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So what’s it like? As before, on the C&V sessions, Mattias was happy to accept our artistic direction, gently guiding us and helping us remain on track towards the vision we’d set out to achieve. I was happy to let Peter make the decisions in the recording process and he was happy for me to tune and play the drums as I saw fit. Ch Ch Ch Changes After the retro tom heads, I installed my regular tom head of choice on the N&C Horizon kit: Evans G2 coated. On day two, we made a start on Shorefire’s own Yamaha Recording Custom kit, which fulfilled my need to sample something mainstream and popular, especially as I installed Remo Coated Ambassador heads throughout. We decided to rent the Craviotto kit from Maxwell’s in Manhattan. When it arrived, I just checked the tuning for any rogue dissonance. I didn’t want to actually change the tuning as I presumed the store sent the drums out sounding their best. Also, one of the features of a good virtual drum instrument is variety. If I tune three kits on three consecutive days, it’s likely I’ll subconsciously tune them too similarly. I’ve got to admit the sessions were even more demanding and stressful than the 2Khz sessions six years earlier. One of the problems was the vintage nature of the recording equipment, including some fantastic rare and expensive German microphones. Occasionally, one would develop a fizz. Of course, with the drums being banged and crashed and a whole rock band thrashing away, it would be unfortunate, but not disastrous. However, when you are recording dozens of pianissimo cymbal hits, it is a disaster. Worse still, often these mic breakdowns were barely noticeable - except when you soloed the mic and turned the volume right up. So, on more than one occasion, I’d spent an hour meticulously sampling a kit piece only to discover I had to do it all over again. The Sound of Silence The studio also turned out to be less than perfect for a super critical sampling session. To be fair, only the elite studios can boast such perfect soundproofing that when a cockroach sneezes, it isn’t an issue. We just had to be careful, and in truth, the extraneous noises were few, especially after dark. But on our final night, with the clock ticking on our available time and a slew of fantastic cymbals still unrecorded, the local council decided to have an end-of-summer fireworks display. So we took a break and had a cup of tea until the display fizzled out. A short while later, as I was in the middle of a 40
We’ve read Chris’ account of what went into it, so what can we get out of Toontrack’s The Classic EZX? Firstly, this sample pack and MIDI collection is playable with Toontrack’s EZdrummer VST and doesn’t require the full-blown Superior Drummer solution. While this means 16-bit samples instead of 24bit, there’s certainly no compromise on sample scope or realism. The selection of kits is excellent. The Noble & Cooley, Yamaha Recording Custom and Craviotto Ash kits add great contemporary sounds to the EZdrummer arsenal and you can easily hear how these kits would be ideal for the creator’s work with Paul McCartney and Dire Straits. There are some good punchy sounds as well as more subtle tones. The cymbal selection is outstanding, with some cut-through rides, crisp hi-hats, full, warm crashes and bright splashes. The devil, they say, is in the detail, but in The Classic’s case, the detail is the major strength. Whitten has provided some fantastic articulations, especially on the cymbals, and the realism is striking. The ride, for example, has ride tip, ride shank, bell tip, bell shank, edge and mute articulations. The dynamics on the snares and toms are magnificent. They don’t just get louder as you hit harder, you can almost feel the increased energy. One of the appealing aspects of this sample pack is that it easily provides two very distinct feels for all the kits at the click of a mouse, thanks to its two different recording settings. The Classic offers a choice between a contemporary multi-microphone version and the “4 mic setup” which feels tighter and is reminiscent of some of the big ‘70s recordings. The Classic certainly adds something fresh to the EZ line and is among the most detailed and responsive VSTs I’ve heard to date. It’s an essential add-on for any EZdrummer collection and must be equally tempting for SD owners. And I’m not just saying that because Chris is reading this… Allan Leibowitz www.digitaldrummermag.com