GSi Drum-80 is a drum Synthesizer plugin (mac, win, iOS) that emulates the legendary Simmons SDS-V drum module.

The first true electronic replacement for acoustic drums was the iconic Simmons SDS-V from the early 80s. This consists of a drum Synthesizer engine with a very recognizable sound to this day. Fans of the 80s or synth wave music especially love these cheesy drum sounds.

Nowadays, we like to use samples to bring the sounds into modern music productions. There are also some very authentic emulations for the DAW. A new one is now available from GSi. And it’s not just available for your computer but also for mobile musicians.

GSi Drum-80

Drum-80 is a hybrid drum Synthesizer plugin that replicates one of the most used drum sets of the early 80′, says the developer. More precisely, it emulates the legendary Simmons SDS-V drum Synthesizer module.

The core consists of a polyphonic hybrid setup. It comes with a virtual analog engine part that emulates the SDS-V drum module. For each instrument, there are set of different controls, including sensitivity, filter, pitch, bend, decay, balance, click, and more. The percussion module goes deeper with FM controls (frequency, amount).

On the other side, you have a separate section for the sample-based cymbal engine that is based on the propriety GSi WLF engine. It has different sampled cymbal sounds (hi-hat, ride, 4 crashes, and 3 splashes) built-in.

For further shaping, the Drum-80 plugin also comes with a delay, reverb, and an 1176-style limiter, all in stereo. The developer promises that it’s very low on CPU and RAM usage.

iPad Version With AUv3

If you prefer to make music on an iPad, the Drum-80 drum Synthesizer is also available as an iPad-only app on iOS. It also comes with an AUv3 plugin version, which allows you to use multiple instances of the app.

GSi Drum-80 is available now for 50€ (+VAT) as a VST, VST3, AU plugin, and standalone version for macOS and Windows. The iOS version (iPad only) is available for $14,99 USD and has AUv3 support.