# Toontrack release new Decades SDX and Big Band EZX in collaboration with Al Schmitt



## Time+Space (Sep 17, 2019)

Toontrack have done it again - another legendary producer, another world famous studio – straight to your DAW...

Introducing the incredible *Decades SDX* and *Big Band EZX* from 23-time Grammy award winner - Al Schmitt!







*DECADES SDX*
Al Schmitt has had a truly illustrious career and the Decades SDX encapsulates that priceless lifetime of experience with a massive collection of drums from the 1920s to the 1990s. Covering styles from jazz and big band to rock, fusion, pop, funk and AOR, this hugely versatile SDX is a must-have for any Superior Drummer 3 user!









Music Software | Gear4music


Music Software | Gear4music




www.timespace.com










*BIG BAND EZX*
Can you hear it? That steady rattle of the snare, the sizzling melody of the ride and the subtle, round boom of the large open bass drum?
Welcome to the Toontrack Big Band EZX!

Produce the timeless swing that has been the epitome of jazz for over a century with two different kits covering the entire tonal range from the round, warm and intimate to the thunderous, explosive and fiercely energetic.

Works with Superior Drummer 3 and EZdrummer 2









Music Software | Gear4music


Music Software | Gear4music




www.timespace.com


----------



## ohernie (Sep 17, 2019)

Just curious, what's the issue if one tries to use them with SD2?


----------



## dzilizzi (Sep 17, 2019)

The EZDrummer one should work with SD2. Not sure about the SD3 one.


----------



## ohernie (Sep 17, 2019)

I've contacted tech support. I'll report back when I get an answer.


----------



## webs (Sep 17, 2019)

ohernie said:


> Just curious, what's the issue if one tries to use them with SD2?



According to an email I just received from best service "_PLEASE NOTE: *The Decades SDX by Al Schmitt is an SDX library which can only be loaded in Superior Drummer 3*_"


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 17, 2019)

I'm really looking forward to this expansion, as it covers the genres and styles that I am the most involved in! Looking at the kits and the mics, I am already very happy (I can't listen to audio demos at work).

I'm not sure if these specific kit pieces have been used in other SDX's yet (I'd have to compare, which is time-consuming), but even if so, the recording techniques are often what these packs are about, along with the players and the tuning and preparation of the kits.


----------



## Time+Space (Sep 18, 2019)

webs said:


> According to an email I just received from best service "_PLEASE NOTE: *The Decades SDX by Al Schmitt is an SDX library which can only be loaded in Superior Drummer 3*_"



This is correct Superior Drummer 3 is required to use the SDX library.


----------



## bbunker (Sep 18, 2019)

This might be answered in the ad copy, but I didn't see it - I admit I was distracted by the killer sounds - but is it possible to install in a way similar to the SD3 main library, with just the direct, bleed and room signals, and without the surround ambient mics?


----------



## Mucusman (Sep 18, 2019)

bbunker said:


> but is it possible to install in a way similar to the SD3 main library, with just the direct, bleed and room signals, and without the surround ambient mics?


Almost positive it is, as the product page shows different download sizes for the different mic set-ups. This is how it is with the Orchestral SDX, which I have, and which was the last SDX to be released before this one.


----------



## Time+Space (Sep 18, 2019)

Our best advice would be that for the use of both new libraries from Toontrack, you will need to have SD3 for the Decades SDX and SD3/EZDrummer 2 to use the EZX. You can see and check all the system requirements and specs on the following page: https://www.toontrack.com/product/big-band-ezx/ & https://www.toontrack.com/product/decades-sdx/ - usually libraries from Toontrack will not work in older versions. Enjoy!


----------



## Guy Rowland (Sep 18, 2019)

bbunker said:


> This might be answered in the ad copy, but I didn't see it - I admit I was distracted by the killer sounds - but is it possible to install in a way similar to the SD3 main library, with just the direct, bleed and room signals, and without the surround ambient mics?



Sort of but not quite. The way it works with Decades is you have to first download the complete 99gb installer (Windows defaults to the C drive), then you can choose one of the 4 install options listed on the product webpage, and then delete the installer if required.

The smallest install is 28gb and for room mics has just the stereo pair. As for bleeds, it has them only on LR Room, overheads and snare bottom. These are the main ones I muck around with to be honest, so its a pretty good compromise for me. For every bleed you need the full 99gb install.

