Native Instruments Launches Abbey Road 50s Drummer — New Virtual Instrument

Ready to go back…to the future?

Native Instruments is happy to facilitate, via the UK studio that’s beginning to loom larger than (virtually) any of the artists that have recorded there – we speak of course of Abbey Road. The new KONTAKT instrument that NI created is Abbey Road 50s Drummer, built around two highly desirable 1950’s kits.

Get your boogie woogie on — in KONTAKT — with the latest from Native Instruments.

Anyone in search of a rhythmic sound just vintage enough to cut through all over again will want to give Abbey Road 50s Drummer a test run. Available now for $99, here’s more info on this instant KONTAKT classic, straight from NI:

ABBEY ROAD 50s DRUMMER is a new KONTAKT instrument featuring the sound of two classic drum kits from the 1950s. The kits provide the distinctive drum sound of the era, which was necessary to compete with the electrified instruments gaining popularity at the time. Recorded with both state-of-the-art and period equipment at Abbey Road Studios in London, 50s DRUMMER also includes a groove library, mixer presets, and a new set of brush articulations, delivering the authentic feel of rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and jazz from the 1950s.

ABBEY ROAD 50s DRUMMER features rare instruments from the very earliest years of popular music. The first kit is an early 1950s Gretsch Cadillac Green Nitron with a 20″ bass drum, 12″ rack tom and 14″ floor tom. Its toms are tuned low, providing a smooth, open sound that still allows excellent placement in a mix full of amplified instruments. The second drum kit is a late-1950s WFL kit. The WFL provides 20″ kick drum, 12″ and 13″ rack toms, and a 16″ floor tom. The WFL kit’s toms are tuned high, offering a brighter tone that perfectly complements the Gretsch.

Each kit features three different snare drums from the same period, offering a wide tonal variety and added degree of customization. The kits are outfitted with a selection of 1950s Zildjian A and K cymbals to round out their authentic vintage tone.

50s DRUMMER was recorded at London’s Abbey Road Studios in the legendary Studio Two. Alongside traditional microphone techniques, vintage RCA 44-BX and AKG D12 microphones, a REDD.17 valve mixing console and valve tape machine were used for 50s DRUMMER’s vintage channels. Users can dial in these ‘vintage channels alongside the modern state-of-the-art equipment for a seamless tone spectrum, ranging from completely modern to period-accurate vintage and anywhere in between.

New brush articulations were also recorded especially for 50s DRUMMER to reflect the playing techniques of the decade. Its extensive groove library encompasses early rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and jazz, as well as a wealth of contemporary rhythms, affording users an effortless way to begin sketching out complete drum recordings.

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