Hydrogen is a powerful virtual drum machine. It is an open source software, free available for Linux, Windows, and Mac but Intel based.
Come across a software dedicated to a specific instrument, which is also of good qualities and free is not very simple. Many times I’ve utilized VST or plug-in which require others software or sequencer to run.
Drum Pro is probably one of the best free drum machine software on the market right now. The drum machine features a collection of 20 drum kits and 9 vintage drum machines, which can be loaded onto the software’s 16 drum pads. While it is free. The term ‘drum VST’ is rather broad, so I’ll be focusing on all types, including virtual drum libraries, percussion libraries, beat machines, and even drum synthesis. Addictive Drums 2 from XLN Audio remains to be my favorite drum library for acoustic drum samples—the United Pop sample pack sounds incredible. Drum Pro comes with 20 drum kits designed for electronic and urban beats. It includes 9 vintage electronic drum machines sounds from the classic TR-808 and TR-909. You load a kit; slap your keys or pad controller and you are banging out beats in no time at all. Each kit comes with 12 sounds loaded onto the 12 pads.
Hydrogen is a virtual drum machine which works alone, and has a libraries of samples and patterns. Adding to this that it is free, open source, and without limits. Download Hydrogen through the official site.
Sitala is a free drum plugin and standalone app Sitala‘s beauty is simplicity. It‘s fast and musical. Playable like instrument. New in Sitala 1.0 — Released December 11, 2020.
And the drum machine is a superb way to hone in on a specific sound for your tracks. So grab these sweet plugs and program away! Already set for drums? Grab some of our other favourite free VSTs. The 7 Best Free Synth VST Plugins; 8 Free VST Plugins that Will Inspire You In Strange Ways; Every Free VST. Download orDrumbox Software Drum Machine for free. Drum machine, pattern sequencer, midi, designed for creativity. OrDrumbox is a free drum machine software, pattern oriented designed to be as creative as possible with unusual features: auto-composition, polyrhythms, arpeggiator, automatic sounds/track matching, custom softsynths, lowfi rendering, audio filters, midi. DR-910 is a Roland TR-909 drum machine emulation. The instrument itself does not need presentations: used by artists like Moby, Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy, Jean Michel Jarre, The Chemical Brothers, Faithless and many many others, the TR-909 quickly became one of the most classic pieces of gear in the electronic musician’s arsenal.
What the main features of this software? First, has a good GUI, simply and essential, with no-frills.Then, it has samples of excellent quality to obtain interesting final results. In fine, Hydrogen can be played with yuor Pc keyboard, interfaced with an external Midi controller or linked to a sequencer software as Cubase. Free leveler vst.
Hydrogen allow you to generate rhythmic patterns to be used as accompanying for your performances. Hydrogen isn’t only for computer-based compositions, I’ve seen many musicians replace the metronome with this powerful drum machine to give more realism to their private performances.
Hydrogen has four main windows: Song Editor, Pattern Editor, Sample Editor and the Mixer. There is also another GUI that is the classical Main Toolbar, which include buttons like Play, Stop, Record and so on.
The Song Editors allows you to organize the overall composition. Indeed, every blue rectangle indicate one pattern, composed by one or more bars. It could be a verse or a refrain or that what you want. In this window you can arrange all the patterns to obtain the overall form.
In Song Editor we can create new patterns. So, a new window activates called Pattern Editor; where we can also modify those already generated.
The pattern editor has a more essential GUI. Clicking on SIZE we indicate the bars number, notes duration and, in particular, instruments used. On the left, indeed, we have the samples list: snare drum, hit-hat, bass drum, crash and so on. On the center, the grey area, allows to insert a note in a grid which cross instruments with the beats of every bar. Down you can see a drop-down menu by which select a particular parameter: Velocity, Pan, Lead/Lag and Notekey.
The pattern editor can be used through two views: Drum and Piano. The previous picture is in Drum mode, while the following in is Piano mode.
Different views but the same features. In Drum mode Hydrogen is conceived as a drum machine, while in Piano mode it is a sort of general synthesizer used through a common music keyboard.
Adding to these powerful features, Hydrogen comprises a sound editing GUI to make changes to your samples.