Fantastic expansion btw, stupidly versatile and sounds stellar. Very good price from T&S too.


----------



## In.sight (Sep 18, 2019)

It's a really great recorded library. 5/5


----------



## wst3 (Sep 18, 2019)

I have to say, I am completely flabbergasted by the sound of this library. It is just awesome.

We'll see if my opinion changes next week, but I wouldn't bet on it.


----------



## steveo42 (Sep 18, 2019)

I've been waiting for something like this! I can't wait to purchase!

Is the SDX version a super set of the EZX version? So does it include the presets and so forth from the EZX version? I don't want to duplicate if I buy both.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

The SDX has considerably more drum sets and kit piece choices than the EZX, from what I could tell; I suspect there will be a second EZX pack extracted from the SDX later on.

I am about to purchase and download the SDX. I just have to wait for another download to finish first.


----------



## steveo42 (Sep 18, 2019)

Aside from the extra kits and so forth, can anyone confirm that the SDX includes all the "Big Band Stuff" from the EZX, which is really what I am interested in... Looking more for a load it up and forget it but if SDX offers that as well, ie: all the EZX stuff, I'll go for that one and enjoy the other kits as well..


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

This is frustrating: I have been trying to buy this product for a half hour now, but every time I get to the checkout phase, it blanks my phone number again (even though it showed up previously, right before the payment), thus blocking the sale.

I can only get coupons to apply if charging in British Sterling anyway, but I seem to recall that's how it works. I had gotten it down to about 85 pounds, but now I can't get it below 97 pounds, so I think something is "stuck" in its system, as it was also the case that the cart empties if you go back to look at it.

I've now tried this on Opera and Safari using macOS Mojave, and I logged into my work computer so I could then try it on Windows 10 using Firefox. It does not seem to be a browser or OS issue.

I really wanted to buy this tonight, as the download will take a while and this way I can have it at the ready for weekend work.

Not sure what to do at this point. Maybe the Time+Space website is just getting hit by too many people at once, at the moment.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

Weird: I just received an email from PayPal asking if I wanted to finish up the transaction, as the payment was approved and was just awaiting the final handshake from the Time+Space website. Yet if I go back to my cart via the PayPal link, it is empty once again. At least the price is the lowest one I had achieved, at a bit over 83 pounds.


​
Want to complete your PayPal payment at Time+Space Distribution Ltd?​



​
To finish up, go back to Time+Space Distribution Ltd and give your final approval.​


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

I started from scratch one more time, and it went back to my ultimate discount of 83 pounds and change. This gave me a different checkout page than before.

Unfortunately when I checked PayPal, it didn't ask me any info, but at least the order is now complete. 

I logged in to PayPal, and saw that it used the form of payment that I approved earlier.

It looks like what was going on, is that PayPal maintained a full history even though the T+S site didn't. That's actually good in a way.

I'll probably have a bit of a wait for the serial number; I forgot that isn't an instantaneous delivery.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

I did go through the audio demos and was blown away by 80% of them. I have a feeling I'll be switching some of my jazz-oriented projects to these kits, as I have way too many of them assigned to the same kit at the moment, regardless of era or sub-genre, just because there haven't been all that many choices so far for brushes as well as older style kits.

The modern kits sound great too, and I may pull some of those for soul, funk, r&b, and fusion as well as modern acoustic jazz and big band (plus Broadway).


----------



## jtnyc (Sep 18, 2019)

steveo42 said:


> Aside from the extra kits and so forth, can anyone confirm that the SDX includes all the "Big Band Stuff" from the EZX, which is really what I am interested in... Looking more for a load it up and forget it but if SDX offers that as well, ie: all the EZX stuff, I'll go for that one and enjoy the other kits as well..


I would say the SDX has it all plus way more.

From the TT site -


----------



## jtnyc (Sep 18, 2019)

I really wasn't looking for MORE drums, but these sound fantastic. Man, and those room mics, so sweet. Maybe the best I've heard for Superior to date.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 18, 2019)

The miking technique are spectacular on these five kits, as are the tuning, prepping, and playing.

I thought I remembered that detail of the EZX having two of the five kits, but forgot where I'd seen it and didn't trust my memory. That's a very complete yet concise reference posted above.


