All user reviews for the XLN Audio Addictive Drums

I bought a complete mac pro with all logiviels installed so I can not say anything about the install.

FITNESS / PERFORMANCE

It works well with a mac pro 2x2,8 octo-core (?) And 8Gb of ram .... would be missing more than that!

NOTICE GLOBAL

The hi-hat is ok, not more.
The crash are almost correct.
The various kicks are great, nothing to say about the kick!
Toms no more.
Snares ..... pathetic, really bad. I'm Tweeker in every way I can not do much of their snares.
The EQ and comp to available for each element, it is a good idea but then they are inéficaces is the wind.
If the interface is cool, it's pretty, it shines, ç'est bling bling.
Here is a small example that I made to illustrate my opinion, I'm trying 3 or 4 snares the Tweeker in every way, I can not.
Hear the snare is a fucking joke this stuff !!
http://myspacefilehosting.com/lmdfk/addictive_sucks.mp3.html

No worries implementation. just install the software. This will take some time to download the databases of several Giga.
The install is well done.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I have a Dell laptop which is about 3 years (Intel I3, W7 32 bit, 4 gig of ram, disk 7200).

The software works very well, it takes ten to fifteen seconds to load kits, but after that no lag or crash.
Solid stability, no crash for almost a year that I have.

OVERALL OPINION

Note that I make music for quite some time (at least ten years), but I'm not a crack in computer music.
I tried the demo version, and I realized with MIDI I could create my drum tracks and play with real drums sound. Wow! software was promo early this year and by downloading musiciansfriend the price was ridiculous (it is currently less than 120 euros excluding promo, shipping = 0 since the site sends you an activation code within 24H).
Note that I have not tried anything from a few freeware uninteresting that I forgot the names.
In terms of sound, nothing to say, it farts, and it is varied, even with the basic kits.
This app helps me to use two:
With my DAW I make my MIDI tracks battery with my old GP 5, I and any basta, it serves me as a basis for my recordings.
For a month or two, a standalone version appeared, with that I can play drum patterns without starting my DAW. It allows me to bosser my bass part with the real battery.
Note that I did not understand how to play my midi files, and the XLN Audio forum is very responsive. We always have answers to questions within 24 hours. If the doc is pretty well done too.
Not being an expert in computer music, I just numerous presets, especially since I bought the pack Funk and Black Velvet pack (I still enjoyed a promotion, bought a pack = free pack stronger than washing powder ), the possibilities are enormous for an amateur like me I'm largely filled. For those who have a sound in mind with all the many settings of compression / equalization / reverb / saturation available, I think we can really create what we want.
Packs South are nice, but I do not use them much. I prefer to create my own, although mine do not have the subtlety and dynamic patterns recorded by real drummers.
In summary I am very satisfied with this software, although the basic investment is substantial, but ultimately not that much. As with many music software (I think Amplitube for example), you have to be on the lookout for specials if you're a little ricrac.
The value for money is excellent, even at 120 or 150 euros ....

I did not have any compatibility issues while using Addictive Drums by XLN Audio.

The manual included with the product is very practical , you get a full understanding of the channels , the groove elements and the effects page.

The general setup is quite simple and fast , no difficult tweaking required.

The typical functions are well designed , you get multiple pages with effects racks and you get another page of the drums in their initial state.


SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

The software works decent , the program has a nice stability , no bugs or delays in maintaining the groove.

I'm getting very nice performances while using this drum kit , I've been using it for a while now , I suppose about 2 years.


OVERALL OPINION

What I like most about this product , are the 3 kits provided with the program , the additional drum elements like toms and rides are also present.

I also like the fact that you have effects for each channel , you have an eq , a compressor , a limiter and a dist effect.

A lot of presets are also included with the program , different grooves sorted by genre , bpm and length , you get also a bus channel that has a low pass and hi pass filter included.

The control that you have over the pitch , sound texture , volume , levels , is very handy and well designed.

My opinion about the value for the price is awesome , you get this realistic sample based drum kit at a decent price.

Precision and quality of the sound 10/10.

I've tried several drum kits , there's something unique about this product , the quality , the presets , the midi library , the sync with your Daw , everything is great.

Knowing what I know , I would buy this product if I'll need something that can be used in different songs.

