Strike vs. EZDrummer (or others)

[trentoliphant]

I'm in the market to get a drum program (I'm a keyboard player) and I'm trying to decide between Digidesign's Strike and EZDrummer. I work exclusively in ProTools. I'm torn between Strike's tweakablity vs. EZDrummers expandability with their expansion packs. (The price difference is also a factor).Does anybody have any thoughts that can help me in my decision.Feel free to comment on other programs you use.

[crs7string]

I think one of the factors in your decision making is the type of music you write. I use Stylus RMX, EZ Drummer, and Battery 3 for most of my drum tracks.I have not checked out Strike.Stylus is great for more contemporary, cutting edge type of tracks. The Ethno Techno expansion is great for world beat and new age kind of stuff.I like EZ Drummer for the more traditional type of drum tracks. I also like that both EZ and Stylus have expansion options. I have Nashville expansion for EZ and it is a great collection of drum sounds and midi files for all kinds of music not just country. ( I haven't used it for country yet) I also have the Vintage, Latin Percussion, Twisted, and Claustraphobic expansions. You are able to use these supplied midi files to trigger any of the expanders.Battery 3 is a great source of drum kits and hits. ( for instance, there is one set up that is all cymbals, another of orchestral percussion) I'll pull up one of these to add some color to a drum track. You can, of course, program your own tracks and/or use midi tracks to trigger these sounds.I have done a few tracks where I've used all of the above.Unfortunately, I've found you can't have too many sources for drum tracks. Unless there is a groove, your track doesn't go anywhere.Chuck

[sgs4u]

Hey, that's exactly how I was gonna respond. I use the same 3 drum units for the same reasons. I'm willling to bet that Mazz & Dave do too. And, there's always a lot of tweaking involved, too much. For some reason (it shouldn't take too much hard drive space ), these manufacturers don't install drummers' brains, or their ability to improvise along with me. aaah someday.Don't know anything about strike, but I did learn about EZdrummer here. steveQuote:I think one of the factors in your decision making is the type of music you write. I use Stylus RMX, EZ Drummer, and Battery 3 for most of my drum tracks. I have not checked out Strike.Stylus is great for more contemporary, cutting edge type of tracks. The Ethno Techno expansion is great for world beat and new age kind of stuff.I like EZ Drummer for the more traditional type of drum tracks. I also like that both EZ and Stylus have expansion options. I have Nashville expansion for EZ and it is a great collection of drum sounds and midi files for all kinds of music not just country. ( I haven't used it for country yet) I also have the Vintage, Latin Percussion, Twisted, and Claustraphobic expansions. You are able to use these supplied midi files to trigger any of the expanders.Battery 3 is a great source of drum kits and hits. ( for instance, there is one set up that is all cymbals, another of orchestral percussion) I'll pull up one of these to add some color to a drum track. You can, of course, program your own tracks and/or use midi tracks to trigger these sounds.I have done a few tracks where I've used all of the above.Unfortunately, I've found you can't have too many sources for drum tracks. Unless there is a groove, your track doesn't go anywhere.Chuck

[crs7string]

Steve,At the risk of offending any drummers, it would only take a few more kilobytes of memory for the drummer brain part. Unless we're talking about the orchestral bass drummer, he has to sometimes count into the hundreds of measures range for his cue in a piece.Chuck

[avillaronga]

I ordered EZDrummer last night after learning about it here on the forum. I'll let you know what I think of it once I get it. I went to a demo of Strike (well it wasn't a Strike demo, it was a Digidesign demo that included that) at my local Guitar Center and it reminded me of Fruity Loops, maybe just my impression of it from the demo but it seemed somewhat toy-ish.

[nickbatzdorf]

They're both excellent.

[bc]

I have used both -- they both work great -- bought Strike. They still don't compare to the real thing IMO. bc

[nickbatzdorf]

It depends on your programming skill, I think.

[bc]

Quote:It depends on your programming skill, I think.You're right Nick. I didn't do the software due justice with my comment. I should have said, "the software doesn't play the nuances that a great drummer will, without programming them in." The sound quality is scary good. I've spent many hours with drummers, trying to get the killer drum sounds/mix that Strike provides instantly. I'm a singer/songwriter so I just want my drum tracks to be quick and killer If a person wanted to spend the time, Strike would deliver stellar drum tracks that would be virtually indistinguishable from the real thing. A friend uses DFH and his drums tracks are awesome.Any lurkers here using Strike drums?best,bc

[stick]

I use BFD for my "real" drums. And yeah, it's all about the part you program. It makes me happy when someone asks me "who played drums?"