I have a question: what brand of DDR pad would you recommend?
I have used many different DDR pads; cheap soft, expensive soft, cheap hard (metal) and expensive hard. I'll try to give you the best advice I can.
The (bad) news here is simple:
The more it costs, the better it is, when it comes to DDR pads. Now here's the worse news:
The cheapest pads are all but useless. They fail to function properly after mere hours of moderate use and are not 100% reliable from the start.
Choosing a DDR pad depends on many, many factors, including
1) Your skill level. Playing harder songs requires a better DDR pad, as the cheaper ones break down quick and respond poorly on the quick steps. Also, soft pads tend to bunch/fold up while playing extremely hard songs (8+ difficulty are the main concerns). Think of stepping on a DDR pad as driving a car. Each step puts "miles" on the pad. Cheap pads can only handle so many miles before they break down. The high-end pads will keep going and going and going...I have a friend who I sold my old high-end hard pads to. They've been used heavily for over 5 years and still work great...I've also owned pads that died within a month. Quality is EVERYTHING.
2) The amount of playing you intend to do (1 hour a week? 5 hours a week? 1 hour a day? 4 hours a day?)
3) How much physical space you have, including the amount of available store space you have for the DDR pads when not in use. (Hard pads take up more space and need large storage quarters or need to be left in the playing area permanently if storage is not required/possible. Metal pads with built-on bars take up yet even MORE space.)
4) Your dedication. Do you intend to keep playing in 3 months? 6 months? 1 year? 2 years?
5) Noise. Soft DDR pads are much quieter when played on than hard DDR pads. Apartment dwellers and other specific cases may need to consider this.
6) How much work are you willing to do? Some cheaper metal pads require modifications before they are very usable. If you're very ambitious, you can a PS2 controller and build your own DDR pad from that circuit board.
Soft pads are the lowest maintenance but the least reliable overall. Hard pads all require some basic maintenance, such as cleaning of the electrical contacts every couple of months or so (typically very easy to do), depending on how much you play.
7) Are you playing on carpet or a hard floor (relates back to modifying some hard pads, as well as noise)?
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I started with a lot of E's, then I did this one song that was not extremely difficult and got a B.
If I can get an idea of your skill level and amount of playing you intend to do, I can direct you better. What difficulty (on the DDR game scale of 1 foot to 10 feet, or in terms of "light", "standard" or "heavy" if that's easier) were the songs you attempted?
Here's a basic "pad choice" system I'll post up for now, until I get some more details from you:
Soft PadsIf you are not sure how long you will stick with the game and don't intend to play often at all (maybe once or twice a week for short sessions), a good starting place is around the $40 mark, per pad. This is the absolute cheapest pad I am willing to recommend to anyone. Going any cheaper than this is asking for trouble.
This is a soft DDR pad with a thin foam insert.
http://www.mymybox.com/ddrmbsxpt.htmlBear in mind that going with such a cheap pad will demand a sacrifice if you end up playing a lot. This pad will not stand up to a player who spends 2 hours a day every day, gradually getting up the 6+ difficulty standard/heavy songs. Playing songs of difficulty about 6 or higher will wear this pad out fairly quickly.
Even 4s and 5s will take their toll on this pad over a relatively short time.
My guesses on Life expectancy:
for light usage: 6 months to a year, if handled carefully.
for moderate usage: 2 to 6 months. Could maybe be stretched a little longer.
for heavy usage: 1 to 2 months. I'd be amazed if it lasted a regular, fairly skilled player more than 2 months. A skilled player would also become annoyed with its inaccuracy, which gets steadily worse over time in many soft pads.
Symptoms of wearing out: some buttons become overly sensitive and may be triggered by stepping in places outside of the arrow graphic zone. buttons may stick on or off. Eventually, arrows will stop responding consistantly and eventually wear out completely.
Conclusion: good for a beginner.
High-end Soft PadsGoing up a level, if you want a solid place to start a DDR setup in your house, here's where I'd recommend starting. This price bracket is approximate $80 per pad.
http://www.redoctane.com/ignitionpadv3.htmlThis is a high-quality soft DDR pad with nice, thick foam inserts. The nice thing about these pads is that the foam is high-density and will not sag over time unless the pad is used very heavily for a long time (years, perhaps). The overall sensitivity of the sensors on this pad is significantly better than the cheaper model above.
