Hardware Band Hero Drums

[IOwnAndPwnU]

I just recently got a legit copy of Band Hero for Wii, along with the guitar and drums.

The guitar works fine, but the drum does not.

I'm not the best player out there, but I don't completely suck.

Whenever I play with the drums, its like the notes don't register? The game shows that I always seem to be missing almost all of them, even though I am not.

I already tried calibrating them a few times, I'll try again.

Any suggestions?

If it's any help, I'm on 4.0U, Wii Key 2 and have HBC installed (along with preloader v0.29).

 

[Toughschmidt]

Had a similar issue, contact Activision support. They're going to tell you to make sure you have fresh batteries, do a Wiimote resync, and then they'll ask if you think it's sensitivity. They may send you a MIDI/USB connector to change your drum sensitivities. When you get to that point, and everything still seems messed up, they'll agree to take your drums in for repair. That's where I currently am. Not sure if they've really fixed the issue or just really cranked the sensitivity, but it does seem a little better.

 

[Szalkow]

I had a set of GHWT drums (same design as the Band Hero drums) that's given me problems. I've cranked the sensitivity on mine using the USB-MIDI cable they sent me, and it does help a lot. Within the first six months of owning it, once it was clear that Acty/RedOctane weren't going to repair my drums (they were swarmed with an influx of help requests due to broken drums within the first few weeks), I ended up repairing them myself.

Last Resort: If the MIDI cable calibration doesn't help and they won't repair it
If the cymbals are not sensitive enough, you can up the sensitivity a bit (without voiding warranty) by unscrewing the rubber cover on the bottom of the cymbal and putting a piece of tape over the piezo disc, taping it to the body. Taping it tighter or looser changes how sensitive it will be.

If the pads seem to miss the majority of hits, it is possible that the wires have become unsoldered. It's possible to unscrew the entire casing, scrape off the existing solder and glue, and resolder/reseal the wires to the piezo contacts. This, however, WILL void your warranty.

 

[SFenton]

STOP!

The Band Hero drums have automatically built-in sensitivity tuners. No need for cables. Read the instruction manual and find out how to use it.

 

[Toughschmidt]

Well, they will send you the MIDI/USB cable for free. You might as well take them, in case you decide you want to use them. Getting the Drum Tunner software to detect the drums on XP was a bit tricky, but they showed right up in Windows 7. At least if you're having a real problem with the set, you will be able to tell them that you tried that fix. God knows the last thing they want to admit is that there is a true hardware failure.

 

[IOwnAndPwnU]

STOP!

The Band Hero drums have automatically built-in sensitivity tuners. No need for cables. Read the instruction manual and find out how to use it.

I looked for the instructions and I cannot locate them.

Where are they exactly?

Thanks,
IOAPU

 

[Hellow]

there are no real instructions that come with band hero,only a guide on assembling the drums.

 

[IOwnAndPwnU]

Exactly, I don't know what SFenton is saying about the instruction manual. :S

And I "Asked a Question" on their website, requested a midi-USB cable.
This should be pretty good.

By the way, does the cable let me use my drums with the computer? That would be pretty cool.

 

[Toughschmidt]

To change the sensitivity on the drums you use the MIDI In port on the brain of the drums. There's probably some software out there that will read the information from the MIDI Out, but I haven't tried it.

 

[SFenton]

It's been in every preview/hands-on of the drums I've seen. I'm not sure how to use it though. For reference, just so you know I'm not faking it, it was mentioned in the IGN hands-on.