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E-drums in focus in Sydney
A special panel discussion at next month’s Sydney Drum and Percussion Show will look at the growing use of electronic percussion in recording and performance.
Moderated by digitalDrummer editor Allan Leibowitz, the panel will include Michael Schack and a host of local Australian professional drummers.
The first Sydney Drum Show will be held on May 27 & 28 at Rosehill Gardens Grand Besides Schack, the show will feature performances from international drummers Thomas Lang and Virgil Donati as well as local musicians including Lucius Borich and Stan Bicknell.
RIP: Ikutaro Kakehashi
Ikutaro Kakehashi, founder of Roland and ATV Corporation, has died at the age of 87.
According to his online biography, Kakehashi began his career in 1950s, repairing electronic organs and created new prototype organs while concurrently running an electrical appliance shop. At 28, he decided to devote himself to music and pursuit of the ideal electronic musical instrument.
Ikutaro Kakehashi is best known for founding Roland Corporation. His first foray into electronic drums was the R1 Rhythm Ace, exhibited at Summer NAMM 1964 but never commercialised.
Kakehashi is also knows as the Godfather of MIDI.
Among the first to react to the sad news was digitalDrummer Hall of Famer, Michael Schack, who posted on Facebook: “I just received the sad news of the passing of 'Mr. K', Ikutaro Kakehashi , the iconic inventor of the electronic rhythm machine, co-developer of MIDI and founder of Roland Corporation and ATV.
“I've been lucky to perform in his presence over the years, but him specially flying over from Japan to the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels in April 2007 to celebrate the very first V-Drums Contest final in the world, organised by #RolandCentralEurope, was probably the most memorable moment. He always spoke with huge respect for the young and older talents who continue to be creative and he had quite a sense of humor as well.”
ATV opens Sound Store
ATV Corporation has opened its ATV SOUND STORE web service, offering
additional instrument downloads for its aD5 module.
ATV SOUND STORE will offer an increasing collection of diverse and distinctive drum and percussion sound instruments to augment the five kits in the module.
Initially, the service will make available 37 drum, cymbal, and percussion
Instruments, sold on an a la carte basis, and priced between
US$2–7.
To mark the launch of the ATV SOUND STORE, 21 drum and percussion instruments are available free-of-charge to existing aD5 users.
Toontrack adds 70s Rock
Toontrack has released a new The Seventies Rock EZX pack, reviving the sounds of
bands like Led Zeppelin, The Who the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac
The Seventies Rock EZX sets out to capture a broad musical scope – from the farthest end of epic, earth-shattering and reverberant down to classic, dampened and low-key.
The recording sessions were held at the Columbia Studio A in Nashville, one of the world’s most famed recording studios and features three fundamentally different kits: a bombastic-sounding, one-of-a-kind replica of Buddy Rich’s ’70s-era Slingerland as well as two different renditions of a mid-‘70s Camco – one with standard drum heads and one with towelled.
XLN Audio launches Trigger
XLN Audio has announced the launch of the Addictive Trigger, which it claims is the world’s first intelligent drum replacer.
Features include Audio Fingerprint that accurately identifies drum hits and SuperStart that automatically provides suitable detection settings.
The new Addictive Trigger + Drum Vault bundle comes with a selection of kit pieces from AD’s vast library.
Additionally, you can also load your favourite kit pieces and presets from Addictive Drums 2 into Addictive Trigger.
inMusic sues Roland
inMuisic, maker of Alesis, has filed suit against Roland Corporation, claiming infringement of three of its patents.
inMusic’s suit seeks to put a permanent stop to Roland’s sale of products that it says “infringe inMusic’s patented technology and asks the Court to require that Roland compensate inMusic appropriately for Roland’s unauthorized use of patented inMusic technology.”
The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. It is seeking action against three Roland products - PD-140DS V-Pad which it says violates its
U.S. Patent No. 9,424,827; the VH-13MG hi-hat controller (U.S Patent No. 8,785,758) and the new KD-A22 (U.S. Patent No. 8, 039,724).
inMusic is seeking a temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction and a permanent injunction against Roland as well as compensation for lost profits and “treble damages for willful, deliberate and intentional infringement”.
The lawsuit follows a lawsuit filed by Roland that alleges patent infringement by inMusic/Alesis of eight U.S. patents relating to its electronic musical instruments.
Drumdrops goes disco
Drumdrops has released a Vintage Disco VST pack in Kontakt and BFD format.
The packs feature a 70s Rogers Big R Kit which tuned for the perfect disco sound. It comprises a 24'x14' Bass Drum, a Sonor Sonorlite 14”x6.5' and Sonor Maple 14'x7' Snare Drum, a huge 18'x16' Floor Tom, and two Rack Toms, a 14'x10' and a 13”x8”. The cymbals used were 15' HHX X-Celerator Hi-Hats, a 17' Zildjian K Dark, an 18' Sabian HH extra thin Crash and a 20' Sabian Artisan Ride.
Percussion for this kit includes cowbells, tambourine and cabassa. It also includes some short and long claps from an original Claptrap.
The Kit was recorded at the Ironworks studio in Brighton, UK (Mike Pelanconi's studio).
New Simmons monitors
Simmons has launched its new Simmons DA350 portable monitor system for e-drums.
The Simmons DA350 is a powerful, portable, fully contained system that delivers performance ready Simmons sound for your electronic drum kit. With a full 350 W of Class-D power (1,100 W peak), the DA350's 10' subwoofer lays down a beefy bottom end, while the two 4.75' satellite speakers are perfect for adding sonic imaging and detail to cymbals and snares.
The DA350's integrated stereo mixer gives you three independent input channels, with two-band shelving EQ for total tone control and a subwoofer level control to dial in just the right amount of bottom end. Auxiliary inputs and built-in Bluetooth connectivity give you multiple ways to bring in tracks from any mobile device for practice, performance, or accompaniment.
Weighing in at just 60 lb., the DA350 is designed for easy transport, with speakers that cleverly tuck away into the subwoofer cabinet for effortless portability. The system comes complete with stands and transport bags. With quick setup, easy portability, and great sound, the Simmons DA350 Electronic Drum Monitor System is the monitor system your electronic drum kit deserves, from the first name in electronic drums.
The Simmons DA350 Electronic Drum Monitor System is available now at a street price of $499.99
Big Rock EZX added
Toontrack has releases the Big Rock Drums EZX, a drum library expansion for EZdrummer 2 featuring all-new drums recorded by engineer Dave Cobb and drummer Michael Miley (Rival Sons). This also marks the first release of Toontrack’s annual Metal Month, which officially launches on November 1.
Recorded at Cobb’s Low Country Sound Studio in Nashville, it presents five essentially different kits that still share one common denominator – they’re the massive, reverberant and roaring type, tailored for big rock songs.
As much as this is an homage to times that passed, it’s at the same time a reminder of the fact that great tones never die – they echo through the ages.
The samples include kits from Mayer Bros., C&C, Gretsch, Ludwig and Camco.
ATV launches second product
ATV corporation has announced the launch of its second e-drum product, the aFrame.
The aFrame enables performers to organically express their musicality just as if they were playing an acoustic instrument—the player controls the subtlety of the performance. ATV’s proprietary “Adaptive Timbre Technology”* responds to the acoustic percussion playing techniques of striking, pressing, and friction. With nuance, the player can produce sounds that have tonal variation and effect controls not possible with existing digital percussion.
The playing surface of the aFrame is made of a hi-tech material with excellent bounce and friction characteristics, yet it has the familiar feel of headed acoustic percussion.
Tones can be created using the onboard acoustic and electronic sounds, and further enhanced with internal high-definition stereo effects. Up to 80 user-defined tones can be saved in the built-in memory.
The aFrame can be held with the hands like a frame drum, placed on a stand, or held with a neck strap. The unique diamond shape of the aFrame aids in the production of varied tones — it all depends on where you strike it.
New Dream Pop EZX
Toontrack has announced the release of the Dream Pop EZX, a drum library expansion for EZdrummer 2 combining acoustic drums and classic machines with creative percussion elements, all honed and shaped with cutting-edge sound design to never-before-heard drum kit hybrids, tailored for modern music-making. Helmed by the creative duo of Addeboy vs. Cliff, the Dream Pop EZX was produced in collaboration with Toontrack’s Mattias Eklund. Addeboy vs. Cliff has collectively produced, written and recorded with acts like Say Lou Lou, Adam Tensta and Roxette. Mattias is the founder of Toontrack and has a long history of audio engineering, mixing and sound design.
The Dream Pop EZX comes with 29 preset kits made up by a total of close to 250 individual percussive sounds. In addition to traditional acoustic drums and classic drum machine sounds, you’ll find completely new hybrids and textured percussive foley sampled from a rich variety of elements. Get creative renditions of stomps, claps, snares and kicks – but also, a set of chromatic pad-like sounds as well as a collection of ever-changing filter loops made in a modular system.
FXpansion releases BFD Metal Snares
Audio software developer has announced the availability of BFD Metal Snares - a collection of premium metal-shell snare drums for BFD3.
'The snare drum is the center of the beat and it can make or break a song,' say FXpansion sound designers Drew Vernon and Mike Bugh. 'The drums we chose are made by manufacturers like Sonor and Pearl that are renowned for metal snares that really stand out in a mix.”
Each snare drum was recorded with 2 top mics, 1 bottom mic and 1 side mic, along with mono room, ribbon room, and far room ambience channels. Two additional stereo reverb channels were added to achieve a massive sound. The five hand-selected snare drums were recorded with wires on and off and are included in both natural and processed versions.
BFD Metal Snares is available to purchase and download directly from FXpansion for USD $70.
New flagship for Roland
Roland has announced the TD-50KV and TD-50K V-Drums, two new flagship kits, powered by the new TD-50 sound module and featuring the new PD-140DS Digital Snare and CY-140DR Digital Ride.
Additional features include user sample playback via SD memory, multi-track recording via USB, balanced audio outputs, and more.
At the heart of the TD-50KV and TD-50K is the TD-50, an all-new sound module with advanced Prismatic Sound Modeling. Working along with the sophisticated sensing capabilities of the new snare pad and ride cymbal, the TD-50’s high-resolution processing delivers the most lifelike, resonant, and expressive sounds ever heard from an electronic drum kit, according to the e-drum giant.
In addition to its many preset kits, the TD-50 module supports deep sound customization, including adjustment of heads and shells, layering of internal and user samples, and adjustment of overhead mics and ambience. A compressor and three-band EQ can be controlled for each individual pad, while three independent multi-effects can treat specific drums. There’s also a multiband compressor and four-band equalizer for final processing on the entire kit. And with the new Snapshot feature, users can compare any sound edits before making permanent changes.
The TD-50 includes many other features not available in previous V-Drums modules. Users can load their own custom samples onto an SD card and trigger them from any of the pads. Via USB, the TD-50 can connect to a computer DAW and send up to 10 channels of audio, making it easy to capture multi-track drum performances in song productions.
The TD-50 also offers master XLR outputs and eight TRS balanced outputs for individual drums, a convenient feature for stage performers.
The TD-50KV and TD-50K each come with new snare and ride pads that hook up to the TD-50 module via high-speed digital connections. The 14-inch PD-140DS Digital Snare features Roland’s newly developed multi-element sensor system and a three-layer mesh head for natural rebound and feel. Working together with the module’s advanced processing, hits across every area of the pad are more closely detected, and playing dynamics are captured in minute detail. The CY-18DR Digital Ride offers a comfortable 18-inch size with familiar motion, plus a new high-resolution, multi-sensor system that detects every stroke from edge to bell areas. In conjunction with the TD-50 module, players can enjoy dynamics and response not previously possible with any ride cymbal pad. The kits have should retail for around $7500 (TD-50KV) and $4,800 for the TD-50K.
FXpansion acquired by ROLI
FXpansion has been acquired by ROLI, a fellow leader in music technology innovation — and the company behind the Seaboard, dubbed“the future of the keyboard.”
FXpansion, producer of the BFD range, says it will keep pushing the boundaries of innovation in audio software development with ROLI.
Key FXpansion staff will join the ROLI team and the acquisition will not affect current BFD owners.The development team will continue to provide maintenance updates – and work continues towards the release of BFD 3.2 and Cypher2.
Roland sues Alesis
Roland Corporation Japan has alleged patent infringement by inMusic Brands, Inc. (d.b.a. Alesis) of eight U.S. patents relating to its electronic musical instruments. As a result, Roland has brought suit against the defendant (inMusic/Alesis) related to certain electronic drums and certain electronic cymbals as identified in the lawsuit details as filed on August 19, 2016.
The remedies being sought include a permanent injunction in the United States against the defendant for the products subject to the alleged infringement, and an undisclosed amount of monetary damages.
The lawsuit was filed in the state of California in the District Court for the Central District of California.
The relevant United States Roland patents are:
(1) U.S. Patent No. 7,385,135 (Title: Electronic Drums)
(2) U.S. Patent No. 6,921,857 (Title: Electronic Drums)
(3) U.S. Patent No. 6,756,535 (Title: Electronic Drums)
(4) U.S. Patent No. 6,271,458 (Title: Electronic Drums)
(5) U.S. Patent No. 6,121,538 (Title: Electronic Drums)
(6) U.S. Patent No. 7,459,626 (Title: Electronic Cymbals)
(7) U.S. Patent No. 6,881,885 (Title: Electronic Cymbals)
(8) U.S. Patent No. 6,632,989 (Title: Electronic Cymbals).
XM sheds light
Taiwan’s XM eDrum has announced the launch of its Electron Series kits characterized by its LED lighting. The kits feature LEDs that can be programmed as background colours and flashing colours initiated by striking the pads.
The lighting is velocity-sensitive, with brightness determined by how hard the drum
New firmware for NFUZD
NFUZD Audio has released new firmware and a sound bank update for the NSPIRE module.
The v1.08 system update address a panning issue which came to light soon after the launch.
It also attempts to improve responsiveness with a new velocity response for the snares in the sound bank 3. There’s also a new Factory Trigger preset.
In the sound bank update, four new snares replace four snare-off samples. These feature looser snare wires for more expressive press rolls.
The update also includes new Factory Presets giving the user better immediate response with mix-ready results, according to NFUZD.
The update is available for free on the NFUZD website.
Accent Ocean Way Drums debuts
Platinum Samples has released its first library using its virtual drum instrument, Accent.
Ocean Way Drums was recorded and produced by acclaimed producers Allen Sides and Steven Miller at Ocean Way Studio B in Hollywood California using their world famous one of a kind Delcon recording console.
Allen Sides is the owner of Ocean Way and Record One studios in Los Angeles. In addition to being considered the recording industry's leading microphone expert, he is a Grammy winning engineer/producer that has recorded over 500 albums, with stars in every genre. Artists include Alanis Morrisette, Green Day, Quincy Jones, Eric Clapton, Beck, Phil Collins, Aerosmith, Aretha Franklin, Foo Fighters, Sheryl Crow, Frank Sinatra, Faith Hill, Frank Zappa, Mary J Blige and Count Basie.
Steven Miller is a pioneer in the field of digital audio. As a Grammy-nominated producer/engineer/arranger, he helped build Windham Hill Records from a tiny audiophile label into a prestigious industry leader. In addition, he co-founded both the Hip Pocket/Windham Hill Jazz and RCA/Novus labels. Platinum artists he has worked with include Dave Matthews Band, Suzanne Vega, Backstreet Boys, Pink, George Winston, Switchfoot, Manhattan Transfer, Toad The Wet Sprocket and Paula Cole.
Ocean Way Recording in Hollywood California is the world's most awarded studio complex. Albums recorded at the studio have sold over 1 billion units.
Icons like the The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, and Madonna - plus contemporary stars like John Mayer, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dr. Dre and Avril Lavigne all choose Ocean Way for its phenomenal sounding rooms, customized equipment, and access to the music industry's most famous collection of vintage tube microphones.
The samples are formatted for Platinum Samples Accent and are available at 96kHz/24 bit.
This library includes four full kits with Crash, Splash, China and Ride cymbals plus four bonus Kick and Snare drums. The Kicks and Toms were recorded with the snare strainer both on and off. Each snare drum is recorded with two microphone options: Shure SM57 and AKG C12A.
