Has anyone tested EZ Drummer 2 yet?

    Hi everybody,


    i receive the toontrack newsletter and have watched some of the new vids in you tube and so on and ...


    am not sure what to think of this new launch. is it all hype? sometimes i have the impression that the improvement on the interface and all of this is quite nice
    and the in-built mixing possiblilities have improved, but what about the actual sounds, are they better? someone in the know?
    i have both EZ and SD, but use almost exclusively the standard rock kit of EZ1, because it sounds so good to my ears.




    cheers

    My occupation: showing teenagers the many hidden secrets of the A-minor chord on the guitar.

    Generally it's not all just hype, inevitably there are some changings, sometimes there may be even real improvements.
    But: if you own EZD and SD (which is far more advanced anyway than EZD) and use only EZD it doesn't make sense to upgrade EZD at all.
    Why spending money for something you don't need/use?

    well, SD is a little too advanced for me. ;) too much work to be done and too much time to let SD sound good while EZ sounds good out of the box.


    the new presets for EZ2 sound promising. let us see!


    Ingolf: misunderstanding here? i do use EZ1 and maybe EZ2 is an improvement sound-wise, too???

    My occupation: showing teenagers the many hidden secrets of the A-minor chord on the guitar.

    Here's a couple of features I noticed in a quick write-up:


    - Multiple Simultaneous hits
    - You can swap/add drums/cymbals on any kit
    - Can be used outside of a DAW
    - You can program a simple beat and EZD2 will find the closest match from its loop library - useful to get a "pro" or "human" sounding beat from an otherwise rigid programmed beat
    - Internal Sample Rate Conversion
    - Faster Loading Time
    - There's an actual timeline in there - I think that's for programming MIDI inside EZD2. So it's not just loops. Not sure how far they take the MIDI editing though.


    They mentioned something also about exporting the audio straight from EZD2 without using a DAW.


    Also, features a bunch of new samples/packs, but is backwards compatible with older EZX packs.


    Sounds pretty awesome to me. As long as it's not buggy, it's an improvement. Enough to upgrade? I dunno. I am not sure how many of the features I would use TBH.

    EZD2 gains a couple of key SD features - it will be possible to build sets from multiple EZX kits, and to change the pitch of the drums.


    The new Search feature that allows tapping in a beat, and have it give a list of results from the installed library would be very useful to me. That, and the Timeline are the kind of new EZD2 features that I think will have to be added very soon to SD, to prevent it from becoming "Inferior Drummer" ;)


    Unless SD is updated to take advantage of the new EZD2 features when EZD2 is released, I think Toontrack will experience a sudden and complete drop in the sales of EZD to SD crossgrades, as well as a drop in sales of SD to new users. They will buy EZD2, instead, and process the individual drums in their DAWs.

    Quote from londonjeepster

    Absolutely agree with you, that is a fantastic sounding kit. if they can come up with something that sounds better then i will buy,i havent heard ez2 yet so will reserve judgement ,but if it doesnt match up to the original kit then a ton of new features wont help.

    Thank you so much, londonjeepster :thumbup: ! That was and is my point and the reason that - while i have GAS for the new EZ2 - i want further details before i buy.
    (i can upgrade, so it is not expensive, but nevertheless ... money). I think i have 6 expansion kits for EZ1 and SD and all i do is coming back to the rock kit. i love it.
    and i have learned a lot here in this forum about HPF/LPF, mixing etcetera, but SD is just over the top. and our andi also says that it sounds sh***t out of the box.
    anyway, i do not want to start an argument here, thank you for your comments, keep posting if you want to 8o .
    To me there is not much i want to be improved upon the standard kit, but a better onboard mixer and the bass drum from superior, and this SEEMS to be in the package
    among other things, right?



    cheers, thx

    My occupation: showing teenagers the many hidden secrets of the A-minor chord on the guitar.

    As I am using EZDrummer with several expansions, I was interested, whether those would be upwards compatible. Just found this:


    "the existing EZX-s will be optimized for EZdrummer 2 and include new graphics and effect chain presets. They will be provided free of charge to EZdrummer 2 customers. They will be automatically rolled onto your system when you install EZdrummer 2. "


    (Source: http://www.toontrack.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=140021&mpage=1&)

    so the EZ2.exe patches also the old installations to the new interface? congratz to the programmers, if this turns out to be true.
    i have my doubts though, ask gamers. there is always a chance things get f****ed up with this kind of update. i'd prefer a clean
    de-install of EZ1, installation of EZ2 and THEN patching. or better still: running both progs at the same time.


    but let's wait until may.

    My occupation: showing teenagers the many hidden secrets of the A-minor chord on the guitar.

    Quote from meambobbo


    - You can program a simple beat and EZD2 will find the closest match from its loop library - useful to get a "pro" or "human" sounding beat from an otherwise rigid programmed beat
    -.



    that is pretty much reason enough for me along to get it!


    I hate having to wade thru loops to find the one i want


    and I never understood the hate the stock EZ kit got!!! Its one of my favs as well as MM
    replace/blend the kick and snare with some other samples and its nice

    thanks for the links, i have found this video the most entertaining and enlightening when it comes to the new features.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AArgiZAC3IM



    to me two nu features will be essential for eventually buying EZ2: being able to make your own set of drums effortlessly and
    maybe the new mixing features. will this be enough. i dunno yet. ?( because i cannot judge from the vids whether the new kits are
    or could be an improvement sound-wise.

    My occupation: showing teenagers the many hidden secrets of the A-minor chord on the guitar.

    Well, once caught, GAS is incurable. No medication available, and never will be. It is a chronic disease, that will accompany you for the rest of your life. And even worse, passed on to the next generation. ;)