Drum-80

by GSi · Drum Instrument · Virtual analog 80s drum synth

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Drum-80 is a virtual analog drum synthesizer from GSi that recreates early-1980s electronic kits such as the Simmons SDS-V.

It pairs an analog-style drum brain with sampled cymbals and adds a limiter, delay and reverb, for €50 (about $56.78).

Best for: Drums. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Pop, Rock & Indie.

Keywords: 80s, hardware emulation, sample-based, 60s, AUv3/iOS, CPU-light, inspired by, subtractive, vintage, virtual analog.

What it does

Drum-80 is GSi's software take on a common early-80s setup: a Simmons SDS-V electronic drum brain paired with acoustic cymbals. GSi built it to recreate the drums "mostly used in pop and rock music" of that era.

Virtual analog drum engine: synthesized drum voices modeled on the Simmons SDS-V, with an optional VCO phase reset.
WLF cymbal engine: GSi's sampled cymbal engine supplies the acoustic side: hi-hat, ride, four crashes and three splashes.
Cymbal section: separate tuning, level and EQ controls for the cymbals.
Multiple outputs: a stereo mix plus six individual drum synth channels and a stereo cymbal channel, for mixing each drum in your DAW.
Effects: a stereo 1176-style limiter, a stereo delay and a stereo reverb.
Programs and polyphony: full polyphony, unlimited built-in program storage and an embedded user manual.
Light on resources: very low CPU and RAM use.

The current version is 1.1.0. GSi offers audio demos rather than a trial version.

Source: GSi product page

When to use it

Drum-80 is the pick when you want one specific sound: synthesized 80s electronic toms and snares with real cymbals on top. Unlike Battery 4 and XO, which build kits from samples, it generates its drums in real time, so pitch, decay and the synth character can be reshaped for each drum. Compared with Addictive Drums 2 or EZdrummer 3 it has no acoustic kits or groove library, but it is far lighter on CPU and RAM. It is also much cheaper than any of those.

Best for: Simmons-style toms and snares, 80s pop and rock drum tracks, and synth-drum fills.
Genres: synth-pop, 80s rock, new wave, synthwave and retro electronic.
Look elsewhere if: you want acoustic kits (Addictive Drums 2, EZdrummer 3) or a general sample-based drum instrument (Battery 4, XO).
Tip: users note that lowering the pitch and lengthening the decay takes it into deeper, less pop-sounding territory.

What producers say

The few user comments found are enthusiastic about the sound and editing, with some doubts about how far it reaches beyond 80s pop.

Loopy Pro forum (iPad version) users called it a favourite GSi app and among their top drum apps, praising its synth engine and how much can be tweaked.
Criticisms: one user wanted a dry demo to judge its range beyond the 80s pop sound, and another noted the iPad app lacked multiple outputs at the time; the desktop plugin has them.

Loopy Pro forum thread

Where to buy

GSi: $56.78 (€50 converted to USD (ECB rate, 29 Sep 2026))

Tutorials and reviews

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