads or editing. The pad LEDs are absolute genius — to be able to assign colours and animation makes using the Strike live a real pleasure and takes all the guesswork out of 'what sound is on what pad?'.
The Strike also boasts a huge number of additional inputs, to the point where you could easily trigger a full kit in addition to using the pads, giving you the features of a sample pad and trigger module in one unit.
Add to this 8000+ sounds and a whopping 32GB of memory for user samples — and all the effects and control options — and I have to conclude that although Alesis don't have the pedigree of a company like Roland when it comes to electronic percussion, they have certainly raised the bar, by giving more sounds and more memory than the competition, plus some fantastic, innovative features — and at $699£599 the Strike is cheaper than its main rival, making it an even more attractive proposition. A drummer wanting to integrate electronics into their acoustic setup would be hard pushed to want for more.
The Tweakest Link
The A-Link feature has its roots in the effects section (apart from when the knobs and buttons are doubling as edit tools in the edit window) but is much more than that. A-Link comprises three buttons (A, B, C) and two knobs. You can assign a host of parameters to each of the A-Link knobs, including parameters from the effects processors and individual Wave volumes, pan and effect levels.
The A, B and C buttons can be thought of as 'bank' buttons so you can have a total of six parameter assignments, all saved individually with each kit. This allows very creative real-time control, from increasing reverb or delay times to introducing filters and modulations, in addition to practical applications such as quickly adjusting the level of a sample.
Effective Actions
Alesis were world leaders in digital effects back in the day, having developed revolutionary products such as the Midiverb and Quadraverb. Many moons have passed since then, but they still know how to deliver bang for the buck when it comes to effects. The Strike features three Kit FX, Master FX, a Master Compressor and Master EQ, all very easy to assign and edit.
Kit FX include the usual suspects (reverb, delay and flanging) alongside more contemporary offerings such as lo-fi, amp modelling and ring modulation. Pad Assign lets you assign an effect to a specific pad and adjust the effect level on that pad. Again, the method is simple and consistent: Press Assign, hit the pad and adjust the level. To have this many effects is fantastic, but to be able to assign them individually to pads and then set discrete levels per pad is a huge bonus.
The Master FX are accessed directly from the MST FX button and offer a few additional treatments such as tremolo, loop slicers and complex delays. There is no Pad Assign option — these effects apply to the whole kit, as do the Master Compressor and EQ.
Pros
- Huge, informative LCD.
- Pad LEDs.
- 32GB sample storage.
- More than 8000 sounds.
Cons
- Kits can take a few seconds to load.
- Automatic sample naming.
Summary
A well-built percussion pad packed with innovative features that set it apart from the competition.