This release was his first bank for Dune, and it consists of 128 presets. Among these, you`ll find 24 arps, 5 textures, 22 basses, 24 leads, 20 pads, 7 drums and 18 plucks. The presets are grouped by category so they are easy to locate. I especially like that each preset comes with specific comments that mention ways to use the current patch or to modify it to get different sounds. I always appreciate those extra touches by sound designers. With Dune, modulation is the key and each of the presets here explores the modulation possibilities. As you would expect, velocity control is widely used, and the mod wheel is mapped on every preset. However, it isn`t simply mapped to the cutoff frequency on every preset. For many of the patches, the mod wheel gives you extra control over such parameters as the FM amount, the FAT control, properties of the envelope, oscillator balance, and the LFO properties. There is incredible attention to detail in the mod matrices of the patches which make the patches feel fresh and alive.

The Arp category is quite varied, and you`ll find use of the arpeggiator not only for notes, but also for chords and modulation. There`s a nice focus on rhythm in these patches, and my favorite ones of the group were "Train of Thought" and "Tunnels" which had driving rhythms that really brought to mind the motion of a train. The Bass category is one of the most varied of the whole set. You`ll find well-programmed punchy basses, FM styled basses, vintage-type synth basses and dancefloor-ready sustained basses in this category. In other words, there are good basses there for pretty much everyone. The Chord, Drum, FX and Key categories are small, but each patch in them is definitely useable. "Glaciers" (in the Keys categoty) is one of my favorites. It´s an electronic piano sound with a sweeping pad that gradually enters into the picture. The LFOs in the mod matrix are well-used in "Glaciers".

The last four categories are Leads, Pads, Plucks, and Textures. The leads are quite varied with most being ready for an upbeat dance track, However, you`ll also find a few vintage sounding leads as well, with "Econosphere" being my favorite. Once again, there are lots of useful patches here. Now, when i think of Dune, i think of lush pads... as it gives users the ability to modulate and fine tune the (up to) eight different voices of the unisio engine. So, in other words, my hopes were high leading into that category. Fortunaley, I was not disappointed as Tundra is full of lush, evolving, and beautiful pads. The mod matrix is definitely used to best effect in these pad patches. The bank finishes with a nice collection of plucks and a few evolving athmosphere patches in the Texture section.

My recommendation: Tundra (Vol.1) is another excellent bank from Aiyn Zahev. There is a great attention to detail evident in these patches, and the presets are top-notch. At its$20 price tag, it`s a bargain and a must-buy for Dune owners.