The Black Oyster Drum Kit Mixed by Darrell Thorp - Kontakt Edition

Darrell Thorp mixed every instrument, every microphone channel, and every preset to sound as natural, yet radio-ready, as his multi-platinum mixes for other artists. His long history tracking and mixing Dave Grohl’s drums ensured the kicks are beefy (but not muddy), the snares have that signature 'crack' you'd expect, the toms are punchy, and the cymbals add that perfect amount of shine on the top end. The perfect tone for ROCK.

REAL drums mixed to sound like real drums, by the Foo Fighters' long time engineer.

Because feel matters, Black Oyster’s Anti-Machine-Gun (ATMG) switch prevents identical back-to-back hits so that your drum performances always sound authentic - not like a drum machine. Additionally, our exclusive Rim Blend tech adds controllable rim presence to the snare (both Center and Edge articulations), delivering a more hard-hitting "crack." Face it, some songs just need a little more attitude, and Rim Blend gives you more of that rim vibe, while still maintaining separate Rimshot and Shallow Rimshot articulations for a whole collection of unique rim-style sounds, from subtle to pingy to cracking.

You can also tap into a deep articulation set that goes well beyond most drum libraries for maximum realism. Perfect for e-kit playability, we've included: (5) OPEN/CLOSED states on the hi-hat across the Edge, Center, and Tip locations; Mutes and chokes; plus multiple Snare hit types that include Sidestick, Center, Edge (off-center), (2) kinds of Rimshots, (2) kinds of Flams, (2) kinds of Ghost Strokes, and the aforementioned Rim Blend option to add even more character.

Every feature here serves one goal—deliver a virtual instrument that sounds and plays like a real drummer, not a machine.

Expand the Black Oyster kit with included add-on kicks, snares, toms, and cymbals. Every kit piece includes a simple dropdown, so you can swap sounds easily. Build your own combinations in seconds and lock them in as presets for instant recall.

• Kicks: choose alternates that shift from tight, focused punch to big, room-filling thump.
• Snares: swap for different shells and tunings—from crisp crack to fat backbeat—plus perfect companions for Rim Blend.
• Toms: pick tom sets that change size and character for the right depth and attack.
• Cymbals: select rides and crashes with distinct stick, bell, and decay behaviors to shape the groove.
  

And don't forget Darrell's incredible presets you can access from the Factory settings. From 70s classic rock, to 80s power ballads, 90s alt-rock and 00s nu-metal...the sounds (and grooves) are here for you.

We recorded the Black Oyster kit at the ultra-modern Sweetwater Studios facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Artists such as Anthrax, Mr. Big and Counting Crows have all recorded at Sweetwater Studios.

Located within the campus of the U.S.’s largest online music instrument retailer, Sweetwater, Sweetwater Studios offers three world-class rooms designed by acclaimed recording studio designer, Russ Berger. We tracked the drums in their largest room – Studio A – a 29’x 26’ live room outfitted with a gorgeous Rupert Neve Designs 5088 console - along with a plethora of vintage & modern microphones, EQs, pre-amps, processors, and outboard gear. Practically any piece of gear we needed for the session was available to us.

A pair of $10k overhead mics? Sure, why not? A mono room mic considered to be the ‘holy grail’ of British studio mics? No problem! If we wanted it, we got it, and used it to record this beautiful kit.