Using a midi drum kit to trigger .wav sounds

Question

I've got a midi drum kit (Alesis Nitro), and the sounds on it are less than satisfactory. So I've looked into using something like EZ Drummer, or Superior drummer, but since I'm pretty new to all this, I'm not ready to make a few hundred dollar commitment.

I've got a file full of .wav samples of an acoustic kit that I like. How can I set up my midi kit (plugged into my pc) to trigger these samples? My midi kit doesn't support importing samples/other kits so that's out of the question.

There are plenty of VSTs out there that will allow a midi keyboard to trigger a single .wav file across the keyboard, but I'm looking for something that will allow me to bring multiple .wav files and assign them across the keyboard as I please. And if possible, multiple per key.

Is this something I can find out there? Or am I asking too much?

Answer 1

The tool you are looking for is known as a 'sampler'. I work primarily on Mac, so don't have any particular suggestions in terms of manufacturer for PC applications, but there are definitely a lot out there. Samplers will allow you to edit and trim your samples, and assign them to groups/zones and eventually midi triggers.

Answer 2

I'd really have said EZ Drummer would be a great start point - Superior is probably too complex to start with, though I couldn't recommend it highly enough at pro level - however I can see the hesitance to spend so much on something at the outset.

One thought would be maybe try the Native Instruments 'Kontakt' series - which is essentially one home for many plugins - samplers, synths, fx etc.

They now have what looks like a pretty comprehensive free version, which does include ready-made drum kits - Komplete Start
I've never tried the free version, so I don't know how comprehensive the editing is or whether you can design your own drum kit within it...

...but for free, I'm sure it would be worth a shot.