Best realistic drum app

richardyot · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
@richardyot Were you replacing cymbals too? If not, what app were you using for your cymbal samples?

The Luis Martinez apps can't export stems though, correct? This makes proper mixing very difficult.

Yes, Drumagog is great for replacing cymbals while preserving the dynamics. It also allows you to change how the cymbals are played/where they are hit. For example you can decide to play the ride on the edge or on the bell, use brushes etc...

However hi-hat tracking is not available in the iOS version, so basically I just left the hi-hats alone.

I've got used to living without stems, it's not so bad. As I said you can do a lot inside the Funk Drummer (and sibling apps) anyway, and then I use Pro-MB if I need additional tweaks. But for me the trade-off is worth it because the end result is so much better.

[Deleted User] · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

On with your search then lol

AndyPlankton · December 2016

What I really need is a drummer who wants to collaborate on stuff

niallobrien · December 2016

That's great when your priority is the feel & patterns. My priority is the samples themselves hence Drumagog.

@richardyot said:

@niallobrien said:
@richardyot Were you replacing cymbals too? If not, what app were you using for your cymbal samples?

The Luis Martinez apps can't export stems though, correct? This makes proper mixing very difficult.

Yes, Drumagog is great for replacing cymbals while preserving the dynamics. It also allows you to change how the cymbals are played/where they are hit. For example you can decide to play the ride on the edge or on the bell, use brushes etc...

However hi-hat tracking is not available in the iOS version, so basically I just left the hi-hats alone.

I've got used to living without stems, it's not so bad. As I said you can do a lot inside the Funk Drummer (and sibling apps) anyway, and then I use Pro-MB if I need additional tweaks. But for me the trade-off is worth it because the end result is so much better.

niallobrien · December 2016

You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

Drum Session doesn't have tools for humanising patterns.....it is programmed into the loops already, so wouldn't give me any benefit over just doing it straight in Auria.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@LuisMartinez which of your apps has a jam algorithm most suited to reggae drumming ?
Thanks

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@sonosaurus Can drumjam do decent reggae ?

niallobrien · December 2016

So humanise them in Auria. But if you're after an algorithm-based drummer, look elsewhere. Personally I'd much rather a large midi library which gives me full control instead of what sounds like a drummer just playing kinda randomly. But as I said, I'm a drummer and know what I want.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

Drum Session doesn't have tools for humanising patterns.....it is programmed into the loops already, so wouldn't give me any benefit over just doing it straight in Auria.

hellquist · December 2016

@DerekBuddemeyer said:
We just released an update and improved piano roll greatly...I actually enjoy it now...lol

Excellent, will give it a test.
I actually ran into a couple of other glitches concerning dragging patterns on to timeline, I shall see if they are fixed too, otherwise I'll detail them as a descriptive bug report and send over to you.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
So humanise them in Auria. But if you're after an algorithm-based drummer, look elsewhere. Personally I'd much rather a large midi library which gives me full control instead of what sounds like a drummer just playing kinda randomly. But as I said, I'm a drummer and know what I want.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

Drum Session doesn't have tools for humanising patterns.....it is programmed into the loops already, so wouldn't give me any benefit over just doing it straight in Auria.

Algorhythic is not the priority, it is the humanise.....which i know I can do in Auria using the humanise.......I can have a library of MIDI loops in Modstep (which is what i am actually trying to achieve) and could manually humanise in there......
I was hoping that one of these apps would give me a way of reducing the work when humanising....so something like, here's my programmed loop - make it sound human and give me the midi back....

As you are a drummer I am interested in your take on this and am open to being educated in how best to work

niallobrien · December 2016

It really depends on the style of music. I mainly perform rock, heavy-rock, metal etc. In those genres it's important to be consistently on time, but introduce a little swing so it doesn't sound too perfectly to the grid. Dynamics on the cymbals make a huge difference and that's where the iOS apps are lacking (in terms of velocities etc.) Dynamics on the shells, especially the snare really make the difference and this is where multi-velocity samples come into play and further reduce the mechanical sound of the drummer & kit. If you have touch sensitive pads, use them or manually adjust your velocity per stroke.
Beyond that, if you're not a drummer, it can be difficult to program what you want, so maybe take the hi-hat pattern from one piece of midi, the snares from another and build up the beat it is that you're looking for. I'm still new to doing all of this on iOS though, and most of this is from my experience on the desktop recording & playing acoustic and electric kits, so I appreciate any help I can get.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
So humanise them in Auria. But if you're after an algorithm-based drummer, look elsewhere. Personally I'd much rather a large midi library which gives me full control instead of what sounds like a drummer just playing kinda randomly. But as I said, I'm a drummer and know what I want.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

Drum Session doesn't have tools for humanising patterns.....it is programmed into the loops already, so wouldn't give me any benefit over just doing it straight in Auria.

