Waves InTrigger: Drum replacement is Finally Smart and Simple For Everyone!
Is This the New Standard For Drum Editing?
InTrigger from Waves could be the tool many musicians and producers have been waiting for in the studio and on stage. While classic drum replacers often struggle with ghost notes or crosstalk, this plugin takes a different approach. Rather than spending hours on editing and tedious threshold adjustments, InTrigger features an intelligent learning mode that automatically recognizes and processes musical nuances. Its AI-powered sample browser, humanize function, and latency-free live version make it even more exciting—a combination no other manufacturer has offered to date.
InTrigger by Waves: When AI Understands Drums Better
The desire for better drum sounds accompanies many musicians and producers through every session. Anyone who has tried replacing snares, kicks, or toms in a real song with a plugin knows the pitfalls all too well. What works well with a clear, on-beat loop often results in tedious post-processing or sounds digitally sterile due to ghost notes, uneven dynamics, and microphone crosstalk. This is exactly where the new InTrigger plugin from Waves comes in. It claims to redefine drum replacement by being more intelligent, musical, and practical. That sounds exciting!
InTrigger’s approach seems too simple: click “Learn,” select a suitable sample, and the plugin should understand where each sample belongs. However, there’s more to this workflow than just automation. The plugin analyzes levels and recognizes ghost notes, distinguishing clean hits from bleed. Onset gate technology helps filter out unwanted background noise without sacrificing details of the performance. Subsequent editing takes place directly in the plugin and includes a sample finder, an internal sample engine, and the ability to combine up to eight layers per beat.
InTrigger Brings a Human Touch to Drum Replacement
One exciting feature is the Humanize control, which ensures that no two hits sound exactly alike, even if they use the same one-shot. Small variations in dynamics, attack behavior, and timing give the performance a naturalness lacking in many conventional solutions.
This musically tangible expressiveness really shines when you want to maintain a real groove, such as in complex breakbeats or hand-played acoustic arrangements. Furthermore, COSMOS, Waves’ AI-powered sample browser, lets you quickly find suitable sounds from your library and preview them in the context of your session.
Live Use Without Latency
InTrigger is particularly exciting for live applications. In addition to the studio version, Waves offers a second version: InTrigger Live. It is specially designed for stage use and allows you to exchange or layer drums in real time without any additional hardware setup or latency.
Although this version lacks the Learn function and COSMOS integration, it provides manual control and stability in critical live situations. In combination with eMotion LV1 or SuperRack, it opens up a whole new world of creative and sonic fine-tuning on stage.
One More Thing – But Only For a Limited Time!
To celebrate the launch of the plugin, Waves is offering an extra incentive to anyone who wants to try out the concept: Yurt Rock’s drum sample library, “The Revival,” is available free of charge until August 13. It includes over 10,000 kick and snare samples that are perfectly matched to InTrigger.
If you’re looking for a drum replacement solution that delivers in the studio and on stage and takes musical timing seriously, you should take a closer look at this tool. What sets InTrigger apart is not only its technology but also its ability to bring humanity to drumming, even when the sample is replaced.
Prices and Specifications
Waves InTrigger is available here at Thomann* for $47.00 / £42.00 / €49.00.


The plugin runs on macOS 13 or higher (including Apple Silicon support) and Windows 10 or higher as AAX, AU, and VST3. You need a Waves account to install and authorize the plugin.
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