Alternately, there’s a period-correct silver sparkle Ludwig for Bonham’s studio sound. Granted, in essence, it’s Bonham’s live kit recorded in the studio – Led Zeppelin didn’t book Madison Square Garden to cut drums. Representing Bonham, a Ludwig Amber Vistalite kit was chosen, with every piece picked to honor the original as closely as possible, down to the timpani and, yes, the gong. Kramer and the Toontrack team gathered up four different vintage Ludwig kits and one Gretsch, along with a host of different snares. Recorded by Eddie Kramer at Air Studios’ Lyndhurst Hall in London, this collection of drum sounds pays homage to his work with John Bonham, Charlie Watts, and Mitch Mitchell. Long story short, these (new to me) tools kicked off a very fertile period of home recording and, when Toontrack released the new Legacy of Rock SDX expansion, I had to check it out. I heard a couple of trusted sources singing the praises of both Superior Drummer 3, and in particular, The Rooms of Hansa SDX expansion set.

Some of the extremely processed sample sets sound incredible in isolation, but they rarely sit right in my mixes.ĭuring the pandemic, I found myself in need of programmed drums to support my creative impulses while largely stuck at home. There are so many overbaked sample sets out there, and it’s easy to smother your drums in audio “cheese” if you’re not careful.

On the other hand, I’ve also learned not to stand on ceremony – if the drummer insists on bringing in a poorly tuned kit with completely shot heads, I’m likely going to augment with samples at mix if needed before I’ll risk getting into a pissing contest. I can get good sounds in my little project studio near home, but for anything with a budget I’m heading to the best room I can book.

The main thing I’ve learned is that everything matters.

Let me start by saying that I am a firm believer in “real drums,” and I’ve spent countless hours tracking and mixing them.

Toontrack superior drummer reviews