The products of Resonance Sound, Sounds of Revolution, CFA-Sound aswell as of our distributed labels have received critically acclaimed press reviews, from both national and international music magazines, press, blogs and comunities – such as: Future Music, Music Tech, Sound on Sound, Computer Music, DJ Mag, Ask Audio, Attack Magazine, BEAT, Sound & Recording, Keys, Bonedo, Sound and Gear, Rekkerd and many others.

FUTURE MUSIC
MAGAZINE UK

Black Octopus – Basement Freaks Funk Legends
The 809 MB of content is fit to bursting with killer live recordings of Funk staples like brass stabs and loops, flute, wah-wah guitar, clavinets and Moog bass. Percussion and drums are also taken care of with three full construction kits, and a lively collection of maracas, congas and shakers up for consideration. Rating: 8/10

Swen Weber – Electromatic
Big, exciting and bang on the money. Super tight and funky this pack brings together 220 edgy but super-usable loops that sway from the nasty lead/bass to Euro Trancy stabs and riffs. Rating: 9/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
Reviewers favourite Olli Schmitt and his Sound of Revolution label return with volume two of Kick Free Revolution, 600+ loops of tight tops at 127bpm. […] it looks like Mr Schmitt has produced another gem. Rating: 9/10

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
The quality’s absolutely top notch and the slick, professional sound of the samples can’t be faulted.
Rating: 9/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
[…] suitable for producers of just about any kind of House or Techno […] fantastically versatile sounds… Rating: 9/10

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
…no stone has been left unturned in Schmitt’s hunt for the best Electro House sounds. […] this disc has plenty of quality sounds. Rating: 10/10

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
One of its unique selling points is the inclusion of kick-free drum loops, a feature we’d like to see n more sample packs.

MUSIC TECH MAGAZINE UK

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
…with its enormous sample library, intuitive but extensive parameters and effects, and 800 tagged presets, it’s a bass drum design powerhouse, and hours are easily lost blending and tweaking the four layers in the quest for the perfect kick.
Verdict: There’s quite possibly no conceivable kick drum sound for electronic music that PunchBox couldn’t create!

SOR – Transformation
The high-grade, complex sci-fi sound design is probably best suited to futuristic music styles, and would also make an excellent toolbox for multimedia productions. Rating: 9/10 plus the Music Tech Choice Award

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.2
Once again, Schmitt has crafted a stunningly produced example of cutting-edge electronica. This is a large and well thought-out library packed with immaculate engineering and club-ready sounds.
Rating: 9/10 + MusicTech Choice Award

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
The deepest and most complete Synth FX library we’ve ever heard. Recommended indeed.

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Excellent selection of traditional and more cutting-edge and experimental electro sounds. Rating: 9/10

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
An essential toolkit for anyone writing electronic music.
Rating: 10/10 plus the Music Tech Excellence Award

COMPUTER MUSIC MAGAZINE UK

Resonance Sound – Drum Depot
A compilation of seven previously-available samples libraries by Marco Scherer (Analog Drums, Deep Drums, Trap Drums, Vermona Drums und MPC Battery. It’s Dangerous Drums und Vermona Loops), Drum Depot gives you a lot of electronic percussion for your money. It’s 48 kits, all told, each containing at least 16 samples, mapped to multiple samnpler formats – Battery, EXS24, Maschine, Kontakt, Geist – and including a showcase MIDI file. The presentation is a bit chaotic, but the sounds are solid and weighty, and there’s no arguing with the price. Rating: 9/10

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Coming from the developers of the Nepheton and Drumazon TR-808/909 emulations, it’s no surprise that the four synths of PunchBox’s Kick module sound fantastic. […] There’s quite possibly no conceivable kick drum sound for electronic music that PunchBox couldn’t create! Rating: 9/10 + Performance Award!

CFA-Sound – GRIP Valve Drive Compressor
Grip brings together an interesting combination of features, and we particularly like its responsive Compressor. The Valve Drive is a bit trickier to get down with, though, and needs to be handled with care. Nonetheless, this is a good plugin for the price, and one capable of adding plenty of colour.
Rating: 8/10 + Value Award!

