SPD-SX

SPD-SX

Sampling Pad

The Industry Standard
Hybrid Sampling Pad

Since 2011, the SPD-SX has been a mainstay on professional stages worldwide, its distinctive profile regularly seen beside both digital and hybrid drum kits. This landmark Roland instrument sparked the sampling pad revolution with a wide range of tracks, clicks, loops, and one-shot sounds stored inside. Drummers and performing musicians can record, store, and trigger any type of sound on command—easing the burden of making live performances sound like the original recordings. Along with its sampling and import features, the SPD-SX comes with versatile preset kits and a large pre-loaded sample library, including loops, one-shot sounds, and melodic phrases to spark ideas and create music right away.

SPD-SX SPD-SX
  • Roland SPD-SX Sampling Pad Overview Video

    Roland SPD-SX Sampling Pad Overview

    Since its release in 2011, the SPD-SX can be found in setups ranging from mini kits in the homes of social media streamers to the stages of sold-out stadiums. And the pad fits seamlessly into hybrid and electronic kits alike.

  • SPD-SX & SPD-SX PRO Sampling Pad Comparison Video

    Roland SPD-SX & SPD-SX PRO Sampling Pad Comparison

    Whether playing the beloved SPD-SX or the flagship SPD-SX PRO, drummers will be blown away by each pad’s sounds and capabilities. With advanced triggering and sampling technology, these pads fit perfectly into both electronic and hybrid setups—from the live stage to the recording studio, DJ booth, or home music room.

  • Chris Wood, drummer for Bastille

    Chris "Woody" Wood, drummer for Bastille, and Hybrid Drums

    On the Vancouver, Canada stop of Bastille’s North American tour, Woody took us behind the drum set. Tasked with bringing iconic Bastille album sounds, samples and loops to every show, Woody delivers with a massive hybrid drum setup.

Aric Improta / pic by Anthony Tran Aric Improta / pic by Anthony Tran (insta: @v.trvn)
Join the Revolution

Built to Perform

Building on the capabilities of its trailblazing SPD-S predecessor, the SPD-SX set the bar as the industry-standard sampling pad. Filled with pro features, this powerful pad has become an essential companion for drummers and all sorts of creative stage performers. It’s also built to thrive on the road—taking a beating night after night, on and off stage. Whether you rock out locally on the weekends or perform in sold-out stadiums, the SPD-SX won’t let you down.

SPD-SX - Sample, Import, and Trigger Audio
Unlimited Sounds

Sample, Import, and Trigger Audio

The SPD-SX puts a universe of sounds under your sticks. Trigger an entire track, song part, effect, click track, or one-shot sound with a single pad strike. Then take control over how the audio plays back. From playing covers at clubs and functions to reproducing original song tracks on concert stages, it’s easy to bring studio-level sounds to your live performances.

SPD-SX Velocity-Sensitive Pads
Instant Hit

Velocity-Sensitive Pads

The SPD-SX has nine velocity-sensitive rubber pads, and any sound can be assigned to any pad. When you play the pads lightly, the sound plays back quietly. And when you’re ready to wail, play heavier hits for more volume. Alternatively, you can set a pad to fixed velocity, so the volume stays the same no matter how hard you play.

John Stanier / Battles
SPD-SX LED Indicators
Light the Night

LED Indicators

Each SPD-SX pad features a red LED indicator for onstage visibility and pad status. And to meet your performance needs, you can set the LEDs to behave in different ways. Assign them for fixed on/off status or make them appear only when the pad’s audio is playing. Or set them to illuminate dynamically with audio activity, similar to level meters on a mixing console.

SPD-SX Storage and Sounds
Under the Surface

Storage and Sounds

You can never have too many sounds, right? With 16 GB of storage, the SPD-SX supports up to 25 hours of stereo audio (50 hours of mono) in 16-bit/44.1 kHz WAV/AIFF format. The pad comes pre-loaded with 210 samples to get you started, including loops, one-shots, and melodic phrases. And there are 100 kits for storing your custom layouts, including 16 presets. And when you’re ready for more, visit Roland Cloud to dive into an ever-expanding range of samples and loops for every musical style.
Explore Roland Cloud

Instant Creation

Powerful Sampling Features

With the deep sampling features in the SPD-SX, you can easily capture your own unique sounds. Connect a mic or mono/stereo line-level device to the analog inputs or plug in a computer via USB. Then use Basic Sampling to capture a sound to the pad of your choice or Multi-Pad Sampling to record audio to multiple pads. It’s even possible to re-sample a performance within the SPD-SX, complete with effects processing.

SPD-SX - Powerful Sampling Features
SPD-SX - Playback Types
Run It Back

Playback Types

Once your sounds are loaded in, control how they play back with three customizable modes: Single, Phrase, and Loop. Choose Single for basic percussion sounds like drum hits and claps, and select Phrase for longer files that need to play once and stop at the end. Or choose Loop to play a file from start to finish and seamlessly loop the audio again.