XLN Audio’s Addictive Drums is very easy to use and does not take long to understand at all. I fully understood how to work this plug in within a matter of minutes. I really love all of the compression and EQ capabilities that can be done when working with each individual sound separately. I am not a huge fan of the way the drums sound as is or even the kits that first come with it. I think they could have included some better kits that have more a “jazz” sound. Some of the distorted kits are really good though if you spend the time tweaking and EQ’ing them.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I have never experienced any crashes or freezes working with Addictive Drums and it has become one of my favorite drumming plug ins over the years because I can run it many times simultaneously and not have to worry about it crashing or slowing down at all being that I like to have most of my drums on different channels and not all in the same pattern.

OVERALL OPINION

All of the basic functions of Addictive Drums are easy to work with and understand. Changing kits and adding patterns and fills is simple. I do not like most of the patterns though, and when it comes to changing patterns based on Tempo and BPM it can get really confusing because if you are in double time or regular time they patterns cannot be automatically changed you have to go in and manual move the MIDI notes which can be a daunting task. For the price that Addictive Drums cost I recommend purchasing it and getting some more kits for it based on the style of music that you are creating. Right out of the box it will have everything you need if you want to spend some time tweaking the sounds and molding them to fit your style of music but there are a lot of options to change and work with.

There weren't any kind of compatibility problems , the program works on any platform either Windows XP, Windows Seven or MAC OS.

The manual provided with the program was perfect, I liked how every single aspect of the drums was well explained, well detailed , all the information regarding mixing and editing was there.

General configuration and setup is an up front one , very easy and fast to understand.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

The software works without a doubt as good as it can. The stability of it is perfect.

The functions and the performances are very nice , I think this is one of the most powerful tools having in your daw , a great drum set which sounds as natural as it can .

I've been using this product for about 1 year , but I really really like and use it daily.

OVERALL OPINION

What I like most about is the sync of tempo with the daw itself , I like how natural and well panned sound the drums and the fact that you can edit the drums , you can eq them in the same plugin without using a lot of effects racks and waste time.

I like also the mixer provided with the product itself , you can easily adjust the compression , volume , panning and everything you need to make your groove sound even better.

This product has also some great expansions that can be used in a lot of different songs , either hip hop or something that sounds more rock , like metal , funk rock or pop rock.

Another fact to mention is that unlikes other drums set , this product doesn't use as much cpu power as you may think it does , so it's quite a pleasure to work with it.

Balance between price and quality is great , I would rate precision and quality of sounds with 10/10.

XLN Audio Addictive Drums is a live drum emulator compatible with Macs and PCs in the AU, VST, and RTAS format. The installation was a largely painless affair, that took around 20 minutes total. In this ear of massive ROMplers, and even larger hard drives, the samples included with Addictive Drums are relatively miniscule, and come in well under 10 GBs. Just be sure to select a suitable location to store your samples.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Addictive Drums is a breeze to use in every DAW I've tried - and I use several. FL Studio, Ableton Live, Sonar, Logic, Studio One - Addictive Drums worked equally well with all of them. I particularly remind it Ableton, as the real-time tempo changes in Ableton really works well with the timing of some of the MIDI grooves that are included with Addictive Drums.

Speaking of the MIDI grooves, AD comes loaded with a ton of grooves in a few styles, and can be expanded with several add-on MIDI packs. Programming a drum groove in your DAW is a simple drag and drop affair, and can be done really quickly.

A feature that I haven't made use of yet, is its compatibility with pretty much every MIDI drum set imaginable. GREAT for live performance, or studio work for a producer who can afford a live drummer, but not an infinite variety of drums.

Also included are several options to modify the sounds of your drums. Hefty routing options, miking configurations, and effects allow you to really personalize your drum parts. There are insert effects for every channel, as well as send and master effects.

OVERALL OPINION

Overall, Addictive Drums is my go-to live drums VSTI. If I want to incorporate a realistic, editable trap set in a production, this is the instrument I open reflexively. It provides hundreds of grooves, and can be expanded to include thousands more. Its easy to use, and easy on your system resources. And these days, extremely easy on your wallet!

Xln Audio Addictive Drums, the general design of the program is easy to follow, the installation doesn't require a very long time, the typical functions are also a fast catch, one of the greatest features of the program is the simplicity provided with it.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

The software works extremely well without using a lot of cpu resources, the level of stability is without a doubt to mention.

