Critical Mass by AskAudio
Critical Mass is an extremely competitively priced drum bank featuring a large supply of kicks, snares, hi-hats and cymbals. The Macros in Critical Mass are intelligently thought out and really go far in giving you not just a bunch of sounds, but an intelligent drum-builder' style set that you could use for a long time. Hi-hats, like Hat Zinc let you customize the Click Color (the simulated tap of the drum stick, as it hits the cymbal), the Length of the hi-hat, Reverb mix, and several other intelligent adjustments that you would hope for.
Out of all of the drums included in Critical Mass, I'd have to say that the 25 kicks are the highlight of the package. They are big, they punch through, but they also sit well. Dialling the kicks in is no problem, either. Again, the intelligent macro assignments set up by the sounds designers at ModeAudio. If you're doing any genre of EDM, I would highly encourage spending some time with the kick patches, in general. They offer some amazing depth and polish.
As in most drum patch banks, the cymbals are the smallest in actual patch count. However, don't underestimate their sound, or what they bring to the table. ModeAudio have succeeded in creating a small suite of very unique hi-hats, rides and crashes that fit in well for dubstep, house, hip-hop and jungle, with no problem.
Price: $20
Pros: A decent sized drum library that delivers on big sound at a highly competitive price.
Cons: The snares included are a little weak, at times.
Conclusion: If drums are lacking in your life, this would be a good investment.
[Abridged version of the original review]