SPD-SX - Trigger Types
Take Control

Trigger Types

Want even more control over audio? No problem. You can select the trigger type when a pad is played. Choose Shot to play the audio each time a pad is struck. Alt plays or stops the audio each time the pad is hit. When you need maximum flexibility, trigger types can be used in conjunction with playback types. And lightning-fast triggering will keep you on the beat.

Ride the Wave

Onboard Audio Editing

Life on the road moves fast, and sometimes you need to edit sounds on the fly. Thanks to the SPD-SX’s onboard editing tools, you can tweak samples without using a DAW. Trim samples, set start/stop points, adjust volume and pitch, and more. It’s also possible to splice multiple samples together or split a single file into individual samples for assignment to different pads.

SPD-SX - Onboard Audio Editing
SPD-SX - Adding Effects
Start Your Engines

Adding Effects

Harness the power of the three effects engines within the SPD-SX. You can use two effects engines simultaneously: master effects and kit effects. The master engine applies to all kits and has 21 different types to amp up your performance. Three common master effect presets on the front panel apply filters, delays, and short loops to any audio playing from the pad at that time. The two assignable kit effects will sound when you play a pad within a chosen kit patch, and you can turn them on and off for full control.

SPD-SX - a range of outputs for easy mixing and monitoring

In and Out

Playing live requires many connections, and the SPD-SX makes getting sounds in and out of the pad simple. Dig into a range of outputs for easy mixing and monitoring. Load, organize, and record sounds with a USB connection and SPD-SX Wave Manager software. And expand your rig with up to four external pads, two footswitches, and accessories.

SPD-SX Audio Outputs
Get Connected

Audio Outputs

With a range of flexible output and routing options, you can seamlessly send pad sounds to different locations for mixing and monitoring. Use the master left/right outputs to send stereo audio or two mono feeds to the mixing desk. Send sound to the monitoring engineer or band members with the left/right sub outputs. And keep tabs on your setup or monitor a click track via headphones.

Plug It In

USB Audio/MIDI

Connect the SPD-SX to your computer via a USB cable for effortless recording with any DAW. You can connect with MIDI using a USB cable too. With legacy MIDI in/out, take control of software instruments, other gear on stage, and automation software like Ableton.

SPD-SX - USB Audio/MIDI
SPD-SX - Easy Sound Import
Load It Up

Easy Sound Import

There are two ways to quickly transfer audio files to the SPD-SX. Load the files onto a USB flash drive and copy them across. Or use the free SPD-SX Wave Manager to drag and drop audio from a computer to individual pads. The software also includes intuitive tools to back up your work and organize kits for different gigs.

SPD-SX - Essential Accessories
Adding Extras

Essential Accessories

The SPD-SX plays well with accessories. Mount the pad to a PDS-20 or PDS-10 stand for gigging. Or grab an APC-33 clamp and mounting plate to attach it to a cymbal stand. Expand your trigger options with up to four external pads and two footswitches. And protect your instrument on the road with the CB-BSPDSX carrying bag.

SPD Sampling Pads

With advanced triggering and sampling technology, these pads fit perfectly into both electronic and hybrid setups—from the live stage to the recording studio, DJ booth, or home music room.

Pads
Built-in Pads: 9 (with LED Indicators)
* Two external trigger inputs are provided, allowing you to connect up to four Pads.
Maximum Polyphony
20 voices
* Maximum polyphony becomes 16 voices according as an operating state.
Number of Recordable Wave Data
10,000
* Including preload wave data.
Sampling Time (Total time for all wave data)
Approx. 25 hours of stereo audio (50 hours of mono)
* Since the internal memory included with the SPD-SX contains preloaded data, the available sampling time will be less than the time above.
Data Format
16-bit linear PCM (WAV/AIFF)
Sampling Frequency
44.1 kHz
Kits
100
Kit Chain
8 chains (20 steps per chain)
Effects
Master Effects (21 Types)
Equalizer
Kit Effect 1 (20 Types)
Kit Effect 2 (20 Types)
Display
Graphic LCD 128 x 64 dots
Connectors
PHONES jack (Stereo 1/4-inch phone type)
MASTER OUT jacks (L/MONO, R) (1/4-inch phone type)
SUB OUT jacks (L/MONO, R) (1/4-inch phone type)
AUDIO IN jacks (L/MONO, R) (1/4-inch phone type) (with LINE-MIC GAIN control)
TRIG IN jacks (1/2, 3/4) (1/4-inch TRS phone type)
FOOT SW jack (1/2) (1/4-inch TRS phone type)
MIDI connectors (IN, OUT)
DC IN jack
COMPUTER connector
USB MEMORY connector
Interface
Hi-Speed USB (USB-MIDI, USB-AUDIO, USB Mass Storage Class, USB Flash Drive)
Power Supply
DC 9 V (AC Adaptor)
Current Draw
600 mA
Accessories
CD-ROM (SPD-SX Wave Manager, USB driver, preload wave data)
Owner's Manual
AC Adaptor
Options (sold separately)
Pads (PD series, PDX series)
Cymbals (CY series)
Kick Triggers (KD series)
Pad Stand (PDS-10)
All-Purpose Clamp (APC-33)
Acoustic Drum Trigger (RT-30H, RT-30HR, RT-30K)
Pedal Switch (DP-2)
Footswitch (BOSS FS-5U, BOSS FS-6)
Personal Drum Monitor (PM-10, PM-30)
USB Flash Memory