LIFESPAN:
light use: a year+
moderate use: 8 months to a year+
heavy use: 4 months to a year+
Symptoms of failure: Same as other soft pads.
conclusion: good for a beginner, light or standard-level player. Also useful for a moderately advanced player if more expensive solutions are not possible.
If you feel ambitious or you have a bit of money to work with, you can step up to the metal pads. Bear in mind that all but the most expensive hard pads will require some degree of modification and patience, which I will explain in some detail later.
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Hard PadsThe price bracket between the soft DDR pads and the so-called "Metal" DDR pads is the "hard DDR pad" in the $90 to $140 range. My advice:
Steer clear! These pads, while the sensors are good (though they're an odd shape and size...) and they are immune to the buckling and folding problems when playing fast songs on soft pads, these pads are Weak and break Easily! If a pad looks like this:
http://www.mymybox.com/ddrhd4.html
Do NOT buy it!---------------------------
Metal PadsMoving on to the next, and most expensive bracket of DDR pads: Metal pads. B)
NOTE: If you intend to buy metal pads, you need to go all-out. You are better off buying a good, high-end soft pad than buying a cheap metal pad!Metal pads got the name because they contain metal elements in the frame and overall construction of the pad. In the case of some high-end models, the base is mainly wood, with metal reinforcements. These are also considered "metal" pads.
Here is an example of what I would NOT recommend:
http://www.mymybox.com/ddrmt6.htmlThis metal pad sells for $150 and is an absolute nightmare...I owned two of these. STAY CLEAR unless you have a very good reason to pick this up over a high-end soft pad! They require excessive modifying to even be useful (even MORE modding if you're playing on a carpetted floor), the arrow panels are made of relatively weak plastic and actually crack after moderate/heavy use.
This pad might be okay for a beginner who doesn't mind having to modify the electrical contacts and clean the pad's internals regularily...Admittedly, once the electrical modifications have been made, this pad is MORE sensitive than any soft pad I have played on...while it lasted.
LIFESPAN:
light use: 1 year+
moderate use: 1 year+ IF You Don't Stomp on the pads too hard
heavy use: 1 to 3 months.
EFFECTS of wearing out: Immediate failure of one or more arrows with little indication, functioning perfectly before one or more arrows refuses to function properly at all. Very good quality, while it lasts but the lifespan is very short for such a high investment. The pads also absolutely require modifying to be usable.
There is a pad that looks similar to this one but it's cheaper and of even LOWER quality. If it looks anything like this one, be aware of this information!
Conclusion: Ideal for a fairly rich beginner who is willing to donate a few hours to ripping the pad apart and applying some modifications. Not for an advanced player or a stomper (the panels break easily).
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High-end metal pads:If you have the money and intend to become a regular DDR player over a fairly long-term, this is my personal recommendation. The cost/quality ratio on this pad is fantastic. The downside is that these sell for $300 each...
http://www.cobaltflux.com/site/products_cobalt.htmThese are the cheapest high-end pads right now, and I honestly couldn't ask for anything more. I have split two of these with a few friends, and I used to own 2 more of them. The only reason I got rid of my old ones is because I had no use for them at the time so I sold them to a friend. They still work just like new, requiring minimal maintenance (taking off the arrow panels every few months, and just wipe down the electrical contacts). The arrow panels simply DO NOT crack or break. The panels could probably stop a small bullet if they had to.
Lifespan: Many years
Relability: Excellent. I've gotten combos in the thousands on these pads without a single unrecorded step. I have also AAA'd many a song on these things.
Symptoms of wearing: Unknown. I've never had one wear out. I would expect the worst that could happen is a broken wire but even that's fixable with a little effort. There's really nothing on these pads that CAN break.
If insensitivity occurs, a simple cleaning and/or adjusting the arrow panel's screws have always solved it.
Conclusion: Expensive for a beginner but ideal for an advanced player.
They have even more high-end models if the situation calls for it and you have money to burn. I have no experience with any of these:
http://www.mymybox.com/ddrmbsgxg.htmlHere's a high-end metal pad with a bar included:
http://www.mymybox.com/ddrmbsgxg365.htmlFINAL CONCLUSION:There is no good, reliable solution for an advanced player who can't spend $300 on a DDR pad. Soft pads break down and suffer various issues on the hardest songs and cheap metal pads are not sturdy enough.
For a beginner, there are many options, depending on your budget and you needs.
For an intermediate level player, stick with high-end soft pads until you can afford a high-end metal set. The cheap metals aren't worth it.