Algorhythic is not the priority, it is the humanise.....which i know I can do in Auria using the humanise.......I can have a library of MIDI loops in Modstep (which is what i am actually trying to achieve) and could manually humanise in there......
I was hoping that one of these apps would give me a way of reducing the work when humanising....so something like, here's my programmed loop - make it sound human and give me the midi back....

As you are a drummer I am interested in your take on this and am open to being educated in how best to work

niallobrien · December 2016

Edited: accidental double post.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
It really depends on the style of music. I mainly perform rock, heavy-rock, metal etc. In those genres it's important to be consistently on time, but introduce a little swing so it doesn't sound too perfectly to the grid. Dynamics on the cymbals make a huge difference and that's where the iOS apps are lacking (in terms of velocities etc.) Dynamics on the shells, especially the snare really make the difference and this is where multi-velocity samples come into play and further reduce the mechanical sound of the drummer & kit. If you have touch sensitive pads, use them or manually adjust your velocity per stroke.
Beyond that, if you're not a drummer, it can be difficult to program what you want, so maybe take the hi-hat pattern from one piece of midi, the snares from another and build up the beat it is that you're looking for. I'm still new to doing all of this on iOS though, and most of this is from my experience on the desktop recording & playing acoustic and electric kits, so I appreciate any help I can get.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
So humanise them in Auria. But if you're after an algorithm-based drummer, look elsewhere. Personally I'd much rather a large midi library which gives me full control instead of what sounds like a drummer just playing kinda randomly. But as I said, I'm a drummer and know what I want.

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
You can export the midi patterns from Drum Session, bring them into Auria and manipulate the midi from there to trigger whatever you want. One negative is that the midi note lengths are the very minimum, I hope @DerekBuddemeyer and team can increase the default midi note length when exporting to make them more usable.

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:
I've now ruled out Drum Session because it doesn't have humanise functions....this is essential to me as it is the whole point of getting a specialised drum app to me. I could manually humanise if I wanted to.

At some point in their processing, the drum apps that do humanise timing and velocity must have a stream of drum hits with the timing and velocity for feeding into the sound engine, that stream as midi is what I am after.

I'm thinking that rock drum machine may be what I need, have downloaded the free version but there is no midi out, I can select a midi receiver....but rock drum machine does not appear as a midi input in other apps.....is this available in the paid for version ?

Are you wanting to change settings on the fly for midi? Or would you be ok with the song made and then using a humanised pattern played from another app? DPP can do the later as the midi export does include that information according to the manual. If it's the former, I don't believe it can, although I may be wrong....I often am lol

I want to be able to get humanised midi out, then I can use that midi to trigger whatever drum sounds I want. I can do this with meticulous programming in a sequencer, I want something to reduce the programming and create the midi, doesn't need to change on the fly once produced, but would like to be able to change on the fly when first generating the midi.

Drum Session doesn't have tools for humanising patterns.....it is programmed into the loops already, so wouldn't give me any benefit over just doing it straight in Auria.

Algorhythic is not the priority, it is the humanise.....which i know I can do in Auria using the humanise.......I can have a library of MIDI loops in Modstep (which is what i am actually trying to achieve) and could manually humanise in there......
I was hoping that one of these apps would give me a way of reducing the work when humanising....so something like, here's my programmed loop - make it sound human and give me the midi back....

As you are a drummer I am interested in your take on this and am open to being educated in how best to work

I can drum a little, I can just about hold a basic beat and in no way would I call myself a drummer...
I am mainly working with Reggae and Ska when looking for acoustic drums, and for the reggae i need the loose feeling and not tight fully quantised patterns (which I can produce all day long).
None of the MIDI editors seem to have a 'nudge' function like that in desktop cubase where you can nudge a note left or right by a tiny amount to get variations in timing, and manual adjustment of this is nearly impossible in small enough amounts as you have to constantly zoom in/out of a midi part to get a fine enough movement.

This is why the drum apps got my attention....but none of the have built in reggae patterns....and the humanise functions seem to only be available when using the app as the sound source. I am not looking for the app to be the sound source, I just want to generate the MIDI loops so I can use a sound source of my choosing.

My investigation so far is not proving fruitfull

My other self is a Rock/Blues and Punk guitarist.....plenty of help for these from the apps available

niallobrien · December 2016

I wish I knew Swift or Objective-C, I know we could all make the most awesome drum app!

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
I wish I knew Swift or Objective-C, I know we could all make the most awesome drum app!

I wouldn't want the headache of all these needy users LOL

These drum apps do look great, and I do want one, but they don't cater for my Reggae needs so i feel i would be wasting my money at the moment

richardyot · December 2016

DPP can nudge beats.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

[Deleted User] · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
I wish I knew Swift or Objective-C, I know we could all make the most awesome drum app!

