2 new videos from me!!!! BFD2!!! and EZX Nashville!

[JimmyJ]

Hey all!


Havent posted much lately, changed jobs, moved cities and so on,

i finally got round to making a BFD2 vid and the EZX Nashville Kit Vid

FYI, BFD2 was done in Cubase in real time @ 2ms latency.


My PC is a q6600 OC`d 3.2ghz, 4gb ram, 3tb HDD Raid, EMU-1820m, 2x22" monitors


here are the vids!!!



BFD2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPcGTqb36Q8

EZX Nashville

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsJsFovLiiA

[bakerboy]

Cool videos, man. I love the Nashville EZX kit. Sounds so nice.

[JimmyJ]

wow, thought more people would be interested in this thread

[daveybabes]

EZX is cool

Hiya

I like the EZX kit, very realistic sounds, modern technology eh?

I often wonder if i should have taken the software/midi route when i began last autumn as i have used soft synths b4 and recording.

Many thanks from Dave

[JrummerJ]

wow, thought more people would be interested in this thread

Hey Jimmy,

I just joined the forum, and I thought that the videos were great. I have EZdrummer with the DFH EZX (which I don't like) and I have Nashville on the way. It was nice to hear BFD and EZD back to back.

J

[oldmandrummer]

ok....I'll fire it up a little. So I'm a little in left field on the BFD (that stands for something else, where I come from) and Cubase. Is all this just fancy stuff for triggering more or different sounds that we are too lazy or can't program without the software? Seriously, I don't know and then after that....is it seriously worth the $$ to have PC's and Monitors hooked up? I gotta be frank here, I'd trade that TD6, computer and 2 22" monitors and all the other riff raff, for a TD20 and 2 VEX packs. Am I off base on this? I suppose I should research the software, but if that's all it is used for (which appears to be from these 2 vids), it would be a sincere waste of my time, I think

[JrummerJ]

ok....I'll fire it up a little. So I'm a little in left field on the BFD (that stands for something else, where I come from) and Cubase. Is all this just fancy stuff for triggering more or different sounds that we are too lazy or can't program without the software? Seriously, I don't know and then after that....is it seriously worth the $$ to have PC's and Monitors hooked up? I gotta be frank here, I'd trade that TD6, computer and 2 22" monitors and all the other riff raff, for a TD20 and 2 VEX packs. Am I off base on this? I suppose I should research the software, but if that's all it is used for (which appears to be from these 2 vids), it would be a sincere waste of my time, I think

Basically, these are sample libraries that provide top notch samples of real drums that have been recorded in world class studios by producers/engineers who are well known in the business. You can't "program" these sounds per say, and trying to record your own samples that are as extensive and multi-layered as these libraries would take a long time. You don't have to have 2 monitors, but you do need a computer, a low latency audio interface, a midi interface (sometimes integrated with the audio interface) and a little patience. Some of them can run standalone, but most need a "host" program to run. The real benefit to these is when recording. You can put each drum on it's own channel and control mic bleed, as well as being able to load a different snare or piece if one doesn't fit in the mix well.

I use EZdrummer primarily and I can safely say that I'll never use any of the samples that my ddrum module came with again. They sound that much better, though I do not have any experience with Roland sounds for a direct comparison.

J
J

[oldmandrummer]

Honestly, I'd love to know this stuff and be proficient and rock hard with it, but for what I do (not much - mostly floundering in my basement lately) I think Roland and Vex suits me fine.

SO let me just ask this, as that was a good quick and dirty clarification for me....so if I am playing live and want to trigger these sounds...BFD and Cubase. Now I need to add to my 'rig' a PC, 38" Monitor (or just a laptop) and all the worries and stressors that go with that, correct?

[JrummerJ]

Honestly, I'd love to know this stuff and be proficient and rock hard with it, but for what I do (not much - mostly floundering in my basement lately) I think Roland and Vex suits me fine.

SO let me just ask this, as that was a good quick and dirty clarification for me....so if I am playing live and want to trigger these sounds...BFD and Cubase. Now I need to add to my 'rig' a PC, 38" Monitor (or just a laptop) and all the worries and stressors that go with that, correct?

