Handy Drums- RETRO CUSTOM

Add to Wishlist
INSTANT DOWNLOAD

$35.00

Looking for a drumset that captures the warm and punchy sound of the ’70s? Look no further than Handy Drums RETRO CUSTOM. This dry and deep-sounding virtual drumset boasts a short sustain, and dry room ambiance, with clearly defined toms that have no ringing or overtones.

 

At the center of the kit is an ultra-deep 10″ custom-made maple snare drum, which provides a dry and deep-sounding punch. The 18″ kick drum provides warmth in the low end, while the single-headed toms have napkins gaff-taped to them for that classic, pillow-like sound that was made famous in the ’70s.

 

This custom-made, one-of-a-kind beech drumset has been sampled in a retro fashion, providing that warm and cozy sound that was utilized on countless hits of yesterday by legends like Earth, Wind & Fire, Fleetwood Mac, and Bill Withers, as well as contemporary hits by artists like John Mayer.

 

The RETRO CUSTOM drumset is perfect for R&B, Old School, Disco, Dance, Pop, House, Classic Rock, or your original songs. Whether you’re a veteran producer looking to create classics or an acoustic singer/songwriter looking to inject retro lineage into your tunes, this kit is the perfect choice. And as with all GoranGrooves-sampled drumsets, the RETRO CUSTOM drumset drips with character and authenticity.

 

Don’t settle for a generic drumset when you can have the warmth and punch of the RETRO CUSTOM. Order now and take your music to the next level with this one-of-a-kind instrument.

 

This product is included in the Producer Collection plugin bundle.

Type: Virtual Instruments

Size: 786MB

Producer:

 Goran Rista

Format: VST/AU/AAX/Standalone

Genre: ACOUSTIC, DANCE, POP, ROCK, BLUES, R&B

Platform:

(Win 7+)  (MacOS 10.11+, dual binary)

When the budget is tight, but you need realistic-sounding, professional-quality drum tracks for your project, Handy Drums are here for you.

With stunning drum sound, mix-ready right out of the box, Handy Drums are the most practical, professional virtual drum instruments for your recording project.

PRE-MIXED, READY-TO-USE RETRO DRUMS

Spend time creating music instead of trying to make a usable drum sound. Achieving a great drum sound takes a significant amount of time, even when you are highly skilled for the task and have a quality drum recording, to begin with. 

 

We invested hours upon hours painstakingly editing and carefully mixing drums from multitrack recordings so you don’t have to.

 

With just the right blend of close mics, overheads, and room mics, expertly sculpted for a robust, punchy, natural-sounding drum set, it will sit right into your mix!

 

Every kit and percussion setup has a very balanced sound–not too hyped and not too dry.
RECORDING MAGAZINE

 

Brilliantly recorded, mix-ready kits.
COMPUTER MUSIC

 

Without exception, the kits sound really good; this is mix‑ready stuff with a minimum of fuss.
SOUND ON SOUND

EASY TO USE AND MANIPULATE

Laptop computer screen in the background with Handy Drums plugin on display, with a steaming cup of coffee in the foreground.

EASY TO USE AND MANIPULATE

Load the drum plugin, drop in your favorite midi drum groove, and bam!- you are ready to groove! We did the heavy lifting for you—a finished drum sound right out of the box. You are free to focus on the musical aspects of the drum track.

 

Make the tweaks using the intuitive interface.

 

Handy Drums reminds a bit of the Drummer VST baked into Apple Logic Pro. Namely, there is a similar simplicity and immediacy to the results.
RECORDING MAGAZINE

 

I could easily imagine a Handy Drums instrument making a no‑fuss sound module, whether in the studio or live.
– John Walden, SOUND ON SOUND

CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED DRUM SOUND

award icon with blurry beat buddy pedal in the background

Drum sounds behind the hit drum machine are here for your DAW!

 

Goran Rista, the producer of Handy Drums, used the same recording and production techniques he did for BeatBuddy’s original drumsets, an award-winning, best-selling drum machine.

 

The revered drum sounds that have made the BeatBuddy such a hit with live performers are now available in their expanded versions for your recording needs.

award icon with blurry beat buddy pedal in the background
Computer Music Innovation Award to Handy Drums plugins by GoranGrooves

You could cover a lot of musical ground with a carefully selected Handy Drums instrument or two.

        

SOUND ON SOUND

For those needing pro drums, quickly and painlessly
– the Handy Drums range delivers in spades.

        

COMPUTER MUSIC

A quick and reliable way to get studio-quality drums in your song.
How do they sound? In a word, fantastic!

        

RECORDING MAGAZINE

Handy Drums – Perhaps The Simplest Drum VI Around

PRODUCTION EXPERT

VERIFIED CUSTOMER REVIEWS

UNBEATABLE VALUE

UNBEATABLE VALUE

We believe that high quality should not be limited only to those with deep pockets. We priced the Handy Drums range to be affordable to anyone. These virtual drum instruments are the best value you’ll find anywhere.