Sides and Miller also created 6 'mix presets' per kit to instantly provide record quality mixes. The presets range from dry to very wet.
Toontrack goes ‘70s
Toontrack has released its 29th EXZ pack - the Seventies Rock EZX.
The Seventies Rock EZX is available separately as well as part of the limited-time savings bundle, Classic Studios EZX Value Pack, gathering a total of three EZX titles all recorded at historic locations.
The Seventies Rock EZX was recorded at the Columbia Studio A in Nashville, one of the world’s most famed recording studios.
It includes three fundamentally different kits: a bombastic-sounding, one-of-a-kind replica of Buddy Rich's ’70s-era Slingerland as well as two different renditions of a mid-‘70s Camco – one with standard drum heads and one with towelled.
New pedals from Roland
Roland has launched two new pedals – the KT-9 beaterless kick and the FD-9 hi-hat controller.
The KT-9 appears to be a scaled-back KT-10, but boasting “a marked reduction in operational noise”and smaller footprint than the KD-9.
The FD-9 is an update of the FD-8 controller, but also with a smaller footprint and quieter operation.
Nord Drum 3/3P launched
Nord has updated its drum offering with the launch of the new Nord Drum 3 module and the compact Nord Drum 3P multi-pad unit. Upgrades from the Nord Drum 2 include reverb and delay effects, a simplified sound selection mode and new sound banks for quickly creating custom kits on the fly.
Both units feature a six-channel percussion synthesizer which now gets MIDI connectivity.
The Nord Drum 3P retains its six trigger pads kick input.
The new factory sound bank features 10 categories of preset sounds that can be easily assigned to any of the six pads/channels.
Free update for Studio One
PreSonus has released a free update for Studio One. New version 3.2 adds over 50 professional tools and workflow enhancements, including the innovative new Mix Engine FX, which are designed to fundamentally alter the mix experience in ways that have never before been possible in a DAW. Most of the improvements in Studio One 3.2 came directly from the music production community — in particular from professionals using other DAWs who had integrated Studio One into their workflow and requested some enhancements before switching outright.
The biggest news in version 3.2 is Mix Engine FX, a new plug-in paradigm exclusive to Studio One Professional that can modify or bypass and replace Studio One’s native mix engine. In contrast to conventional plug-ins that must be inserted independently on each channel, with limited or no interoperability, Mix Engine FX can process every channel routed through a bus, both individually at the source and at their summing point. Any bus, including the main stereo bus, can have its own Mix Engine FX assigned, allowing for limitless sonic possibilities.
Also new in Studio One 3.2 Professional, VCA Faders allow remote control of any number of tracks from a single fader, complete with relative level control and volume automation. VCA Faders retain channel routing assignments and provide independent channel control for fine tuning a mix. VCA Faders link with Folder Tracks, keeping everything in sync and organized, and Studio One can now automatically create automation tracks in the Arrangement view for every FX, Bus or VCA channel.
JamKazam adds Tracks app
Online collaboration platform JamKazam has launched its JamTracks app. The iPhone appp allows users to to play or sing along with their favourite songs.
JamTracks are complete multitrack professional recordings, with fully isolated tracks for each part of the music - lead vocals, backing vocals, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, keys, bass, drums, etc.
The current catalogue includes 3,700 songs, 3,521 of which have parts for drummers.
The app is free, with songs available for purchase at $1.99 each.
Toontrack adds Traditional Country EZX
Toontrack has released the Traditional Country EZX, a drum library expansion for EZdrummer 2 recorded in the very first studio on Music Row, The Quonset Hut. This is the third release of Toontrack’s ongoing Country Month, a month-long celebration of all things country music-related.
The Traditional Country EZX features samples from two late ‘50s and early ‘60s sets by Rogers and Ludwig as well as a truly unique Apollo MIJ kit, all captured with period-correct gear and saturated by the inimitable magic of the studio that played one of the most influential roles in shaping the Nashville country music sound.
New DrumDrops BFD pack
Hot on the tale of the Vintage Folk Rock Kit, DrumDrops has released its Modern Folk Rock Kit. The Modern Folk Rock Kit is an ‘80s Gretsch kit, close mic'd and recorded in a brighter live room. Once again, DrumDrops used the engineering skills of the legendary engineer/producer Phill Brown.
The kit is played with sticks, hotrods and brushes.
The Gretsch Maple 4416 Kit comes with three rack toms and a floor tom, two snares - a Ludwig 400 and a Ludwig Brass Shell. Cymbals were a combination of Zildjian and Paiste and we also include some tambourine and shaker articulations.
New Kat out of the bag
Kat Percussion has unveiled a new flagship kit ahead of NAMM next week. The KT4 five-piece drum kit offers better feel and better sounds than its predecessors. The pads include an 8' bass pad fitted with a Mylar drumhead for natural response and plenty of room for double pedals. The KT4 kit includes a DW hi-hat pedal and a 12' hi-hat pad with real hi-hat pedal mechanics.
The module boasts 780 drum sounds, including custom-sampled Gretsch, DW, and LP drum sounds, and the kit has a street price of $1,699.
Kat has also extended its amplifier range with the launch of the HD400 hi-definition e-drum speaker system. It faithfully reproduces the full sound of any drum module at low to high volumes and is powerful enough for a club yet small enough for a home.
New module arriving soon
A new drum module will be launched next month by Japan’s ATV Corporation.
The aD5 boasts high-resolution stereo sound with minimal latency.
Importantly, the manufacturer says its module “fully supports trigger pads made by other electronic drum manufacturers”.
The module supports 10 trigger inputs via a custom connector and two ¼ in. jacks. It has an SD card slot, MIDI via USB and two-channel output.
More details will be published when they are released.
Alesis launches Nitro
Alesis has announced a new Nitro electronic drum kit, a complete electronic drum set at an entry-level price.
Nitro features four 8” rubber drum pads, the snare boasting dual zones, plus a kick drum pad with pedal. There are three cymbals — ride, crash w/choke and hi-hat. Nitro’s four-post aluminum mounting rack keeps everything solid and secure and is far more resistant to hard playing than the shaky mounting schemes normally found on similarly-priced items. Also included is the powerful Nitro electronic drum module with hundreds of percussion sounds, 40 different kits with 385 drum and cymbal sounds and 60 built-in play-along tracks.
The Nitro kit will be available in Q4 2015 and will ship with an MSRP of £299.99
Two more from Toontrack
Toontrack has released two new sample libraries - the Progressive Foundry SDX and Progressive EZX.
The Foundry pack includes five complete kits, a total of 17 snare drums, 31 cymbals and five hi-hats – all captured on 26 separate channels and spanning 63 GB of raw, unprocessed sounds.
The EZX sound library is designed for primary use in EZdrummer 2 but works in Superior Drummer 2 as well. It features a custom selection of content from The Progressive Foundry SDX for Superior Drummer 2. It comes with three complete kits recorded by engineer/producer Forrester Savell.
Roland adds GoPro mic
Roland has launched the WEARPRO Mic, a wearable device that provides high-quality audio capture for the HERO3, HERO3+, and HERO4 video cameras from GoPro. Specially designed for the popular camera series, the WEARPRO Mic supports both binaural and standard stereo recording, and plugs directly into the HERO with no conversion cables needed.
GoPro users can easily record immersive first-person soundtracks that put viewers right in the middle of the action.
The WEARPRO Mic is powered from the GoPro camera, eliminating the hassles of batteries and external power supplies.
Two included clip mounts make it easy to use the WEARPRO Mic for everyday recordings like webcasts, interviews, and stereo music capture.
New compact kit
Simmons has launched the SD300KIT five-piece beginner electronic drum set.
The Simmons SD300KIT features rugged 8-inch pads for snare and three toms, as well as tough 8-inch cymbal pads for hi-hat, ride, and crash. Add in an ultra-responsive hi-hat controller and kick pedal with integrated trigger for a true, full-featured drumming experience.
At the heart of the SD300KIT is the SD300 Sound Module, featuring easy to use, intuitive navigation, stereo outputs, USB MIDI connectivity for easy tracking to DAW or sequencer software, and headphone outputs for private monitoring. The SD300 Sound Module comes loaded with10 individual drum kits, 170 custom sounds, and 10 songs.
The kit is available now for $599.
DrumDrops converts Rogers
DrumDrops’ conversion of its sample packs for BFD continues with the launch of the Rogers Big R Dub Kit. The new offering can be loaded into BFD Eco (less samples), BFD2 or BFD3. The BFD pack contains 4,951samples - the same 35 articulations featured in the other packs with up to 80 velocity steps.
Users have full control over the microphones that were used to record this kit and once loaded into BFD, can enjoy all the same features they would expect from any other BFD kit.. This kit also includes 16 groove palettes.
There are launch discounts to accompany the release.
BFD adds Modern Retro
FXpansion has added a new expansion pack for BFD3, BFD Eco and BFD2, BFD Modern Retro by Chocolate Audio. The pack features a pair of kits that helped define the rock and pop sound of the 90s and early 2000s. Its Sonor and Tama kits and additional snares, cymbals and hihats are recorded with extreme levels of detail and varied mic channels and beater types. The result is a set of sounds which are hugely expressive, versatile and suitable for all modern genres that demand detailed, focused and powerful drums.
The samples are played with sticks, hotrods and brushes and include plastic and felt kick beaters.
BFD Modern Retro is available now as a download-only product from the FXpansion online store for $125/€95/£85.
Roland extends mesh range
Roland has extended its mesh head range, with new sizes specially designed for acoustic shells.
The PowerPly series, nine mesh heads produced by REMO Inc, range from 8” to 22”.
The heads are recommended for use with Roland’s RT-30 Acoustic Drum Triggers.
There are six different sizes for snares and toms (8”, 10”, 12”, 13”, 14” and 16”) and three bass drum sizes (18”, 20”, 22”).
Warnings on El Capitan
A number of companies are warning about compatibility issues with the upcoming Apple operating system update, Mac OS X 10.11, El Capitan.
Native Industries has warned users about potentially serious issues with KOMPLETE, TRAKTOR and MASCHINE products. It warns that in Mac OS X 10.11, Native Instruments AUDIO UNITS plug-ins will not pass the AU validation and will therefore not be available in Logic Pro.
There are compatibility issues between some older NI devices and Apple’s upcoming operating system. This issue triggers a 'kernel panic' – this serious problem will crash the connected computer immediately, resulting in loss of any unsaved work, or serious disruption of a performance.
PreSonus has also issued warning for its hardware and software. For
StudioLive 16.4.2AI, 24.4.2AI, 32.4.2AI, RM16AI, and RM32AI,
Smaart is not functioning in OS X 10.11.0. “If you use an AI-Series or RM-Series mixer and rely on Smaart, we advise you to wait to update your OS until this issue is resolved,” it warns.
For Classic (non-AI) StudioLive 16.0.2, 16.4.2, 24.4.2 mixers, FireStudio Mobile, FireStudio Project, Universal Control version 1.7.2 or lower will not function correctly on OS X 10.11.1. You must update to Version 1.7.3.
Starting with OS X 10.11, Apple has restricted kernel level mixing access for third party vendors. This means that VSL software will no longer function on Mac operating systems beyond version 10.10. On OS X version 10.11 or higher, AudioBox VSL devices will only operate as class-complaint audio interfaces. If you currently do not use VSL software, your AudioBox VSL interface will continue to function as you expect. :
PreSonus has tested Studio One 2.6.5, Notion 4.0, and higher versions. These products are compatible with OS X 10.11. “That said, we have seen notifications from other vendors including Native Instruments that there are also 10.11 compatibility issues with some of their products,” is notes.
Arturia says it is still working on the qualification of its software instruments. It warns that early indications suggest the update may affect operations of its instruments when in Audio Unit or standalone mode.
New plugins from XLN
XLN Audio has released two new plugins (available in VST, AU, and AAX formats).
Addictive Trigger is being touted as the world’s first intelligent drum replacer. This product features some very smart new technologies that take the pain out of drum replacement. It also includes some of the best sounds and features of Addictive Drums 2.
DS-10 Drum Shaper is a transient shaper designed specifically for use with drums. The fast, clutter-free interface lets you dial in just the right amount of punch in your drum mixes while three amazing algorithms provide great sounding results. To top things off, our new MOJO tuned-transient processor gives you lots of exciting sound design possibilities.
Post-Rock EZX from Toontrack
Toontrack has added a new sound library expansion for EZdrummer 2, Post-Rock EZX. Recorded in Iceland’s iconic Sundlaugin Studios, this marks the fifth EZX since the EZdrummer 2 launch in 2014.
Located in Reykjavik, Iceland, the Sundlaugin Studios is probably one of the world’s most remote professional recording facilities. It originally served as a bathhouse in the 1930s but later underwent a major acoustic conversion to Icelandic artist Sigur Rós’ personal high-end studio complex. The empty swimming pool with its perfectly balanced walls produce a bright but still warm and reverberant tone unlike any other room. In here, the best microphones, outboard and gear have captured the likes of Sólstafir, Jon Hopkins and Spiritualized as well as several of Sigur Rós’ own records. In addition to the four complete kits recorded using traditional drum sticks, this library includes felt mallet and brushed options as well as several extra snares, a large variety of cymbals and custom percussion pieces.
New VST for Kontakt
Rattly And Raw has released Martin France Drums, a highly detailed and realistic-sounding drum kit instrument for Native Instruments Kontakt. Martin France Drums is the first product in Rattly And Raw's high-end Signature Range of collaborations with outstanding professional musicians and includes prized vintage and modern drums and cymbals such as a 1920s Slingerland Radio King with gut snares, old A and K Zildjian cymbals from the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, and a snare built from 700-year-old submerged wood.
The pack has 36 kit pieces and over 32,000 samples.
Martin France began his recording career in 1983 and has subsequently played on over 100 albums. He has accompanied musicians such as Elvis Costello and Dave Gilmour.
jamKAT announced
Alternate Mode has announced the launch of the jamKAT and the jamKAT mini, two accessory products that plug directly into the DITI (drum intelligent trigger interface).
The jamKAT (with 12 FSR pads) and the jamKAT mini (with five pads) were designed specifically for hand percussionists, allowing for natural hand movements, gestures, and techniques found in playing instruments such as congas, bongos, tabla, tambourim, etc.
Both the jamKATand the jamKAT minishare an amazing feel, response and dynamic range, according to the company which promsies expression never realized on any hand drum controller.
The DITI incorporates many 'gestures' designed for hand drum playing. It knows when you want to sustain a sound simply by pressing on the pad. It can send out controller information such as pitch bend, panning, expression, etc.
The DITI can play alternate note patterns, velocity shifting, note shifting, etc. It can even play different sounds depending on the pressure of another pad. You can play chords and transpose patterns.
Because the DITI is designed to play with any MIDI drum module or soft synth, you simply call up the 'KIT TYPE' and start playing.
Both instruments are due to ship this northern summer.
Roland supports Drum-Off
Roland Corporation will again sponsor Guitar Center’s Drum-Off search for the next great drummer. Free and open to drummers across the US, entrants will compete for a chance to win a grand-prize package valued at over $45,000 that includes cash, gear, endorsement deals, studio time, and a GC Buyer’s Guide feature.
This year’s gear prizing features products from a variety of manufacturers, including a Roland SPD-SX Sampling Pad, a PM-30 Personal Monitor Amplifier, BT-1 Bar Trigger Pad for both electronic and acoustic drums, and a grand prize consisting of a Roland TD-30K V-Drums electronic drum kit valued at $5,299 MSRP.
Contestants will have a chance to play some of Roland’s V-Drums products during the in-store preliminaries.
“We’re always amazed and excited to witness the talent that comes out of each year’s Drum-Off competition,” notes Drew Armentrout, Roland Corporation U.S. Product & Artist Relations Manager, Drums and Percussion. “We are proud to be a part of the competition and the drumming community and we sincerely wish all the entrants the best of luck.”
Drum-Off begins with store preliminary competitions at 251 Guitar Center locations. Contestants will be judged on a three-minute performance, and one winner from each store finals competition will be chosen to move up to the quarterfinals, followed by semifinals at five store locations. Five winners chosen at the semifinals will then convene at Club Nokia in Los Angeles, CA to compete in the finals for the grand prize on January 16, 2016 in front of a live audience and a panel of judges.
