Toontrack EZX Acoustic Songwriter

The ultimate collection of drum sounds tailored for the acoustic songwriter needs a great selection of vintage-to-modern kits that can handle anything from subtle nuance to all-out power. This EZX has seven of them. It also needs a great studio. This one was captured in Nashville’s, or arguably the world’s, number-one hotspot for the buzzing songwriting scene. It, of course, also needs the absolute best in terms of mics, outboard and gear. With two top- of-the-line 48-channel API consoles, Neve pre-amps and a mic selection that includes vintage Neumann U67s, AKG D30s and Coles, this EZX gets a resolute check in that box as well. Finally, and most importantly, it needs a producer at the helm. That someone, in this case, is Dave O’Donnell; multi-award-winning engineer/producer/mixer who’s worked back to back with the absolute top tier of artists for four decades and counting. Listen to his work with the likes of James Taylor, Sheryl Crow and John Mayer and you’ll understand why he’s widely considered one of the best in the business.

We could go on to rant about the fact that legendary drum tech Artie Smith oversaw tuning, that brushes and rods were sampled on selected kits, that both of the iconic main rooms at the studio are featured or that the absolute must-haves in terms of percussion instruments also were sampled... but if you’re in the market for beautiful acoustic drums that cover the entire range from warm, mellow and earthy to absolutely hard-hitting and powerful, we think you got it by now.

This one goes out to all the storytellers and songsmiths who thoroughly and completely adore authentically acoustic-sounding drums. If kits could speak, they’d sing the tune of this EZX. Ready to make some songs?