 

All offer some very interesting options and, individually, they are an absolute steal given just how good they sound.
SOUND ON SOUND

3RD PARTY SAMPLERS NOT REQUIRED

You don’t need any additional sampler to load Handy Drums. They are self-contained and come with multiple powerful samplers built-in. Load them like any standard VST/AU plugin or a stand-alone app.

 

Be up and running in mere minutes.

Kontakt sampler crossed out not used
EXS24 sampler crossed out not used
HALion sampler crossed out not used
MACHFIVE Sampler crossed out

You don’t need any additional sampler to load Handy Drums. They are self-contained and come with multiple powerful samplers built-in. Load them like any standard VST/AU plugin or a stand-alone app.

 

Be up and running in mere minutes.

PERFECT COMPANIONS- HANDY GROOVES

Chill drum beats artwork depicting the great Steve Gadd on drums- 3d box

PERFECT COMPANIONS- HANDY GROOVES

Use them as they are or as a starting point for your own grooves.

 

Pair Handy Drums with one of our Handy Grooves, MIDI drum loop packages for an instant WOW. All of our midi drum loops have been produced by world-class drummer-producers and tailored to work specifically with Handy Drums plugins.

 

Handy Drums and Handy Grooves is a perfect pairing for the singer-songwriter, musician, or producer who wants to get a professional-sounding drum track up and grooving.
RECORDING MAGAZINE

 

Unless you are a dab hand at programming your own drum parts, these are a great complement to the instruments themselves.
SOUND ON SOUND

FEATURES

PRACTICAL, INTUITIVE, EASY-TO-USE INTERFACE

PRACTICAL, INTUITIVE, EASY-TO-USE INTERFACE

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

Antoine de Saint-Exupery

 

Handy Drums do not require a complicated manual to use. An elaborate design of over 50 samplers and smart algorithms power your seamless experience behind the simple user interface.

 

Access all of the essential functions intuitively.

 

Simple and immediate UI saves time.
COMPUTER MUSIC

MULTIPLE DYNAMIC LEVELS

Each drum and cymbal was sampled at multiple dynamic levels to ensure the instrument’s fullest dynamic range when played back. Handy Drums Vintage Ludwig contains up to 10 dynamic levels.

 

The samples respond accordingly with a very realistic sound and response.
RECORDING MAGAZINE

 

Throughout our tests, we never noticed any clipping or struggling to keep pace with our shifting tempo, even when aggressively swinging between extreme bpm and more leisurely paced plods.
COMPUTER MUSIC

ROUND ROBIN

ROUND ROBIN

Up to 12 samples per dynamic level

 

When a drummer strikes a drum, each subsequential stroke is ever so slightly different from the one preceding, no matter how consistently they are played. That’s why our ear can instantly tell the difference between a roll played by a real drummer and a single sample being looped.

 

Each drum and cymbal has been sampled numerous times at every dynamic level. During a playback, no sample is repeated sequentially, but a different sample is triggered.

 

This culminates in the impression of a drummer hitting each drum with minor variations each time. Something many other ‘realistic’ VIs never quite nail.
COMPUTER MUSIC

24BIT SAMPLES

icon showing 24 bit audio recording graph

All Handy Drums samples come in 24bit wav format for the ultimate resolution and sound quality.

icon showing 24 bit audio recording graph

IMMACULATELY-SAMPLED ACOUSTIC DRUMS

Earthworks microphone recording overhead O/H drums

IMMACULATELY-SAMPLED ACOUSTIC DRUMS

To achieve larger-than-life yet completely natural-sounding drums, every step of the sampling process is critical. Starting with the drum tuning, drums were carefully treated before even a single note was played. 

 

They are captured using the highest-quality mics, preamps, and converters to preserve every minute detail.

UNPARALLELED REALISM FROM VIRTUAL DRUMS

Drum set with kick drum sticking out from computer screen

“Sound so natural; you  can almost touch them.”

 

Handy Drums sound like an actual drumset being played right in front of you in a room instead of a bunch of individual drums sounding in their own isolated spaces. 

 

We achieved realism by recording the full breadth of acoustic drums and their natural ambiance, then meticulously edited and mixed them in the post-production.

 

The sound is very much like you are listening to the drums within a beautifully treated, compact studio room.
SOUND ON SOUND

Drum set with kick drum sticking out from computer screen

VARIETY OF FORMATS

windows icon
Virtual Sampled Drums Compatible with MAC OS icon
icon-M1
icon-M2
VST3 icon: Virtual Sampled Drums available in VST format icon
Audio Units icon: Virtual Sampled Drums available in Audio Units format icon
AAX format for Pro Tools, icon
64 bit DAW plugin icon
Icon for standalone apps for PC and Mac

Handy Drums are compatible with all DAWs that support virtual instrument plugins in either VST2, VST3, AU, AAX.

They are available in 64bit for both Windows and MacOS. They come in dual binary for MacOS and can be run natively on systems equipped with either Intel or Apple silicon chips.

