there are so many things that synths just cant do. i say no way, id rather have some dude talking into a mic on the fifty than hearing a synth "replace" anything in the pit. Yea timps are big and heavy. im sorry i thought was drum corps, not wussy corps, no one ever complained until they found an easier way to do it. as far as price, yea they are expensive. but its not like you NEED to buy brand new ones every season. if the corps takes care of them and changes the heads every now and then i dont see why one set cant last a long time