zZounds' Take on Toontrack Superior Drummer
The most common element in popular music is also the most complicated: the drum kit. Incorporating real drums into your projects requires no less than a dedicated recording studio with a tuned room and a tuned drum set. Or, it requires a single piece of software. Toontrack Superior Drummer 2.0 saves working producers and composers untold thousands of dollars in recording equipment and set-up time, yet delivers stunningly realistic acoustic drum sounds for use in just about any genre. You get 25GB of professionally recorded drum tones, paired with a sophisticated mixer interface for sample-based drum production software that's as simple or as deep as you want it to be.
Drum Sounds Straight From The Hit Factory
The most important step in creating a sample instrument is the planning phase. The planners for Superior Drummer were Pat Thrall, Neil Dorfsman and Nir Z, three producers with almost 100 years combined experience in the industry working with artists like Meatloaf, Celine Dion, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Dire Straits, Beyonce, Bjork, and more. These pros know what radio-ready drums sound like, but more importantly they know what makes for the most flexible core tracks. Recorded at three legendary New York City studios, the drums samples in Superior Drummer 2.0 are platinum-quality and eminently useable in any project. It's the drum library designed by producers, for producers.
Intuitive Graphical Interface, Multiple Kit Elements
Mix and match multiple drum kit elements to create a kit that fits each distinct project. Superior Drummer 2.0 offers three different kicks, seven snares, three hi-hat pairs, four rides, two different tom combinations, four different crash cymbal setups, six special effects cymbals and of course, cowbell. Does a track call for a softer drum sound? Superior Drummer 2.0 has sample sets recorded with rods and brushes to take things down a notch. For hard rock and metal, there's the option of switching to a plastic beater on the kick drum for tighter, more aggressive punch. The intuitive, graphical interface makes it easy to assemble these elements in any way you want. Load up kit presets or customize your own kit, going as deep as tuning the pitch of each drum and even the attack and decay envelope. All the big producers have developed their own "signature sound" for their drum tracks, and now so can you!
Integrated Mixer For Advanced Sound Sculpting
For even deeper sculpting of your drum sound, Superior Drummer features a built-in, fully functional mixer for use either as a plug-in or for standalone operation. The mix interface lets you dictate details like microphone assignments on each drum kit element and the amount of bleed from one drum's mic to the others. Each channel features a five-band EQ and panning and level controls, and there's a full suite of insert effects like compressors, gates, filters, and transient processing for getting exactly the kind of drum tones and performance you want. The power this mix interface offers is impressive--you can have radically different processing going on for each drum--yet because Superior Drummer sums everything to a stereo output, project integration is a matter of setting up a single stereo channel.
Comes With Custom MIDI Grooves
For instant use in projects and as a demonstration of the plug-in's power, Superior Drummer 2.0 ships with custom MIDI grooves played by library producer and ace session drummer Nir Z.
One plug-in nets you all the drum kits, microphones, mixing tracks, live rooms, and even session player you'll need to complete professionally produced modern music. Don't let your lack of space keep you from having real drums in your projects, get Toontrack Superior Drummer 2.0 from zZounds and realize the music in your head, no matter the genre.
Manufacturer's Description for Toontrack Superior Drummer Software (Mac and Windows)
Finally, Superior Drummer 2.0, "The New York Studio Legacy Series", Toontrack Music's next professional sample engine for drums is due for release. Superior Drummer 2.0 is a complete overhaul of the original dfh Superior engine but Toontrack has made painstakingly sure to lose nothing of the sound quality, attention to detail and musicality that has made the Toontrack Music drum sampler line what it is.
Superior Drummer 2.0 has been re-developed for optimized use with e-drums with more effective use of sample layers and much improved loading times. It will include custom MIDI played by Nir Z accessed through the all new customized MIDI engine and arranger EZplayer pro, it will feature stand alone capacity through Toontrack solo. From premium UK based software developer Sonalksis Superior Drummer 2.0 has been fitted with, 5-band EQ, high and low pass filter, compressor, gate and transient designer filters.
The new interface is reminiscent of EZdrummer with its simple handling and lay out but gives its user layer upon layer of in depth features to create the ultimate drum track.
New Abilities:
- ADSR
- X-pads - Load instruments from any Toontrack library to add positions or to double instruments on the position of your choice.
- The ability to read and combine all dfh Superior and EZdrummer sound libraries.
Built-In FX
- 5 Band EQ
- Highpass and Lowpass filter
- Gate
- Compressor
- Transient
Superior Drummer 2.0 will include custom MIDI played by Nir Z accessed through EZplayer, and feature stand alone capacity through Toontrack solo. Superior Drummer 2.0 "The New York Studio Legacy Series" was recorded by Pat Thrall, Neil Dorfsman and Nir Z at Hit Factory, Avatar Studios and Allaire studios, NY. Pat Thrall, Neil Dorfsman and Nir Z have between them over the past three decades worked with artists as diverse as Meatloaf, Celine Dion, Nick Lachey, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Dire Straits, Beyonce, Bjoerk, Kiss, Joss Stone, Genesis, John Mayer and Chris Cornell.
zZounds is an authorized dealer of
Toontrack products.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Windows XP SP3 or newer, 2 GHz Pentium 4 or Athlon processor with 1 GB RAM (multi-core CPU with 2 GB RAM or more recommended)
Mac OS 10.4.11 or higher, 2 GHz G5 with 1 GB RAM (multi-core CPU with 2 GB RAM or more recommended)
4GB free hard disc space, DVD drive (25GB free hard disc space, Sequencer application and professional soundcard MIDI controller such as keyboard, drum pads or electronic drum kit recommended)
- Dimensions and Weight in Packaging
- Shipping Weight: 1 lbs
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Shipping Dimensions:
8 x
6 x
2 in
