In 1938, Avedis Zildjian told his grandfather: "All we are doing is following the music." For centuries now, the Avedis Zildjian company is able to interpret this in their acoustic products. However, markets change rapidly in this digital age. With Gen16, the Zildjian company takes spectacular digital steps setting a new level in the cymbal market. Gen16 sets a new age in cymbal production, introduced by the oldest and biggest cymbal making company in the world, named after the newest and 16th born generation: Amelia Zildjian.Let us start with the products that have NAMM videos...
AE (Acoustic Electric) Cymbals
The AE Cymbal is a completely new twist that uses established technology to create essentially a completely new instrument. The Acoustic Electric Cymbal is capable of creating a wide range of sounds, from that of a classic Zildjian cymbal to some very non-traditional sounds.
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AE (Acoustic Electric) Drum Rack
The new AE Drum Rack is a new patented design that has some very useful new features topping the regular drum racks that are in the market now. Including an integrated cable management system that will make every drummer happy.
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The Digital Vault
Sadly enough Drummerszone.com did not yet have the opportunity to test the Digital Vault. But we did get to hear the sounds and what you can do with it in whatever musical setting you want to use it. You will need quite some storage space to install this software and the different packages. But once installed, you have some of the best authentic, high-resolution acoustic cymbal sounds at your disposal. These samples are probably of the highest level in the market now.
Also included in the Digital Vault are full libraries of drum and percussion groove tracks from some of the industry’s most in-demand drummers, including Michael White, Dave DiCenso and Peter Michael Escovedo.
Current Digital Vault products include the Z-Pack, a selection of A-Series and A-Custom Crashes, Rides and HiHats; the S-Pack Volume 1, offering K-Series Crashes, Rides, HiHats and Prototypes; and the S-Pack Volume 2, offering Gong Sheets, Chinas, Rides, HiHats and Trashformers.
The Gen16 Groove Player app
Naturally, not all is as good as it sounds with new introductions. For instance, there is The Gen16 Groove Player app for iPhone and iPad. It works well and has access to the Gen16 Groove Tracks website. However, recording with it and tuning separate levels with your finger tips in the app feels like you're trying to record an album on a Nintendo DS.
The Groove Player is a sweet app, but without being able to record the separate drums on separate tracks to get a tight groove, there is no way this app will be useful besides playing files and showing it off to others that didn't download it yet. For now, it is as well another promising feature in the Gen16 series. We do have to remember, where the app is just another program for phones instead of computers, these new applications demand continuing development performing in regular improved updates and new functionalities.
The Gen16 Groove Tracks Webstore
The Gen16 Groove Tracks Webstore, www.gen16grooves.com, gives you fast and easy access to downloads of thousands of multiformat beats, drum grooves and fills played by hundreds of drummers and percussionists. You are able to search for beats by musical style, beats per minute, genre or artist. You can audition beats using any of several drum set configurations, including Rock, Funk and Jazz kits and sample and add new beats to your existing music library.
Beats will be added regularly, and you can sign up to receive automatic announcements about new beats, special deals and related promotions from other Gen16 partners. On gen16grooves.com you can purchase single grooves or reduced-price bundles.
Some of the artists contributing to the Groove Tracks Store are:
Gen16 Web Links