I've been using addictive drums for a couple of years and so far everything went even more than perfect.
I really do enjoy the sounds provided by XLN, I can incorporate them in my rock-pop songs and they would sound nearly human.

OVERALL OPINION

What I like the most about XLN Audio Addictive Drums is the design provided and the sounds that sound extremely good in a mix, I also do enjoy the build-in grooves and the function to use the groove synced with the tempo of your song to make it right on beat.
The value of money is nothing compared to the functions provided by the program, I've been using plenty of other drums programs that couldn't even compete with the Addictive Drums, the quality, the hq sounds, the different drum sounds, it's really great concerning building a groove on your own pc in your studio or just at home.

It has a nice build-in eq that you can use to shape your drums in your own way and create a catchy groove in your songs.
I'm completely sure that if I should make the choice over and over again, I would go with the dynamic sounds by the XLN Audio Addictive Drums, they really changed my whole perspective regarding building drums on your own pc that could compete with real drums, and in some cases even beat them, so don't hesitate, if you're searching for some really nice drums for your pop-rock-indie songs, this review is for you, I hope I've helped some of you regarding drum sequencing.

Installation and authorization are no problem. Note that the app exists for the time that 32-bit version but it is compatible with jBridge Wrapper, which allows me to use Windows Seven 64-bit. I have not read the manual, but the general configuration I was not particular problems: the interface is particularly clear for once.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I use it as a Seven 64-bit Core i7/16 GB of RAM and an SSD hard drive hybrid. No problem to note is probably the same battery that supports faster than those available to me (EZdrummer, Superior, BFD Eco)

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for a year and I bought used from another user, with its banks which are doing well. While the batteries are not as detailed as those of a BFD or Superior, but the app makes up for many other points: its browser grooves a little better damn elsewhere, the possibility of constraining dynamics of MIDI grooves or filter notes above or below a certain velocity, and most of all, its built-in effects.

In vis-à-vis BFD and Superior, the playground is indeed larger and some presets offer very trafficked batteries: you can go to the vintage as the industrial or electronica and lo- fi, no problem. In short, this is a virtual drummer who offers ideas where others seem more sitters.

I look forward to see more of as soft, if a bit old and still no 64-bit, Addictive is very interesting. Trade policy side, XLN Audio also seems more generous than Toontrack: with add-ons including cheaper. Of these, a bank of square grooves not so amateur drummer seemed interesting, in particular, but there are also things not bad at all elsewhere. In short, a good plan ...

XLN Audio Addictive Drums is hands down the best virtual drumming program on the market today. I have been nothing but completely satisfied with everything about this plug in, everything is right in front of you not crazy menus to get what you want. It is very easy to change our kits out too, and the kits are very good all of the kits are great quality and there are even some retro kits and fun kits with weird effects on them but it all adds to your creativity.


SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Very easy to install and authorize, you will need internet connect to authorize the program though. If you have any problems getting it set up, XLN staff is on hand to really help you in that department and they will make sure you get it up and running.


OVERALL OPINION

Overall, it’s a very powerful plug in for drums (its not stand alone, so its plug in only.) Its easy to set up in any daw or sequencing program as long as you have it in your plug in vst folder your program should recognize it. One thing that I didn’t like about this software is the full price of it was way to high for me. I feel like they could bring the price down a lot for a program that does NO synths and No sequencing. You are paying all that money just for some drum kits and drum patters and fills. Its just a little overpriced to me, but it does sound amazing and is the most realistic one that I have tried this far. I have tried several other “real” drum kits and plug ins but Addictive Drums by XLN takes the cake by far. You can even download a trial or free version from there website but keep in mind that the free version really limits you and only has one kit with no toms just a basic kick snare and a few hats and cymbals and you really cant get the full effect of the software untill you buy it. Look around online for discounts and see if you can get the price down some though.

General configuration super easy, not really need a manual.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

It runs very well on a Macbook (late 2006) 2Ghz Core2Duo with 2Gb of ram.
-> Runs very well on small configs.
Very stable.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for over a year. I tried Modern Drummer, Native Instruments, but he did not like, in comparison with Addictive Drums.

Addictive Drums sounds really true, without even start receiving treatment. Is bluffing.

Effects (EQ, Comp, Tape) are average, not very accurate. But it is possible to route the tracks in the sequencer.
We really feel like work with decision-perfect battery, with which good prods are feasible (if the programming is quality).
There are now probably superior products but much heavier and perhaps more expensive. Personally it suits me perfectly.

no prob

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

stable

OVERALL OPINION

Squarely on top.

