BFD3

Drums are an integral part of most electronic music genres. Usually, sequencing a 4/4 drum pattern is the first thing you learn as a music producer. But as you evolve and want to diversify your sounds, you may get tired of working with the same 808 and 909 kits. Sure, there is no shortage of options when it comes to electronic drum kits, but sometimes you just need the sound of the real things.

Thankfully, there are virtual drum machines that can offer you just that, and today we’re going to take a look at a piece of software called BFD3.

FXpansion Audio created this powerful plugin by carefully recording each drum sounds in two rooms in order to provide a varied room ambiance, and also by hitting them with different types of sticks and beaters. The result is a varied palette of drum sounds which you can further tweak by changing the dynamics or by adding filters, equalizations, delays, distortions, and many other effects.

It’s safe to say that BFD3 allows you to achieve almost any drum sound you want. The composition happens in the Groove Editor section of the plugin, which is pretty much like a piano roll for drums.

Since the plugin deals with “real drums”, don’t expect to learn all its ins and outs in one go, unless you have some prior knowledge about drumming. The application is vast and brims with features, so take your time to explore and see how you can add the different sounds to your compositions.

Start with the factory presets and drum kits, and when you’re ready to move on, see if you may be interested in one of the expansions provided by the developers. For now, I can only conclude that BFD3 is a top choice for anyone looking to add realistic drum sounds to their music.