DrumComputer

I consider this one of Sugar Bytes' rare misfires. DrumComputer COULD be useful but the unnecessary time-consuming hoops you have to jump through to get a satisfying sound will have you quickly reaching for your handier Playbeat or Triaz machine. Firstly, Western music scales from A to G. When you attempt drum mapping with DrumComputer, some of the patches are mapped to H. Huh? Did I mention that mapping sounds is like pulling teeth? Would it kill Sugar Bytes to use standard mapping for their eight pads? To wit: When you pull up the first kit, SB Analog Kit, the kick is mapped from F3 to F#3, the snare on G3, and the high hat on E7, a note that doesn't even exist on an 88-note controller! If you then slide the kit down so that the kick is triggered by C1, you notice the high hat is then mapped to H4. Where the hell is H4? That doesn't even exist.

Another weak point is the sound collection itself. The kicks are mushy, a lot of sounds are unpredictable in their variance, and for whatever reason, a lot of drum sounds are always pulled up flamming. You have to remember to turn that off. The snares also leave a lot to be desired. One plus is DrumComputer now allows import of wave files. That's definitely handy. The modulation matrix and sequencer isn't bad, either. Neither are the effects, but I suspect producers will just record the drums dry and add effects later. If Sugar Bytes fixes DrumComputer's ghastly mapping system and sound engine, I believe they'll have a winner.