My Thoughts on Steven Slate Drums

[donsolo]

I got my copy of Steven Slate drums a couple days ago and here are my thoughts:

As a set of high quality samples for drum replacement (I use them in Kontakt 2 and trigger them with DP's plugin, Trigger but Drumagog is a better process) these are the win. There are 3 separate files for each sample... Z1 Z2 and Z3

Z1 sounds similar to what a drum would sound like with the close mic and the overheads combined in my opinion while the Z2 is completely Ambient Mics. Z3 is the best if you're looking to replace just the close mic as it it primarily the close mic.

In the Version I was shipped (described as a beta) contains 3 zones for each sample (12 Different Kicks, 14 Snares, and 2 sets of 3 toms, tuned maj triad and min triad)

Each Sample is high quality, appears to start on zero and be very well sampled.

The Samples are all 44.1/24bit

They tell me that the Cymbal set is coming which I especially look forward to.

Here's the epspecially strong parts:

The samples are optimized for length so that each time you load this in a sampler, you're not adding silence.

The Samples are divided into the 3 different Zones so you've got more control over Room vs Punch, this is the big problem with most libraries I've encountered. This is huge to me.

Each Set of Samples (snare 1, 2 etc) have it's own flavor and one will be the sound you're looking for, there's no lack of tonal differences here.

The price is just about perfect (advertised as 199 for a limited time, a small fee for a great upgrade)

The Toms are meaty, I find the hardest part for me is to get a good tom sound but now I feel like I could replace them easily if I need to and be thrilled with the results.

The Pitfalls:

There's no mapping, they've got a Drumagog map set up so users of that will be happy. Kontakt 2 and NNXT will soon be on their way. They are finishing up cymbal samples. This is going to be corrected very soon. It's current incarnation is most effective for drum replacement rather that original midi triggering. It is extremely good for this purpose.

There are no cymbals yet. This means that currently, this is for replacing iffy kick/snare and tom Sounds, not a complete sample set for the GM kits (though that is on the way) I'm very much looking forward to the cymbals and the mapping that will accompany them.

The kicks are a little too...twappy...a little EQ on that will reduce it but it really helps cut through small speakers. On a deeper listen, within all 12 kicks, one is def going to sound the best within your mix. I may have been jumping the gun on that.

This is NOT a beginner's tool right now. If you are not familiar with Sampler Mapping/Sampling or Drum Replacement, you're going to have a hard time integrating this into your current workflow. If you're experienced with sampling and drum replacement, I haven't heard better quality samples.

Overall, I give these a 4.75/5 for High Quality samples despite current limited usablity because that is very much on it's way. Overall, I'd recommend the Purchase if you're on the prowl for a new set of samples. I've already replaced my Kontakt Kicks and snares.

[Bang]

Thanks a lot for the review. We'll take 4.75 out of 5 any day! As for the kicks, there are a ton of kicks, from top end smacky to round and felty. Here are some direct links to some new audio demos, remember now that the samples are exactly as you would get them, no additional processing:

www.stevenslatedrums.com/demo/stevenslate16.mp3

www.stevenslatedrums.com/demo/stevenslate17.mp3

www.stevenslatedrums.com/demo/stevenslate18.mp3

The initial release is intended for drum replacement with plugins such as Drumagog, Sound Replacer, and Aptrigga... although there are some guys doing mapping as well. We are in the process, as donsolo said, of doing tons of cymbal sets so that it WILL soon be mapped out in various sampler formats so the drums can be programmed easily. But again, the purpose of the inital release is for hit replacement, hence the lack of cymbals for now. There is currently a gearslutz group buy which you can read about at
www.stevenslatedrums.com/groupbuy.html

and the main website: www.stevenslatedrums.com

Thanks guys! Happy New Years!

[esthetepiggie]

The snares sound really good. It seems this product is not well known in Europe, so anyone can tell about this software?

I already use Addictive drums and Ocean way drums, so I would be happy to compare.

[zeljkom]

How about you check it out for yourself:
Welcome to Steven Slate Drums

[The MPCist]

Originally Posted by esthetepiggie

The snares sound really good. It seems this product is not well known in Europe, so anyone can tell about this software?

I already use Addictive drums and Ocean way drums, so I would be happy to compare.