I wouldn't want the headache of all these needy users LOL

These drum apps do look great, and I do want one, but they don't cater for my Reggae needs so i feel i would be wasting my money at the moment

I need glasses, I keep seeing you mention a guy called Reggie and wonder who the hell he is (and if indeed he is another victim of the 2016 musician sudden death syndrome)

niallobrien · December 2016

You can always purchase an app, see if it does what you expect and request a refund if unhappy...

Marinus · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

Yes you can.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@AndyPlankton said:

@niallobrien said:
I wish I knew Swift or Objective-C, I know we could all make the most awesome drum app!

I wouldn't want the headache of all these needy users LOL

These drum apps do look great, and I do want one, but they don't cater for my Reggae needs so i feel i would be wasting my money at the moment

I need glasses, I keep seeing you mention a guy called Reggie and wonder who the hell he is (and if indeed he is another victim of the 2016 musician sudden death syndrome)

@Marinus said:

@AndyPlankton said:

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

Yes you can.

Things are looking up, thank you

[Deleted User] · December 2016

@Marinus said:

@AndyPlankton said:

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

Yes you can.

Yeah you can, but thought you wanted to play the midi out instead of exporting? Make ya mind up Reggie!

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@Marinus said:

@AndyPlankton said:

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

Yes you can.

Yeah you can, but thought you wanted to play the midi out instead of exporting? Make ya mind up Reggie!

So If I load a 4 bar MIDI pattern, extend it to 16 bars then mess with it in DPP, add some probability etc, can i export MIDI with the adjustments and I'll get a 16 bar pattern out that has timing/velocity variations and also affected by the probability ?

LuisMartinez · December 2016

@niallobrien said:
@LuisMartinez Any way to export individual audio stems from RDM, or is it just a single MIDI track? Also, it is stuck to 4/4 time signature?

RDM doesn't export individual audio for the moment, probably on the next updates. You can create any time signature easily. In fact, there is an specific bank called "Odd Times"

[Deleted User] · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:

@Fruitbat1919 said:

@Marinus said:

@AndyPlankton said:

@richardyot said:
DPP can nudge beats.

Can I load a MIDI file into DPP, do some nudging, and velocity changing and then export the midi with my changes intact ?
Can I use the humanise/realism features in DPP on my MIDI file and get those that are possible (timing/Velocity) baked into the MIDI when I export it ?

ta

Yes you can.

Yeah you can, but thought you wanted to play the midi out instead of exporting? Make ya mind up Reggie!

So If I load a 4 bar MIDI pattern, extend it to 16 bars then mess with it in DPP, add some probability etc, can i export MIDI with the adjustments and I'll get a 16 bar pattern out that has timing/velocity variations and also affected by the probability ?

Export does take into account the humanize feature according to the manual and I believe @Marinus can confirm that if he hasn't already.

LuisMartinez · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:
@LuisMartinez which of your apps has a jam algorithm most suited to reggae drumming ?
Thanks

Hi Andy... Well, I didn't think any of them could be good for reggae but I've been playing one minute with Funk Drummer and it really surprised me!! It's playing nice hat figures and good variations with this groove . Now I can't upload audio, but I will try later

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@LuisMartinez said:

@AndyPlankton said:
@LuisMartinez which of your apps has a jam algorithm most suited to reggae drumming ?
Thanks

Hi Andy... Well, I didn't think any of them could be good for reggae but I've been playing one minute with Funk Drummer and it really surprised me!! It's playing nice hat figures and good variations with this groove . Now I can't upload audio, but I will try later

Hi Luis

Thanks for your time looking into this for me.....how are the snares sounding ?
Is the MIDI out for timing only ? or can you get midi out for the notes, either real-time recording or by export ? I tried the free version of Rock Drum machine and it seems to be midi clock only.

Thanks again

Andy

LuisMartinez · December 2016

@AndyPlankton said:
Hi Luis

Thanks for your time looking into this for me.....how are the snares sounding ?
Is the MIDI out for timing only ? or can you get midi out for the notes, either real-time recording or by export ? I tried the free version of Rock Drum machine and it seems to be midi clock only.

Thanks again

Andy

Only midi timing for the moment.

AndyPlankton · December 2016

@LuisMartinez said:

@AndyPlankton said:
Hi Luis

Thanks for your time looking into this for me.....how are the snares sounding ?
Is the MIDI out for timing only ? or can you get midi out for the notes, either real-time recording or by export ? I tried the free version of Rock Drum machine and it seems to be midi clock only.

Thanks again

Andy

Only midi timing for the moment.

OK , does 'for the moment' suggest you have plans for MIDI Note out at some point ?

Loopy Pro: Create music, your way.

Best realistic drum app

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