Toontrack EZdrummer 3
and more realistic performance.
One of the most obvious additions to
EZdrummer 3 is the inclusion of a Grid Editor.
While this will be nothing new to DAW users, it
now opens up the possibility for use within the
EZ realm. You can now build your song template,
within EZdrummer 3, and then edit as desired.
Moreover, new humanise facilities allow the
potential to engineer even greater levels of
controllable humanise.
The extent that you might make use of this
grid editor is obviously dependent on your way
of working, and whether you prefer to keep
things within the DAW. We have to point out that
in employing some of these features, the ability
to drag and drop into the DAW, and maintain
those levels of realism, is not only useful, but
something of a coup.
First seen in EZDrummer 2, the Power Hand
parameter allowed easy embellishment of
leading drum parts, such as ghost notes on a
snare. With EZdrummer 3, this has moved on a
level, with the addition of smart AI algorithms,
that intelligently and musically alter the way
these components interact. As before, this can
be dialled in sympathetically, and once applied
can be exported out to your DAW, although it is
also easy to build a song construct within
EZdrummer 3, and get it to sync and play along.
Staying with the intelligent angle, the new
Bandmate feature allows the drag and dropping
of MIDI or audio, requesting EZdrummer 3 to
compile and suggest appropriate grooves, to
accompany your analysed ile. It’s actually quite
an impressive and useful feature, which can act
as a clever springboard to creativity, without
halting the writing process.
Mix it up
All of the other EZdrummer stalwarts remain,
such as an improved easy access to grooves, via
a very easy to read menu hierarchy, and a newly
refashioned mixer, which is clear and concise.
There is simpliied control of bleed elements,
and of course it is fully expandable, in line with
the entire EZdrummer brand. That has always
been one of the selling highlights for us; the
ability to expand as you go, although
EZdrummer 3 is in no way lacking impressive
and highly usable content. It sounds pretty
awesome, with a level of realism which is one of
the best in class. Toontrack continue to push
those boundaries, while maintaining
exceptional quality throughout.
Web toontrack.com
Info Upgrade from €89
Verdict
For Exceptional collection of drum
sounds and grooves
Choice of Hansa rooms is quite
wonderfully diverse
There is a huge amount of drum choice,
right of the bat
Michael Ilbert’s mixes really rock!
It sounds incredibly realistic, both in and
out of context
Against You’ll probably want to
expand it, because it’s so good
EZdrummer has always been the drum
suite of choice, and the update to EZD3
merely seals the deal. It is stunningly good!
10/10
Alternatively
Ujam – Virtual Drummer
from £83 each
One of ive packs in the virtual
drummer lineup; for the heavier
end of production business
Toontrack – Superior Drummer 3
249 » 10/10 » €289
If you like EZdrummer 3, but want
to take it further, this provides all
the bells and whistles
One main reason for the rise in
popularity of the EZdrummer series, is
the vast amount of control that the user
has over the drum and groove
elements, supplied with the package or
as an additional quotient. There are a
few ways to look at this. If you consider
the drums to be the backbone of a band
or group, it makes sense that when
working to a drum template which is
played live, as they are with
EZdrummer, you can and should lock
right in to the groove being played. This
is important for certain genres,
whether heavy rock or jazz and funk.
But thanks to the intrinsic lexibility of
the package, you can re-quantise the
MIDI to your own template or
speciication, or change basic
elements, such as the appearance of a
crash symbol on beat 1, at the start of a
loop. Talking of loops, while these have
become an established part of
production for certain styles of music,
it can often be worth persevering, by
adding and building a drum track, for a
more authentic outcome. Thanks to the
way that EZdrummer displays its
grooves in a hierarchical form, it is
incredibly easy to both audition and
create the perfect drum track. And in
most cases, it will perplex any listener
into thinking that they are listening to a
live drummer, playing in the studio.
Getting in the Groove
Michael Ilbert (right)
and the (EZ) drummer
Norman Garschke
64 / COMPUTER MUSIC / August 2022
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