This tool is really more interesting, the work can be done on EVERY Elements ....

I tested a drumloop (one sample), although dingy ds Live in syncro with addictive.
I have chosen Mount kit ds addictive (+ pitch, volume) before.

And the result is sympa.On comes to beats in the Cypress H

Installation is no problem
Not really need a manual saw the quality of the interface.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Config: Athlon 64 X2 4200 + 2GB DDR400 + SATA II + 2HD
The software runs perfectly. It consumes little CPU power trs (Actually, the gauge not CPDA). The presets are responsible trs quickly (much faster than its competitor EZDrummer) and are very numerous.

The kits provided are more numerous than those supplied with EZDrummer (again!)
- A snare drum
- A kick
- HiHat
- 3 Cymbals
- Ride 1 / Bell
- 4 toms
- A cowbell ...

There's something to do, especially as the number of instruments available is allchant.
4 kicks, snares 6, 3 sets of Toms, HiHat 3, 4 lines, 14 cymbals (Crash, Splash, Chinese) and 2 cowbells, all brands (DW, Pearl, Sonor, Tama, Sabian, Paiste).
The kits are not traits terrible!! Others are more a matter of taste. I have not found that I REALLY agree Stratup Kit from the trs is really good. Of the killing ...!!!
The effects provided in-house are of good quality, but there are better. The compressor does not impress me (I am a follower of Endorphin). The Rverbs are not bad. The EQs are their Boult.
For someone who does not want to take the head with lots of plug-ins for mixing, it is a good tool trs.
The mixer (still visble!) Can be very useful and much j'apprcie the possibility of placing microphones on the kick and snare.
MIDI grooves property (approximately 3500), but the break is a little low to me ...

The black point is that there have not GM compatible kit. It will be impossible to correctly read a midi file standard without having to readjust the Prior drum map!

OVERALL OPINION

The instruments sound. is efficient and versatile!
what more. I believe!!

Installation without problem.
No inconsistency.
Config without any problem.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Not a lot of CPU and sounds loadent easily.

Config stable.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it extensively for 1 week instead of BFD.
J uses the bank's and not the patterns.

For
The sounds are good and the potato: the mediums in general are very nice but there just may be a slight lack of brightness (hh) ...
The bearings are rather realistic.

Against
A little more kits would be cool
The toms sound way
C is a very good choice

No pb

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Trs stable

OVERALL OPINION

Great ergonomics. It is the opposite of a gas plant. The basic sounds are not noimbreux but got good trs. Same for the effects. They can fiddle with in-house with some great tools, really in the spirit of a sound recording of acoustic drums. And if the internal processes are not enough, we can use nettles spares. It's really an effective tool trs trs that sounds natural, but that they may grow into a corner for the secret of egg. It is also a great tool for discovering effective mix of a battery. It trspdagogique.
I love the hi-hats and cymbals, and also the snare. the toms sound like the real, which means that we must treat the mix. Only regret: I think it lacks some samples of brushes for jazz and folk. And when a percussion version?

RAS
Still the heavy registration license! pfffffffffff! !

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

RAS

OVERALL OPINION

A good purchase that I do not regret for the following reasons

Tres pechus and modern sounds, the basic kit Startup sounds great
Very easy to use and complete.

I find it more modern sounds at the famous EZdrummer I find him more vintage guides.

A future competitor of BFD and DFH Superior, which for me are better, but much harder to use more becaufe pro.

Simplicity, friendliness, drum sound with modern fishing is adiictive Drums friends without hesitation!

Sucks on a mac because of the licensing
Easy PC

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Athlon XP2000
begins to pull the face given the size of plugs
and samples
1GB ram
Now it is too little
but it is running stable
ditto on mac

OVERALL OPINION

I've had two months
it shatters
is a killer
the best drum plug market with no competition
ensured the death of drummer
I'm sorry for my friends drummers

with Stylus RMX and Reason, we have everything you need for all musical styles

to buy without hesitation

- Installation is easy, in contrast to the record ...
- No incompatibilities.
- I'm getting a computer that date (see my profile) but it still runs perfect!
- The manual is not bad.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

- I'm getting a computer that date (see my profile) but it still runs perfect!
- The sounds are really good! We can do what you want (pop, rock, metal, jazz).

