Newb question

[johnesmoke]

Hi all,
I've done some basic circuit bending and build a few DIY synths. However, drum machines are not my forte and midi/triggering is all a bit mysterious.
I've bought this board and don't anticipate any build problems, but I need to ask some dumb questions.

I want to install the device in a home made wooden box and I want to trigger the individual  drum sounds from the front plate using buttons/pads. What are my options? Would peizo triggers work?

[gert]

piezo should be sufficient as they generate voltage, theoretically that should be enough to get the trigger snapping. maybe hit it with your fingernail and measure? else you would need an amplifier for this signal. and four piezo's on the box, just be careful not to trigger more than one sound when you hit it. i think the case resonance carries the sound wide far. alesis had piezos in the HR-16 to sense the intensity of the pad hit, by sound! and sometimes it even worked, at other times the circuit board mounting was crumbling apart, because you hit it like made to have full velocity... but it can be turned off in the settings. so, i would just try. in worst case glue the wired piezo to a rubber mat, with the "eye" pointing downwards, so you can hit the brass plate to trigger.

[wax+wire]

i was building drum triggers for a while out of piezos, and it was a bit of a challenge.  partly i think it was just the interface's sampling rate wasn't fast enough, given that piezos on drums don't really pick up much of the sustain part.

do you want more of a trigger finger or trigger with sticks?

[gert]

I once had them on a Roland pm16 and it worked perfectly. The CB-55 conditioner is analog, i don't think it will miss the impulse.

[johnesmoke]

Finger taps would be enough for me. I was thinking of a few breakout boxes that I'd connect via a ribbon cable, to keep the triggers isolated. Thanks for all the tips 

[Circuitbenders]

The problem with using a piezo is the whole point in using a piezo, i.e.that the voltage will change depending on how hard you hit it.
The CB55 conditioning circuit is designed to turn any length 5v pulse into a 10ms 5v pulse. Any input voltage higher or lower will change the length of the output pulse, which will change the sounds in ways you probably don't want. In that regard, the CB55 board is not velocity sensitive.