INCLUDED DRUM ELEMENTS

kick icon

kick

snare icon

snare

hats icon

hats

tom 1 icon

tom 1

tom 2 icon

tom 2

tom 3 icon

tom 3

tom 4

tom 4

ride icon

ride

crashes icon

crashes

splashes cymbal icon

splashes

handclaps icon

claps

tambourine icon

tamb.

cowbell square icon

cowbell

shaker icon

shaker

triangle icon

triangle

Finger snaps icon

snaps

Metronome / click icon

click

For a detailed drum mapping, see GoranGrooves Standard Drum Map.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONALITIES

MIXER

MIXER

While the Handy Drums come pre-leveled between components, you still have an option to tweak and automate individual drum components to suit your mix. More kick or snare? No problem.

Adjustable Drum Mapping

Drum mapping for Handy Drums showing notes assigned to each component in sampler

Handy Drums conform to GM drum mapping wherever possible. Drop in any standard midi drum loop onto your DAW timeline to hear instant results. Easily match the mapping of Handy Drums to any custom midi drum loop.

Drum mapping for Handy Drums showing notes assigned to each component in sampler

MULTIPLE OUTPUTS

MULTIPLE OUTPUTS

Use your favorite compression, reverb, EQ, distortion, or other FX plugins to further manipulate Handy Drums’ individual components. Output each drum components to any of the available eight stereo subgroups and independently process them.

Variable Hi-hats

Variable Hi Hats- What Are They And How To Utilize Them Within Handy Drums?

An acoustic hi-hat is a complex instrument in its own right. Handy Drums’s variable hi-hats utilize the full range of sampled hats from tightly closed to closed, 25% open, 50% open, 75% open, and 100% open, for both tip and edge sounds. 

 

Despite these 12 types of articulations, multiple dynamic ranges, and round robins, you can seamlessly switch from one to another using only TWO notes and a CC4 controller.

 

This approach streamlines something that was previously more of a time sink of assigning notes to each articulation.
COMPUTER MUSIC

 

…the hi‑hat mapping is nicely done, providing plenty of control over the degree of closed/open status of the cymbals.
SOUND ON SOUND

 

The variable Hi-hats alone contain over 700 samples!

 

In addition to variable hats, standard open/close/foot hats are also included for better compatibility with GM drum loops. As a bonus, included is foot splash hi-hat articulation on B1.

Variable Hi Hats- What Are They And How To Utilize Them Within Handy Drums?

ADJUSTABLE CC4 CURVE (VARIABLE HATS FOOT CONTROLLER)

ADJUSTABLE CC4 CURVE (VARIABLE HATS FOOT CONTROLLER)

For e-drummers who want to use Handy Drums, you can adjust your hi-hat foot controller curve. The curve is particularly beneficial for drum modules that do not output the full value range from 1-127.

Bonus Percussion

For better compatibility with the rest of our drum plugin range, and to make your rhythm tracks funkier, the Retro Custom drumset comes with several bonus percussion instruments.

 

The following instruments are included with their dedicated mixer tab:

Handclaps, fingersnaps, tambourine, cowbell, shaker, triangle, and metronome sounds.

Audition Buttons

AUDITION BUTTONS

Quickly preview the sounds of the drumset by clicking on the icons. They will play at random velocities.

Resizable GUI

Handy Drums Retro Custom drum plugin can be scaled to fit different screen sizes. This graphic demonstrates that.

Make the high-definition interface as large or as small as you need to suit your computer monitor best.

Handy Drums Retro Custom drum plugin can be scaled to fit different screen sizes. This graphic demonstrates that.

PERFECT FOR DRUM REPLACEMENT

Graphic demonstrating how Handy Drums Retro Custom plugin is a great choice for drum replacement, by first converting audio to midi, then running it through the plugin.

PERFECT FOR DRUM REPLACEMENT

In a perfect world, there would be no need for drum replacements. Unfortunately, as producers or sound mixers, we are sometimes handed drum recordings of substandard quality, so to rescue the mix, drum replacement becomes essential.

 

This sampled drum instrument makes for an ideal drum replacement contender. If your DAW can extract transients from an audio recording, it is a simple task to create a MIDI track from it and rout it to Handy Drums instrument. Instant punch and presence!

 

Alternatively, you can use a dedicated drum replacement tool such as appTrigga3.

MEET THE DRUMMER PRODUCER- GORAN RISTA

Meet the drummer producer Goran Rista

Goran Rista is a professional session drummer and producer based out of Miami, FL, and founder of GoranGrooves.com.

 

He has produced over 25 virtual drum instruments, and over 13,000 midi drum beats and drum fills, making him one of the world’s most prolific drum loop producers.

 

Goran’s drum set libraries and drum loops are used by over 85,000 musicians and producers in both live and recording settings.

 

Read more here.

Meet the drummer producer Goran Rista

Ready to get grooving?

$35.00