8-Bit Drum Kits 3

The DPCM channel of the NES sound chip was the only channel capable of playing back sampled audio. Although many people associate its sound with “8-bit” sampling, the actual playback resolution was just 1-bit, which greatly reduced the detail and fidelity of any sample played through it. This channel was mostly intended for sound effects, but composers quickly realized its potential for drums and percussion, as short percussive samples required less memory and could be sequenced efficiently within the constraints of game soundtracks. As game audio design evolved, DPCM drum samples became more common in later NES games, expanding beyond purely synthesized drum sounds. Many of these 8-bit drum samples originated from recordings of classic drum machines of the time, such as the Roland TR-808 and TR-909, while others were sampled from acoustic drums or even everyday objects transformed into percussion sounds.

Because NES cartridge space was extremely limited, sound designers developed clever techniques to conserve memory. One common method was to pitch a drum sample upward before storing it, drastically shortening its duration, and then play it back at a lower pitch during runtime to restore its length. This approach allowed for longer, more natural-sounding drum hits while using only a fraction of the memory. Another widely used technique was to layer a short, low-frequency DPCM sample with synthesized noise to create a fuller and more expressive drum sound. The DPCM sample provided the tonal body, while the noise layer contributed attack, sustain, and additional brightness, and was an especially effective combination for snare drums.

8-Bit Drum Kits 3 reproduces all of these techniques, offering a diverse range of DPCM sample drum kits. Each kit includes both pure DPCM drum samples and layered versions that combine DPCM sounds with synthesized noise, creating fuller, more dynamic drum hits. Additionally, each kit includes closed and open hi-hats, as well as crash cymbals, all created entirely using synthesized noise.

All drum kits in this pack follow a consistent drum mapping for seamless playability. Each kit contains at least three kick drums, three snare drums, four toms or percussion sounds, closed and open hi-hats, a crash cymbal, and additional 8-bit drum sounds, forming a complete 16-sample drum kit. The mappings in most formats are optimized for 16-pad controllers, while the Ableton Live kits adhere to General MIDI drum mapping for compatibility with Ableton’s native drum instruments.

Drum kit formatting provided by Uppercussion.

Instrument Patches:

• 109 8-Bit Drum Kit Patches

Sample List:

• 342 Kick Drums
• 435 Snare Drums
• 253 Closed Hi-hats
• 169 Open Hi-hats
• 396 Toms
• 109 Crash Cymbals
• 40 Percussion

Instrument Formats & Required Software:

• Maschine Expansion Pack (.mxsnd), Maschine 2+
• Ableton Live Pack (.adv), Live 9+
• FL Studio FPC Patches (.fst), FL Studio 20+
• MPC Expansion Pack (.xpn), MPC Software or MPC Beats
• Battery Kit Patches (.kt3 & .nbkt), Battery 3+
• Kontakt Library (Kontakt Instruments, .nki), Kontakt 4+
• EXS24/Sampler Instrument Patches (.exs), Logic Pro 9+
• TAL Instrument Patches (.talsmpl), TAL Sampler 3+
• Single WAV files (.wav), usable in any DAW or audio software