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for 1 year (roughly). Like many here, I used EZdrummer (extension DFH), which at first seems easier to use. In fact EZD is very limited compared to AD. As I read the opinion, once we enter the beast seems EZD ring of cardboard. (The 12 different cymbals are interest I think.

Most:
- The sound (an argument!)
- Stability.
- Request for limited resources.
- Plenty of opportunities for play: Mute a cymbal, ride, etc..
- The mix table (for its good points): Change the location of the microphone, processing ADSR, etc..

The -:
- I found the mix (EQ, distortion, etc.) without interest. Especially the EQ, which, if you want to be specific, like a shovel to handle eggs.
- Too few sounds (but high quality ... have to know what you want).

I will make a decree if the need arises.

Very good price / quality ratio! For now (I expect the next "AD" who deposed) I remake that choice.

- Installation is it without problem?

Say anything, you put the app, you click on install and follow the parameter.
Not need to be a ... pany lol.
- Have you experienced any incompatibility?

For my part, no problem reporting the above.
It runs without any problem and yet I have a config of PC starts dating a little.

- The configuration gnrale is easy?

That's precisely the strong point of this app!
The interface is fairly intuitive and can easily have fun in scraping rglages.

The manual is clear and sufficient?

Just go to the download on the website of the publisher.
And it's in French, which does not gche.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

- What is the configuration of your computer?

INTEL CORE 2 QUAD Q8400
Motherboard ASUS P5Q
4 GB of RAM
WD 500 GB hard drive
Pro 32-bit Windows 7

- The software works he correctly on this configuration?

No worries, nickel!

- This software + hardware configuration is stable?


I turn in Nuendo 4 with TC Electronic Konnekt 48 and nothing wrong.

OVERALL OPINION

- How long have you use it?

A few prs 18 months.
- What is the particular feature you like best and least?

Most:

An interface very easy and fun to help familiarize themselves with a drum mix.
The quality of sound: a slap his mother in his underwear!
The 6 strikes the snare + 12 Charley (6 open and 6 closed).
The possibility of routing all output with spares.
Possibility to use it via an electronic drum module, I tested during a drummer friend.
Pans: For toms, it is a rgal!
Effects: microphone placement for the kick, rglages the buzz of the snare, comp, reverb ... repisses the microphones are really practitioner.

Cons:

Only three drum kits ... sniff. But there is better quality than some very large m. ...
The qualisation: frankly, for the precision, we have seen better ... but you can catch this problem by routing the output to the software and rework hte leisure.
Lack brushes for jazz and sticks ... history to see the guy sucks, the mallets for cympbales.

[edit] I bought all the kits and MIDI part that came out, it's deadly! It has everything and one can easily find happiness if we do not want to program the self-same batteries.

+ One more I like: there way in parts dj programs to keep the kick, the snare or hi-hat, which opens the possibility of programming.
- Have you tried many other models before acqurir?
Carrment Yes, all versions of valuation as BFD2 and EZdrummer.
Addictive wins hands down for simplicity of use, but it's a personal opinion trs:
I'm more a fan of the plug with a button that slams the rglages 50000.

The problem as with any kind of software:
You really get into it to get to get what you want.
The basic kit sounds great but we must refine rglages on the toms to get heavy.
But there really a way of humanizing bte with a half-hour catch of cabbage to know what you want or not.
What i like a lot, presets to give a ide in this or styles: personal, I find the kit Mtal is shit ...

But overall, I broke ass a lot of friends with a drummer friend who plays trs trs well.
- How do you report qualitprix?

Thomman at 185 euros, what do you for?
- With the exprience, you do again this choice?

Plutt twice that!

3 Drums Kits (Sonor Designer, DW Collectors, Tama Starclassic)
Inserts and Send Effects (EQ, Compressor, Distortion, Tape Saturation, Filter, Reverb, Limiter)
130+ Presets
3000+ Midi files for various genres and in different time signatures
Beat Transformer
Full E-Drum Support
General Midi Support
Mac and PC Compatible

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I use this in Logic Pro 9.
Both with a midi keyboard or a Roland TD-6 Electronic Drum Kit.

I have a Mac Pro 2.66 Quad Core with 8 GB of ram and a White Macbook with Intel Core 2 Duo Cpu with 4 GB of Ram.