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
The fastidious Oliver Schmitt returns with the third instalment in his MTR series. With enough material here to keep you busy for months, the 127BPM (mostly kick-free) drum, synth and bass loops are bursting with vibe and rhythm, while the one-shot drums, FX and SID sounds are polished, imaginative and hard hitting. Rating: 9/10

CFA-Sound – Massive Electro House Tools
A well presented library of 65 patches for Native Instruments’ Massive synth, accompanied by eight MIDI file construction kits – simply point each track to a Massive with the speci?ied patch loaded. The setup works well and the patches are fantastic – tough, characterful, on-trend and making good use of Massive’s macros to enable quick but effective editing. Rating: 8/10

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.2
Most of Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.2 is exactly what you`d expect: polished drum hits, abstract noises, sophisticated bass loops and the like. Rating: 8/10

Audio Boutique – Electric Elements 3.0
There are no traditional drums, the basslines are simple but effective, the one-shots miniscule and the athmosphere industrial and cold, but the emphasis here is on authenticity and taste. Rating: 8/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.3
It’s quality stuff, and while there are no surpises, there are some solid loops; especially in the melodic section where things get a little more interesting thanks to some pitch touches that add inspirtation to the otherwhise fairly dry material. Rating: 8/10

SOR – Abstract & Weird Vol.2
There`s plenty of phasing, flanging, filtering, extreme EQ and distortion going on, resulting in loops with unique timbres and feels. It`s as slick as you`d expect from Sounds of Revolution. Rating: 7/10

SOR – Tribal Progressive Revolution Vol.1
This is all about progressive deep house paired with tribal rhythms and textures. It`s the same high quality we`re used to from SOR maestro Oliver Schmidt, and its open-ended nature means any electronic genre should benefit from this bulging pack. Rating: 8/10

SOR – Abstract and Weird Vol.1
[…] and none of it would sound out of place in the Beatport tech house Top Ten. It’s varied, fresh and inspiring… Rating: 8/10

SOR – Clicks and Glitches Vol.1
100 Loops here from SOR?s golden-eared Oliver Schmitt[…] This focused pack gets our thumbs up, and the production is top-notch. Rating: 8/10

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
Every sound is upfront, tight and powerful, and what’s more, it’s easy to get inspired and start working on ideas right away. […] If you can’t find something you like in this package, you’re in the wrong business. Rating: 9/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
SOR’s Oliver Schmitt returns with another impeccable pack for dance musicians. […] The superior production quality means that you’ll be satisfied even if you just grab a short section of each loop. Rating: 9/10

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
There are also over 300 kick-free loops […], making this a great disc for bolstering your top end and adding flavour. […] the quality is top notch. Rating: 10/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
It is highly usable… Rating: 8/10

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
The standard of production here is absolutely first-class, and while the stylistic focus is often dark, dirty and gritty, this fine library will prove its worth to any dance music producer. Rating: 10/10

CFA-Sound – CableDance
The vast majority of the patches fall into the bass and synth categories, and range from fat round (CableGuy Bass) to the bright and edgy (SmackSnack Synth). Overall, sounds are very crispy and responsive, demonstrating ACE`s architecture well. The only thing lacking is a few more sequences and effects patches. Verdict – 8/10

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
This CD is a serious contender for the best hard dance sample CD we’ve ever heard.

SOUND ON SOUND MAGAZINE

SOR – Ultimate Bundle
Although the price of the ultimate bundle seems high at first, dividing the figure by the number of libraries reveals that it is actually pretty good value. It may only deal with dance music, but it is not limited to just one sub-set of dance, and because Oliver created the samples over many years, they make a rather satisfyingly eclectic bundle. Rating: 4/5

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals 1
In summary, this is a great product that seems well worth the asking price, and if you find you want more of the same, volumes 2 and 3 are available too. Rating: 4/5

ASK AUDIO MAGAZINE

SOR – Transformation
Think pneumatic battle armor, complex motion sequences, 22nd century electromagnetic flyovers and close up recordings of hate bots and you’ll get the idea… This is a great library well worth the price and then some.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
This is an astounding package of minimal goodness that contains everything from a massive assortment of drums to a huge variety of synths and loops. […] I was particularly impressed with the crispness of the kicks, and claps. When inserted into my mix, they stood out fine, without even the need of a compressor, or EQ […] The loops are extremely polished. […] If you’re looking for inspiration, you’ll have a treasure trove, should you get your hands on Minimal Techno Revolution. The processed live recordings of several bass guitars are a wonderfully welcome addition to my arsenal of loops, especially.

