quote:

Originally posted by nbarts:
Well, either the guy who had the library lied that it was from Groove Monkee(though I'm having really hard time understanding why he would do that) or they did hit 127 most of the time. If that's the case, please accept my apologies.

No problem..apology accepted. I understand that you're trying to help others but....

There's an easy way to determine the truth here...I offer over 300 files you can download for free...they are samples from our 10 midi libraries and are available in 8 formats/mappings (AD, BFD, BFD2, GM, Reason (NN-XT and DKR), DFHS). You won't find any that "hit 127 most of the time". [They're available in the 'Product samples' section on the home page - not always easy to find]

Even the freebie SD2 stuff I played and posted for free are not like that (I wouldn't even bother posting them if that was the case).

There are products on the market out there that do that but not mine. I'm not going to mention any names but people will figure it out eventually.

I work EXTREMELY hard on these libraries and go out of my way to offer different formats, drum maps, installers, etc. Anything to help people make better music and save time.

This is serious business to me. I feel honored to be a small part of this industry and more importantly, to help some people make their music and enjoy the process more.

Thanks again!
Russ

Does your metal library include anything other than 4/4 beats?
How does your return policy work?

The Groove Monkey stuff I've heard is really very good.

EZ Drummer has a function for velocity changes in the loop preview as I recall. This is something that would be nice in BFD - and the drag and drop function. BFD made the interface way too comlex, easy to mangle stuff if you don't watch what you're doing. The loops that come with BFD aren't so good. A lot of weird "alternative" (not really) nu-metal kind of crap that sounds harsh and just plain bad.

I keep trying to get the DOD guys to start recording midi loops. They have the best/easiest naming conventions which makes things a lot easier - the way they process the files for use is great too! Downbeats in the right places, etc. They won't do midi, wish they would. It's a shame too, Todd the drummer is really good. They could easily do both samples and midi files.

groove monkey
i have dod and another program that the name eludes me right now but I will download your samples to see if I can use
I'm sure you put a lot of hard work into them. And thanks for trying to help us all out by offering your service

quote:

Originally posted by nbarts:
Does your metal library include anything other than 4/4 beats?
How does your return policy work?

nbarts,

Yes, there is a "song set" based on 6/8. Basically, this is more of an "old school" metal pack with 10 "song sets" (intro, verse, chorus, bridge, ending) plus some extra grooves and fills. The grooves are 2, 4 and 8 bars long. There are variations and each 8 bar groove has a fill at the end.

The return policy is 30 days for any reason if you're not satisfied. Just email sales at groovemonkee....

Nbarts, simply using the velocity function can, well, change the velocities. At the highest setting, some of the velocities are, in fact, at max. But at the regular setting (or below), they are anything but.

Here's an example from Groove Monkee using EZDrummer. Identical groove. The one to the left is at a normal velocity setting, the one to the right is at near max velocity in EZDrummer. Quite a difference. Maybe this is what your friend is hearing.

Thanks to Sparky, Madguitarist and 1Adam and others for the support!

quote:

Originally posted by 1adam12:
EZ Drummer has a function for velocity changes in the loop preview as I recall. This is something that would be nice in BFD - and the drag and drop function.

The velocity (and humanizer) functions in EZDrummer are useful. The limitation to the velocity function is that it is universal for all of the kit pieces. It would be nice if in the mixer there was a velocity function different components of the kit. At least one each for kick, snare, toms, and metal (hats/cymbals, etc) To me, the hats/rides need it the most, followed by the snare, toms on fills and then the bass.

[quote}BFD made the interface way too comlex, easy to mangle stuff if you don't watch what you're doing. [/quote] I certainly agree, it may be a tweaker's delight but I'd rather not.....it just gets in the way sometimes.

quote:

They won't do midi, wish they would. It's a shame too, Todd the drummer is really good. They could easily do both samples and midi files.

Playing devil's advocate - maybe it's best that they stick with what they do best. Besides, maybe they'd be selling off the best piece of their product and have to sell it for way less......but I dunno really, I never used their product.

Anyway Adam, if you haven't already, you should check out Addictive Drums. Really, I think it is the best of the big three (BFD, EZDrummer, AD). The interface is really excellent in all ways; however, it is missing the humanizer and velocity knob of EZD, but the sounds are much better (I know, very subjective) and the sound manipulation is not only a blast, it is very useful.

Oh, the midi files in AD are drag and drop too.

As for Groove Monkee: I really don't use grooves much except for fills. Maybe it's because the grooves with most programs grooves are less than stellar. That said, I like what I have heard from GM....way better than stock grooves (practical and creative....MUCH more than just standard 4/4) and for the person looking for grooves I think they're a good choice.

I'm checking out the Addictive Drums trial freeware now. I'm really midi stupid, and have never used virtual instruments, and I'm getting it to work
That says something to me, for ease of use and intuitive operation.
I'm going to try an entire song and try to make adjustments before I purchase though.

So far....I like it !!!!

Out of all the great features that AD has I especially like the ability to route any individual peace to your daw mixer without touching the rest of the kit.

quote:

Nbarts, simply using the velocity function can, well, change the velocities. At the highest setting, some of the velocities are, in fact, at max. But at the regular setting (or below), they are anything but.

That makes sense, they all looked like the pic you have on the right side.

quote:

Originally posted by Groove Monkee:
Yes, there is a "song set" based on 6/8. Basically, this is more of an "old school" metal pack with 10 "song sets" (intro, verse, chorus, bridge, ending) plus some extra grooves and fills. The grooves are 2, 4 and 8 bars long. There are variations and each 8 bar groove has a fill at the end.

The return policy is 30 days for any reason if you're not satisfied. Just email sales at groovemonkee....

I don't know if you are still following this thread:
I've purchased the progressive pack, since that looked like the only set I'd be interested in. For 30$ well worth the money,given that I'm not aware of any other midi library with 5/4, 7/4 & 9/4. That said I find the beats somewhat robotic & lacking dynamics, some fills don't make much sense (to me). Did you quantize these?
Overall I see a good potential here, but a lot of work needs to be done IMO. Are you working on a new pack, improvements or anything?

quote:

Did you quantize these?

No, we don't quantize...besides, quantizing affects timing, not velocity. You're the first person to complain about the prog beats. The dynamics are spot on and should fit well unless you like inconsistent dynamics where the kick, snare and hats are all over the place. You can hire any average drummer if that's what you're looking for.

quote:

The libraries actually take MONTHS to create and the last three libraries were played by professional session drummers.

Russ, which three are these

quote:

Russ, which three are these

1. blues
2. Progressive
3. Fusion

you can download midi files from all libraries and test with AD, BFD, EZd, Reason, etc...see the "Product Samples" section on the home page.

Thanks!

the demo video on the new superior 2.0 which is actually a extenion on ex drummer looks like it is awsome