Zivix adds puc+
Music tech company Zivix has launched the puc+ Bluetooth MIDI interface on Indiegogo. With this new device supporting Apple’s latest Bluetooth MIDI connectivity, users are now able to connect USB-MIDI or 5-pin MIDI controllers and wirelessly connect to apps and DAW’s on Apple devices. It gives musicians wireless freedom and convenience to all MIDI controllers with exceptionally low latency.
Zivix’s previous version used WiFi.
The puc+ will be available in late summer 2015 with a retail price of $129.99.
The puc+ can be put on each of your favourite controllers and connect them at the same time, eliminating pounds of ugly, cumbersome wires. It sends MIDI over Bluetooth at exactly the same speed the iOS device can receive it, resulting in low latency and eliminating the “wires still perform best” argument.
The PUC+ supports both 5-pin DIN connectors and USB, giving it the ability to connect nearly any MIDI gear. It integrates into studio or live applications including Logic Pro X, ProTools, Ableton Live, Reaper and GarageBand wirelessly.
Kickstarter for new technology
Sunhouse has launched a Kickstarter campaign for Sensory Percussion, a hardware/software system that enables drummers to control an unlimited array of electronic samples, synths and audio effects with any acoustic drum kit.
“Its not about drum machines versus drummers anymore; it’s about bridging the electronic and the acoustic to create a system where drum machines are smart enough to listen to and respond to a drummers' artistry” says inventor Tlacael Esparza.
Sensory Percussion turns the surface of any drum into an expressive digital music controller, allowing drummers to play unlimited sounds and effects while preserving all the human nuances of live performance.
With a small, easy-to-attach sensor that communicates with Sunhouse’s proprietary Mac/PC software, Sensory Percussion enables the control of multiple sounds from a single drum. This is already far beyond current trigger systems that can only control a single sound per sensor. But what makes this system truly revolutionary is that it also allows the musician to play 'between' sounds and to control continuous effects based on where the drum is hit, allowing creative possibilities that are orders of magnitude beyond any competing product.
The Kickstarter campaign will offer significant discounts on pre-orders, with sensor kits starting from $700 (full price).
Sunhouse is seeking to raise a minimum of $80,000 from the campaign to cover tooling, production, assembly, and related costs for Sensory Percussion’s initial manufacturing run, with a projected ship date of January 2016.
New Drumdrops BFD pack
Drumdrops is releasing the Alan Moulder mixed 1970s Slingerland Classic Rock Kit BFD Pack on 17th June with a special offer.
This is the British sample maker’s second kit as a drum expansion pack for FXpansions BFD. The BFD pack of the 1970s Slingerland Classic Rock kit is compatible with BFD2, BFD3 and BFD Eco.
The kit was mixed by Alan Moulder Alan is Britain’s premier alternative rock producer / mix engineer. He has worked on some of rock's most iconic records including Nine Inch Nails, The Killers, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, Led Zeppelin, Jesus & Mary Chain and Foals. Alan won the Brits Producer of the year award in 2014.
The kit consists of a 24' Kick drum, five toms - 12', 13', 14'and 15' rack toms a huge 18' floor tom and a signature 14' x 7' deep Radio King snare. The cymbals used were 14' Zildjian New Beat Hi-hats, a Zildjian K Custom 22' ride, a Zildjian K Dark thin 18' crash and a Zildjian Vintage Cie 16' crash. The kit was recorded at Miloco's The Pool Studios in London using vintage pre-amps and ribbon mics.
The first 15 packs will be free, the next 50 will be £15, the next 50 £25 and then it will return to the retail price of £35.
Customers will need to have a Drumdrops account to purchase the kit. Login at 4pm BST (UK time on the 17th of June) and head to the Buy Kit page.
New AD2 ADpak
XLNaudio has released the United Pop ADpak.
Recorded in Hollywood’s United Recording studio, formerly known as Ocean Way, the pack features a a vintage Leedy & Ludwig kit.
The studio has been used by Beck, The Beach Boys, John Mayer, Madonna, No Doubt, Weezer, U2 and Michael Jackson, and the original recording rooms have remained untouched.
The kit features a Ludwig nickel over brass snare and an ancient but great sounding Japanese-made 'Trump' branded snare.
The ADpak includes over 30 presets that deliver instant, radio-ready sounds in many different flavours.
It’s available for download now at $79.95.
Toontrack adds SD expansion
Toontrack has released the Independent SDX, an expansion for the company’s flagship drum sampler Superior Drummer 2 featuring a massive 25 GB sound library of raw, unprocessed sounds recorded at the Avast! Recording Co. in Seattle, WA.
The Independent SDX comes from the same sessions as the Indie Folk EZX but features the raw, unprocessed recordings. In addition, it comes with two extra complete kits, several additional instruments and a total of 16 mixer channels.
It contains five complete kits of vintage and rare drums showcasing an incredible range and detail. The kits include Gretsch, Slingerland, WFL, Ludwig and Sonor) as well as a mallets version of the Gretsch set.
Bozzio joins SampleTank 3
IK Multimedia has added Terry Bozzio Drums to its Sample Tank 3 arsenal.
The pack is a huge library of drum kit samples and loops that captures the idiosyncratic essence of the master drummer whose work with Frank Zappa, Missing Persons, UK and Jeff Beck is the stuff of rock god legends.
Terry Bozzio Drums includes a 1.7 GB library with more than 1,800 drum samples and 350 loops all played by Terry Bozzio, and recorded by Ken Scott.
The collection includes 10 playable drum kit instruments. The complete kit includes two kick drums, two snares, six highly stylized roto toms (each played with four articulations), hi-hats, ride and several unusual and exotic additional percussive elements that include things like china cymbals, stacked cymbals and more. All of the kit's drums have been recorded at eight different velocities, with as many as eight round-robin hits per velocity.
All of these drums are mapped using an extended General MIDI mapping which lets users mix-and-match elements from the Terry Bozzio kit with elements from other SampleTank 3 drum libraries.
BFD releases Sphere
FXpansion has released BFD Sphere, an expansion pack for BFD3, BFD Eco and BFD2 designed to provide hard rock and metal drum sounds.
Produced by Tesseract founder Acle Kahney and Francesco Cameli (Bullet For My Valentine, Queen, Phil Collins, New Model Army and more), BFD Sphere captures the room sound of London's Sphere Studios before its relocation.
Kits by DW and Vibe are featured alongside a Ludwig Black Beauty snare, all of which come in natural and mix-ready processed versions ready to drop into your productions.
BFD Sphere is available now as a download-only product for $70/€55/£49.
iRig Pads Editor released
IK Multimedia has launched iRig Pads Editor for Mac and PC. It’s the companion application for iRig Pads that allows musicians to completely edit and customise IK’s ultra-portable, universal MIDI groove controller to suit all music production styles and live performance workflows.
iRig Pads Editor is available as a free download for all current iRig Pads owners.
iRig Pads is IK Multimedia’s 4x4 MIDI pad groove controller for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and PC. Its ultra-compact footprint makes it an essential instrument for travelling beat makers and other musicians who want to unlock their creativity and make music while on the go. iRig Pads comes pre-loaded with multiple setups that make it easy to control the popular groove making software programs of today. Now users can customise these setups more and even create totally new configurations in a flash to suit their own unique workflow. With total customisation, iRig Pads Editor gives iRig Pads the power to be the ultimate mobile pad-based groove controller.
Southern Soul for EZ2
Toontrack has released the fourth EZX sound library expansion since the EZdrummer 2 launch in 2014: the Southern Soul EZX.
The Southern Soul EZX sets out to recreate the unmistakable sound of soul. Crisp, dense and saturated drums – all encapsulated in the hallmark ambience of the FAME room. It comes with five complete kits and two set-ups – one using all-mono miking techniques and one full stereo set-up.
It also features leakage mics for vocals, guitar, piano and upright bass set up in their original spots in the room, a signature FAME trait and key to adding that special band presence to the sound.
Included kits are from Ludwig, Gretsch, Pearl and Sakae, with two set-ups (’60s/’70s)
The pack was produced by Glenn Rosenstein (James Taylor, U2, Ziggy Marley), engineered by Jeff Balding (Faith Hill, Brad Paisley, Celine Dion) with sampling performed by Chad Cromwell (Neil Young, Joe Walsh).
Roland releases TD-25
Roland has debuted the TD-25KV and TD-25K V-Drums, two new mid-level kits in the V-Drums line-up. Featuring the all-new TD-25 sound module, these kits offer serious players quality sound and expressive playability that rivals Roland's flagship TD-30 V-Drums. The TD-25KV and TD-25K also include many great extras for productivity and music practice, including quick sound customization, onboard Coach functions, and built-in audio recording capability.
The TD-25KV and TD-25K use Roland's SuperNATURAL technology with Behavior Modeling inherited from the top-of-the-line TD-30. With sounds that respond organically to the player's touch, the TD-25 module provides the dynamic, interactive feel that's essential for reaching the highest levels of musical expression. From rim shots, rolls, flams, and ghost notes on the snare to dramatic crash hits and sustained cymbal swells, every nuance is detailed, accurate, and ultra-smooth.
The TD-25 module supports positional sensing on the snare and includes a streamlined interface that makes it easy to select and adjust sounds. A large center dial allows users to quickly choose kits based on the music style they want to play, and sounds can be edited simply by striking a pad and using the module's knobs to change instruments and adjust tuning, muffling, and levels. Toms can be edited as a group, greatly speeding up the process. Changes to kits are saved automatically, eliminating the need to fuss with extra steps.
The TD-25 module also includes many beneficial features for music practice. Users can play along with WAV and MP3 music tracks stored on USB memory, and songs can be slowed down or looped in specific areas to learn parts. It's also possible to record drumming performances (along with music playback) as audio files to USB memory for evaluation and sharing. Additionally, users can develop their drumming skills with the convenient onboard Coach functions.
The TD-25 sound module is equipped with a USB host port as well, providing a convenient connection for recording audio and MIDI data directly into DAW software.
Michael Schack shares kits
digitalDrummer e-drummer of the year Michael Schack is making his personal TD-30 kits available for download.
Schack has been using his unique TD-30 presets in his gigs as an international V-Drums artist/demonstrator and as the energetic live drummer with international Drum'nBass artist Netsky and his own duo project, SquarElectric. Also included in the download are two of the main kits he uses with Milk Inc. These live and studio performance kits cover different genres of music.
They are priced at €20.
IK Multimedia updates SampleTank
IK Multimedia has announced a major update to its SampleTank workstation in the form of version 3.5. The update consists of 11 new sound collections, which are now also available in IK's new SampleTank 'Custom Shop'. Also introduced - by popular demand - are a spread of new features that make browsing SampleTank 3's thousands of sounds and patterns even faster and easier than ever before.
Released in 2014, SampleTank 3 has become an indispensable tool for professional musicians due to its 33 GB library of bread-and-butter sounds (with over 4,000 instruments from every category), 55 high-quality effects, MIDI patterns, advanced groove tools and a powerfully enhanced sample engine. Now that functionality is being pushed further via the introduction of a range of downloadable sound libraries that will expand and grow alongside SampleTank 3, allowing its world of sounds to be customized to suit the needs of any creative workflow.
The latest update to SampleTank 3 is free for current users of all existing SampleTank 3 versions. SampleTank 3 and SampleTank 3 SE users can purchase the new Beats Series and Elektronika Series sound libraries from the IK online store for $39.99* each or 50 Gear Credits in the IK Custom Shop.
Compact kit from Simmons
Simmons has launched the SD100KIT five-piece compact electronic drum set. Sporting a sharp, new industrial design and a space-conscious footprint, the SD100KIT is ideal for beginners and students, as well as drummers looking for a practice kit. Compact enough to fit neatly into a bedroom, office, or home studio, the SD100KIT features drum pads with real drum feel and a sound module with new, professional-quality sounds.
The kit includes a drum bar with a snare, three tom pads, two cymbals, a hi-hat, and an integrated, super-stable tripod stand.
The sound module delivers 170 drum sounds,10 preset drum kits, and 10 songs, as well as one user kit and a user song. The 1/8-inch TRS stereo line output enables easy connection with any amp or mixer, while the 1/8-inch TRS stereo line input can be used with MP3 players for jamming along. It also offers a USB port for instant connectivity to play and record drums on your computer. The pads connect with the sound module via RS-232 multi-pin port for quick, easy set up and breakdown.
EZdrummer 2 for hip-hop
Toontrack has released the third EZX sound library expansion since the EZdrummer 2 launch in 2014: the Hip-Hop! EZX.
”This is easily one of the most comprehensive products in the history of the product line, says Mattias Eklund, Toontrack’s head of Sound Design. ”It covers literally hundreds upon hundreds of electronic sounds, essential percussion, timeless acoustic drums and some of the best and most creative kit presets we have ever released. I can’t wait to hear what our users create with it.”
The Hip-Hop! EZX is firmly rooted in authentic, acoustic drums, but mixes, matches and merges them with timeless drum machine sounds, orchestral percussion and other creative elements to form unique hybrid kits. In total, you get 22 mix-ready drum sets and hundreds of percussive pieces – all in an uncompromising fusion of organic and acoustic. Get anything from the clean and polished sound of neo-soul and the mean and electronic Southern trap to the to the dirty, rugged New York boom bap – all in one place. Add to this the powerful framework of EZdrummer 2 and you have the ultimate creative canvas for your next beat.
Drumdrops adds BFD3 option
Sample producer Drumdrops has added its first sample pack for BF.! The Gretch 1960s Round Badge Soul Kit, capturing the classic Al Green/Al Jackson Jr. drum sound, is recorded with five mics and features treatments such as wallets on snares, tea-towels on toms and chains on ride cymbals. It also includes a percussion selection featuring congas, tambourine and shakers.
Gretsch 1960s Round Badge Soul Kit BFD Pack is available from 4pm GMT, 18th February 2015 at drumdrops.com - you will need a drumdrops.com user account. The first 20 lucky customers get the pack for free, the next 30 for £15 and the next 50 for £25 after which the price returns to the usual price of £35 (international prices may vary).
Steven Slate adds Blackbird Studios
Steven Slate Drums has released the Blackbird Studios Drum expansion pack for SSD and TRIGGER.
The pack honours the legendary Blackbird Studios, the studio of choice for the industry's greatest artists, from Pearl Jam to Bruce Springsteen.
The pack contains an extremely diverse and expansive sample set in Blackbird drums, from old Rogers kits to brand new Craviatto kits.
John McBride recorded in three of his most famous rooms: A, C and D, which all deliver unique tones. Included are six new kick drum samples, 10 snares, seven sets of toms, two new hi-hats, a new ride and four new crashes.
Roland updates trigger range
Roland has introduced the RT-30 series, its latest generation of acoustic drum triggers. Improvements include a more streamlined design, easier setup, and compatibility with the latest drum hardware.
The RT-30 series gives drummers an easy solution for using their acoustic drums as triggers for a hybrid setup without incorporating additional pads. With quick, simple mounting on kick, snare, and tom drums, RT-30 triggers open up a world of sound possibilities when connected to devices such as Roland’s TM-2 Trigger Module, TD-series V-Drums sound modules, and SPD-series percussion pads.
Three different models are included in the RT-30 series. The RT-30H is a single-trigger device that provides drumhead-based triggering for most standard drums. The dual-trigger RT-30HR offers independent head and rim triggering, allowing the user to play two different sounds from the same drum. This makes it ideal for use on snare. Rounding out the series is the RT-30K, which is designed for use with bass drums.
Logic Pro X update
Apple has released an upgrade for its Logic Pro X DAW.
Version 10.1 features some enhancements to the Drummer features and includes several new instruments and tools.
The upgrade expands the appeal of Logic Pro to musicians producing electronic-based genres like EDM and Hip Hop, providing 10 specialised drummers and 20 new electronic kits.
Drum-related improvements include a New Drum Machine Designer plug-in, the ability create a sequence of notes with a single mouse gesture using the new Brush Tool in the Piano Roll Editor and Smart Quantise, which proportionally corrects the timing and length of notes to preserve the musicality of your original performance
Logic Pro X 10.1 is on sale for around $250 and is downloadable as free update for existing users. Upgrades are also available for Logic Remote 1.2 and MainStage 1.3.