The installation is really easy and the the manual is clear and precise.
Used for a couple of years, without a problem!

OVERALL OPINION

I play and produce various genres.
From electronica to heavy rock, this Virtual instrument cover a lot of ground and in a really good way!

There are also additional ADPaks that let you buy genre specific Drumkits.
These are Retro, Reel Machines, Metal, Funk, Modern Jazz Brushes, Modern Jazz Sticks.
But anyway, even with the original drumkits, you have a huge palette of sounds.
The built in midi drums files are a fantastic option. These are top notch grooves and fills, played by some great drummers and you can buy additional midi files from the XLN website and from sites like GrooveMonkee (already mapped for AD).
You can also filter these by genre and time signature.
And thanks to the new Beat Transformer (from version 1.5 - Adrenaline) you can change and alter these midi files in the plugin window, setting the speed, lenght and velocity intensity.

Both the midi files and presets are organized in a simple and intuitive way.
And I have to admit that these are the best presets ever made for a Virtual Instrument. With a few changes, they will suit your songs perfectly.

This a really funny, simple and most important, really light on the CPU Virtual Instrument. It will give you an almost instant gratification, no matter what genre you are in! A killer plugin, this is sure!!

Right out of the box, this software was amazing. The install process was strait forward. Once installed i jumped right into a session and it was awesome!

After getting the initial jam session out of my systems, i started getting into the particulars of this software. This software is user friendly and not hard to configure for most systems.

I say most systems because some consumers will try to install this software on systems that are not up to par with the documented requirements. Leading to them having a bad experience with the software.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

One of the biggest changes in the DAW world is teaming electric drums with VSTI drums as a supplement in home, and medium size production studios.

The down fall of VSTI's and electric drums are notation, compatibility and latency. consumers are going for broke to build a system that will translate the drumming needs in a low budget situation. addictive drums solves that problem.

I,ve used ADD with high end kits such the the YAMAHA DTX exstream III, down to the controversial Alesis DM10.

The DM10 is known to have a lot of cross talk, and struggles to constantly capture drums notations from advanced players. The DM10 runs about $999, i got one for $785 on black Friday last year from Musicians friend.

Linking the DM10 with ADD turned the DM10 into a virtual drum powerhouse. Of course i used ADD with the Yamaha with no problem as well, that is to be expected with a high end electric kit. With that said, even the DIY electric kits would come out on top if teamed up with this versatile VSTI.

After some tweaking on the DM10 IE: cross talk, firmware update and loading the usb drivers, i tested this team-up on three platforms. CUBASE SX, Pro-Tools, and fruity Loops.

The results where magnificent across all three platforms. My systems has 3.59ms of latency with a 128 bit buffer size. The sound card is a delta 1010 rack mount. If i set the buffer size lower the latency gets below 1 millisecond however, that is not necessary because at 3+ milliseconds there is no noticeable latency when recording midi our audio strait to the DAW. Outstanding!!





OVERALL OPINION

Considering all of the options out there Addictive drums is the best solution.

some say that the sound bank is not well defined and the foot print on the hard drive is to small to for it to be a contender. I disagree here is why:

1.Technology allow us to get better sound and performance while saving space.

2.This software is so well designed that you can even used it on DAW laptops for portable studios on the road. You cant get any more competitive than that.

3.The algorithms being used by XNL audio are revolutionary, and the fact that this product is recorded in world renowned studios in Europe with world class drummers means you are getting quality drum licks from every dimension and quality engineering to give you the feel your looking for. "quality not quantity wins every time."

As a drummer for 26 years, I know you can not tell the difference if i use ADD or a real kit.

Additive drums became the answer to my live drum solution for rock, jazz, hip-hop and neo soul. I don't have the space or equipment to record acoustic drums. This software could not have come at a more sensitive time in the world of DAW recording.

Addictive drums is stable, flexible and versatile as long as you install it on the computer that meets or exceeds the computing requirements. don't wait another minute, Address your live drum solution with Addictive drums.

XLN Audio's Addictive Drums is remarkably easy to begin using. I do not think I have ever experienced a drum program that got me something mind blowing in two clicks of the mouse. That is because XLN Audio recognized the importance of a very psychologically intensely encouraging feature: presets.

