Similar and simplier software like Propellerhead's Reason focused on drums?

[JC Vallejo]

Hey! I'm looking for some advice, I hope some can help.

About 6 years ago with no background on recording or mixing I composed and recorded 3 themes (kind of progressive / alternative / instrumental rock). I played the guitars and the bass guitar and used Propellerhead's Reason software to create drums and mixed all in Adobe Audition 3.0. I got satisfied with the results. IMO it doesn't sound awful. So let's say it's a good beginning for me. lol...

After having to put this composing / recording routine (lasted 3 months) on hold for 6 years I want to get in track again with a different genre, more like jazz/fussion/funk/rock.

Now I'm considering to buy a Reason License but I can see that most of the software options, bells and whistles won't be useful to me so I wonder if could I get my drums with a simplier software more focused on just creating drums, but it's important to me to be able to "write" most of the times hit by hit. I don't want to play drum loops and activate factory fills but writing my fills (you can hear that I try to get some double pedal feel in the fills and stuff like that).

Juan Carlos Vallejo

At the end of the day I want to get my music to be played by a band with a real drummer, but creating a solid idea with a nice demo quality would be good for geting a drum player interested and make some project teasers. So any software recomendations? This is a hobbie for me but I would love to keep learning deeply on this and get a proper recording room in my house.

Thanks!

 

[guts]

What kind of operating system do you plan to run it on?

 

[Mcgiver69]

EZDrummer is our best friend, I comes with lots of composition tools focused on simplicity and comes with lots of drums parts that will satisfy most of your needs. And you can always but expansion packs.

Go and youtube EZDrummer and see if you like what you see.

 

[And I]

Native Instruments Battery paired with a DAW is a good option. You can use a midi track and click in each hit of each drum, or hook it up to a control surface and tap them in. There are a lot of drum libraries already programmed in for Battery that have real natural sounds, with different samples mapped to different velocities (so a softly hit drum doesn't sound the same as a hard hit drum with the volume turned down).

EZDrummer looks awesome too...

 

[JC Vallejo]

What kind of operating system do you plan to run it on?

Windows 7, AMD Phenom II 6 core @2.8Ghz, 8Gb RAM.

In previous tries I had problems when listening the mix and Amplitube effects running on 3 tracks at the same time. Any money wise upgrade options?

Thanks to all you guys for your suggestions, I'll give a try to the options that you mentioned. EZDrummer and Native instruments.

 

[Mcgiver69]

Windows 7, AMD Phenom II 6 core @2.8Ghz, 8Gb RAM.

In previous tries I had problems when listening the mix and Amplitube effects running on 3 tracks at the same time. Any money wise upgrade options?

Thanks to all you guys for your suggestions, I'll give a try to the options that you mentioned. EZDrummer and Native instruments.

Double up your Ram and use a 64 bits OS, with that you'll be good.

 

[Frank Tuesday]

Are you wanting real drum sounds, drum machine sounds, a blend of sounds, or some mixture of all of the above. If you want real drum sounds, what drum sound are you looking for? What kinds of articulations are important to you?

If you're entering each hit manually (as opposed to pre-made patterns), the Midi track will control timing and dynamics, so it is just a matter of which virtual instrument has the sound you're looking for.

Kontakt is a great engine for playing sampled real drums, and you have your pick of many sample packs to choose from: Studio Drummer; Abbey Road 50's, 60's 70's, 80's Modern, Vintage; Steven Slate Drums, and many more third party options.

BFD is pretty cool. The Steve Albini BFD Deluxe Collection is great (and not just for rock/grunge). The large installation (55GB) has 128 velocity layers on some drums. You want to talk detail and realistic. For comparison, Abbey Road kits have less than 30 velocity layers.

I would try to find demos of the different instruments and sample packs, and find the one that has the sound you are looking for.

 

[JC Vallejo]

Hi Frank.

I'm thinking about creating a drum track that I'll mix later with bass and guitar real recordings. The genre I think it will be like some kind of jazz funk with some parts played with every instrument hitting the same melodic (rhythmic in the case of the drums) pattern, kind of Chick Corea's "Got a match?" intro or some Hiromi Uehara's trio stuff.

I'm not discarding that maybe some or most of the groove could come from a pre-made pattern, but the fills, stops and some stuff will be made definitely hit by hit written, although not played. I can write a double bass alternating with toms fill (for example) but can't play it through a MIDI interface or keyboard.

If a software can do both things, the hit by hit writing and the pre-made pattern and sound like the same it would be awesome. Otherwise I would choose the hit by hit.

I'll follow your advice about trying to get samples.

With this I mentioned do you think there's a software that fits better to start looking at?

Thanks!

 

[hs123]

I have Reason, ProTools, and Superior Drummer and have tried alot of drum software. In my experience editing MIDI in Reason was the most understandable and repeatable. Other software would always make assumptions about track 10 and plugins/voices that I could never quite figure out.

(TLDR
My original goal was to get an idea in my head, go in my basement and record that idea and add instruments one at a time. Usually less than 10 tracks.

It took me over 10 years to get to that goal. I custom built the PC (OS on one disk (C:\), Programs on another(D:\apps), Data on another(E:\Data)..to reduce recording latency, and when the OS flakes I can rebuild the system without losing my data\programs). 64 bit OS (for plugins and track performance). As much RAM as the system can hold.
A DAW that you're willing to learn ( I started in Cakewalk, went to Sonar, went to ProTools, went to Logic, went to Cubase (it came with one of my synths) went to Reason, found out it kinda sucked for audio, but was good at MIDI, went to Mac Logic with Mainstage (OMG the most amazing software on the planet!) went back to ProTools cuz errbody I share with used it to master and still use an old version or Reason to edit midi.

 

[Frank Tuesday]

Hi Frank.

I'm thinking about creating a drum track that I'll mix later with bass and guitar real recordings. The genre I think it will be like some kind of jazz funk with some parts played with every instrument hitting the same melodic (rhythmic in the case of the drums) pattern, kind of Chick Corea's "Got a match?" intro or some Hiromi Uehara's trio stuff.

I'm not discarding that maybe some or most of the groove could come from a pre-made pattern, but the fills, stops and some stuff will be made definitely hit by hit written, although not played. I can write a double bass alternating with toms fill (for example) but can't play it through a MIDI interface or keyboard.

If a software can do both things, the hit by hit writing and the pre-made pattern and sound like the same it would be awesome. Otherwise I would choose the hit by hit.

I'll follow your advice about trying to get samples.

With this I mentioned do you think there's a software that fits better to start looking at?

Thanks!

If I were just doing drums, I'd go with BFD. But I use Kontakt for many other sounds as well, so I use it for drums, too.

NI offers the free Kontakt Player and Factory Selection, which includes a variety of instruments. The drums aren't great, but you can at least see if you like how the interface works before dropping money.