----------



## GtrString (Sep 18, 2019)

Sounds really incredible! Having that natural drum sound as a base is really great when working in the daw. And its all the iconic sounds that I love, Big Band, Rock’n Roll and Jazz with brushes. I sound like a commercial, but Toontrack is really hitting it out of the park with SD3 and the new expansions!


----------



## Time+Space (Sep 19, 2019)

Mark Schmieder said:


> I'll probably have a bit of a wait for the serial number; I forgot that isn't an instantaneous delivery.



Hi Mark, glad you got it sorted in the end - we actually sold out of serial numbers overnight as it's been so popular so ordinarily you would have received the serial instantly. We have them back in stock now and I understand that yours has been sent to you in the last few minutes.

Enjoy! Would love to hear what you think about it


----------



## stigc56 (Sep 19, 2019)

Well I was easy to move to purchase this library!! Now I need a SSD update shall I go with a 2TB or 4TB?. It has to replace a 1TB in my Blackmagic dock so I will "only" get 1 or 3 TB extra. Any recommendations!


----------



## Will Blackburn (Sep 19, 2019)

Very nice. Great timing. Wish the piano and sax in the demoes were VI's as well


----------



## Monkberry (Sep 19, 2019)

Totally stoked about this expansion for SD3. Love what I'm hearing on the snares and kicks. Can't wait to download this.


----------



## steveo42 (Sep 19, 2019)

Just picked it up from T&S. I went with the SDX version. Can't wait to try it out.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 19, 2019)

Thanks -- I see the serial number in my mail box now, so I look forward to downloading, installing, and hopefully still having time to try it out tonight! I have 500 Gbps download speed, so maybe I won't have to let it run overnight.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 19, 2019)

FYI I am getting back-to-back reminders that my cart is about to expire, but the cart is of course empty in every browser and on every OS. So something is persisting separately from the full sequence of actions involved in a completed purchase transaction.

The download is going quickly for me, and should be finished in about a half hour, so there's a high chance I'll get to work the the new drum kits a bit tonight.

UPDATE: The install also took a while. I've run out of steam for anything requiring the level of concentration needed for comparing sounds carefully. It might be a really long time before I can get around to using this library now, as a lot of stuff just came up (I am constantly getting pulled into gigs last-minute), along with the upcoming escrow closure next week. Maybe I can sneak in some cursory review here and there though.


----------



## skythemusic (Sep 20, 2019)

I couldn't help but buy this. Al is a legend and the demos sounded like the most natural drums I've heard in the box yet. Downloading now, can't wait to try them out!


----------



## wst3 (Sep 21, 2019)

I bought them, they are better than the demos, and the description above says it all - these sound like drums I might have recorded if I had Al's talent, a great sounding room, and killed mic locker, and a great drummer.

Just awesome!


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 21, 2019)

I am hoping to sneak in my first hour with them today, and am excited to hear that they're even better than the demos.


----------



## In.sight (Sep 22, 2019)

Another Toontrack Decades SDX kit in action 😎
❗Additional Tambourines + Shakers are from Orchestral Percussion SDX


----------



## jamwerks (Sep 22, 2019)

Any new midi grooves with this library?


----------



## Monkberry (Sep 22, 2019)

jamwerks said:


> Any new midi grooves with this library?


I haven't had much time with this fantastic SDX but there are some midi grooves under the swing category (Bernard Purdie like shuffle) that reference Steely Dan. I typically never use the included midi grooves but I could never get the dynamic articulations of the Purdie shuffle playing from my midi controller keyboard and these sound really good. This is my favorite library as I love the drier snare sounds and Al is simply brilliant. All the content is superb. Great job Al and Toontrack!!!!


----------



## In.sight (Sep 22, 2019)

jamwerks said:


> Any new midi grooves with this library?


there are a lot new midi in this library. But sad moment is that most of them are pretty basic (as the most midi grooves in SD3)


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2019)

I stayed up for two hours after my gig last night, to go through the new SFX in the context of an "islands genres" project, where I have been using Reggae EZX but always wanted a bit more detail in the sound, such as one gets from SDX packs.

For Ska and Calypso, I am finding the Ludwig Hollywood 1970's kit with towel damping, to be ideal. I tend to add Timbales in such contexts, so the damped Ludwig Supraphonic Snare is perfect as it keeps the two parts distinct, while cutting through better at the same time. The Supraphonic is my favourite snare design anyway (I like them better than the Black Beauty as I feel they're a bit more versatile across genres).

