Line 6 FBV Express mk.ii
Soundware round-up
Loopmasters DOWNLOAD
Contact info@loopmasters.com
Web www.loopmasters.com
Format Acidized WAV, REX2, Reason
ReFill, Live, Apple Loops, Halion, Kontakt,
EXS, SFZ, Stylus RMX, Live Presets, NNXT
Hailing from Russia, Bop is an ice-cool
producer focused on minimal and all its
branches. Turning his attention to DnB, the result is a sparse but tight
collection of samples. There are 216 loops and 480 WAV samples and
‘cool’ is deinitely the word that comes to mind – atmospheric pads,
glitch loops and ‘tech chords’ accompany the usual one-shots and
loops. Bop has done a great job of combining textbook DnB samples
with creative ‘sound-designed’ hits that still feel at home in the genre.
Vengeance DOWNLOAD
Contact via website
Web www.vengeance-sound.com
Format WAV
Reviewing a Vengeance sample pack is like a blurry trip down
memory lane. Whether it’s because their sounds are used
so much in commercial tracks or simply because they’re so
‘production ready’, each sample and loop sounds like part of a
tune you know and love. Essential House vol.3 packs in over 2400
samples, loops (at 128bpm) and multisampled kits. Kicks, snares,
percussion, claps, FX, basses, synths and more are all catered for –
just about everything you need for a full track.
The Special Sounds folder is full of what sound like chops and
samples from famous tracks, warped and efected almost beyond
recognition – something you’ll either love or raise an eyebrow
at! Either way, if you can’t ind anything useable in this bundle to
ill out your club tracks, you might want to stick to your day job.
To paraphrase a famous producer, “Everyone uses Vengeance
samples – why do you think every house track is 128bpm?”
Sounds/To/Sample DOWNLOAD
Contact via website
Web www.soundstosample.com
Format WAV
Using standard vocal samples can
sometimes sound cheesy, plunging your
track into by-the-book banality. Sounds/
To/Sample are clearly aware of this and so have created some very
unique content here, covering vocoded phrases, all glitched up and
processed to bits. Think Boys Noize-style Speak & Spell outpourings
crossed with Claude VonStroke pops and splurts and you’re almost
there. There are over 150 samples, at 125 or 128bpm, and all are
perfect for the club. We wish the sounds were labelled by key, too,
but nevertheless, this is a cool, creative pack at a decent price.
Prime Loops DOWNLOAD
Contact via website
Web www.primeloops.com
Format WAV, Apple Loops, Acid Loops,
FL Studio, Reason ReFill, Ableton Live Pack,
Garageband, Roland Fantom-X, MC909,
MV8000, MV8800, Stylus RMX
Dubstep Nation should be a one-stop shop
for fans of the genre, with over 200 loops, in
excess of 200 one-shots and more than 130 sampler patches. And it
kind of is, with the Dubstep Breaks folder being particularly ine. It’s
full of weighty, hard-hitting, sub-heavy loops that will give you more
than a head start, though with only 55, we would have liked a few
more to choose from. The one-shots and wobbly bass loops are tamer,
though still good and authentic. Overall, it’s all usable enough and, for
the price, it just about hits the mark.
Producer Loops DOWNLOAD
Contact Producer Loops, 0845 0943077
Web www.producerloops.com
Format ACID Loops, WAV, Apple Loops,
MIDI, Reason ReFill, REX2
This pack ofers up drum and synth samples,
with over 550 loops and about 300 one-
shots. The Break Loops and Drum Loops
samples are the main event here, sounding
like the intro to a Pendulum track. Some are more retro, with a
warped, cut-up feel. Usefully, there are also kick-and-snare-only
loops. The one-shots are a little disappointing, with many of
the kicks and snares being quite similar, while the synths section
relies heavily on hard-edged sounds and grinding distortion. It’s
not a must-have, but you get plenty of solid bang for your buck.
116 / / August 2010
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CMU154.rev_mini 116 11/6/10 12:07:24 pm