Alesis Strike Troubleshooting Guide

In this guide, we will walk you through some basic troubleshooting steps if you’re having triggering issues on an Alesis Strike drum kit. If the pad isn’t triggering at all, or even if certain spots of the pad aren’t triggering, these steps will help narrow the issue down. For more information, visit the Alesis Strike Troubleshooting Trigger Response page.

Setup & connections

The first thing you want to check is that the cymbal is positioned correctly and the cables are connected and seated. Follow these steps to determine whether or not the setup or cable is bad.

1. Make sure that the Alesis logo is facing you. While the entire pad is a trigger, the Choke and Edge triggers are located opposite of the Alesis logo.
2. Check that the cables are fully seated and connected to the correct port. For ride pads, make sure Ride 1 is connected to the LEFT port on the pad, and Ride 2 is connected to the RIGHT port.
3. Connect the Ride 1 cable to another pad, such as a tom, and connect the Ride 2 cable to another. If the ride samples begin triggering, that means the cables are working.

Module settings

If after confirming that the pads are connected securely and correctly, the next thing to do is to check the trigger settings for that pad. While the factory settings on the Alesis Strike are a great starting point, you may need to adjust settings to fit your play style. Follow these steps to adjust the settings.

1. Move the volume fader up and down while striking the pad to see if you are getting sound.
2. Press EDIT then Triggers to enter Trigger Mode.
3. Select the trigger by turning on Note Chase then striking the pad.
4. Turn the Sensitivity up and turn the Threshold down. Increasing sensitivity will trigger louder sounds with a softer hit and decreasing the threshold will produce sound with lighter strikes.

Firmware & reset

If you’re still having pad issues after adjusting module, you will want to perform a factory reset or re-install the latest firmware. Follow these steps to perform a factory reset and firmware update.

Factory reset

Turn the module off, then press and hold the STOP and ENTER buttons while turning the unit back on. Once you see Restoring Factory Defaults flash on the screen, the reset has been completed.

Firmware update

1. Go to the Alesis Strike product page, and click the Download tab.
2. Select download the latest Firmware and Content Update installer for your OS.
   • If you are already on the most recent firmware, there is no need to re-install the content update.

Alesis Strike firmware installation guide

Knowledge Base