Ghost Brushes
Ghost Brushes is a sample pack that includes a complete Logic Sampler setup (.exs file) and the accompanying samples in .wav format.
I recently came across these recordings by chance, which gave me the idea to turn them into a sample pack — so here it is.
The idea is that everything works together as a single instrument in Logic, but of course you can also just use the individual samples in other DAWs or samplers.
The sounds come from a recording project from 2003, where I sampled parts of my drum kit so I’d have extra sounds to patch the original recordings together with, if needed.
1. Preview-jazzy
2. Preview-country-train
3. Preview-chill-rock
4. Preview-riddim
5. Preview-095-funk
6. Preview-bossa
7. Preview-riverside-funk
8. Preview-lounge
9. Preview-ska-dnb
Drums & recording
Drum kit and hardware used:
Snare: Pearl 14″ x 6.5″ maple (1980s)
Toms and kick: 1987 Yamaha Recording Custom (10″, 12″, 16″ and 22″)
Cymbals: 20″ Paiste 602 ride, 18″ Zildjian Dry Crash, and 13″ Zildjian hi-hat
Microphones: Brüel &Kjær 4011
The sounds are intentionally left fairly unprocessed. This is to preserve the natural tone, but it also means you may need to cut some midrange or add compression yourself to fit it into a streamlined production.
I chose this approach to make sure there’s plenty of raw sound to work with. So it can be a good idea to dip the snare around 4 dB at 2 kHz with a gentle curve, if you prefer to soften the brushes a little.
About Sounds and midi
All MIDI files are unquantized, to preserve as much variation in the drums as possible:
Overall, I’ve kept the playing style as natural as possible. An experienced drummer might be puzzled by a few spots where more things are played at once than a single drummer could actually pull off.
This is simply the approach I’ve chosen, partly to keep the momentum up and make the drum tracks fun and full-sounding to work with.
Snare – the snare hit rarely strikes twice in a row. I’ve used 2-3 almost identically sounding hits that I alternate between (akis-brush11.wav) and (akis-brush10.wav), and occasionally a third hit (akis-brush3.wav) that strikes slightly off-center.
The same principle applies to the toms and ride cymbal sounds.
I’ve chosen NOT to use round robin — a common sampler playback method — in this case, since I want it to be transparent which sounds are being played.
Also, see the mapping overview in the manual, which you can download here on the page.
Terms of use
You are free to use the sounds to create your own music, regardless of format or size, including commercial releases. It is permitted to use the sounds as part of a musical work, soundtrack, or mix.
Restrictions:
- You may NOT copy my samples and use them in other sample packs or software.
- It is strictly forbidden to resell, distribute, or share the raw samples and .exs files.
- You may also not turn my samples into loops to sell as part of other sampling projects.
- You may not release or sell my recordings as your own, whether processed or not – unless you have processed them beyond all recognition.
Donation:
If you make a lot of money from these drum tracks, feel free to donate a reasonably sized gift, in line with your conscience.
Disclaimer
General disclaimer:
All use and installation of these .wav sound files and .exs files is entirely at the user’s own risk. Ghost Brushes (the author of this sample pack) disclaims all responsibility for any errors or risks involved in installing them on the user’s computer. Apple Logic’s standards have been followed to the letter in the creation of these files.
Under no circumstances can Ghost Brushes (the author of this sample pack) be held liable for:
• Damage to speakers or headphones resulting from high sound pressure, peaks, or feedback. Since the sounds are unprocessed, extreme caution should be exercised.
• Hearing damage caused by listening volume.
• Technical errors, system crashes, or data loss on the user’s hardware or software.
• Complaints from neighbors resulting from playback volume
Drums & hardware:
Snare: Pearl 14″ x 6.5″ maple (1980s)
Toms and kick: 1987 Yamaha Recording Custom (10″, 12″, 16″ and 22″)
Cymbals: 20″ Paiste 602 ride, 18″ Zildjian Dry Crash, and 13″ Zildjian hi-hat
Microphones: Brüel &Kjær 4011
All beats were produced in Logic Pro