Drumless beater launched
Triggera has launched its bix kick beater trigger.
Featuring a trigger sensor fitted inside a bass drum beater, the solution is touted as having “great response and dynamics”.
It can be used on any surface.
The inventors claims the device “solves many inherent triggering issues, such as consistency, mis-triggering, double triggering and all crosstalk from external sounds, such as the bass player, snare drum, etc”.
The bix is made of stainless steel and top quality polyamide, offering high durability and strength and is said to work with all modules.
The bix is priced at €44 plus shipping and is available now.
Drumdrops adds Gretsch 1960s
Drumdrops has released its Kontakt version of the Gretsch 1960s Round Badge Soul Kit with a special offer.
The first 10 packs will be free, the next 50 will be £30, the next 50 £40 and then it will go back to the retail price of £45.
The Gretsch 1960s Round Badge Kits are legendary kits and Drumdrops recorded this kit to capture the sound of the late 60s and early 70s that came out of Royal Studios in Memphis, home to legendary producer and founder of Hi Records, Willie Mitchell.
Unlike the one microphone, large open room drum sounds coming out of Motown and Stax in at the time, Mitchell preferred a small dry room, often using three or four microphones on the drum kit. To capture the same sound Drumdrops used the suited dry live room at Miloco's The Square in London.
The concept behind the mic positioning is unique to this release. They used five mics, each placed in carefully selected positions around the kit, so each mic captures the drum kit as a whole, meaning you can use any one mic as your drum sound, or you can blend any or all of the mics to create your ideal sound (in the Kontakt pack).
The drum kit was produced, mixed and recorded by south London drummer Timmy Rickard who has studied the grooves and sound of this great era. The kit is a classic sounding late 60s kit with wallets placed on the tuned down snares, a tea towel was used on the floor tom and they have recorded the ride with and without a chain.
New entrant to debut at NAMM
All eyes will be on the January NAMM Show in Anaheim when the newest name in electronic music, NFUZD Audio, launches.
NFUZD Audio is a division of KHS America and will be “a new brand of electronic musical instruments and performance tools designed to respond to the creative potential of its users”.
While insiders are tight-lipped about the line-up, they do confirm that launch products will include the NSPIRE Series and are “technically within the category of electronic drums but will utilise an approach that enables drummers to easily adapt the system to best fit their unique needs without the limits imposed by traditional e-drum systems”.
The product lines bring together music-industry experts from Taiwan, the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany.
Big-name e-drummers involved with the project include Russ Miller and John Emrich, both featured in and contributors to digitalDrummer.
FXpansion, creator of BFD, is behind the onboard and external sample libraries for the range.
Bob Terry, another digitalDrummer contributor, has just joined the team to look after NFUZD Audio artist relations, marketing and retail training.
Free content for DTX
Yamaha is offering samples of its flagship acoustic drum set, the PHX series, as downloads for DTX900 and DTX700 module owenrs.
The samples include four toms (10”, 12”, 14” floor tom and 16” floor tom), 22” bass drum and a 14” Maple snare drum.
To top it off the Zildjian A Custom 20” ride, 14” hi-hat, 16” and 18” crashes complement the drums with a sizzling brilliance.
To access the he free content - enter your DTX drums model - and use promo code: FREEPHXZIL14 here.
Colin Richardson joins EZ2
Toontrack has released the Made of Metal EZX, recorded at Belgium’s Galaxy Studios, a recording facility crafted with unparalleled detail. The pack includes samples from four complete kits (DW, Mapex, Tama, Truth), produced by Colin Richardson, whose work has shaped hits from Slipknot, Machine Head, Carcass and many more.
World-class drummer Jason Bowld (Axewound, Pitchshifter) wielded the sticks for the sample recordings.
The pack comes with five mix-ready kit presets and includes a selection of MIDI drum grooves.
VST Guide added
digitalDrummer has added a VST Guide to its growing list of compilations.
The 64-page publication includes reviews of all the major VST offerings from the last five years - as well as John Emrich’s popular VST Q&A which addresses common problems with the applications. The VST Guide is available for download at $5 and joins a growing range of compilations aimed to save readers time by presenting all the relevant archive articles in one download.
To access the VST Guide, click here.
New TD-11 kits from PP Drums
Italian producer PP Drums has released a new set of artist kits for the TD-11 module.
Unlike V Expressions’ patches, the PP Drums offerings can be bought as single kits - by request - for $1 each.
The artist kits follow on from the initial 50 Amen kits which feature a range of genres, from rock to pop, blues to jazz and electronic music.
The developer admits that the kits are “not perfect reproductions” of the big name kits, but stresses that sound balanced and ready to be amplified.
New tools for 2box
Lustark Software, the maker of SDSE, has released new tools for the 2box system.
DrumIt Manager is a bundle of two programs: DKit Manager and DSound Tune.
The first is an answer to the difficulties associated with managing kits in 2box’s own software. It allows users to inspect, edit and save the contents of a Kit or Kit Bank in .dkit format, open an existing Kit Bank or start from scratch with 100 empty kits and rearrange kits using drag-n-drop.
The second tool adds to 2box drum tuning capability beyond the basic functionality in the DrumIt Five Editor.
At present, the Manager is only available for PCs, but the developer is working on a Mac version.
Meanwhile, the SDSE tool, which converts VST samples to 2box formats, continues to evolve and now supports all major drum VSTs.
Simmons goes sub-$500
Simmons has added a new five-piece, the SD500, to its e-drum line-up.
The SD500 kit features a 9” dual-zone snare pad, three 8” tom pads, and kick drum with integrated pedal. Cymbal pads include a 10” hi-hat with pedal, a 12” ride, and a 10” chokable crash.
The kit is housed on a rugged, steel rack, with robust custom T-fittings, detachable stick rest, and skid-resistant rubber feet.
At the heart of the SD500 kit is the all-new SD500 drum module, which features a sleek new look with a 16-character backlit LCD screen and 64 voice polyphony. The SD500 comes loaded with 64MB of custom Simmons sounds, including more than 350 different sounds across 50 drum kits, and a 60-song internal memory.
The kit retails for $499.
Toontrack releases the Reggae EZX
Toontrack has released the first sound library expansion for EZdrummer 2, the Reggae EZX.
The Reggae EZX takes the traditional sound and recording techniques of reggae drums and tweaks them for the new EZdrummer 2 engine.
It was recorded at Rub-a-Dub Studios in Stockholm, Sweden and comes with a unique collection of instruments including two full, single-headed custom drum kits, a generous selection of snares, percussion and traditional Binghi and clay hand drums. Everything was recorded using vintage gear and microphones, the custom miking techniques of the genre and through a 1970s Soundcraft Series II console.
Toontrack has released a companion MIDI pack focusing entirely on the many and unmistakable styles of roots and reggae drums - Reggae Beats MIDI.
AD2 gets expansion
XLNaudio has released a new ADpak for Addicitive Drums.
Fairfax Vol. 2 is a follow-up to the pack launched with AD2, and was recorded at the legendary Los Angeles studio formerly known as Sound City.
Fairfax Vol. 2 features an older, late-60s Gretsch 'Round Badge' kit with a rounder and fuller tone.
The mellower more 'vintage' tone of this kit is a perfect complement to the brighter, more aggressive sounds in Vol. 1.
The Gretsch kit is matched with two great vintage Ludwig snares and a selection of custom handmade cymbals. It includes 30 professionally designed presets that deliver a round, warm, punchy sound. These versatile tones fit well in many kinds of music - especially pop, rock, folk and indie.
There is a launch special discount of 33% off.
Verbeuren offers lessons
Toontrack artist Dirk Verbeuren, digitalDrummer’s featured drummer in May 2103, has released a series of training videos.
This page is also the beginning of an exciting new adventure for me… I proudly present to you: DIRK BLASTS! In the Dirk Blasts Premium Drum Lessons, he shares all of the knowledge he’s acquired in his 20 years as a professional.
The lessons are available online - by subscription - with a one-year subscriptions available..
Dirk’s Premium Lessons cover a wide range of topics from hand and foot technique, building speed, bettering your independence, reading and writing rhythm, all the way to business advice and working with electronic drums. He also shares his favourite exercises and warm-up routines with you, and explains how he approaches live and studio session work.
Korg launches CLIPHIT
Instrument maker Korg has launched the CLIPHIT, a mini- module with sensor clip technology.
The CLIPHIT is an electronic drum kit composed of three clips with internal sensors, as well as a foot switch. The clips can be attached to almost any surface that can be struck. The volume changes as you vary the force of your strike, and can also be adjusted independently for each clip and pedal. There's a 3-inch speaker with 2W output and a bass-reflex design, as well as outputs for headphones or an external speaker system
Eleven different sound combinations are provided, including snare, hi-hat, toms, cymbals and bass drums. If you add an optional pedal switch, you'll be able to simultaneously play a total of five different sounds, three with the clips and two with the pedal, expanding your drum performance to hi-hat open/close or double bass. EFX programmed sounds such as conga, tambourine, hand-claps, and even dog barks are just some of the wide variety of sounds included in the CLIPHIT.
Four AA batteries allow up to six hours of operation, while an AUX input allows users to connect an MP3 player and jam along.
Roland adds to entry-level
Roland has introduced a new compact drum kit, the TD-1K V-Drums.
The TD-1K features a module loaded with 15 drum kits and four pads - a snare and three toms, crash and ride cymbals, and a hi-hat with an accompanying control pedal. The kick pedal has an all-in-one design like the TD-10.
The TD-1 sound module is simple to operate, with large buttons and an LCD display.
Stereo output jacks are provided for connecting to an external sound system for monitoring, and headphones can be plugged in for practicing without disturbing family members and neighbors.
The TD-1K will be available in October with a street price of $499.
Drumdrops adds classic Ludwig
Drumdrops has released its latest Kontakt 5 Pack, the Ludwig Super Classic Kit.
The 60s kit was mixed by Grammy award-winning ex-Abbey Road engineer Guy Massey.
The Kontakt 5 Pack comes with the Drumdrops Kontakt Interface for exclusive use in Native Instruments Kontakt version 5. The interface comes with its own mixer section.
It is fully compatible with e-drums with included MIDI maps for Addictive Drums, BFD, Drumit Five, General MIDI, iMAP, Slate Digital SSD4, Superior Drummer, V-Drums (Tested with Roland TD-12, TD-20, TD-30)and Yamaha DTX900.
Alesis ships hat
Alesis has begun shipping its Pro X Hi-Hat dual-cymbal, continuous hi-hat controller which made its debut at the NAMM Show in January.
Precisely calibrated for the Alesis DM10- and DM8-series electronic drum kits, the two-piece Pro X Hi-Hat integrates seamlessly with and expands the expressive capabilities of these popular electronic instruments.
The pack consists of a 12-inch single-zone top and cymbal and a matched bottom cymbal which together create open, half-open, closed, 'chick,' and splash sounds.
The Pro X Hi-Hat is compatible with standard hi-hats stands and has a recommended retail price of $99.99.
New cases for SPD-S and SPD-SX
Protection Racket has extended its range of electronic drum cases, adding two cases for Roland’s range of SPD-S & SPD-SX sampling pads. These utility carry bags protect these expensive pieces of electronic kit is just the same way as their award-winning cases protect drums and guitars.
The 9021-00 standard Utility case (UK RRP £38.99/€49.22/$66.35) is a perfect fit for Roland SPD-SX sampling pads, while 1762-80 Deluxe Utility case (UK RRP £78.99/€99.72/$134.42) suits the older SPD-S pad. This double compartment case comes fully padded with two front, two side and one back zipper pockets. There’s an easy access compartment, which is the perfect fit for the SPS-S.
Both feature additional pockets for pens, CDs, discs and paperwork and come with the familiar ‘Cool Dude’ logo, luggage tag too and the unbreakable zips.
Aerodrums adds presets
Aerodrums has released six new presets for it’s virtual drumming tool to allow drummers and Digital Audio Workstation users to air-drum into their favourite sampler.
The presets provide MIDI mappings that allow the samplers to interpret Aerodrums' output correctly.
“My initial motivation for Aerodrums was to be able to drum given my space and noise constraints, but after playing around with DAWs and samplers since we added MIDI support, my mind boggles with the possibilities.” says Richard Lee, co-inventor of Aerodrums.
Samplers supported include Steven Slate Drums' SSD4, Toontrack's Superior Drummer 2 and EZdrummer 2, FXpansion's BFD3, Native Instrument's Kontakt (with Studio Drummer), and XLN Audio's Addictive Drums (1 & 2).
“With Aerodrums, you can capture as much musical expression into your DAW and sampler as with a mic'd kit or e-drums, but the great thing is it runs on your computer, so you don't have to worry about hardware interfaces and the latency that comes with them,” according to Yann Morvan, director of the company.
To date, only Aerodrums' built-in samples can take advantage of its unique ability to distinguish between left and right hand.
Aerodrums is reviewed in the August 2014 edition of digitalDrummer.
New kit from Pintech
Pintech Percussion has added a new drum kit to its line-up, the PDK2000.
The sub-$2,000 Pintech PDK2000 series drum kit boasts a dual-zone 10” snare, 10” CKV10 kick pad and three 8” dual-zone mesh tom pads. The cymbal line-up consists of a 10″ hi-hat, two 14″ crashes (one dual-zone) and a 16″ dual-zone ride with bell. A Gig HH Controller Pedal is also included.
The kit is powered by an Alesis DM10 module, and comes with a Pintech rack.
“The PDK2000 is a directly result of Pintech getting the drumming community together and listening to their needs,” says Pintech Percussion owner Ryan Guard. “We are very active with our customers and the e-drumming community in general. They tell us what they would like to see, and we do our best selling kit.”
The PDK2000 kit is available now from Pintech dealers.
megaDrum guide for AD2
digitalDrummer contributor and megaDrum enthusiast Anders Grönlund has released a set-up guide for Addictive Drums 2.0.
Grönlund, who was a beta tester for the new VST, has adapted the MIDI map for the megaDrum module specifically for Addictive Drums 2.o.
He also explains how to make the most of the VST’s built-in presets to accommodate the trigger-to-MIDI converter.
The guide provides step-by-step instructions and is being distributed free of charge, via digitalDrummer.
To download the guide, click here: http://issuu.com/digitaldrummer/docs/md_ad2_v099_1_
New BFD pack from Platinum
Platinum Samples, in collaboration with producer Henry Hirsch, has released the Henry Hirsch Manic Love Drum Sample Library for BFD inspired by the drum sounds of two classic rock songs: Jimi Hendrix’s “Manic Depression” and Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love”.
Henry Hirsch is widely credited with being the impetus behind the vintage gear movement in the recording industry that continues today. He began his career in Berlin in the late ‘70s as a studio musician and was Lenny Kravitz’s engineer and musical partner for 25 years. In addition to recording Lenny's hits (It Ain't Over, Are You Gonna Go My Way, Again, American Woman, Let Love Rule, Always On The Run, Lady, I'll Be Waiting, ...), Henry has also recorded four number one albums in Japan, Vanessa Paradis' number one album in France and Madonna's number one single 'Justify My Love'. Henry's credits also include Michael Jackson, Joan Osborne and Mick Jagger.
The samples are formatted for BFD3 and BFD2 and are available at 44.1kHz/24 bit resolution with as many as 187 velocity levels and include Bell, Bow and Edge articulations on all cymbals, as well as rim shots and rim clicks on the toms. The samples include both Room and Plate samples (in BFD Eco only the Plate will be available).
This library includes two full kits with: 1 Kick, 1 Snare, 3 Toms, 1 Hihat, 2 Crash & 1 Ride Cymbals
Available for immediate download, the Henry Hirsch Manic Love Drum Sample Library for BFD is on sale with an introductory price of $89.99
Two updates from Toontrack
Toontrack has released Superior 2.4.0 as a free update for SD2 customers. The update is recommended to all users but especially anyone who purchased EZdrummer 2 and wishes to access its core library within Superior Drummer. Toontrack adds that version 2.4.0 is required for the support of EZX packs released from this point forward (Q2 2014).
Meanwhile, there is also new Pop/Rock EZX expansion. The audio and MIDI content is derived from the original version EZdrummer, but now converted into an expansion for EZdrummer 2.