Yes, though there is a piece of gear called the Muse Receptor that is basically a rack mount computer/host all in one. You can set it up at home and then there is no need to take a monitor with you as it has a small LED screen. It is reputed to be very solid and trouble free, though not cheap. But if you want reliability as well as top notch sounds you'll pay for it!

http://www.museresearch.com/receptor.php

FYI, in the videos posted above, the Cubase is the host, BFD is the sample library. BFD, EZDrummer, etc run as what is called a VI (virtual instrument). The host could be Pro Tools (what I use), Logic, Garageband, or any other recording software that supports VST/Audio Units plugins.

J

[oldmandrummer]

Gotcha - Cubase is the CD Player and BFD is the CD. I presume that you can then go into Cubase and configure your kit i.e.

Tom #1 = Island Hawaiian Conga Slap
Tom #2 = Tambourine
Etc.....

You hit Tom #1 it sends the signal through the Module to the PC which then relays the info (Island Hawaiian Conga Slap) back through some intermediary??? then out to sound source?

[JrummerJ]

Gotcha - Cubase is the CD Player and BFD is the CD. I presume that you can then go into Cubase and configure your kit i.e.

Tom #1 = Island Hawaiian Conga Slap
Tom #2 = Tambourine
Etc.....

You hit Tom #1 it sends the signal through the Module to the PC which then relays the info (Island Hawaiian Conga Slap) back through some intermediary??? then out to sound source?

It is all midi based. I am not familiar with Cubase at all. In Pro Tools I just start a new session, create an instrument track (midi) and choose EZdrummer as the plugin. EZdrummer launches and loads the samples into RAM for fast playback. EZdrummer basically just reacts to the midi data sent by my drum module. EZdrummer comes with a "map" that shows you what midi note corresponds with which samples. You adjust your module so that it is sending the corresponding midi note for each drum and play away. Some of the other VSTs like BFD or DFHS actually have "learn" functionality where you can have the software learn what midi note your module is transmitting for each drum and then you save it.

So, my signal chain is Drum module/TMC6 to FW410 (audio interface w/midi I/O) to Laptop (via firewire), to Ezdrummer. Ezdrummer plays sample which plays through the FW410s audio outputs (1/4") or headphone outs.

Basically, onboard souncards suck, and you need a low latency outboard unit that connects via USB, firewire, or PCI and uses ASIO or Core Audio drivers. If not there will be an audible delay between you hitting a pad and hearing the sample.

Hope that helps?
J

[oldmandrummer]

ok, so my only question now is.....what's the point of a TD-20 $1800 module if I am triggering sounds off a $2000 laptop. Why not go with a Roland TD-5 for $75 - basically what does the module add in this equation?

[smile]

that is correct... or you could always use a muse receptor :-)

Personally I love BFD and Ezdrummer (especially DKFH) and I definately wont be going back to my TD6/TD7 sounds once i've resolved some of the midi mapping problems.

Oldman, I use mine only for recordings/home practice and I use my acoustic kit live - for me... a setup like this is ideal and a TD20 would be far more expensive than it's cost for my rig (not to mention all the other things a PC can provide, and studio time saved!) - so whilst the TD20 is an option for some people - it's not for everyone

[Gastric]

Technically you could use any drum brain that accepts all of the trigger inputs and outputs MIDI, Roland or not, correct? I'm assuming you can plug a Roland TD3 trigger kit into any brain with enough trigger inputs, no matter how cheap, and MIDI it to the PC.

Generally speaking software would seem more flexible, modifiable, and upgradeable than a piece of hardware. In the case of the various Roland brains the software should be much less expensive, too. The only downside is software suffers at the mercy of the computer resources, both hardware and otherwise.

Personally, I've been thinking of a used TD3 kit then a software setup such as this. And dumping my guitar amp and using a DI box into my card and then Amplitube or some similar VST. My only concern is having enough PC power to real-time multiple instruments, specifically guitar via line-in, and the v-drums via MIDI and processing both streams together then line/monitor out to a headphone amp for both players.

Either way I love trolling these types of threads. It's all very educational and non-standard. Which makes it more interesting from a computer aspect, which is my daily job/life, and brings my music hobby online with my career.

[JrummerJ]

ok, so my only question now is.....what's the point of a TD-20 $1800 module if I am triggering sounds off a $2000 laptop. Why not go with a Roland TD-5 for $75 - basically what does the module add in this equation?

To me, the only benefit of going for something like the TD20 is that it supports the more advanced hihat pads by Roland and Hart and supports rim triggering on many, if not all pads.

Maybe someone with a TD20 could chime in, I know very little about it.

J