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[Whitten]

I’m not sure there are many music software companies that reply to support questions within two hours.
I have NI products, one of the biggest software companies, certainly waaaaay bigger than Toontrack, and I find NI support questions are replied to within 24 to 36 hours.

[Whitten]

I’ve followed threads on other forums.
It’s actually in NO WAY similar to either Superior or EZdrummer.

Each Kick has 6 Hits. We decided against any softer hits, just the good loud ones, as those are what is needed to punch through in the mix. Usually only a single sample is used for metal productions. Now the Snares and Toms on the other hand are very dynamic. We have given you 7 velocities, from soft to hard, with 6 hits each for a total of 42 samples per instrument.

[Whitten]

Any way you can create midi is a way you can also trigger Superior.
So writing midi notes in by hand, or playing parts by hand via a midi keyboard, or choosing pre-made midi and editing.

[Whitten]

There are two Toontrack products that fit the requirement as you’ve stated it – EZdrummer and Superior.
The easiest is EZdrummer, it’s also the cheapest, so I would recommend that for you.
The basic mechanics of EZdrummer are in two parts: individual drum samples, and midi files to play those samples.
It’s kind of like your piano if you used premade midi to play your digital piano.

So you get a drum kit, snare drums and cymbals in the main EZdrummer pack, then you can expand that sample collection with EZX expansion packs (different drums and cymbals, recorded by different production teams, in different studios). These EZX’s also include midi files (known as the groove library).

So…… midi is just a code. It can easily be edited, and it changes with tempo information sent by your DAW (Logic, Reaper, Garageband etc).

You can create your own midi drum parts by playing the drums from your digital piano (assuming it has midi output), into your DAW, with EZdrummer installed on a software instrument track.
Many people browse the included midi groove library for parts that are close to what you need, then edit from there. The advantage of that is that most EZdrummer groove libraries are created by professional drummers, and as such the feel is closer to playing with a real drummer compared to a keyboard generated drum part.
I hope that answers some of your questions.
There are EZdrummer product pages, and also quite a few videos about EZdrummer (and Superior) on YouTube.

[Whitten]

Having been involved in projects I wouldn’t mind a switch to dsp. Bye, bye pirates and freeloaders.
This would be similar to the system UAD use right?
Having said that, I am certain prices would rise significantly. The UAD dongle is a significant expense on it’s own, and most of their actual plug-ins are on the high side of the norm.
I would think 99% of current Toontrack customers would be very angry if the company switched to hardware only and prices rose.

[Whitten]

You need to select brushes (tools) and edit all your velocities to be extremely low, especially bass drum (and soft beater on kick?).

[Whitten]

EZX The Classic has rim only samples.

[Whitten]

Good to be cautious.
I generally delete emails asking for personal details.

[Whitten]

If you look around the entire drum sampling scene, there really aren’t many superstar drummers involved. I think it’s because they are too busy recording songs and touring. And not many are inspired to sit in a studio for a week tapping each drum one at a time.

[Author]

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