Tonehammer has released Epic Dhol, the follow-up to Epic Toms Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Description: The Punjab Dhol is a double-sided barrel drum large and bulky to produce the preferred loud bass. The drum consists of a wooden barrel with animal hide or synthetic skin stretched over its open ends, covering them completely. These skins can be stretched or loosened with a tightening mechanism made up of either interwoven ropes, or nuts and bolts. Tightening or loosening the skins subtly alters the pitch of the drum sound. The stretched skin on one of the ends is thicker and produces a deep, low frequency (higher bass) sound and the other thinner one produces a higher frequency sound. In contemporary Punjabi music, dhols with synthetic, or plastic, treble skins are very common. You can preview Epic Dhol below:

Until 22 April, 2009, Epic Dhol is available for the introductory price of $89 USD for the 16bit/44.1kHz version (regular price $99 USD), and $99 USD for the 24bit/48kHz version (regular price $109 USD). Details:

• $89 / 16 bit / 44.1 (introduction offer / price goes $99 on 25th of April 2009)
• $99 / 24 bit / 48 (introduction offer / price goes $109 on 25th of April 2009)
• Core Dhol Drum Articulations, includes:
• Dhol Bass Drum w/ traditional Dhol stick (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Bass Drum w/ mallet (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Bass Drum w/ hands (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Bass Drum w/ fingers (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Body Rim Shot 1 (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Body Rim Shot 2 (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Snare Drum w/ traditional Dhol bamboo stick (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Snare Drum w/ mallet (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• Dhol Snare Drum w/ brushes (10 velocity layers – 10 round robin)
• 874 BPM loops w/ assorted percussion
• 80, 90, 110, 120, 130, 140 BPM
• Extensive read me install, patch and hint documentation (.pdf) (download here)
• 20 instrument patches, 2.063 samples, 1.7 GB installed, 995 MB .rar download
• Sample resolution: 44.1Khz/16Bit .wav format (optional 48Khz/24bit .wav format included)
• Format(s): Kontakt 2 and .wav
• Note: Native Instruments Kontakt 2.2.4 / 3 full stand-alone retail versions required