ATTACK MAGAZINE

SOR – Transformation
One of the biggest compliments I can pay Transformation is that there are hundreds of sounds here I wouldn’t even know how to start recreating from scratch. This pack contains some incredibly complex sound design; yes there are elements of found sound and field recordings, but this is augmented by synthesis and some deep and clever processing. Rating: 4/5

DJ MAG

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
All in all, this kick-drum instrument from D16 Group is fun and easy to use. The large amount of factory content is definitely helpful, but as the instrument relies on a ‘building block’-type of operation, users will have no problem achieving the desired kick-drum sound.

INTERNATIONAL DJ MAGAZINE

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
The simplicity of the product it`s outstanding and the quality of the sounds are excellent – roll on volume two.

RESIDENT ADVISOR

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Punchbox becomes exponentially more musical when you start automating the pitch, decays and effects settings—I could imagine someone like Peder Mannerfelt making an entire track of power electronics with this thing. What’s more, you can also load your own samples into it. While a drum layering master probably has these techniques down, I found Punchbox to be an easy means to get to grips with it. Rating: 4.1/5

REKKERD.ORG

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
Minimal Techno Revolution Vol 3 includes a well-balanced, useful collection of loops and samples, and the overall quality of sounds is simply great. I would say this pack goes way beyond Minimal Techno, with interesting material for producers in a much wider range of electronic styles. In short, Oliver’s sound design and production skills make for a top notch sound pack that offers a lot of bang for the buck. Rating: 9/10

CFA-Sound – CableSphere
n short CableSphere is a solid set, but make sure to listen to the audio demo to see if it has the type of sounds you are after. For a more complete array of sounds it might make sense to get the whole Cable series of soundsets instead.

CFA-Sound – Futured E-2 Expander
What a beautiful collection of sounds! You get a wide range of sounds, from sharp eerie atmospheres to lush plucked sounds to amazing organic pads. Browsing the presets I found just about every single patch completely inspiring.

PRODUCERSPOT

CFA-Sound – GRIP Valve Drive Compressor
In a world filled with vintage compressors emulations, this is a breeze of fresh air. It can sound pretty unique while adding lots of character and warmth to your tracks. You can use it on pretty much every track, but, to my taste, I like it a lot on bass guitar and vocals. It can surely add lots of character if you use it in the mix buss, but you gotta be sure that is what you want and that it suits the song you are working on. If you are looking for something new and different with lots of character, you should definitely try this compressor! I know I’ll be using it a lot, and it might just be my to-go compressor along with the LA-2A for bass and vocals.

BEAT MAGAZINE GERMANY

SOR – Organic Dub Techno
It is a 2.7 GB sample colossus consisting of 864 loops at 124 BPM and 151 one-shots, including atmos (20), basses (100), guitars (23), clicks (23), synths (157), and pads (62), as well as drums with and without kick and optionally with or without effects. A selection of individual samples with drums, pads, and effects is provided. Particularly noteworthy, however, are the seven demo songs, whose tracks have been broken down into individual stems so that you can quickly build your own arrangements around them. The dry kicks have plenty of punch, as does the bass material, even if they sometimes sound too sub-heavy. The experimental loops provide plenty of glitch and whisked effects. Verdict: The combination of organic live recordings and synthetic elements is very well done, so you can expect not only machine-like Deep Techno, but also a dynamic humanistic vibe.
BEAT-MUST-HAVE 05/2024
Verdict: 6/6

SOR – Dynamic Particles
Oliver Schmitt, under his pseudonym Sounds of Revolution, has welded together over 1 GB of excellent samples in the collection Dynamic Particles, which can be used in productions of the Techno, Melodic House, Melodic Techno, Minimal, Tech House, and Deep House genres. The 532 individual samples are joined by 403 loops with a tempo of 124 BPM, including basses (71), clicks (14), kicks (32), noises (8), and synthesizers (100). Banging kicks, crunchy snares, and fluffy percussion are the essences of the drums. Thanks to the separation, the loops can all be combined flexibly in each case. The basses are prominent, edgy, and often nasty. The synth loops are often discordant or percussive. The perfect mood and tension is included in the noise loops and very gloomy atmospheres.
Verdict: Apart from the alienating vocals, Dynamic Particles embodies the facets of Techno and House very well, which are sometimes more minimalistic and sometimes more melodic. Definitely listen to it. Rating: 5,5/6