Addictive Drums essentially functions on presets. You are just messing with all of them, and then one of them catches your eye (or ear, rather). Before you know it, you are lost in the sound, then you say to yourself, "I think that these toms could use a bit more oomph" so you dial up the FX on the toms. Maybe you switch the toms out entirely.

The pacing of guiding a user to what he or she wants in a drum sound is spot on. Not even the most helpless newbie can feel lost using Addictive Drums, because XLN Audio also provides a few videos to get you up and running!

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Addictive Drums has a very small footprint, and runs absolutely like a dream. There is very little to say about the program except that it is very smooth.

OVERALL OPINION

Now, I will not mince words. Addictive Drums is not the very best sampled library in existence. In fact, while I hate using objective and quantifiable measurements for something as subjective as sound, you can tell that the size of the library just is not as impressive as something like Toon Track's Superior, for example.

However, Superior is a lumbering beast of a program, and no matter how many people tell me how good their drums sound, when I find out that they have taken months and months to perfect it, I immediately get turned off. It is not that I don't have a patience, but practically speaking, I can get 90% of the way there with two clicks of the mouse, and that just makes more sense for me.

This VST installed brilliantly and as it should. It has worked great on just the one of my computers. I have used it on a low end computer (1.8GHZ pentium and 1gb ram) as well as my current (2.5GHZ Core2Quad & 4GB ram). On the low end PC it is generally unpleasant as it does not have enough power to process the sounds well. This is because of the resources this VST demands. This VST is mainly big on CPU usage, the main flaw of my low pc. On the high end computer it worked well and the sound quality is good. It installed perfectly and runs brilliantly without a hiccup at all. The library is easily accessable on the main window. They are all nicely organised through what types of percussion it is and the specification of the different types of instrument. It works nicely in both of the DAW's that I use, Ableton and FL Studio.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

This VST loads surprisingly quick and well, I was under the impression that it would be slow and labourous like EZ Drummer, however it is pretty much the opposite. The sound quality is decent enough but I can't help but feel like there is too much effects on some of the samples at times. These can be turned off and down but it doesn't feel the same. This VST is remarkably stable for its type, much more than the likes of EZ Drummer. Maybe that is just me assuming that because of previous experience of live drum VST's. I have been using this sample pack for a few weeks now and have used pretty much every sound there is in the pack.

OVERALL OPINION

These drums are great if used in the right way. You can use these drums in nearly any type of music creation, including rock and hip hop, and sometimes pop if used in moderation. The sound quality is great however some of the sounds are effect heavy. As previously stateed, you can turn off any of the effects you wish by using the effects button which takes you to a screen fo the different effects applied to each sound. Of course these can be removed and tweaked at any time. These drums are well made enough for me to say that I am glad I got them, especially the snare samples. They are snappy and sharp and sound very well in any mix.

This drum sampler installed without any problems. Installation was quick, easy, and streamlined so you don't have to get into a bunch of computer lingo and sample copying. I had no compatibility issues with Windows XP and Sonar 7 Producer Edition. The general configuration is quite simple - just run the installer, register, and bam, you're up and running. The manual was quite in depth and covered all the bases very well.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

My computer is a Windows XP system with an Intel motherboard, dual core Intel processor, 4GB of Ram, an 80GB Raptor hard drive for audio and 3 500GB data drives. The software loaded up just fine and there were no conflicts. I have not yet encountered any strange bugs or errors, so it seems to be a well written plug-in. The sample sizes are reasonably small and there isn't a long annoying wait time to load all of them like many other sample based programs.

OVERALL OPINION

I have been using this program for a few months. I really like the great drum sounds you can get from it, first and foremost. Each individual drum sounds really great, and you can customize your kit to a great extent. There are varied sample layers, so each drum has a range from soft hits to harder hits depending on velocity. Also serial triggers such as snare rolls do very well with avoiding the much hated "machine gun" effect, probably due to multiple sampling of the same drum. All of the drum sounds are very editable and customizable to your song as well. There is really no excuse to not getting a very good sounding acoustic drum kit that fits your song well with the power of this program. In addition to this, you are provided with a very large collection of pre-arranged midi files in different styles and tempos. This makes song building a lot easier, since you can find a groove that's pretty close to what you want, drop it into your midi editor, and tweak it to be what you're looking for. I have used a few other drum samplers, and this one stacks up very well. It's a great value for the price - great sounding drums and very realistic drum patterns to go with them. I would definitely get it again knowing what I know now.