FXpansion has announced the release of BFD Heavy, a BFD2 expansion pack containing a pair of immaculately recorded Yamaha birch drumkits, supplied with a set of presets perfect for heavy rock, metal and other styles that require powerful, weighty drums.

Features:

• 3 Kicks played with felt and wood beaters.
• 9 Toms played with sticks and mallets.
• Bonus snare with strainer on and off, played with sticks and mallets.

The Recording Custom is the kit that signalled Yamaha's arrival as one of the dominant forces in the world of drumming. This all-time classic birch kit comprises 2 powerful kicks, played with felt and wood beaters, alongside 4 toms featuring superb attack and sustain, and played with sticks. The Birch Custom Absolute, meanwhile, is the culmination of Yamaha's 25 years of experience in crafting birch shells. Offering a great alternative to maple, birch shells feature excellent mid and low end, with a sharp and vibrant attack. The 5 toms are played with sticks and mallets, while the kick is provided in wood and felt beater versions.

A bonus 'lite' Yamaha Jimmy Chamberlin signature snare is provided to complement the kits. This steel-shell snare is provided in 4 versions played with sticks and mallets, with the snare strainer on and off. Full-detail versions of this snare are available in the Yamaha Signature Snares vol.2 expansion pack.

BFD Heavy's expressive articulations include rim shots and rim clicks on the Birch Custom Absolute toms, while the bonus snare kit-pieces feature half-edge samples for expressive programming and electronic drums positional sensing support.

The recording sessions took place at Omega Studios in Maryland, USA, using premium mics and preamps by Neumann, ATI, Neve, API and Violet, amongst others. Recording conditions were identical to those for other Yamaha-based downloadable expansions and the BFD Jazz & Funk, Percussion, B.O.M.B. and JEX libraries. BFD Heavy is also designed to sound great with BFD2's built-in sounds as well as with BFD-compatible libraries recorded in other locations.

What's included

This download-only BFD v2.1 expansion kit includes the following kit-pieces:

• Recording Custom 10"x10" Power Tom.
• Recording Custom 10"x12" Power Tom.
• Recording Custom 16"x16" Floor Tom.
• Recording Custom 16"x18" Floor Tom.
• Recording Custom 18"x22" Kick Drum.
• Recording Custom 18"x24" Kick Drum.

Toms played with sticks, kicks played with felt and wood beaters. Featuring Remo heads (Toms - Clear Pinstripe / Kick - Powerstroke 3).

• Birch Custom Absolute 8"x8" Tom.
• Birch Custom Absolute 9"x10" Tom.
• Birch Custom Absolute 10"x12" Tom.
• Birch Custom Absolute 14"x14" Floor Tom.
• Birch Custom Absolute 16"x16" Floor Tom.
• Birch Custom Absolute 18"x22" Kick Drum.

Toms played with sticks and mallets, kick played with felt and wood beaters. Featuring Remo heads (Toms - Coated Ambassador / Kick - Renaissance Powerstroke 3).

Bonus snare in 4 versions:

• Jimmy Chamberlin signature steel 5.5"x14" Snare (Sticks, Strainer on).
• Jimmy Chamberlin signature steel 5.5"x14" Snare (Sticks, Strainer off).
• Jimmy Chamberlin signature steel 5.5"x14" Snare (Mallets, Strainer on).
• Jimmy Chamberlin signature steel 5.5"x14" Snare (Mallets, Strainer off).

Equipment used for the recordings:

• Kick In - Shure Beta 52 / API 3124 preamp.
• Kick Out - Neumann FET 47 / API 3124 preamp.
• Kick Resonant - Yamaha Sub Kick / Neve VR console channel preamp.
• Snare Top - Shure Beta 57A / API 3124 preamp.
• Snare Bottom - EV N/D457 / API 3124 preamp.
• Snare Side - Violet Design Flamingo Jr. / ATI 8MX2 preamp.
• Toms - Violet Design Globe / ATI 8MX2 preamp.
• Overhead - Matched pairs of Neumann KM184s or Violet Design Black Knight mics / ATI 8MX2 preamps.
• Room - Violet Design Globe with prototype omni capsules / Focusrite Red preamps.
• Amb3 - Nevaton MC404 stereo mic placed in the center of the room / Metric Halo ULN2 preamps.

Pricing & Availability

BFD Heavy is a download only product and is available now for £35 / €49 / $70 for all registered BFD2 owners.