Cymbals are incredibly powerful in music. For hits, for accents, for layering, for build-ups and transitions and so on. Do you have a go-to favorite cymbal library for your music compositions? Well, I actually did not. I simply used full drum kits and used the cymbal in there. No more of that for me! =)
Because Suspended Cymbals by Wavesfactory has quickly become my new favorite instrument for cymbals in basically any style of music. Learn more about Suspended Cymbals here. Get a full overview and specifications, listen to audio demos etc.
THE OVERVIEW
What is Suspended Cymbals? Well, this is a library that is 100% focused on cymbals. And that is its main strength, what I love about it. Because this focus makes it so much more effective, simple and fast to use when you compose music.
Suspended Cymbals features 5 crash cymbals sampled with 5 articulation including sustains, bell, edge, mod-wheel controlled rolls and effects. With 3 microphone positions and lots of features this library is the only one you’ll ever need for creating realistic cymbal tracks.
The control over the dynamics and rolls using the MOD-wheel is super inspiring. And of course if you use this well, it can really make your transitions and energy dynamics in your music shine.
DEMO VIDEO
THE SOUND
The sound of Suspended Cymbals is open and airy. And you can really feel the authentic sound, if that makes sense. But you also have a lot of control, like mixing mic positions for close, mid and far. It comes with a built in convolution reverb, and EQ, and envelope settings. And it even has a settings page with lots of advanced customizations you can make.
Even though you have lots of options to shape the sound, I find that the instant playability is there with this instrument. And that is something I find very important when composing music, so I can focus on writing music, not dialing in settings.
MY 3 FAVORITE THINGS
- The User Interface
It is simple and efficient. Instead of clutter, you get focus here. And I personally really like the look of it. - The Key Mappings
This might seem like a minor thing, but I actually love when the developer put some thought into the mapping of each key. - The Instant Playability
The amount of control over the dynamics is amazing. And more importantly the sound of rolls and dynamic variation you create in a performance truly shines in my opinion. And you can dive right in and get a great sound, which is what I look for in any instrument.
MY CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK
- I would love to have an extra page to draw in the rolls synced to project tempo in a “step-sequencer style”. Just as an option to DAW sequencer automation.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Suspended Cymbals has instantly found its place in my DAW Master Template which I use as a start for all my new music compositions. Mainly because it is such fast and easy to work with, has instant playability, and great sound without having to tweak (even if you can).
LEARN MORE
Learn more about Suspended Cymbals here. Get a full overview and specifications, listen to audio demos etc.