The Pop/Rock EZX is based around a classic GMS kit including several options for snares, bass drums and cymbals. The sounds were recorded in New York's legendary Avatar Studios by engineer duo Neil Dorfsman (Bruce Springsteen, Dire Straits) and Pat Thrall (Beyoncé, Katy Perry) together with renowned session drummer Nir Z (Chris Cornell, Genesis). Avatar Studios is known for having one of the world's finest acoustic environments and has won several industry awards. Since its inception in the 1970s, it has hosted bands and artists like Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Journey, Kings of Leon and The Clash.
Special offer from Drumdrops
Drumdrops has announced special launch pricing for its new Yamaha Hybrid Kontakt 5 Pack. The first 250 customers can get the Pack for free, the next 250 will be charged £2., the next 500 customers will be charged £5 and then the pack will be only £10 for all other users.
The Yamaha Hybrid Kit features samples from a kit owned by producer Ben Hillier (Depeche Mode, Nadine Shah, Graham Coxon) and is made up of various Yamaha drums, together with a Ludwig 402 snare.
The cymbals used were Zildjian Dark 13' Hi-Hats, a Zildjian Constantinople 22' Medium Ride and two Zildjian Crashes - an 18' Constantinople Medium Light Crash and a huge 20' Zildjian Oriental Crash Of Doom.
The kit was recorded by resident Drumdrops engineer Ben Thackeray.
As well as providing all the samples of a great sounding kit (6,914 in total), the pack comes with the latest version of the Drumdrops Kontakt interface, complete with a Groove Player and a Step Sequencer.
digitalDrummer offers more
digitalDrummer has added a DIY guide to its growing library of compilations.
The 33-page download features the DIY questions and answers from four years’ worth of magazines, together with other articles on triggering for the home enthusiast.
The latest title augments a growing compilation library which now covers Triggers, e-Cymbals, Mesh Heads, Monitors and Headphones and entry-level kits.
“We often get requests from readers who don’t have time to look through our online archive,” says editor Allan Leibowitz. “Even though we have gone to great lengths to make this information available for free and added text references, some readers wanted it to be even easier”.
digitalDrummer is using an external distribution site for the compilations, and you check out the newest addition here.
New Gen-16 tone shapes
Zildjian has released 30 new DCP tone shapes for Gen-16, designed by Russ Miller.
Miller says the sounds, designed with the new Buffed Bronze cymbals, are intended to “work in a variety of musical situations and get you started utilizing the Gen-16 AE system, in your everyday playing situations”.
”I programmed these while playing the full kit in the studio. Everything was referenced through the studio console and used in music tracking to confirm levels and projection qualities. I believe it represents some of the best Tones possible from the system and I hope they are effective and inspiring to you, as they were to me,” he says.
The release co-incides with the start of shipping of the new bronze AE cymbals and follows the first batch of special DCP tones designed for them.
Simmons launches new flagship
Simmons has announced a new flagship model, the SD1500KIT, boasting “ultra-realistic sounds in a full-sized, full featured, professional quality drum set that focuses on both sound and feel”.
The SD1500KIT consists of a six-piece drum kit plus hi-hat, three multi-zone cymbals, powered by an upgraded version of the SD1000 Digital Sound Module. The module has more than 500 “ultra-realistic samples of the most popular classic and modern drum kits”.
With full 64 voice polyphony, full programmability, and powerful on-board processing, Simmons' exclusive Variable Attack Response programming delivers some of the most responsive dynamic velocity sensitivity available, with alternating sample playback for even more realistic, expressive sound, according to the company.
The new Simmons SD1500KIT electronic drum set is available now at a street price of $999.99.
Addictive 2 on its way
XLN Audio has announced the launch of Addictive Drums 2 on May 13, 2014. The new version will be available free to anyone who buys AD on or after March 1st.
The company is remaining tight-lipped about the changes in the new version, revealing only that “Addictive Drums 2 has tons of user-requested features as well as a few surprises from the team at XLN Audio.”.
The upgrade will, however, include new sound-shaping features, new tools for finding and transforming beats and “freedom to choose only the content that matters to you”.
Addictive Drums 1 will be discontinued, but v1 ADpaks will remain on sale until the end of the year.
The upgrade will cost $79.
Drumdrops adds Mapex Heavy Rock
Drumdrops has released the Mapex Heavy Rock Kit, available to buy as five separate packs. This kit is based on the Mapex Saturn Kit which is a favourite for many rock drummers. This is a great sounding rock kit and is available as a Kontakt instrument, multiple sampler software, drum replacement software or just WAV samples.
The kit belongs to UK rock drummer Jason Bowld (Axewound, Bullet For My Valentine, Pop Will Eat Itself) who has used it on all his recordings for the last five years for producers such as Andy Sneap, Romesh Dodangoda, Machine, Ulrich Wilde and Colin Richardson.
The samples include three different Mapex snares and four different crash cymbals, all carefully sampled in a bright sounding live room. It was recorded and mixed by UK producer, musician and engineer Martyn 'Ginge' Ford (Bullet For My Valentine), and played by Jason himself.
The Kontakt 5 pack includes up to 16 velocities of each articulation and in total it utilises 7,119 samples. Included in the Kontakt pack is the latest version of the Drumdrops Kontakt 5 interface.
A review of the first two Drumdrops Kontakt5 packs is featured in the May issue of digitalDrummer, out soon.
The Kontakt Pack is available via download at £52.00 / $82.00 / €60.20.
Groove3 explains Kontakt 5
Online trainer Groove3 has released KONTAKT 5 Update Explained in which studio master Mark Struthers explains the new features added to Native Instruments KONTAKT version 5.
Struthers begins with an introduction briefly discussing the new additions to KONTAKT 5. He then begins with a detailed look at the new filters included with version 5, revealing the Variable Filters, SV Filters, Ladder Filters, Adaptive Resonance Filters and more.
Like other Groove3 products, this offering unveils the finer details of this industry standard software sampler.
It includes 14 tutorials (1hr 33min runtime) and can be downloaded or streamed to iPad, iPhone and iPod.
Pintech offers white heads
Responding to customer requests, Pintech Percussion will be offering its Reaction Series mesh heads in white.
Owner Ryan Guard explains that the company used to offer mesh heads in white, but changed to black years ago.
“Recent demand for a high-quality mesh head at a decent price drove Pintech to start up production on the white colour,” he adds.
Pintech is currently taking pre-orders on the white heads in all sizes, with shipping estimated to begin in May.
“We understand that there are many other brands out there, but we believe no one matches our quality for the price. We've done years of extensive testing with various kinds of mesh, and believe that our mesh is the best when it comes to feel and durability. Combine that with our reinforced rubber edge to prevent stretching and tearing, and you have a strong product that feels natural while not breaking the drummer’s bank'.
BFD3 voted No 1
Review website MusicRadar has ranked the new BFD3 as the top VST.
Its ranking of the top five “self-contained solutions”, the site praises BFD3 as “arguably the finest software solution for creating acoustic drum parts that you can buy”.
NI’s Battery4 comes in second, despite its 'techy' look. The write-up says that “if you want great drum sounds and plenty of tone-shaping flexibility, it won't disappoint”.
Toontrack’s EZdrummer, due for an overhaul in May, gets third place, reflecting it’s status as “one of the most popular drum samplers on the market”.
Stablemate and big brother Superior Drummer, which “not only sounds great but is highly configurable” takes fourth place.
With “an excellent palette of sounds that goes way beyond a typical live kit”, Addictive Drums gets fifth place in the ranking.
Besides the NI offering, all of these have been reviewed in digitalDrummer.
Toontrack announces EZdrummer 2
Toontrack will launch its second-generation EZdrummer2 in May.
The company is flagging the new package as “a completely new program, overhauled down to the tiniest detail'.
It will retain the EZdrummer user interface, but add a completely remodeled audio engine, a new mixer with easy-to-use effect chains, two all-new sound libraries as well as a selection of percussion.
EZdrummer 2 will be priced at $179, €139. Upgrade price: $99, €79, but will be a free upgrade for anyone buying EZdrummer from not until the new product launch. There will also be upgrade discounts for existing owners.
EZdrummer was launched in 2006 and the line now includes 20 expansion libraries.
Alesis adds mesh
Alesis has introduces two electronic drum kits with mesh drum heads — the DM10 Studio Kit
Mesh and the DM10 X Kit Mesh.
The new kits expand on their predecessors’ design with mesh drum heads for “unprecedented response, reduced acoustic noise, and dynamic
Playability”, according to the company.
The DM10 Studio Kit Mesh is a six-piece electronic drum kit comprised of five drum pads (8” and 10”), four cymbals (12” and 14”), and the compact four-post StageRack.
The DM10 X Kit Mesh, a six-piece electronic drum kit, comes complete with five drum pads (10” and 12”), four cymbals (12”, 14”, and 16”), and the heavy-duty chrome-plated XRack. Both kits are equipped with tightly woven black mesh drum heads
The DM10 Studio Kit Mesh and DM10 X Kit Mesh will be available in the northern summer.
Porter & Davies upgrades
Porter & Davies has partnered with British company Precision Devices to produce bespoke dedicated tactile transducers, developed from the ground up as the first major upgrade to its range.
The new transducer will be installed in all models, giving them a greater frequency response range, plus the new design will make them even more robust and roadworthy.
Founders and co-inventors of the BC2, BC2rm and BC Gigster Tim Porter and Dil Davies realised they needed a tactile transducer that could offer increased performance, greater power handling and a different set of physical features than the original Clark Synthesis transducer. After careful research, Porter and Davies partnered with Precision Devices to jointly develop a product that would be better suited to future customers’ needs.’
Originally intended for furture products, Porter & Davies have opted to use the new tactile transducer immediately.
Precision Devices, long regarded as the Rolls Royce of the loudspeaker industry, has over 25 years experience in the design and manufacture of high power loudspeakers.
Porter & Davies have been at the forefront of drum monitoring technology since the introduction of their revolutionary designed plug and play systems back in 2010, and it is this latest upgrade to their system that makes the BC2 and its siblings even more alive and responsive, the company claims.
April launch for DITI
Alternate Mode has confirmed that its DITI MIDI/USB interface will begin shipping in April.
DITI boasts 24 trigger inputs and is the first interface of its kind to power and convert FSR drum triggers to MIDI. It can also convert piezo triggers, dual-zone piezo triggers, membrane switch triggers, cymbal choking cymbals and multi-zone cymbals as well. The DITI also has a continuous controller input for hi-hat.
The street price for the DITI will be $499.
Meanwhile, shipping of the Aquarian inHEADs and onHEADs is set to start “within six weeks”.
Roland/QSC tie-up
Roland Corporation and QSC Audio Products, LLC have announced a new marketing partnership, showcasing the pairing of V-Drums and K Series amplification as a total solution.
Extremely responsive electronic drums need a very unique kind of stage amplification that is accurate, has wide bandwidth, and is capable of keeping up with guitar amps and other amplified instruments.
“Musicians have recognised that K Series speakers are a great choice for electronic instrument amplification. With that in mind, we’re delighted to be working with Roland to spread the word about how well K Series and V-Drums go together,” says QSC vice president of marketing Gerry Tschetter.
Roland US vice president Paul Youngblood says his company is happly to be working closely with QSC “to give drummers exactly what they need to offer up their best performances”.
“The combination of a Roland V-Drums percussion system and a QSC K Series instrument amplifier are made for each other and are one of the recommended amplification systems by Roland,” he says.
New packs for BFD
Two new expansion packs have been released for BFD – Imperial Drums and Zildjian Digital Vault Vol. 2.
BFD Imperial Drums is an expansion pack for BFD3, BFD Eco and BFD2 featuring a wide range of drums and cymbals, recorded and produced by Chocolate Audio.
BFD Imperial Drums is designed to offer a variety of sounds and mixing control within BFD3 and BFD2. The medium-sized recording room allows naturally warm ambience as well as direct mic signals with superb isolation for maximum flexibility. Many included instruments provide alternative ambient and direct mic sets for an expanded tonal palette.
Finally, 13 stick and beater types including hot-rods, webs, rutes and jazz brushes were used to play the instruments. The included drums, cymbals and hihats are expertly set up and tuned by experienced session drummer Elio Rivalgi. With over 150 loadable instruments in total, BFD Imperial Drums' diverse sounds are suitable for all genres of music that demand powerful, musical-sounding drums.
FXpansion Zildjian Digital Vault Vol.2 is a new collection of orchestral and field cymbal sounds for BFD3, BFD Eco and BFD2. It features a wide variety of Zildjian cymbal recordings as well as a selection of percussive instruments recorded in the same session.
Zildjian Digital Vault Vol.2 includes Classic, K Symphonic and K Constantinople crash and percussion cymbals alongside effect cymbals, gongs, finger-cymbals, crotales, tam tams, temple blocks and more. Playing styles vary from regular sticks and mallets to marching band articulations and clashed, bowed, scraped and water-dipped techniques that provide a huge range of creative sounds.
All instruments are recorded in intricate detail by sampling guru John Emrich, with multiple mics capturing crisp detail and lush room ambience. The versatile range of sounds makes Zildjian Digital Vault Vol.2 suitable for all styles of music and soundtrack work.
New Roland trigger module
Roland has launched the TM-2 Trigger Module, a new electronic percussion module with high-quality onboard sounds, user sound expansion via SCHD cards and two trigger inputs for a variety of Roland pads and drum triggers. Battery-powered and compact, the TM-2 is aimed at drummers using hybrid kits that brings acoustic and electronic elements together.
The TM-2 mounts onto a hi-hat stand or drum rack using standard hardware.
Built-in trigger inputs allow players to connect two pads or trigger devices at once. Nearly any pad in Roland’s line-up can be used, including those that support dual triggering. Ideal options for a hybrid application include the BT-1 Bar Trigger Pad and KT-10 Kick Trigger Pedal. The TM-2 is also works great with Roland’s RT-series acoustic drum triggers that mount on kick, snare, and tom drums.
The TM-2 has over 100 ready-to-play sounds and users can import addition sounds, loops and backing tracks via an SDHC card slot.
The device also has a MIDI output.
No details yet on pricing or availability.
Zendrum moves to mallets
Zendrum Corporation is tooling up for a January production release of its new mallet range, the Zendrum Mallet Pro and the Zendrum Mallet Pro X. The ZMPX features a three-and-a-half-octave range of walnut bars plus 15 Zendrum triggers for a full pit ensemble of percussion possibilities.
The Mallet Pro has a two-and-a-half-octave range, while the ZMF (Zendrum Melodic Finger) features an array of Zendrum triggers arranged for melodic triggering.
Pricing is as follows:
ZMF (Zendrum Melodic Finger) $1,000 ZMP (Zendrum Mallet Pro) $1,600 ZMPX (Zendrum Mallet Pro X) $,2400
Drumdrops adds Rogers Dub Kit
British sample producer Drumdrops has released the Rogers Big R Dub Kit in three formats - The Kontakt pack, The Multi-Velocity Pack and the Single Hits Pack.
The sampled kit is comprised of a 24'x14' bass drum, a Ludwig Black Magic 14'x6.5' snare, a Ludwig Acrolite 14'x5' snare, a huge 18'x16' floor tom, and two rack toms, a 14'x10' and a 13'x8'. The cymbals used were 15' Zildjian A Sweet hi-hats and a 17' A Custom crash. Percussion for this kit includes a 14' timbale and a set of bongos. Also included is some electronic percussion using a Boss PC-2 Percussion Synthesizer and a Tama Techstar TS-204.
The kit was recorded and mixed by UK producer, musician and engineer Mike 'Prince Fatty' Pelanconi.
The Kontakt pack has been designed exclusively for Native Instruments Kontakt 5. The pack includes up to 16 velocities of each articulation and in total it contains 5,352 samples. Included in the Kontakt pack is the latest version of the Drumdrops Kontakt 5 interface.
Roland fights noise
Roland has released two new sound isolation devices designed for use with kick pads/pedals and hi-hat pedals in a V-Drums set. The NE-10 and NE-1 Noise Eater products provide highly effective acoustic sound isolation for V-Drums when they’re played on upper floors of multi-level structures, including houses, apartments, condos, offices, lesson studios, and more.