* Use USB Flash Memory sold by Roland. We cannot guarantee operation if other products are used.
Size and Weight
Width
364 mm
14-3/8 inches
Depth
331 mm
13-1/16 inches
Height
94 mm
3-3/4 inches
Weight
2.5 kg
5 lbs. 9 oz.
0 dBu = 0.775 Vrms
In the interest of product improvement, the specifications and/or appearance of this unit are subject to change without prior notice.

Video Library

A Few Minutes with Home Front

A Few Minutes with Home Front

For these Edmonton synth provocateurs, punk is more than a genre. Find out how the term grounds them in decades of DIY efforts.Read more…

Careers in Music: Dan Nebe of Team Musicare

Careers in Music: Dan Nebe of Team Musicare

Learn how the pandemic-born music organization provides “inclusive, real-world creative arts experiences" in this exclusive conversation.Read more…

Careers in Music: Playing Live on Broadway

Careers in Music: Playing Live on Broadway

Meet seven successful Broadway musicians who carved their own paths to the stage and into the orchestra pit.Read more…

A Few Minutes with RUMPUS

A Few Minutes with RUMPUS

The Canadian DJ discusses how he infuses his EDM sets with a raw punk rock edge, blending high-energy beats with live drumming on V-Drums and an SPD-SX.Read more…

Careers in Music: Bob Mackenzie with James Blake

Careers in Music: Bob Mackenzie with James Blake

From humble beginnings to working with James Blake, Bob Mackenzie explains how the Roland SP-404MKII fuels creativity.Read more…

Hybrid Theory: Daru Jones

Hybrid Theory: Daru Jones

Daru Jones has a style all his own. The hybrid drummer discusses touring with Jack White, custom kits, and the importance of individuality in hip-hop.Read more…

Living the Stream with Mitch Bruzzese

Living the Stream with Mitch Bruzzese

The online star shares secrets about gaining his Twitch fandom, his hi-tech setup, and what inspires him and what inspires him about livestreaming.Read more…

Hybrid Theory: Noah Hyppolite with Mick Jenkins

Hybrid Theory: Noah Hyppolite with Mick Jenkins

Noah Hyppolite discusses hybrid hip-hop drumming and how he navigates the intersection of touring with Mick Jenkins and a career in aerospace.Read more…

Hybrid Theory: Glastonbury Scene Report

Hybrid Theory: Glastonbury Scene Report

From the Glastonbury Festival grounds, hybrid drummers share their setups and offer advice to aspiring musicians.Read more…

Hybrid Theory: Frank Zummo of Sum 41

Hybrid Theory: Frank Zummo of Sum 41

Hybrid drumming blends acoustic and electronic elements. Frank Zummo discusses his approach and gear during the final Sum 41 world tour.Read more…

A Few Minutes with Night Tapes

A Few Minutes with Night Tapes

The brainchild of housemates recording late-night jams onto cassette, Night Tapes explains the process behind their atmospheric dream pop.Read more…

Hybrid Theory: Josh Manuel with Kane Brown

Hybrid Theory: Josh Manuel with Kane Brown

Josh Manuel discusses hybrid drumming and how he uses Roland electronic gear to enhance his performances with Kane Brown.Read more…

Hybrid Drums

Hybrid DrumsHybrid Drums — Your Sound. No Limits.

Hybrid drumming combines technology with acoustic drums, so you can reinforce and complement your acoustic drum sound by adding electronic sounds.Read more…

Hybrid Drums

Hybrid DrumsAcoustic & Electronics

Hybrid drums: take the raw power of acoustic drums,add the potential of electronics and start playing a drum kit that gives you the best of both worlds.Read more…

Downloads

Brochures

Updates & Drivers

Support

If you have questions about operating your Roland product, please check our Knowledge Base for answers to the most common questions.
In addition, we have a library of Owner’s Manuals and Support Documents that you can download and reference.
If you require further assistance, all Product Support questions are handled via BACKSTAGE which can be accessed via www.rolandeurope.com

Owner's Manuals

Support Documents