Roland TD-27 as your Mandala Sound Source Instead of a Computer!
The steps for the Mandala V3 to trigger your TD-27 across a 5-pin MIDI cable would be similar for any case of a standard MIDI controller triggering a piece of music hardware using 5-pin MIDI.
Here are steps to do this in the case of a TD-27:
First you’ll need to set your TD-27 to receive MIDI from a MIDI controller:
Check p.60 of the TD-27 manual (https://static.roland.com/assets/media/pdf/TD-27_Reference_eng02_W.pdf). You’ll set MIDI Tx/Rx Sw to ‘ON’ and set the MIDI Channel to ‘1’. (Because Mandala V3 default channel is 1).
Next you’ll need to know which MIDI notes the TD-27 is looking for to trigger its sounds:
Check p.41 of the TD-27 manual [eg. KICK 36(C2), SNARE <HEAD> 38(D2), etc.]. Take note of which sounds you want to trigger and the MIDI notes they require.
Configure your V3 surface and rim zones to send those MIDI notes:
Connect your V3 to your computer with a USB cable and open the V3 Utility app (https://utility.mandalaV3.com). Set any Surface Zone Notes and Rim Zone Notes to match the notes required by the TD-27. (Keep in mind Roland uses the Middle C = C4 convention and Mandala uses the Middle C = C3 convention, so if a TD sound requires a C2 you’d set the Mandala zone to send a C1)
Next connect the V3 to the TD (the following general info is covered on p.4 of the V3 manual at https://manual.mandalaV3.com). Here are the steps:
Connect V3 to TD:
Connect your V3 to the MIDI input port on the TD-27 with a 5-pin MIDI cable.
Power the V3:
Either keep your V3 USB cable connected to your computer for power or disconnect it from the computer and connect it to the USB-A port on your TD-27. Another option is to connect the V3 USB cable to a standard 5V USB power supply. If not connected to a computer for power then you’ll see the red light turn on under the V3 in 20 seconds when it boots into standalone mode.
Now when you hit the V3 zones it will send MIDI to the TD-27 and trigger its sounds. You can scroll through the TD-27 factory preset kits and the V3 will play them all.