You do know this thread is from Dec 2006, right?

SSD is great! Check out their website for demos.

[esthetepiggie]

All right guys, I think so, but in France, it's not in shops.Nobody talks about that. Very strange, so I'll buy it on Thomann (DE).

[uncle duncan]

Originally Posted by esthetepiggie

All right guys, I think so, but in France, it's not in shops.Nobody talks about that. Very strange, so I'll buy it on Thomann (DE).

That's surprising, since versions 2 and 3 both feature a French maid on the cover of the box.

[zeljkom]

Originally Posted by uncle duncan

That's surprising, since versions 2 and 3 both feature a French maid on the cover of the box.

.

[ShadowAMD]

I have just sold my version of SSD 3.5, thank god it was bloody awful compared to the likes of superior drummer.. TBH even EZdrummer IMHO.. Some of the new ezx add ons are wicked, I have used this for some high profile metal bands and it sounds good as opposed to to SSD.

[shatz]

Originally Posted by Dannyvect

I have just sold my version of SSD 3.5, thank god it was bloody awful compared to the likes of superior drummer.. TBH even EZdrummer IMHO.. Some of the new ezx add ons are wicked, I have used this for some high profile metal bands and it sounds good as opposed to to SSD.

I have to disagree completely but we're all entitled to our opinions. But how did you sale it? There's no resale on Steven slate drums.

[AcoosticZoo]

Originally Posted by Dannyvect

I have just sold my version of SSD 3.5, thank god it was bloody awful compared to the likes of superior drummer.. TBH even EZdrummer IMHO.. Some of the new ezx add ons are wicked, I have used this for some high profile metal bands and it sounds good as opposed to to SSD.

Is it cos you found the SSD samples to be Processed in a way that didn't suit your productions?

Regards
Josef Horhay
Mixing Engineer
www.acoosticzoo.com

[ssprod19]

I bought them too, but don't use them much. Then again, I don't do much rock music... That said, Steven is a great guy with excellent customer service.

[lasso]

I just had a similar discussion elsewhere. I agree that SSD are way over processed. It's like, they sound great, although polished, when playing them on their own. I just find them quite hard to blend in a mix - they take too much space and they don't take eq at all. You're stuck with the way they sound. I don't use them much.

[Steven Slate]

While everyone has varied tastes, I think SSD's can work well in a lot of mixes (little biased here!). To my ears, they eq pretty easily, but again.. subjective and depends on the mix context and eq used.

I'd be glad to personally help anyone, if you PM me mix links. I usually add some further processing to SSDs.. kicks usually get attenuated on the sub lows depending on tempo (and maybe a bump at 1k for more mids), and I'll often compress the snares a tiny bit more to lessen the massive attack and increase some sustain.. juuuust a bit though.. But sometimes I leave em alone!

You can hear SSD's blended in the following artists:

Taylor Swift, Rascal Flatts, Reba Macentire, Avenged Sevenfold, Nickelback, Shinedown, Train, and more!

Also check out some killer mixes by some other SSD users at the SSD forum and SSD main site.

Also, SSD4 debuting at NAMM.. tons of new kits including raw kits, jazz kits, and more.

[lasso]

Great! Looking forward to some more natural sounding kits indeed.

EDIT: with regards to the EQ thing let me elaborate a bit. Generally (too general perhaps) I think the kicks are a little overpowering in the lows and many sound lack mid range. Perhaps room mics from a smaller room could be an idea as most of the sounds are quite roomy.

[Steven Slate]

Yes! The lows of many of the kicks definitely have quite a bit of sub low power and if you have a faster tempo track, I definitely recommend attenuating with a low shelf at 100Hz. This will actually bring out the mids, but you can enhance that even more with a 1-2k boost.

For this George Lynch mix I did for his SOULS OF WE project, I used the new Deluxe Kick that comes with TRIGGER mixed with Kick 15 for the upper smack, and then then attenuated a low shelf 2db and added 4k about 3 db with my console's eq. Then I compressed with a Dragon with the slowest attack and release at 9 o'clock, just doing 1 to 2 db of Gain reduction.

As for room mics, turn em down! The raw NRG room is also gonna give you less ambience then the SSD room.