One of the many benefits of V-Drums — and their patented mesh-head pads in particular — is that they’re extremely quiet acoustically, allowing players to use headphones to practise and record in situations where it would be impossible to use acoustic drums. However, the physical action of using kick and hi-hat pedals in a multi-level building can result in unwelcome noise and vibration being transferred to rooms below via direct sound conduction through the floor.
Based on Roland’s tests, the Noise Eater products reduce noise transfer to rooms below by approximately 75%.
The NE-10 Noise Eater is a compact sound isolation board designed to be placed under a V-Drums kick pad/pedal or hi-hat control pedal. It features multiple dome-shaped rubber dampers for sound isolation and a low-profile design that doesn’t affect playing feel or stability. The NE-10 can be used standalone with a Roland KD-9 Kick Pad, KD-7 Kick Trigger, or FD-8 Hi-Hat Control Pedal.
The NE-1 Noise Eater is a small sound isolation foot intended to be used as necessary along with the NE-10 Noise Eater. It features a unique rubber damper structure that provides maximum sound isolation in a very compact and efficient device. When using a Roland KD-140/KD-120 V-Kick or a hi-hat stand for the Roland VH-13/VH-11 V-Hi-Hat, users should place the NE-10 under the pedal and NE-1 units under each stand leg as needed.
Toontrack adds Metal
Toontrack has released a new Metal! EZX sample pack.
The Metal! EZX is based on a new drum recording engineered by Daniel Bergstrand in Norway’s Tanken Studio. The raw material was then individually remixed by Mark Lewis, Jason Suecof and Bergstrand into nine drum kits tailor-made for metal. Between them, these three producers have worked with some of modern metal’s most influential acts as well as those pioneering today’s multifaceted scene: Meshuggah, In Flames, Trivium, Whitechapel, DevilDriver, The Black Dahlia Murder, God Forbid and Dimmu Borgir, to name a few. The Metal! EZX also comes with a versatile collection of grooves and fills performed by Soilwork and metal drummer Dirk Verbeuren.
Pintech updates range
Pintech has begun an update of its e-drum range, with the launch of a new 14” snare. Available in a choice of three colours, the snare features “new reinforced trigger technology”.
The ConcertCast pads have also had a makeover, also offered in three colour options – red, black and ‘Silvervein’.
Pintech recently changed ownership, and under the direction of Ryan Guard, is repositioning the brand.
One of the measures is the renaming of Pintech’s mesh heads as “Reaction Mesh Heads”, reflecting their superior score for rebound in digitalDrummer’s head2head review. The mesh heads are now reinforced with a rubberised sealant on the outside ring which will improve durability and prevent stretching.
Guard stresses that key Pintech staff have been retained and continue to help grow the market for the US e-drum specialist.
2box ships in US
Seven months after announcing the distribution deal, Sweden’s 2box products have started shipping in the United States.
Hoshino USA Inc. reached an agreement with 2box AB of Sweden in March to become the exclusive US distributor of 2box electronic drums. While we’re still awaiting official confirmation from Hoshino, online retailer Cymbalism Music notes on its website that “2Box modules have arrived at our suppliers and can be ordered anytime on our site“.
The retailer is flagging the second week of November for kit shipments, but points out that “most are already presold”.
The US versions of the kit come with “rubber pad head surfaces mimic the stick rebound of a real kit, while minimizing ‘in-the-room playing noise,” according to Hoshino.
Hoshino USA is offering a choice of Tama hardware, or 'a la carte for consumers who may just want the module or the kit without hardware”.
Drumasonic updates released
Drumasonic has released version 2.2 of its main VST pack and an update of its Luxury product, both designed to accommodate the updates and new features of Kontakt 5.2.
Besides taking advantage of some of the Kontakt features, both updates now improve hi-hat performance. Luxury has an enhanced pedal splash action while also gaining a new “tight” articulation. In the “V-Drums” mapping preset, the default hi-hat control settings have been updated to better fit various Roland drum modules.
Luxury also gets several new “No FX” presets as well as a new “SFX” preset.
Both packs have also been enhanced with various subtle performance and memory improvements.
The free updates are available for download on the Drumasonic website.
BFD3 arrives
FXpansion has released BFD3, the third generation of its flagship software acoustic drum studio.
The new offering includes seven new kits with mix-ready presets and modelling technology for tom resonance and cymbal swells and a revamped interface with a new mixer and sound browser.
BFD3's all-new library is recorded in two rooms by engineers including Andrew Scheps, Rail Jon Rogut and John Emrich. The sounds include a brushed kit and processed drum presets for fast custom kit-building.
BFD3 also contains a powerful built-in environment for pattern creation and editing, complete with a range of performances by legendary drummers for effortless production of drum tracks indistinguishable from the real thing.
BFD3 is available on USB 2.0 flash installation media or as a download product at around $349 ($199 as an upgrade from BFD2).
SSD4 adds Terry Date
Steven Slate Drums has added another expansion pack, Terry Date Drums.
Terry Date is the producer, recording engineer and mixer behind bands like The Deftones, Pantera, Staind, Incubus, SoundGarden, and many more. His drum sounds were a major influence on Steven Slate and many of Slate's own samples were modelled from tones on Terry's records.
Terry Date Drums for SSD4 and TRIGGER consists of 10 drum kits recorded in Hensen Studio B. The kits range from rock to metal and have a launch price of $99.
Toontrack launches Rock! EZX
Toontrack has added another expansion pack to EZdrummer line, The Rock! EZX. The Rock EZX comes with eight custom drum kits based on selections from the Toontrack sound vaults, featuring rare and vintage drums recorded over the past decade in renowned studios like New York's Allaire Studios, Blackbird Studios in Nashville and 2 Khz Studios in London.
The sounds were handpicked by engineer Neil Dorfsman (Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Dire Straits), who then re-mixed all material through various outboard chains, layered them with his personal collection of samples and boiled it down into eight tailor-made kits spanning the whole range of rock – from ambient to dry, vintage to modern.
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Kit pieces include drums from Ludwig, Rogers, Slingerland, Permier and Noble & Cooley, while there are a variety of Zildjian, Sabian and Paiste cymbals.
The pack is available for download at a cost of €69.
New HandSonic HPD-20 debuts
Roland has given its hand percussion pad a new lease on life with the launch of the HandSonic HPD-20. Equipped with the renowned SuperNATURAL sound engine and potent multi-effects, the HPD-20 offers 850 dynamic, ready-to-play sounds, plus the ability to import users’ custom sounds via USB flash memory. Thirteen pads provide ultra-sensitive response and flexible control options for playing onboard sounds and external MIDI instruments with an incredible range of expression, according to the Japanese music giant.
The HandSonic pad interface also excels in computer music applications, where it’s perfect for playing virtual instruments, recording MIDI and audio performances in DAW software, and much more. And with its convenient trigger inputs, you can easily expand the HPD-20 with a Roland pad and hi-hat controller to build a super-compact percussion set.
Key features:
•Powerful hand percussion instrument for live performance and studio music production
•850 ready-to-play sounds include percussion from around the world, melodic instruments, drums, tones for modern electronica beats, and more
•Roland’s acclaimed SuperNATURAL sound engine delivers unparalleled tone quality and expressiveness
•Import up to 500 of your own WAV sounds via USB flash memory and assign them to pads
•Deep editing capability allows you to tweak and layer instruments and process tones with three independent multi-effects engines, ambience, and EQ
•13 silicone rubber pads provide ultra-sensitive velocity response and a comfortable feel
•Dynamic pad assignments let you dampen, mute, and tune sounds for authentic performance of acoustic hand percussion like congas and tabla
•Roll button and Realtime Modify knob; D-BEAM for controlling sounds and effects with hand movements
•Easily capture performances and ideas with the Quick Rec function and export them as WAV audio files to USB flash memory
•Inputs for connecting a Roland pad and hi-hat controller (sold separately)
•USB Computer port for audio/MIDI communication with popular music software, including DAWs and standalone virtual instruments
E-drum milestones chronicled
Drum magazine has included a number of e-drum developments in it list of “Great Gear Breakthroughs”.
The magazine lists the Syndrum, LM-1 Drum Computer, Ddrum triggers, Roland mesh heads and Dave Simmons’ SDS drums alongside innovations like the double kick pedal, the modern hi-hat and the snare throw-off.
The article notes the first electronic drum pad, the Syndrum, from Pollard Industries in 1976. (The Syndrum should not be confused with the Synare, a different electronic drumpad introduced by Star Instruments in 1977, it points out).
Another listing outlines Roger Linn’s LM-1 Drum Computer, the first programmable drum machine that used digital samples of acoustic drums.
Also on the lsit is Ddrum, founded in1983. For drummers who desired electronic sounds but still wanted the playability and feel of acoustic drums, Ddrum’s introduction of Acoustic Drum Triggers allowed a best-of-both-worlds option, says the report.
Roland’s 1977 release of mesh heads is another milestone. This, says Drum, allowed Roland to created “an electronic drum set with a forgiving and bouncy feel (and quieter response) that was much closer to that of acoustic drums”.
Also included in the list is the Simmons company, founded in 1978 specifically for the purpose of creating an electronic drum set. By 1981, Simmons released an electronic drum set with hexagonal pads, the SDS-V. Subsequently, Simmons kits were played on recordings by notable bands like Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran and Rush.
The full list can be found here.
Zildjian grooves offered
Platinum Samples has joined with The Avedis Zildjian Company to release the Zildjian Artist MIDI Groove Library.
The MIDI pack features grooves performed by 24 famous drummers including Kenny Aronoff, Billy Mason, Carter Beauford, Eddie Bayers, Danny Seraphine, Stephen Perkins, Ilan Rubin, Marco Minnemann and Adam Nussbaum - all performed using a Yamaha DTX900 electronic drum kit to capture their unique styles and includes funk, blues, rock, reggae, Latin, country and pop grooves in 4/4, 3/4, 12/8, 9/4, 5/4, 7/4, 13/16, 5/8 and 6/4 time signatures.
This multi-format collection includes grooves formatted for BFD2, BFD Eco, EZDrummer, Superior Drummer, Addictive Drums, Steven Slate Drums 4, Cakewalk Session Drummer as well as General MIDI Standard MIDI files which can be used with any GM-compatible drum software or hardware.
The Zildjian Artist MIDI Groove Library is optimized for a kick, snare, three toms, a hi-hat, two crash cymbals and a ride cymbal and is available now as a download from Platinum Samples’ website and includes all formats for $40.
NI launches DRUMLAB
Native Instruments has released DRUMLAB, a VST pack combining the organic, expressive sound of acoustic drums with the power and punch of an electronic edge.
DRUMLAB’s sound is built on an all-new set of premium drum samples. 38 individual drums were perfectly tuned and performed by drummer Derico Watson.
All drums were recorded in three different rooms to ensure maximum sonic versatility. High-end modern and vintage gear captured every nuance of the performances on analogue tape. Grammy-winning producer Kenny Barto was then brought in to polish the sounds to a professional shine.
The key to DRUMLAB’s alchemy is an advanced layering technique to give drums maximum weight and punch in a mix. 80 electronic layers from a range of classic and modern drum machines were expertly matched, phase aligned, faded, and pitched with the acoustic samples.
DRUMLAB is available for download at $99 or €99
New drumming app
VirtualDrumming has launched an iOS version of its popular online drum game.
The developers claim the new app is “more than a drum game (as) even the most skilled musicians can use this virtual drumset as a professional instrument”.
The app allows users to play a complete drum set with drumsticks that follow the fingers in each movement.
The app features realistic dynamic response with volume and sound dynamics levels, 16-bit uncompressed drum sounds, double bass drum and double hi-hat for right and left handed people.
The app sells for 99 cents on the App Store.
Fisher joins Yamaha
Yamaha Corporation of America has announced the appointment of Steven Fisher to the position of marketing manager for electronic drums. His primary responsibility will be to advance the market for the company’s DTX drums and he will report to Athan Billias, director of marketing, Pro Audio & Combo Division at YCA.
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Before joining Yamaha, Fisher spent more than 20 years with Roland Corporation, where he held numerous positions in marketing and product development and served as a renowned clinician.
Prior to this, he enjoyed an expansive career as a professional musician, performing and recording with Maynard Ferguson, Dizzy Gillespie, Blood, Sweat & Tears, T Lavitz, The Temptations, Natalie Cole and many TV and motion picture productions and emerged as a pioneer and well-known authority in the field of electronic percussion, from drum-machines to electronic drum sets. He studied jazz at University of North Texas, where he performed with the well-regarded One O’Clock Lab Band.
“Steve is recognised around the world as one of the top experts in electronic drums and he fits right in here at Yamaha, particularly given our company’s longstanding focus on music education,” says Billias. “We have experienced explosive growth in the electronic drum category and he will help us take the segment to new levels by improving the playing experience for our customers.”
Drummers Flock To New Composition Tool
If you have ever attempted to produce sheet music for percussion, you will know that it can be a tedious process. Your frustration, however, could be over. Musink, a new free score-writing application, is promising to change how drummers produce music. 'I had spent the last decade becoming increasingly frustrated with existing notation editors,' said Musink's creator, Lee Reid, 'I was sick of taking hours to produce simple drum-kit notation, and still finding that the result was almost illegible. One day I snapped, and got programming.' The software, which is free to download, completely rethinks the process of writing music. Users need merely to click where they would like a note, and a note is created. As notes are added, note durations are automatically calculated, speeding up composition. Musink automatically takes care of most rules of music notation, such as correct stem direction and vertical alignment of multiple rhythmic values, as well as established rules for positioning of notes on chords. Letting users focus on writing, layout tasks are completely automated. 'The aim, from the beginning, was to be able to write music faster on a PC than was possible scribbling with a paper and pencil. For drummers, this meant adding a number of original features', said Reid. 'For example, you can write snare- and bass-drum parts on completely separate staves, and have Musink combine them when you export to PDF. Almost the only thing not automated is writing the music itself'. Another common complaint surrounding many editors, flexibility, has also been laid to rest. While Musink can create a traditional orchestral score, it also allows creation of short musical 'snippets', posters, and exercise books. Recognition of the internet generation is also very apparent: in addition to PDFs, scores can be exported as image files for forums, articles, college assignments, and websites. Feedback so far has been overwhelmingly positive, with most users surprised at how straightforward and fast writing music has become. “Again and again I receive thank you messages from drummers,” says Reid. “We all know that old fashioned notation editors are just not suitable for writing drum music. It’s great to know that, finally, we have another option.” Musink can be downloaded for free from http://musink.net.
VEX releases TD-30 packs
VExpression has released its first expansion packs for the TD-30 in this new series, Essentials: ROCK and Strike.
Essentials: ROCK provides 50 brand new kits for the TD-30, plus five additional cymbal sets, and has been created for jamming, professional gigging and recording.
Strike is designed for general, recording, and live use. Strike provides 60+ general use kits. This pack has been purposely created for the live and recording drummer needing specific kits that are plug-and-play ready.
The 50 new ROCK kits carry cymbal modeling to reflect 14” K/Z Zildjian Hi-Hats, 21” Zildjian Earth Ride, and 17” and 18” Zildjian A Custom Crashes. These preset cymbals can be easily swapped with any cymbals in the five additional cymbal sets to create your own personal custom cymbal setup!
Both packs are based on a standard TD-30KV default trigger set-up. They includes pre-programmed support for all aux channels. Aux 3 is pre programmed as a Hi Pitched Tom. Aux 1, 2 & 4 are programmed as cymbals. All the kits are uniform in level and panning. All kits feature the SuperNATURAL sounds of the TD-30.
VExpressions recommends VDrumLib as the preferred V-Drum Kit Librarian for sorting, arranging and more.
Griffin boosts iOS range
Griffin Technology will debut several new accessories for Apple iOS at Summer NAMM 2013. Of particular interest to e-drummers is the StudioConnect with Lightning, an all-in-one audio interface for music creation on the iPad, now compatible with the new fourth generation iPad and iPad mini.
In one compact device, StudioConnect provides great-sounding plug-and-play convenience for instruments, stereo audio, MIDI-In/Out along with a Lightning charging dock. It also features line-level RCA stereo output and stereo headphone output with separate volume control.
