Drumstrip
by Solid State Logic · Channel Strip · Drum channel strip
Not rated yet
A drum processing strip that combines a transient shaper, gate, high and low frequency enhancers and the SSL Listen Mic Compressor.
The processing order is adjustable, and the transient shaper can be auditioned on its own.
Best for: Drums, Drum Bus. Genres: all genres.
Keywords: drums, enhancement, metering, bright, bus processing, classic, drum bus, heavy, kick, mixing, parallel processing, repair, room mics, snare.
What it does
Drumstrip is SSL's drum channel strip: five processors chosen for drums, which SSL says take drum sounds "from ordinary and average to vibrant and exhilarating" in a few steps.
- Transient shaper: shapes attack and sustain, with a Transient Invert option and an Audition mode to hear only its effect.
- Gate: a dedicated drum gate with range and independent open and close thresholds for reducing spill.
- Enhancers: separate high frequency and low frequency enhancers to restore brightness and weight.
- Listen Mic Compressor: SSL's classic band-limited talkback compressor, with a bypass to switch it to full-range compression.
- Order and metering: adjustable processor order plus input/output metering with RMS meters.
The current version is 6.8.2.
Source: Solid State Logic product page
When to use it
Drumstrip bundles several drum tools in one window, unlike oeksound spiff and XLN Audio DS-10 Drum Shaper, which focus on transient shaping alone, or SSL's own X-Gate, a standalone gate. Choose Drumstrip when you want gate, transient, enhancers and the Listen Mic Compressor together on each drum track.
- Best for: kick, snare and tom tracks, and parallel-crushed room mics.
- Genres: rock, pop, hip-hop and any style with recorded drums.
- Look elsewhere if: you only need a transient shaper, or want an EQ inside the strip.
- Standout: the Listen Mic Compressor with full-range bypass, next to a gate and transient shaper.
What producers say
Sweetwater buyers rate it highly, especially the transient shaper and gate.
- Sweetwater users (2021): all five reviews gave 5/5; one said it "makes the transients pop and the gate is amazing," another called the gate "the best I've ever used."
- Sweetwater user (2021): found a good overall drum sound "a snap" and compared it to "a simplified poor man's Drumagog."
Where to buy
- Best Service: $99
- Solid State Logic: $99
- Sweetwater: $99
- AudioDeluxe: $99
Tutorials and reviews
- The Unbelievable SSL Drumstrip Plugin
- SSL Native DrumStrip Plugin Demo | VST Plugins
- Solid State Logic Native Drumstrip plugin sound test
- SSL Native Drumstrip
- SSL Native Drumstrip - Audio Examples
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