To clarify, I am using the default mix settings vs. the custom presets, and simply selecting a preferred drum kit in that menu: Tight Pop Kit.

The number of Hi-Hat articulations is insane with this library, and quite welcome! For pre-recorded MIDI, I am simply creating my own Round Robin of Open Tip variations, for example, and this is really breathing a lot more life into the parts and making them sound much more realistic. It's going to be fun to start a project from scratch, with all of those Hi-Hat articulations available right from the outset.

I won't be switching my standard Reggae or Dub material to this library though, for the simple reason that I usually need Ruff-style Rolls, which aren't one of the available articulations for the Snare Drums. No big deal; Decades SDX is a very focused library and normally those parts would be played live vs. using pre-recorded "fills" anyway. And the Rolls are excellent in this library; they simply don't serve well as Ruffs. So for Dub, I still plan to go to an SDX from the Reggae EZX, and hope to finish that evaluation tonight.

Overall, the top kit pieces are amazing, and it was quite a surprise to find how well even the 1940's cymbals work in more modern genres. I guess it all goes back to the player and the miking techniques more than anything else.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2019)

This may have been covered in one of the long videos, but I can't watch those at work, and didn't see this detail in any discussions here or on GS:

Is the normal Reverb channel (not the room reverb aux) a miked chamber (a la Les Paul), or a built-in effect? I simply didn't hear any difference, even with it at max, so wasn't sure if it's a "live channel" like any mic channel, or something that has to be routed to, by the drum mics.

Over on GS, one person said that they're finding this Reverb channel far more useful and realistics than adding reverb downstream during mixing within the host DAW.

Bear in mind that I've only had a couple of hours so far, and was focusing almost exclusively on the super-dry Ludwig Hollywood kits with no custom mixer preset settings engaged. I never use those, but maybe I'll change my mind with this library, as some quick auditions indicated they are very usable and not overdone as is so often the case with presets.


----------



## jtnyc (Sep 23, 2019)

Mark Schmieder said:


> Is the normal Reverb channel (not the room reverb aux) a miked chamber (a la Les Paul), or a built-in effect? I simply didn't hear any difference, even with it at max, so wasn't sure if it's a "live channel" like any mic channel, or something that has to be routed to, by the drum mics.



Im pretty sure it was mentioned in the mixer walkthrough that that reverb channel was a feed into Al's favorite hardware reverb. Probably a Lex 224 or 480L.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2019)

Cool; thanks. And I think it isn't engaged on the drum kits I was working with last night, so I'll give it a listen on some of the other kits when I get past my Caribbean projects tonight or tomorrow.

This may finally be the drum library that gets me into mixing the drums in the drum software vs. the host DAW.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2019)

He starts talking about the Reverb channel around 2:01. As it is an algorithmic reverb (probably Lexicon), it doesn't sound like a room per se, so is probably meant more to help things glue together in the mix than to add or replace the natural ambience of the additional mics.

I also started listening to the Modern Jazz kit, and was astounded by how close it sounds to the drum kit used at Saturday's Diana Krall concert at Oakland's Fox Theatre, where I was in the fourth row (due to comp tickets -- my company ran the sound for the concert). Of course, she is listed as one of Al's clients. I'm looking forward to working with the 1930's kit as well.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2019)

I just spent another 90 minutes reviewing the mono "no-mix" one-at-a-time approach vs. stereo pre-mix, and am torn. Al's presets are the best I've ever heard for ANY drum library, as they sound very realistic and well-balanced, and probably would be OK in any song context, give or take some tweaks to the individual levels of some top kit pieces in the main drum view (vs. the mixer view).

I feel like I'm missing something by not taking advantage of his presets, so it may be time to switch to "mixing in the drum VI" and having just one stereo drum track in the host DAW. Certainly this saves time, and with his excellent yet subtle settings, the kit seems glued together and manageable, as the miking is so good that one doesn't really need post-processing.

Al's subtle application of room reverb to the top snare and the overhead pair is just enough, along with light Fairchild 678 compression/limiting on the output buss. I could also defeat that last stage and use my own 678 plug-ins without losing any of the stereo image or balance of Al's presets.

