Inquiry as to preferences/favorites regarding Superior Drummer 3.x libraries.

What are your favorite SDX's?

[EDIT] - what are you all using to play the lib's?
Ekit's via MIDI, synth pads (using hands), note for note in piano roll?

 

Last edited: Nov 18, 2024 at 1:13 AM

Legacy of Rock has the best sounds for me so far, on many the cymbals/hi hat are so weak.

Dying to try the new Underground EZX

 

I don't actually have a favorites library,
but individual favorites components (from all of the librarys)
kicks, snares, toms and so on. I go through them when I need to.
It's super quick if you've listened to them all ONCE and marked your favorites with stars.
That way i always have the perfect set for my needs.

 

Last edited: Nov 18, 2024 at 12:03 AM

Legacy of Rock, Fields of Rock and Rooms of Hanza are my gotos. And surprisingly, I didn't really expect to like it as much as I do but - Hitmaker.

 

They're all pretty good. I never use any voice on its own, but instead sound-replace in parallel.

 

Interesting discussion this one.
I like 'em all in general, but i really, really dig "Decades" and the newer "State of the art". I also like Hitmaker which helps build hybrid sets of acoustic and electronic drum sounds with very good results.

If i am recording/producing a band with a serious enough budget, i will record real drums with midi triggers, so i can be flexible later making decisions on what stays what goes, what gets replaced etc., if needed. (Tbh, this is getting rarer and rarer with every year that passes).
If the production is low budget in the box with very few recordings (which sadly is most frequent), i will just use any midi controller, usually my Akai drum pad controller or even just keyboards, np.

 

I program by finger drumming on the keyboard. If I'm triggering I use S3's drumtracker

 

Last edited: Nov 18, 2024 at 3:15 AM

NY Avatar... for a long time, because it has a RIDE on the left as well as the right, and the left has multiple hits [BELL, BOW & EDGE], and it has the standard 3+2=5 tom layout.

But when I want more toms I have to choose Area 33 Origin, which has 13, and tuned nicely from high to low, allowing a /Rush/roto-tom style... But unfortunately the left side cymbals have only [CRASH or MUTED HIT] assignments, unlike Avatar which has [BELL, BOW & EDGE].

"Area 33" is good if one needs 2 kicks, and that has 8 toms, but they are not tuned very high by default.

Any of these kits you can replace pieces, but you can't ADD anything, and I think it is really sad that they didn't just give an open layout allowing for any or the pieces to be placed and have the MIDI assignments follow the layout.

I mean who really wants to be limited to 2 cymbals and 3 toms?
I found out the hard way to NOT use the small kits when i first used a small kit in EZ Drummer and just wanted another tom ...
OOOOOPS ... CAN NOT BE DONE.

And if one uses a particular kit, there is no guarantee that the assignments will work well with another kit. I remember having that issue with one kit I used and decided : NEVER AGAIN

So, I decided to use a huge kit and just turn off most of the pieces.
At least they are there if I want them.

Of course one can use MORE than one SD3 and add whatever one wants, but I like to also keep the midi on one track.
Using multiple tracks is good with complicated tracks, as one can get to the parts (all the different pieces / hits) with ease. All on one track can be a nightmare for a lot of drum parts.

I have one Avatar with custom mapping when I want to avail a lot of cymbal hits, and do all these different methods, but again, for loading a kit to start a song, I will choose Area 33 - Origin .. with most pieces turned off

 

Last edited: Nov 18, 2024 at 3:39 AM

Those old New York kits do still sound really good.

 

Yeah - and it can be a real inspiration to load different kits & different MIXES.
I think I have all available, just to avail of the kit pieces.
My tendency is expressed in my previous reply, where i want everything available in one kit....
...but that can be a bad thing.
Sometimes limitation is what gives inspiration.

Spoiler: As for method...

I am only a hobbyist, sop what I do is probably not a good idea
I do a lot of drawing notes or at least editing even when i enter them via controller.
I often add timing variation as well as velocity, because my timing is not great and quantizing too much isn't great either, and the same with velocity.
I have avoided too much copying patterns and modifying, but it that certainly is how I am learning how to vary timing / velocity. I did not realize how MUCH timing can vary ..or MUST vary to sound great. So many hits are way earlier and later than I would think..but it works.
I realized that about timing with other instruments long ago, but I didn't know it was so true with drums. I DO LIKE exact timing with rhythms too... machine - style, and so it all depends on what the rest of the song is.
When trying to give a feel to stuff I have messed a bit with swing but it seems that different bars can have different swing and I never learned how to use it as a tool. I should try more of that.

 

Last edited: Nov 18, 2024 at 6:00 AM

To me the best produced and most flexible one is the Stories SDX.