Audio News Room Review of Drum Tools 01

As noted previously here on ANR, smart developers are standing out from the crowd by using unique recording chains to create their sample libraries. Enter Wave Alchemy with their latest offering, Drum Tools 01 - Minimal Techno & Tech House.

Drum Tools 01 is available as a download containing over 1900 electronic drum samples. The list of sound sources and signal processors reads like a who’s who of classic and boutique studio gear, including top-shelf drum machines (Jomox, Elektron, Roland, etc.), analogue synthesizers (Korg, Moog, etc.), EQ’s, compressors, and filters. But Wave Alchemy didn’t stop there, the sample set also includes “field recordings and the recording of live drum and percussive instruments.”

Organized samples

For sample libraries of this size, a logical and consistent file structure is crucial. On this front, Drum Tools 01 delivers. Opening the library’s main folder reveals that the samples are well organized into six instrument categories. The usual suspects are here, such as ‘kick drums’, ‘snare drums’, and ‘hi hats’. Also included are more exotic samples, via the ‘glitch’, ‘sound effects’, ‘303 licks’, and ‘chords & stabs’ folders (the latter two offered as ‘xtra bonus sounds’).

Rounding out the library are the preset kits, samples for deeper sound design and creativity in the ‘drum tools’ folder, and, finally, this entire library dithered down to good old 16-bit for some lower fidelity goodness. Further, kick, snare, and percussion samples are arranged into subfolders by tone and type. Need a ‘punchy’ kick drum? You got it. How about a ‘layered’ snare? Check. Looking for some ‘blips & pops’? Who isn’t? Go get ‘em. Good file organization equals less time searching and more time creating.

OK, time for the main event - the samples. What better way to audition Drum Tools 01 than to load up one of the 13 included drum kits? The developers really went the extra mile here by providing the kits in a variety of popular formats, which we can divide into three main categories. First off, the kit samples are copied from the main library and housed in their own folder, allowing for near universal compatibility with DAWs, samplers, and virtual instruments that load .wav files. Secondly, the same kits are presented in native sampler formats, allowing the user to load the kits quickly into Logic, Reason, Battery, etc. Finally, the drum kits are, uhm, packed into a Live pack, compatible with version 8 of the popular DAW.

The sounds

How do the kits sound? Overall, the audio quality is excellent. The kits easily meet the expectations raised by the library’s impressive specs. And the sonic scope of the kits is inspiring. Each one has a unique character, demonstrating the variety and depth that can be drawn from this library. Standouts include the ‘Berlin Minimal’ kit, with its cone-rattling kick and analogue flavored tones, as well as the ‘World Kit’, with its wide range of percussive sounds. These days, 'fat' and 'warm' are terms that get thrown around quite a bit, but the included kits prove that Drum Tools 01 earns these all-important adjectives.

The included kits are an excellent launching pad for exploring the rest of the library. I began swapping out kit pieces with immediately useful results. While developing my own kits, I was struck by the rich, full sound of this library. As good as the samples without additional processing, these sounds are just begging to be tweaked. I placed a filter plugin after some minimal stabs and chord hits, and, well, a goofy little smile crept across my face. I also placed a convolution reverb on one of my DAW’s sends, loaded up some processed 808 sounds, raised the send level, and was genuinely blown away.

Wave Alchemy really hit the perfect balance with this library by creating samples that have plenty of character on their own, but without being so unique that the user is given little room to customize them. Considering the reasonable price of this library, as well as the depth and variety of the samples offered, Drum Tools 01 easily falls into ‘must buy’ territory!

Conclusions

Drum Tools 01 offers inspiring, unique sounds that are full of character and ready to be sculpted. This package is a great choice for anyone who is not satisfied with all too often vanilla-sounding drum samples that are included in some libraries. Sound designers and beat makers should find plenty of quality material here too. In particular, the ‘drum tools’ folder contains samples for enhancing sub frequencies, as well as transient type sounds, to help add some complexity to your arrangement. Finally, while this library has a few minor flaws, the developers appear to be actively involved in listening to user feedback, making improvements, and adding value to the package

by: Joel Stover / Audio News Room Blog