One of the things I am noticing with this kit, due to the excellent room miking, is that tracking each kit piece as a mono-summed independent track, is losing the movement within the overall space. With past libraries, I haven't felt anything was lost, when I compare results (vs. miking an actual kit and mixing it the traditional way), but it always nagged at me as the main potential drawback with my longstanding approach.

So I think now we have a library that is so perfectly miked and thought out, that it is "safe" to bounce just a single stereo combined track that is already balanced and minimally processed.

I do not know if the EZX Big Band library has the same mix settings as the SDX Decades library. The other, Toontrack presets, are too extreme for my tastes, as usual, but all of Al's hit the mark. Up until now, only a few presets have done that for me, and my recollection is that they were some of the artist presets for the new stock SD3's kits.

EDIT: After another half hour of mix comparisons, I have concluded that the built-in reverb is crucial, as it's the only place to properly add that light touch on the top snare and the OH mics, unless every single Toontrack channel is sent to its own DAW track (vs. each kit piece's combined signal). I ended up preferring the 670 not being on the internal mix buss though; I'll use my high-end processing plug-ins on the stereo drum bounce from Toontrack, in the DAW instead.


----------



## Monkberry (Sep 24, 2019)

Mark Schmieder said:


> I just spent another 90 minutes reviewing the mono "no-mix" one-at-a-time approach vs. stereo pre-mix, and am torn. Al's presets are the best I've ever heard for ANY drum library, as they sound very realistic and well-balanced, and probably would be OK in any song context, give or take some tweaks to the individual levels of some top kit pieces in the main drum view (vs. the mixer view).
> 
> I feel like I'm missing something by not taking advantage of his presets, so it may be time to switch to "mixing in the drum VI" and having just one stereo drum track in the host DAW. Certainly this saves time, and with his excellent yet subtle settings, the kit seems glued together and manageable, as the miking is so good that one doesn't really need post-processing.
> 
> ...


Mark, I share your enthusiasm for this library. It seems to set itself apart from the other SDX expansion and core libraries and Al's presets and micing choices as well as the drum kit choices seem to be the difference. I also have fully embraced the internal SD3 mixer now (as opposed to assigning individual tracks in Daw) which may have been from watching the Decades videos but it offers plenty of processing options and saves real estate in the Cubase mixer. Definitely a great direction Toontrack went with this library.


----------



## Mark Schmieder (Jan 12, 2020)

I just spent the past three weeks finalizing the drums on every active project I have in the pool (and that means almost 100 pieces across many genres). Decades has now kicked to the curb, almost everything else I have been using; it's that great and wildly versatile.

What impresses me the most is that it's a natural sounding library that just sits in the mix perfectly as-is; especially when using Al Schmitt's presets as a starting point. Stuff that I've been struggling with for years, is no longer a barrier to finishing my productions. And by now, I have found at least one use for every single kit and variation available.

I am now exclusively using stereo full-kit outputs from Superior Drummer 3, greatly simplifying my projects and workflow from when I was treating VI drums like acoustic miked drums. I'm leaving the algorithmic reverb channel engaged as it is subtle and does help glue things together, so am only making three basic edits in most cases:

Deletion of any compression on the master buss; this is end-of-chain and I have great plug-ins
Drop the Spring and Plate Reverb Buss levels (usually I set to around -5.7 dB for most projects)
Raise the Ride Cymbal by 9 dB and the Hi-Hats and other cymbals by 3 dB
This is in line with what I had already been doing with other SDX libraries, and I prefer to use lower velocity levels on my top kit (and even on the drums), so that the attacks are more natural and the overall dynamic range is more vital. Raising the instruments on the main page seems effective compared to mucking with the mic mix levels, as many SDX's capture the top kit mostly through OH's vs. spot mics anyway. Others may find that focusing on the mic mix levels is more effective for their work though.

I can't believe what a bargain this library is. And I think it's already won an award or two as the best drum library ever (well-deserved).


----------



## Mucusman (Jan 12, 2020)

Mark Schmieder said:


> I can't believe what a bargain this library is.



I don't doubt it, but I'm still waiting for it to go on sale sometime later this year... so that it will even a greater "bargain". Once it does, I'll be snatching it up instantly. 

Thanks for the update on your experience with the library. Encouraging.


----------