[jrod9900]

Originally Posted by Slate Press

Yes! The lows of many of the kicks definitely have quite a bit of sub low power and if you have a faster tempo track, I definitely recommend attenuating with a low shelf at 100Hz. This will actually bring out the mids, but you can enhance that even more with a 1-2k boost.

For this George Lynch mix I did for his SOULS OF WE project, I used the new Deluxe Kick that comes with TRIGGER mixed with Kick 15 for the upper smack, and then then attenuated a low shelf 2db and added 4k about 3 db with my console's eq. Then I compressed with a Dragon with the slowest attack and release at 9 o'clock, just doing 1 to 2 db of Gain reduction.

As for room mics, turn em down! The raw NRG room is also gonna give you less ambience then the SSD room.

Steven,

Pardon the ignorance of this question, but is it realistic to use just SSD smaples for drum tracks? I don't have room to record a full kit, and I do my demos with SSD or Superior Drummer. Is it amateurish or less than professional to use only drum samples in a mix, in this case from SSD?

I'm an avid musician, but I lack in drum recording and mixing. I just want my tracks to sound real, true, and as high quality as I can get.

Thanks,

JROD

[Steven Slate]

Hi there.. thousands of recording engineers record with SSD kits every day.

Go to www.stevenslatedrums.com and listen to any of the demos in "full mix demo".. all of these are 100% slate kits from SSD 3.5 thumbsup

[shanabit]

When is version 4 going to start selling?

[jrod9900]

Originally Posted by Slate Press

Hi there.. thousands of recording engineers record with SSD kits every day.

Go to www.stevenslatedrums.com and listen to any of the demos in "full mix demo".. all of these are 100% slate kits from SSD 3.5 thumbsup

Cool. I didn't know if they were just blended in on top of the real drums or 100% samples. Either way, they are badass.

BTW, I bought the Blackline album on iTunes before I heard about SSD. Dug it dude! thumbsup

Keep it up!

JROD

[Cartrobber]

Originally Posted by shanabit

When is version 4 going to start selling?

I am wondering the same thing...

[Todd]

SSD are my go to Drum samples. I have other Libraries, but SSD is just amazing.
Couldnt live without them, no way...

TK

[drumdrum]

Hi,

I'm interested in purchasing SSD but I have a few questions first:
1 - What are the system requirements of SSD as well as hard drive space needed? I have an external HDD but it currently only has about 20Gb left on it!

2 - How does SSD compare to Superior Drummer 2? I use virtual kits for my mixes so far, but I'm having trouble lately getting SD2 to sound good in my mix. I find that to make SD2 sound good requires quite a bit of processing within the DAW (EQing, compressing, etc...). Its my impression that SSD is already "pre-processed" out of the box...am I right or wrong on this?

3 - Any news on SSD 4s release date? I dont want to buy 3.5 only for 4 to be released a week later!

4 - Ive listened to the demos on the SSD site, but is there any sort of demo / trial mode for using SSD so I can "try before I buy"?

Thanks guys!

[JustinW]

Originally Posted by drumdrum

Hi,

I'm interested in purchasing SSD but I have a few questions first:
1 - What are the system requirements of SSD as well as hard drive space needed? I have an external HDD but it currently only has about 20Gb left on it!

2 - How does SSD compare to Superior Drummer 2? I use virtual kits for my mixes so far, but I'm having trouble lately getting SD2 to sound good in my mix. I find that to make SD2 sound good requires quite a bit of processing within the DAW (EQing, compressing, etc...). Its my impression that SSD is already "pre-processed" out of the box...am I right or wrong on this?

3 - Any news on SSD 4s release date? I dont want to buy 3.5 only for 4 to be released a week later!

4 - Ive listened to the demos on the SSD site, but is there any sort of demo / trial mode for using SSD so I can "try before I buy"?

Thanks guys!

SSD is amazing.

That said:
1) already your HD is TOO full. Maybe time to clean shop. SSD is worth it.

2) not quote from the company here, but no matter what sample libs I have, every single one requires mixing (what you are calling processing)..theres no way for any sample dev to pre mix any sounds for your mix, but they can sure get them sounding good out of the box, ssd does this whether that be from adding a touch of eq or proper drum tuning and recording, or both!