“GarageBand and other computer recording programs have become immensely popular with musicians who want to create studio quality tracks on the go, and at any time,” says Ethan Opelt, Line Manager of Griffin’s Audio category. “Our new Apple iOS music accessories offer easy connectivity so artists can capture and build on their ideas whenever inspiration strikes.”
The updated StudioConnect with Lightning is now available for $149.99 MSRP.
Third EWP announced
The third annual Electronic Percussion Workshop will be held from July 29th to August 2nd at the University of Delaware.
The five-day event includes individual, group, and hands-on training on a wide variety of tips and techniques “utilising hardware and software designed to expand the limits of your creativity and expression”.
The event features Mario DeCiutiis, Dr. Norm Weinberg, Stephen Hambright and John Emrich.
Organisers stress that the workshop has limited availability to assure plenty of hands-on experience and personal attention.
It includes topics from MIDI basics to advanced synth programing, and hands-on exposure to a range of Alternate Mode instruments, including themalletKAT, drumKAT and trapKAT.
There will also be performances featuring the instructors, all accomplished musicians.
For more information, visit http://electronicpercussionworkshop.com
NI revives the 50s
Native Instruments has released Abbey Road 50s Drummer, a collection of ultra-rare drums and period-authentic grooves, capturing the flair of early rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and jazz.
Recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, UK, the drums feature a rough, cutting sound, with massive, resounding snares and mellow cymbals.
There are two kits: The Spring Kit is an early-50s Gretsch Cadillac Green Nitron with a 20” bass drum. Its 12” rack tom and 14” floor tom are tuned lower than those of the Autumn Kit. Three interchangeable 14” period snare drums deliver brilliant sonic options. The Autumn Kit is a late-50s WFL with a 20” kick, 12” and 13” rack toms, 16” floor tom, and a choice of 14” x 6.5 “, 14” x 8”, and 13” x 3” snare drums. Its higher tom tuning means it sounds slightly brighter than the Spring Kit.
50s Drummer runs on Kontakt 5 or the free Kontakt Player 5.
Toontrack adds Indie Folk EZX
Toontrack Music has released a new EZX expansion focusing on capturing the organic, warm, intimate and ambient sound characteristic of the indie folk genre. The Indie Folk EZX was recorded at the Avast! Recording Co. in Seattle, home to bands such as Fleet Foxes, The Shins and Band Of Horses.
It comes with three complete vintage kits: a 1960s Gretsch Round Badge sampled with both sticks and mallets, a Ludwig from the 1950s as well as a Slingerland Rolling Bomber kit dating back to the 1940s.
Also included are two tambourines, a hi-hat mounted tambourine jingle, an extra kick and snare as well as a 28' floor tom.
Each kit is available in two variations: a standard multi-mic mix and a classic four-mic mix.
The default kit is sampled with both drumsticks and mallets.
NEW ADPAK FROM XLN
XLNaudio has released a new expansion pack for Addictive Drums, the Black Velvet ADpak.
Described as “a modern classic dressed in black captured with a large, epic sound”, the pack includes samples of a DW Collector’s Series in a six-piece kit, matched with a selection of Zildjian cymbals and hi-hats.
“Created with the grunge/post-grunge era in mind, with roots in alternative rock transcending to an expensive arena rock-band sound, this takes you on a journey from Seattle to LA, according to XLN.
The ADpak “offers an almost unreal diversity … from a tight, fat and controlled sound to unleashing some kind of monster by just pushing the room fader”.
The Black Velvet ADpak was divided in two recording sessions: The drums were recorded in a large studio with a gymnasium hall-sized recording room, and the hi-hats and cymbals in a smaller damped space. The pack sells for around $69.
YAMAHA IMPROVES DTX500
Yamaha has premiered its completely revamped DTX502 electronic drums at Musikmesse 2013.
With almost twice the wave ROM and more than 250 additional sounds than the DTX500, the new DTX502 drum trigger module is the first to incorporate drum and cymbal samples from top VST developers that have been optimised for DTX by Yamaha's sound engineers. For truly customised sounds and songs, the system lets users import audio samples and MIDI files for further expandability.
During the development phase, Yamaha created proprietary laser technology to analyse drum strokes and precisely tune the trigger settings, so that the playing experience on each of these sets provides a more natural feel. It also includes advanced features from the higher-end DTX models such as cymbal muting, natural swells and smoother snare drum rolls.
'Most of the changes to the new DTX502 series can't be seen but they can be heard and felt,' says Athan Billias, director of marketing, Yamaha Corporation of America, Pro Audio & Combo Division. 'There's a lot more than meets to eye involved with this upgrade and drummers will be impressed when they get behind these new kits.'
The new DTX502 module has a streamlined front panel layout that puts the most-used features at your fingertips, and features plug and play USB connectivity for easy interfacing with a computer. The new design allows the DTX502 to be easily mounted to acoustic drum hardware using a standard multi-clamp (such as the Yamaha CSAT924A) for use in a hybrid acoustic-electronic drum set.
The DTX502 series includes new training and educational functions for drummers to improve their playing, no matter one's current skill level. With eight practice routines that help develop rhythmic timing, pad accuracy and drumming endurance, the system calculates a score after each session so that drummers can track their progress.
The module is the cornerstone of three new kits, the DTX522K, DTX532K and DTX562 kits.
NORD DRUM 2, NORD PAD DEBUT
Clavia has announced the launch of the Nord Drum 2, a “six-channel Modeling Percussion Synthesizer that combines the playability of real percussion with unique and powerful sound creation possibilities”.
On show at the Frankfurt Musikmesse, the Nord Drum 2 sound engine features resonance modeling, subtractive and FM synthesis in addition to a comprehensive noise section with high-pass, low-pass and band-pass filters and offers an extreme level of control over the dynamic response.
Each of the channels can be roughened up with a sample rate reducing crush effect or non-linear distortion.
The six generic trigger inputs can be used with both electronic drum pads and acoustic trigger mics. Nord Drum 2 can be played with MIDI-pads or be controlled from a MIDI sequencer. The MIDI Out lets the Nord Drum 2 double as a Trigger-to-MIDI interface.
Also making a debut is the Nord Pad, a compact multi-pad that connects easily to the Nord Drum 2 with a single Ethernet-cable. The Nord Pad is available as an optional accessory.
Both products should start shipping in May.
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ROLAND ADDS KIDS APP
Roland has launched a free software application for children to build drumming skills and compare their progress with other V-Drums users around the world. A special version of Roland’s V-Drums Friend Jam software designed for young drummers, V-Drums Friend Jam Kids provides a fun way to practice and enjoy playing V-Drums.
V-Drums Friend Jam Kids helps children and their families communicate with each other through practicing with any V-Drums set. By accessing a child’s “player page” with their computer or smartphone, family members can easily check practice time, scoring, and more to keep up with playing progress and encourage improvement.
Since its release two years ago, V-Drums Friend Jam has become an extremely popular social networking tool for drummers, with over 30,000 users to date in 175 countries and regions worldwide. The software allows players to share scores and interact with each other via their Twitter accounts while practicing the drums.
V-Drums Friend Jam Kids is a completely self-contained application that does not require Twitter to share scores. Its practice features and functions are similar to V-Drums Friend Jam, but are tailored more to children who are just starting to learn the drums. The software supports 13 different languages, including English, Spanish, French, German, Polish, Russian, Turkish, and more.
The V-Drums Friend Jam Kids software application is available as a free download at http://vdru.ms/kids
CRAPPY ADDS NEW PRODUCTS
Online trigger maker Crappy Triggers has added two new products – a shorter version of its Beat Bar and a flanged version of its Skin Link trigger box.
The new shorter BeatBar is 8” long and designed as a rim-mounted auxillary trigger. The $20 trigger attaches to two tuning lugs. It is supplied with special mounting straps and provides a single zone signal which is delivered to the module via a standard 6.5 mm jack.
The flanged Skin Link is adapted from the $10 head trigger box. The addition of the flange mount makes the box easy to attach to metal or plastic cymbals.
This trigger is designed to rivet or bolt to a cymbal and has a 6.5mm mono jack.
Crappy Triggers products are exclusively sold online and described by the maker as “possibly the cheapest add-on electronic drum pads in the world”.
DRUMASONIC ADDS TOUCH OF LUXURY
German VST producer Drumasonic will debut a new offering, Luxury, at the Frankfurt Music Fair on April 10th.
The high-end kit samples can be played with sticks, rods or brushes, either with or without snare wires. Up to 10 microphone signals provide unrivalled mixing flexibility and, thanks to the integrated groove player, realistic sounding drum tracks can be created quickly.
The sample content, comprising over 30,000 samples, was recorded with minute attention to detail and covers a large variety of musical styles.
LUXURY is based on the drumasonic 2.1 engine and, being a 'Powerd by Kontakt' library, utilises NI Kontakt version 5.
682DRUMS ADDS E-KICK
Dutch trigger kit maker 682Drums has unveiled an electronic kick trigger, the KTR-7 E-kick.
The heavy duty kick trigger is designed to work with both single and double pedals and the maker claims it has “outstanding responsive triggering quality, great sensitivity and superb isolation characteristics”.
The trigger is intended for use an addition to the e-kit and can also be used with acoustic drum kits, for example as an auxiliary trigger under the floor tom..
682Drums says it also works perfectly with sample pads like the Roland SPD-SX, SPD-S or Alesis Performance pads.
The product is on sale now at $69, with free worldwide shipping.
KAT ADDS AMPS
KAT Percussion has launched two new drum amps which will start shipping in March.
The 50W KA1 has a 10” woofer and 2.5” tweeter, two 6.5mm drum inputs and a 6.5mm Aux line in.
The bigger amp, the 200W KA2, has a 12” woofer and a 1”x1” compression diver.
With the same inputs as the KA1, the KA2 has a headphone output and a balanced output for mixers or recorders. It weights in at 20.1Kg, compared to the 14.3Kg smaller amp.
The KA1 should have a street price around $220, while the KA2 should sell for around $370.
2BOX SELECTS US DISTRIBUTOR
Hoshino USA Inc. has reached an agreement with 2box AB of Sweden to become the exclusive U.S. distributor of 2box electronic drums. The deal represents a mutually beneficial strategic breakthrough for both companies. “We’ve been thinking about electronic drums for a few years, “ says Hoshino USA president Bill Reim. “But the product would have to be a very strong entry, and 2box drums have earned that distinction.”
Patience played a role for the electronic drum maker as well, according to 2box AB CEO Bengt Lilja: “We deliberated as to how and when we should enter the US market. We wanted to wait for the right opportunity and the right partner. Hoshino USA is precisely the kind of distribution partner our line of electronic drum products should have.” “Adding our e-kits to Hoshino USA’s catalogue of fine percussion products feels like a great fit in terms of introducing our products to dealers and drummers in the US.”
ONE-CLICK VSTS FOR 2BOX
A new programme, SDSE, creates .dsnd files for the 2box system from Superior Drummer 2 in a single action. Developed by an e-drummer and 2box player, the software automatically exports drum instruments or whole kits to .wav and optionally to .dsnd and .dkit. The process is fully automated for SD2 and basic functionality should work with other VSTs as long as they are set to use the same MIDI map, according to the developer. The software only runs on Windows and requires Reaper and DSoundTool. It is currently optimised for Superior’s Avatar and Music City libraries, but more kits will be included. There’s a free evaluation version and the full programme is downloadable for a cost of $20. For more information, go to http://lustark.com/sdse
Mark Drum updates firmware, kits
Mark Drum has released new firmware, additional drum kits and enhanced features for the YES kit. Firmware upgrade 1.8 adds several new features: · Xplosion FX feature - a compression-based effect which provides new dynamics response options ranging from ‘natural’ to the more ‘explosive’ dynamics more commonly found on highly processed electronic drums. · Pad Upgrades - further enhances the dynamic response of Mark Drum snare, kick and cymbal pads. · User Kits - The number of user kits has been extended from four to 16. These can be renamed. · User Loops - The number of recordable loops has been extended to eight. · Hi Hat MIDI - The controller number for MIDI data output by the hi-hat is now user-definable Mark Drum has also released a Global Drum Kits update in parallel with firmware update 1.8, which includes six new kits which highlight the ‘Xplosion’ dynamics upgrade as well as the Danny Gottlieb kits - for those who have not yet downloaded them. The upgrades are applied via the removable SD card. The updates are available here.
