Questions on using Ezdrummer 2 as a VST on Cubase

fat-bastard

New member
I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction on this. I have Cubase version 5 (32 bit version) and am looking for a drum program. My friend has lent me a laptop with Cubase and EZ Drummer 2, and I have been playing around with that, with a view to maybe getting it myself. I wonder if anyone knows of any FAQ or video tutorial on how to use a Cubase / Ez Drummer 2 setup? I found a video on Youtube featuring Cubase and the original EZ Drummer, but that version looks quite different and the video did not have what I wanted anyway.

I like the song builder function in Ez Drummer, and the fact that you can tap to find a midi section that is near to what you like, but it is annoying that it does not allow for MIDI editing as my tapped sections are usually way off (as well as my less than precision timing, there seems to be quite a lag when tapping whether using the mouse or a MIDI keyboard, and this is true whether I use EZ Drummer standalone or within Cubase). Although I can drag the section from EzDrummer into Cubase to edit individual beats that I have tapped, this is nearly useless as it won’t let me drag the edited section back into EZ Drummer to find a match or use the song builder. Is there any way of accomplishing this, without going through some laborious export / import process? Someone suggested I look at Superior Drummer instead, but that is too expensive and more than I need, and the console does not look as friendly.

While I am on the subject is there anything I can do to sort the lag issue?

Hope someone can advise. Thanks
 
EZDrummer 2 is great. it works with cubase 5. You can download a demo version from Toontrack. The installation process will guide you through the install. If you buy it from Sweetwater, they will email you the serial number within minutes of purchase so you can get up and running.

If you build a song in the standalone version, you have to save it, then import it into Cubase. It's a bit of a pain, and mostly for that reason I don't use the song builder. I mainly use EZD in Cubase and browse through the groove files manually until I find what I'm looking for.

The lag issue is due to your interface or sound card. You'll need to provide more information.
 
Hi,

I am not worried about the installation. I am borrowing a friends laptop with Cubase and EZDrummer installed, and have been told it is not a problem to set up.

I think bascially if I want to use the song builder, I can drag and drop into Cubase easy enough to use the MIDI editor to correct mistakes, and put in / remove beats to make it funkier, and then have to export it as MIDI to reimport it into EZ Drummer's interface to carry on. Unless of course there is an easier way? I quite like EZ Drummer 2 from what I have seen so far, but I find the grooves available a little limiting and would like more editing power to make the fills etc more to my taste and to fit the song better. Any tips on this? It seems almost like it is half way between using samples and actually using a MIDI editting VST which you can program like a drum machine. I would prefer to have both functions readily available. Does Superior Drummer offer that?

My laptop is an HP OMEN Laptop PC - 15-ax002na.

Even on HP's own support site, I can't find much about the audio specs apart from it is has Bang and Olufsen speakers and offers 'Realtek High Definition Audio'. Presumably the 'soundcard' is actually a chip on the motherboard, but I am not 100% on that. I know there are external dedicated external soundcards you can use via USB, but I dont have many ports (I already have to disconnect my mouse in order to connect my Presonus Audiobox, the MIDI keyboard and the external disk which houses my data. It is a pretty decent laptop though, so I am a bit skeptical that it would not have the ability natively to play drum beats without a lag.


Any advice gratefully received.

Thanks
 
The better way to use EZD is stay within the DAW host; Cubase. No need to run it in standalone. In fact, standalone is really an add-on option to allow you to explore EZD without having to open the DAW. Open EZD from within Cubase, drag your groove files into the drum track and use the Cubase midi editor. No need to export as a midi file, just keep it all within your project in Cubase.

The realtek device is the onboard soundcard. Notoriously slow and causes the lag you are experiencing. It's not so much the processing power of your laptop as it is the soundcard and the windows audio drivers.

The presonus should afford better performance and ideally, you should not notice any lag. Use the Presonus. In Cubase, be sure to select the ASIO driver for the presonus. If it isn't available in Cubase, you need to load the driver. If you gotta unplug stuff to use the presonus, then that's what you should do.

You don't need the external drive if you configure Cubase properly. To get around the external drive, set up cubase to stream your audio to your C: drive. Keep it on the c drive until you are done with the project. Then you can move the whole project over the external drive.

Hope this helps.
 
Many thanks very much for your response.
First of all I am using EZD in Cubase, not as a standalone. My issue is that the clever thing about EZD drummer is that it can find pre-created patterns in its library that match what you tap into the program. However, after finding these segments, it would be good to be able to switch between manipulating them between the Cubase drum editor and the EZD interface. From what I have seen so far, you can drag them the track from EZD to Cubase to edit, but not back again from Cubase. Is this correct? I suspect it is, but it would be useful if there is a way around this.
Not sure how I could use the Presonus as the soundcard / driver for the MIDI keyboard, as the latter connects to the laptop via USB, and that uses its own Windows driver. It does not have a MIDI input / output to connect to the Presonus – possibly I have the wrong end of the stick though?
 
From what I have seen so far, you can drag them the track from EZD to Cubase to edit, but not back again from Cubase. Is this correct? I suspect it is, but it would be useful if there is a way around this.

That is correct. I'm not entirely certain why you would want to though?
 
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Agreed, there would be no reason to bring it back to EZD.

Though I have never used the two separately...

You can open EZD as a Instrument in Cubase, and still edit within Cubase right? Why go back to the standalone version? Maybe I missed something or maybe you are setup incorrectly.. More info. :)
 
I mean IIRC you can create user midi (that might only be superior) but I never bothered because it seemed silly to me.
 
Not exactly. I open it as an instrument and then from Cubase open the EZD console so I can use the songbuilder function. I want to drag bits into Cubase to have more scope to edit for corrections and to funk up the drum patterns to my taste, and then continue to build with the songbuilder. I suspect it would be a case of getting the nearest thing to what I want using the songbuilder in EZD, and then dragging it into Cubase to edit right at the end. Not nearly as fluid as I would like, but seems like there is no alternative.
 
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