3) no idear

4) I was unable to find a demo before I purchased SSD, but I expected that from a sample lib, I have never seen any demos for any sample lib other than some Native Instrument 'demo content' or without using try sound

[psycho_monkey]

Originally Posted by JustinW

SSD is amazing.

That said:
1) already your HD is TOO full. Maybe time to clean shop. SSD is worth it.

2) not quote from the company here, but no matter what sample libs I have, every single one requires mixing (what you are calling processing)..theres no way for any sample dev to pre mix any sounds for your mix, but they can sure get them sounding good out of the box, ssd does this whether that be from adding a touch of eq or proper drum tuning and recording, or both!

3) no idear

4) I was unable to find a demo before I purchased SSD, but I expected that from a sample lib, I have never seen any demos for any sample lib other than some Native Instrument 'demo content' or without using try sound

20GB free is fine for an external HD. It's system drives that you need to keep a good percentage of space free (and even then, 20GB is fine). don't know why you think there's a need to keep so much free space. SSD platinum is about 13GB anyway.

[drumdrum]

Thanks guys.

My current external is my tracking HDD (7200RPM, firewire 800) so I'm going to buy a cheaper external soon just to dump most of my older projects off my tracking HDD.

Thanks JustinW for your remarks especially your answer to number 2. I'm not so sure now about getting SSD as if it requires as much mixing as I currently do with SD2 then I can't help but think I would be better off practicing my mix skills with SD2. €220 is quite a bit of cash for me to spend on another drum library seeing as I already spent about this much buying SD2. If I could demo SSD and see how it translates to my mixes then if it worked better I would definitely get it. But alas no demo, so I may just hold off on getting it for now.

Again thanks!

[Lenzo]

Originally Posted by drumdrum

Hi,
2 - How does SSD compare to Superior Drummer 2? I use virtual kits for my mixes so far, but I'm having trouble lately getting SD2 to sound good in my mix. I find that to make SD2 sound good requires quite a bit of processing within the DAW (EQing, compressing, etc...). Its my impression that SSD is already "pre-processed" out of the box...am I right or wrong on this?
Thanks guys!

I've had both SSD and Superior 2 for quite awhile. I'm using Superior more, partly due to Evil Drums, which I think are a little punchier than some of the other add ons..I have most of them. Also, setting Superior up for multi output is easier than Kontackt 4. The superior layout is really easy to work with and they have some excellent add on packs that they discount regularly...the percussion stuff is really useful if you use percussion. Superior also seems to use fewer resources. I'm using it with PT9.
L.

[JustinW]

Originally Posted by psycho_monkey

20GB free is fine for an external HD. It's system drives that you need to keep a good percentage of space free (and even then, 20GB is fine). don't know why you think there's a need to keep so much free space. SSD platinum is about 13GB anyway.

I think 'so much' space would be relative to the size of the external. I was under the impression that you need to leave a % free on any HD, even externals, depending on what kind of data your external is holding (running apps off of them that have temp file etc..) it becomes more important.

Also when having an external HD as your 'sample' drive, I was always under the impression that is was best not to clutter them with a ton of samples, and would be optimal to spread them over several drives rather than on huge one (especially since a lot of sample technology uses streaming for playback). And if you are loading a huge template calling on a ton of sample for playback at one time, it can really bog down performance (especially on externals).

I made an assumption and I probably should have elaborate a bit more.

[drumdrum]

Again thanks for the replies guys. Got a cheap external HDD and cloned then cleared my tracking HDD!

I'm going to stick with SD2.0 for now and work on my mixing skills with it. SSD sound great but I guess I was hoping that it would of been a "quick fix" for me so I could get back to concentrating on the writing.

Thanks!

[WarrenBeat]

Originally Posted by drumdrum

Again thanks for the replies guys. Got a cheap external HDD and cloned then cleared my tracking HDD!

I'm going to stick with SD2.0 for now and work on my mixing skills with it. SSD sound great but I guess I was hoping that it would of been a "quick fix" for me so I could get back to concentrating on the writing.

Thanks!

The new SSD 4.0 will include non-processed samples so I'd wait and compare both when SSD 4.0 arrives, drum sampling improves every year and Superior Drummer 2.0 went 3 years ago.