ROLAND GOES PORTABLE
Roland has unveiled its TD-4KP V-Drums Portable kit designed for mobile drumming and small spaces. It is powered by the TD-4 sound module which has onboard sound editing, ambience effects and Coach and Quick Record/Quick Play functions. The TD-4KP comes with a kick pad, a 7.5-inch drum pads snare pad, three tom pads, a hi-hat pad, and two 10” cymbal pads (crash and ride). An FD-8 Hi-Hat Controller pedal is included. An optional CB-TDP Carrying Case provides a convenient way to transport and protect the TD-4KP and upgrade options include the PDX-6 or PDX-8 V-Pads which can be swapped for the snare. There’s no word yet on pricing. NEW PLAYER RAISES THE BAR KMC Music, one of the largest independent U.S. distributors of musical instruments and accessories, has teamed up with Alternate Mode’s Mario DeCiutiis to develop an electronic drum set product line at the lower end of the market. Under the KAT Percussion label, the new venture has launched two debut kits, the KT1 and KT2 Digital Drum Sets , with plans to grow the KAT Percussion line in the near future as KMC Music continues to expand its offering to musicians of all levels. The eight-piece KT1 features over 150 sounds with 10 user-programmable drum set configurations that emulate a wide range of musical styles - from rock to reggae, jazz to electronic. The nine-trigger hKAT KT2 comes with over 450 drum, cymbal and percussion sounds. In addition, there are 80 play-along tracks and 45 drum sets (30 preset drum kits and 15 more user-programmable kits) to fit any style It has two additional trigger inputs, allowing the addition of an extra drum pad and/or cymbal. The USB Sound Module connects to a wide variety of devices and is equipped with a pair of 1/4-inch stereo output jacks, and input jack for connecting to an iPad or other MP3 player as well as MIDI and USB ports for digital recording or playback. Full details in the February 2013 digitalDrummer. NEW ENTRY-LEVEL DTX KITS Yamaha has extended its DTX range with two new drum sets, the DTX450K and DTX400K kits. “The DTX400 series of electronic drums bring Yamaha quality and technology to a new level of affordability,” says Athan Billias, DTXdrums marketing manager. “Because they’re from Yamaha, drummers can count on their durability and dependability. No other company can match the value of these new drum kits.” Both drum sets come with the DTX400 module, which features 169 drum sounds, 128 instrument voices and 10 customisable kits. Newly designed 10” hi-hats, crash and ride cymbals offer realistic feel and the 7.5” drum pads have been redesigned for greater durability and playability. Both sets are upgradable with the XP80 DTX-PAD snare. The DTX450K drum kit features newly designed drum pads, including a three-zone snare pad for head, rim-shot and side-stick sounds. The Yamaha belt-drive foot pedal offers true-kick feel and the realistic hi-hat controller allows for half-open, pedal and splash sounds. The steel rack provides a solid playing experience and the Floor Tom bar easily accommodates an extra cymbal (purchased separately). Cymbal attachments on the DTX450K feature chrome hardware. The DTX400 drum kit comes with a steel rack and the new beater-less KU100 kick unit. ELECTRONIC PERCUSSION WORKSHOP Alternate Mode, Inc. and the University of Delaware Percussion Department have joined forces for the 2012 Electronic Percussion Workshop (EPW). From July 30 tp August 3, the workshop will feature the malletKAT and other electronic instruments. Mario DeCiutiis, CEO of Alternate Mode and principal Percussionist for the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular, will be demonstrating a wide variety of tips and techniques to expand the limits of your creativity and expression. Dr. Norm Weinberg's classes will focus on programming the drumKAT. digitalDrummer columnist and VST guru John Emrich will explain how to Use your computer for sound control via VSTs. His focus will be programming BFD2 on the trapKAT. Evan Ritchie will run through all of the basics of MIDI to help build confidence in programming KAT Controllers. Guest artists at the evening concerts will include Danny & Beth Gottlieb, Dave Samuels, Tony Miceli and Gina Ferrera. The cost of this workshop is only $600.00 Dormitory rooms are available for $29 (double occupancy) and $39 (single occupancy) per night. For more information, go to http://www.alternatemode.com/events/2012_udel_epw.shtml HART RELEASES 7.5 Following on from its 20th Anniversary kit, Kart Dynamics has released a new Hart Professional 7.5 kit. This kit has a 13” snare, 10” toms, two 12” toms and two 13” toms, along with a large 14” bass drum, finished in hand-hammered chrome and supplied with a heavy-duty Gibraltar Road Series chrome rack and a full complement of bronze e-cymbals. All the drums are Hart’s patented TE3.2 Advanced Dual Trigger System. The ECYMBAL II acoustic-style electronic cymbals feature chokable crashes, dual-trigger Ride, and gum rubber on 1/3 of Hi-Hat and Ride playing surfaces (play on rubber or metal). Snare drums feature full Position Sensing, Rim Shot and Cross Stick. All drumsets come with Kontrol Screen Magnum 'silent mesh' heads. Retailing for $4,995 (shipped), the kit also includes a free Alesis module. V-DRUMS CHAMP CROWNED Baard Kolstad from Norway has been judged the winner of the Roland V-Drums World Championship 2012. Seond place went to JP Bouvet (USA), with 3rd place going to Jaroslav Noga (Czech Republic). Hosted by Roland at the House of Blues, Anaheim during NAMM 2012, 16 finalists from all over the world showed their skill and creativity at the helm of Roland V-Drums, electronic drum kits. The competition was intense, and a talented team of celebrity judges including Thomas Lang, Chad Wackerman, Michael Schack, Craig Blundell and Johnny Rabb were there to crown a winner. America’s Got Talent finalists Recycled Percussion were also on-hand to wow the audience while the judges tallied their final votes. Finalists were selected from hundreds of local and regional competitions worldwide during 2011. Winners were selected based on musicianship, stage presence, and the creative use of technology. As part of his first place prize, Baard Kolstad won the most technologically advanced and expressive electronic drum kit offered by Roland, the new TD-30KV V-Pro® Series. The TD-30KV is one of many exciting new products released by Roland at the 2012 NAMM show and features the TD-30 SuperNATURAL® Sound Engine with behavior modeling and advanced sensing technology. NEW TRIGGER SYSTEM AND HEAD A new head and triggering system will be launched at NAMM next month by MIDItroniX, a side project of the inventor of the DrumKat. The company will be revealing what it claims is “the world’s first real acoustic electronic hybrid drum head”, inHEAD. Manufactured and Distributed by Aquarian drumheads, the heads will be available in standard drum sizes for the entire kit. Along with the inHEAD. MIDItroniX will offer the inBOX. This box attaches to the shell of an acoustic drum and connects the inHEAD to the outside world. A ¼” output jack on the inBOX sends out a clean trigger signal that can directly go into a module. “Unlike standard piezo drum pads, there is no vibration interaction because the inHEAD incorporates FSR (force sensor resistor), which responds to pressure not acoustic vibration. The result is clean, dynamic response throughout the entire drum head,” according to MIDItronix’s Mario DeCiutiis. The inBOX also has an input for another trigger, the rimSHOT. This allows for a stereo trigger on the output. For bass drums, the set-up will include the hotSPOT FSR sensor that attaches to the acoustic head of the bass drum for accurate triggering while still maintaining the original sound and feel of the acoustic drum head. Like the inHEAD, the hotSPOT attaches to the inBOX to connect to the outside world. Finally, the company will also be showing off its inHEAD Mute, a removable pad that sticks on the head, significantly reducing the sound of the acoustic drum while still offering superb triggering! ZENDRUM PLANS VST CONTROLLER David Haney, inventor of the Zendrum, has announced the impending debut of the Zendrive, a VST player designed for electronic percussion. Tipped for release in 2011, the Zendrive is a stand-alone unit with a 40Gb solid-state hard drive and 4Gb of fast RAM, a dual core Pentium processor and a sound card with eight audio outs to a custom patch bay, all housed in a road-ready case. “Finding good sounds for the Zendrum in a roadworthy box has been an ongoing challenge since 1991 when we built our original invention,” says Haney. “I’ve owned many pieces of electronic drum gear, but they always fell short of Zendrum’s high standard for quality and trouble-free performance. Even as sound improved over time, reliability got much worse. Gear failure got catastrophic and costly and unacceptable to me.” Haney says he decided to build something “specifically for my application - a VST player durable enough to bounce down the road for thousands of miles in a truck and still perform flawlessly, night after night.” The Zendrive began with a two-space ATA rack case into which Haney says he has packed “every trick I’ve ever learned to speed set-up and tear-down, along with the best components for playing MIDI drums were used with one purpose in mind: Rock-solid reliability and ease of use onstage”. Although there’s no mention of compatibility, the Zendrive is designed for the Zendrum, a MIDI controller, so it should be a viable module alternative, especially when paired with devices like Alesis’ I/O or the Megadrum More details are expected soon. ALESIS SHIPS DM7 USB Alesis has begun shipping its new DM7 USB Kit which made its debut at the 2010 PASIC show last week. The DM7 USB Kit has eight velocity-sensitive drum and cymbal pads, including a three-zone (head, rimshot and cross-stick) snare. The heart of the DM7 USB Kit is its DM7 sound module with more than 400 drum, cymbal and percussion instruments in 80 kits. Drummers can play the 50 preset kits for extensive sonic flexibility, and they can custom-create 30 of their own. USB connectivity allows drummers to access the DM7 USB Kit from their Mac or PC, and the kit comes bundles with Toontracks’ EZ Drummer Lite software. The DM7 USB Kit is available now from musical instrument and pro audio retailers. It has a US retail price of $799.00 and an estimated street price of $599.00. NEW EXPANSION PACKS FROM VEX V Expressions has launched a number of new expansion packs, including some VST-like add-ons which take advantage of the enhanced performance of the TD-20X/TDW-20 modules. The new offerings include the Engineer 1.2 pack, described by the programmers as continuing where Engineer 1.0 left off, “but with a slightly new direction”. Priced at US$30, the pack is being touted as a budget pack, and consists of 24 kits “modelled from some of today’s popular ‘produced’ VST counter-offerings”. Also touted as a budget offering is the new 'VXT' series, a reworking of the Master Picks series and based on VST sounds. Available for download from $40 each (or for $80 for all three), the collection consists of over 120 kits in three expansions. This limited-time combo offer includes five additional brand new cymbal packs. Vex has also released a new pack of 16 assorted kits covering all kinds of sounds, including electronic, jazz and general application, dubbed Expressions. This all-new patch collection is available for all modules (TD-10 version is yet to be finalised) and sells for $20. The expansion packs will be reviewed in a future edition of digitalDrummer. RMV LAUNCHES HYBRID Brazilian drum maker RMV has released a sneak peak of its first e-drum offering, the ELEDRUM. A full-size hybrid kit, the system includes adjustable internal triggers. From a preview video on the company website, the triggers appear to be single-zone. They are shown with RMV mesh heads and with mylar heads. They are demonstrated in some dual-triggering - an external microphone is mixed with triggered sounds through a module. The kit, shown in six-piece configuration, is supplied without a module, with a spokesman saying this arrangement allows buyers to choose from the extensive range of modules already on the market. There’s no mention of a launch date, nor pricing. EVIL DRUMS ECO KIT 1 RELEASED Platinum Samples is happy to announce the release of Evil Drums Eco Kit 1 a low-resource, download-only expansion kit for FXpansion BFD Eco & BFD 2.1 virtual drum software. Recorded by Joe Barresi (Tool, QOTSA, Bad Religion) in the Cement Room at Grandmaster Recorders Ltd. (Foo Fighters, NIN, Rancid) Evil Drums Kit 1 is a versatile Pork Pie kit suitable for modern rock, indie, pop, punk & metal. This download-only kit has been tuned for BFD Eco's reduced-velocity engine. Also included are sample grooves from Platinum Samples’ upcoming Bobby Jarzombek Metal MIDI Groove Pack. Also available for BFD from Platinum Samples are Joe Barresi’s Evil Drums, Andy Johns’ Classic Drums, and Jim Scott’s Rock Drums Expansion Packs. Joe Barresi Evil Drums is also available as an SDXTM Expansion Pack for Toontrack Superior Drummer 2.0. Platinum Samples is the first third-party company to release Expansion Packs and Kits for FXpansion’s BFD Premium Acoustic Drum Module software. The expansion kit requires that BFD Eco or BFD 2.1 be installed and is both Mac OS X and Windows compatible. BFD supports Digidesign’s RTARTAS format, as well as the VSTi, DirectX, Audio Units and Rewire technologies. YAMAHA OFFERS REBATES From July 1, 2010, Yamaha will be offering a $300 mail-in rebate on the DTX900K Electronic Drum Kit and a $500 mail-in rebate on a DTX950K Electronic Drum Kit for a limited time. ·This is a customer mail-in rebate direct from Yamaha. ·Purchase your DTX900K or DTX950K between July 1, 2010 and July 31, 2010. ·Go to www.yamaha.com/dtx900rebateand register. ·Print out your registration/rebate form and mail it to the address on the rebate form. ·Include a copy of your sales receipt and the original UPC bar code from the DTX900 module box. ·Effective dates: July 1, 2010 - July 31, 2010. ·Rebate submissions must be postmarked by August 15, 2010. ·Proof of purchase will be required on all rebates. SLATE LAUNCHES TRIGGER Slate Digital has announced that the new advanced drum replacer, TRIGGER Platinum, is now available. TRIGGER is a multi-channel, phase-accurate drum replacer with six channels of multi-velocity sample layers. This means that you can trigger a close mic, stereo overhead pair, and room mic pair - all from one instance of the plugin, according to a company statement. “With TRIGGER you can quickly and easily turn ordinary drum tracks into world class drums,” a spokesman claims. TRIGGER Platinum comes with the entire Steven Slate Drums library, including a sneak peak at some of the upcoming DELUXE series drums. Find out more about TRIGGER's features at www.slatedigital.com. TOONTRACK ADDS MUSIC CITY USA SDX VST giant Toontrack has announced the launch of its newest library of drum samples and MIDI grooves for its Superior Drummer 2.0 drum production platform. The Music City USA SDX features input from Harry Stinson and Chuck Ainlay, two of the best, most experienced players and producers in the business. The pack gets its name from Nashville Tennessee, which boasts more labels, publishers, writers, producers, musicians and artists per capita than any other city in North America. 'With the city's history and culture so steeped in the art of making and recording music, the team could think of no better place on earth to record a library of drums that would be at home in music ranging from rock to reggae, metal to gospel or punk to polka,' says a Toontrack spokesman. 'Oh yeah... theyre good for country & rock too.' The Music City USA SDX will be available May 2010. NEW APP FOR LIVE PERFORMANCE Eareckon, headed by digitalDrummer DIY columnist Pfozz, has released a new music application originally designed to meet the requirements of musicians and engineers in “live” situations. BloXpander combines the power of a computer and the efficiency of a dedicated device. It functions as an ASIO Host for VST plugins, featuring 24 channels, four auxiliary bus + 1 master bus, six inserts per channels (with a theoretical 174 instruments / FX slots) . Pfozz says the application is ideal for all musicians, including drummers. “By using electronic drums, you have the opportunity to play a hyper-realistic software drums sampler and switch from a jazz set to a metal set in no time. You can then assign effects such as compression, gate, EQ, etc. to the various elements of your virtual set (especially if you use a plugin with multiple outputs). Only one action is needed to change the set and retrieve your presets,” he explains. If you have an external MIDI controller, you can pre-mix your drums or apply a temporary creative effect from your throne. If you play acoustic drums and don’t have a sound engineer at your disposal during live performances, an audio interface with multiple inputs coupled to BloXpander will give you the opportunity to assign all types of effects or simply mix the microphones placed on your drums set. Mostly, BloXpander will preserve all your ready-to-call settings. BloXpander is on sale for €69 and comes bundled with Toontrack’s EZdrummer lite. For more information, see: http://www.eareckon.com/ ALESIS UPDATES DM10 O/S Alesis has released an operating system upgrade for its recently released DM10 Pro, Studio and stock DM10 kits. The company says the new module settings are ideal for harder hitters. 'They'll give you more dynamic range, improved sensitivity, and improved crosstalk performance,' according to a company statement. The upgrade is available here. NEW O/S FOR TD-12 Roland has released an operating system update for the TD-12 module. The update takes the module to the same state as the new TD-12 KX, with new trigger types; improved Hi-Hat response and new parameters for Positional Sensing. To download the upgrade, click here. MIDITRONIX PROMISES BIG CHANGES MIDItroniX, a new company formed by the inventor of FSR technology, Franklin Eventoff, and Mario DeCiutiis from Alternate Mode, is promising to 'reinvent electronic drums and percussion'. While the company's website does not offer any details, it claims that a team of brilliant software and hardware engineers along with CAD designers, mechanical engineers and others have been brought together to rethink literally every aspect of E-drumming. 'We are excited that this last year has brought us new and innovative concepts,' it says. MIDItroniX says it has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in the next generation of pads, controllers, hybrids, e-pedals and hihats. 'You might not see MIDItroniX or Alternate Mode as the brand name, as we have created OEM models for our products. But you will see an amazing assortment of new products that will dazzle you in the coming months and years ahead.' The partners ask to be excused for not disclosing more details, adding that 'patents are under way and we need to protect our OEM partners'. ALESIS EXPANDS DM10 RANGE Alesis has unveiled its DM10 Studio Kit and introduced the DM10 at the 2010 Winter NAMM Show. The DM10 Studio Kit features the DM10 drum module, Alesis’ RealHead drum pads, DMPad Cymbals and StealthRack mounting system. The module has an extensive factory sound set with breathtakingly natural sounds and the ability to load entirely new sound sets via USB from a Mac or PC. The DM10 works with virtually all manufacturers’ pads and triggers, and its input section can be further expanded with the optional Trigger|iO module. The kit comes with a DMPad 12' Hi-Hat Cymbal, two DMPad 12' Crash Cymbals, and a triple-zone DMPad 14' Ride Cymbal. The Ride and one Crash feature large choke strips on the undersides for accurate cymbal control. The Ride also features multiple-zone triggering on the bell, face and edge. The Hi-Hat Cymbal is continuously controllable using the included RealHat Pedal. SONIC REALITY ADDS PEART Sonic Reality sound development company has added “Neil Peart Drums Vol. 1: The Kit”, a sample library for BFD2 and Infinite Player, powered by Kontakt, to its Drum Masters series. Neil Peart, legendary drummer of the band “Rush”, has collaborated with Sonic Reality and producer/ engineer Nick Raskulinecz (Rush, Foo Fighters, Alice In Chains) to bring the authentic sound of Neil’s “Snakes and Arrows’ Custom DW Drum Kit into the digital domain. With advanced features such as deep level dynamics, humanized random alternating hits, discrete multiple mic mixing and more, this deluxe sampled kit is an ultra-realistic recreation of Neil’s actual acoustic set as used live on tour and in the studio. SUPRIOR GETS EVIL DRUMS SDX Platinum Samples has released Joe Barresi’s Evil Drums SDX Expansion Pack for Toontrack Music’s Superior Drummer 2.0 software . Joe Barresi is one of the busiest producer/engineers working today with an impressive list of credits including albums by Tool, Wolfmother, Queens Of The Stone Age, Weezer, Clutch, Pennywise, Turbonegro, Bad Religion, and many more. Featuring six full drum kits, six kick drums and six snares, the Evil Drums Expansion Pack is unlike any other expansion pack available. Recorded to analog tape at two legendary rock studios using compression and EQ, Joe Barresi has captured a diverse ensemble of drum sounds with unprecedented detail and full bleed to create a unique and exquisitely evil expansion pack. Evil Drums also includes MIDI grooves performed by Pat Wilson (Weezer, The Special Goodness). Platinum Samples is the first third-party company to release Expansion Packs for Toontrack Music’s best selling Superior Drummer 2.0 software. The expansion pack requires that Superior Drummer 2.0 be installed and is both Mac OS X and Windows compatible. Superior Drummer 2.0 supports Digidesign’s RTAS format, as well as VSTi and Audio Units technologies. Comments are closed.
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