Question for EZDrummer Users

Do you guys use MIDI loops to put songs together, or do you work from scratch?

I'm using EZDrummer2 in conjunction with Pro Tools 10 to write drum tracks and what I typically do is take MIDI loops (mostly from DFH) and just tweak them to match the riffs in the song I'm recording.

I'm considering purchasing some MIDI packs to widen my loop options, but before I spend money on those products, I'd really like to get some feedback from some experienced users.
 
Your best bet honestly, is to do them from scratch. It is painful but well worth the effort. Build your kit and get it sounding the way you want and then start plotting. Once you do it for a few hours you get proficient at it. Copy and paste are your friends, and just doing it will help. Misha Mansoor has a good video on youtube showing how he does it. Fluff has one too. All the pros, do drums from scratch, period. It blows, but, no pain no gain, applies here.
 
I have used midi loops with great success.
My issue always have been that I adjusted my song to "synch up" to accents (of hi-hat grooves for example).
So, I bought an electric kit and started to learn how to play drums. Now I can synch the drums to the song, finally.
 
Your best bet honestly, is to do them from scratch. It is painful but well worth the effort. Build your kit and get it sounding the way you want and then start plotting. Once you do it for a few hours you get proficient at it. Copy and paste are your friends, and just doing it will help. Misha Mansoor has a good video on youtube showing how he does it. Fluff has one too. All the pros, do drums from scratch, period. It blows, but, no pain no gain, applies here.

This was what I was afraid of unfortunately..

I DO have an e-kit, but A. I'm not a drummer and B. I live on the third floor of an apartment, the vibrations from the hits tends to piss off the downstairs neighbors.
 
I cannot do anything that remotely resembles a live drummer. That doesnt matter at all when doing metal, but for other styles, it's quite hard to do anything realistic with a mouse. It's possible though!
 
I cannot do anything that remotely resembles a live drummer. That doesnt matter at all when doing metal, but for other styles, it's quite hard to do anything realistic with a mouse. It's possible though!

Uhh ohh at least get a small keyboard!
 
I plot everything on a midi map from scratch every time. When writing I'll usually keep the part simple til I'm done tracking then I'll go back in and embellish the part and mess with velocities til I get the right feel
 
I use EZ Drummer or Superior Drummer to lay out ideas and keep meter while I assemble a song. Then I send it to a friend, who is a superb drummer, who replaces it with real playing on his Roland Kit and Superior Drummer. (he will do the same for anyone BTW).

On simpler songs I have pulled off very realistic drums but more so with Studio Drummer by Kontakt. The loops and drums are so much more realistic.
 
Btw, the ezdrummer 2 is way better in drums sounds vs 1. The levee breaks -kit is super fun. Anyway, the midi/performance is the more important part for a lively result, sounds are good.
 
I work from loops but modify them in EZ Drummer or overdub using a midi drum pad. EZ Drummer's ability to modify the midi loops is so revolutionary. I am looking for a good midi convertor though to convert and use the the exported songs in BFD3. I think BFD3 sounds much better but have a lot of trouble with midi map conversion.
 
Here is my 2 cents. It depends on 2 things. What you are doing and what you consider worth it. First the brutal honestly... in my opinion they are pretty sterile. That said I've bought a bunch of them because of the way EZ Drummer works. EZ drummer will help suggest parts to you via the browser and the more loops you have the more it helps.

Sweetwater has 6 packs where you choose which pack you want 'after' you buy it for 99 bucks. One of the better deals out there on a consistent basis.
 
I have and they are decent. I think Groove Monkee are a better value and if you keep an eye out they go on sale frequently. I would not be surprised if they have a Labor Day sale. Groove Monkee comes in many formats, including EZ Drummer.

https://groovemonkee.com/
Thanks for this! They do have a sale going on right now that had just over 1 day left! I might have to try some of these out. Will give the samples a listen when I go on lunch break today.
 
I always create from scratch with a keyboard. I have a basic drum kit, play it one instrument at a time. I like to do all the way through so it keeps some semblance of continuity. I don't do a ton of cut and paste for that reason. After I get the basic track recording the track into midi, I then spend more time finding the right instrument or kits.

But these are just for demos. Several drummers have complimented me on my programming as realistic. I don't agree, but it's a compliment. For any real stuff I use drummer playing real drums.
 
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