If compared with other professional, or not, sound editors, this one integrated with Hydrogen is too much essential but adequate to work rapidly on a sample or to extrapolate a new loop by a more lenght sample. The GUI has three sections: one for the sample visualization (1), another dedicated to time modification but without altering the frequency (2), and finally a third for previewing the final result.
The last GUI is that of Mixer which is a classical mixer, so with fader, knobs, Mute and Solo buttons, and so on. Through the Mixer we can regulate every parameter for each sample.
We can not forget that Hydrogen is equipped with a large loop library, that you can download for free by clicking here.
There is also a practical little manual that you can read easily so to have a good familiarity with the software.
Furthermore on the official site you can find many video tutorials, to start using it immediately. In general the official site is quite interesting, there are also contests to vote the best users drum kits.
Hydrogen is certainly a excellent virtual drum machine, as turned out by the others similar projects which used loop samples realized with Hydrogen.
What do you think? What is your best virtual drum machine?
The drum machine changed music. There’s no getting around it.
Every DAW software these days comes with some sort of sampler or drum machine built right in. They’ve become a pillar of modern music production.
But picking a sound can be tough when you have infinite possibilities at your fingertips.
That’s why these drum VST plugins are so great. They impose some limitations to help you corral the creative juices a bit.
So here’s the 10 best free drum VST plugins for making your drums pop.
The name says it all. The T.REX 606 is a compact rompler modelled after the iconic Roland TR-606 drum machine.
The simple interface keeps things basic. Which is nice these days when so many VSTs are needlessly complicated.
It’s just volume, reverb and 7 classic sounds. Easy peasy.
Download it here for free
The Linn LM-1 is a classic drum machine. It’s been used by everyone from Peter Gabriel, to Prince, to Michael Jackson.
But let’s face it, these days they’ve gotten a bit pricey for what they are.
No problem, The Djinndrum has you set for all that classic sound that the LM-1 packs in.
Download it here for free
Drum Pro has 20 built in drum kits, 12 pads and global effects, what more do you need from a drum machine plugin?
The Drum Pro has you covered no matter what you’re making. Big EDM? Check. Techno? Check. Everything else you need for sweet drums? Check that too.
Download it here for free
This plugin may not look as technical as others. But don’t let the looks of Line of Legends fool you.
This plugin boasts 47 high quality samples, 8 individual output channels, and punch, release & attack knobs for some serious tweakage.
Heads up: you may have to set up the output channels in your DAW if it’s only showing one channel. So check your DAW manual to figure out how.
Download it here for free
Sean Pandy Drums is based on a sample pack made by heavy metal drummer Sean Pandy. So if you’re looking for a heavier drum sound on your mix, this VST will definitely give you it.
The ‘Sub Blower’ is especially good and certainly lives up to its name…
Download it here for free
2 of the most important elements in any track that thumps is the kick and bass. So they deserve some serious attention.
That’s what makes KickMaker so great. It’s a plugin built for crafting the perfect kick. So what’re you waiting for? Get kickin’.
Download it here for free
Beat Factory Drums is easy to use, sounds great, and packs a serious punch.
It has fully tweakable ADSR parameters so you can customize each and every kit to your sound. Not bad for a FREE plugin.
All you have to do is enter your email and that’s it.
Download it here for free
MT Power Drum Kit 2 isn’t just a plugin for drums. In addition to top notch drum sounds that cut through any mix, it also has a fully pre-programmed groove library.
It’s wicked for composing your own patterns, or stringing together grooves for the drum accompaniment you need.
Download it here for free
The DrumTROOP drum machine is big both in its sound and what it offers. It’s a powerful tool for everything from EDM to house and back again.
Their website calls it a “weapon of mass production.” I can’t really disagree with that. It’s definitely massive is every respect.
Download it here for free
Vintage Drum Elements has a nice, warm analogue sound that so many vintage drum machines have.
The 12 pad interface is easy to use and tweak, and the preloaded samples are all top notch.
Name your price or enter your email to grab it on the Single Cycle Bandcamp.
Download it here for free
Nothing beats a banging drum track. They’re the backbone of tons of top notch songs.
And the drum machine is a superb way to hone in on a specific sound for your tracks.
So grab these sweet plugs and program away!
Already set for drums? Grab some of our other favourite free VSTs.