Music4Aliens – Minimal and Techno V1
This is the latest work by Music4Aliens, whose sounds were pieced together by the label boss himself. This 334 megabyte sound archive, clocked at 125 BPM, is filled with 332 samples consisting of basses, drum loops (both with and without kickdrum), percussion, synthesizer elements, creaky delay-heavy effects and a handful of mystical dark vocals. The drum loops in 4/4 time are always groovy, punchy and, fortunately, do not seem overloaded. The kicks are crisp and punchy. The basses are ultra-fat and push themselves into the ear canals. The reviewer expected more moderate sounds from the bass-heavy ambient sounds, but they are still very expressive.
Verdict: The cleanly produced technoid fundus, is not only for the targeted genres, but is also highly recommended for Tech House and Deep Tech styles. Top Choice!
BEAT-MUST-HAVE 01/2021 – Rating 6/6

SOR – Hats & Tops Bundle
The three-part Hats and Tops bundle is a 622 MB sound collection specializing in crisp percussive sound material. The 325 top loops, which vary in tempo between 124-127 BPM, do without kick drums altogether, but are sophisticated and varied. From overtone-rich filtered percussion including hissing hi-hats to transient-rich claps with subtle delays, the selection is very large. As a bonus, the package Prime Kicks 2 with juicy bass drums is included. The bassdrums show their charm and enormous power particularly with the layered kicks. The analog kicks and break kicks are also very impressive.
Verdict: A big plus of this sound collection, besides the kickdrum pack, is that it offers cross genre drums for electronic music that work for House, Tech-House, Techno, Electro or Minimal equally well.
BEAT-MUST-HAVE 01/2021 – Rating 6/6

Black Octopus – Siren by Veela
Die Sängerin Veela kann auf zahlreiche erfolgreiche Kollaborationen mit nahmhaftenMusikern wie dem Dubstep-ProduzentenBlackmill zurückblicken. Das 1 GB große Sample-Pack Siren by Veela fängt die markante Stimme der Sängerin in Form von 15-Construction-Kits ein. Neben eingängigen Phrasen sind auch ätherisch-entrückte Melodien und ausdrucksstarke Adlibs an Bord, ebenso wie Spoken-Word-Phrasen, originelle Glitch-Loops und stark mit Effekten bearbeitete Sounds. Das Bonusmaterial inklusive Stimmgeräusche, Lachen, Flüstern und atemgeräusche lässt sich auch gut für rhythmischeZwecke einsetzen. Top!

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Ob Sie die produktionsfertigen Presets nutzen oder die Bassdrum Ihrer Träume programmieren möchten: Mit seinem druckvollen und variablen Klang zeigt sich PunchBOX für alle Spielarten der elektronischen Musik gewappnet. Der hochwertige Sample-Content verleiht auch den klassischen Sounds der Roland-Drum-Maschinen einen modernen Anstrich. Die vielfältige und expressive Klangerzeugung, die musikalische Effekte und die intuitive Bedienung sorgen dabei für ein hohen Spaßfaktor bei der Erzeugung eigener Kicks.
Rating: 6/6 + Empfehlung der Redaktion!

CFA-Sound – GRIP Valve Drive Compressor
Ob eine neutrale oder eine charaktervolle Dynamikbearbeitung mit plakativer Sättigung gefragt ist: Dank seines pfiffigen Hybrid-Designs begeistert GRIP als vielseitiger, musikalisch klingender Kompressor, der seine Stärken nicht nur bei der Bearbeitung von Gesang und Instrumentensignalen ausspielt. Auch das Zusammenschweißen von Signalgruppen gelingt überzeugend. Ein Lob verdient zudem die intuitive Bedienoberfläche sowie der günstige Preis des erfreulich Ressourcen-schonenden Plug-ins.
Rating: 5/6 + Preistip

CFA-Sound – MonoGrizzly 2 VST Synthesizer
Zu einem günstigen Preis erhalten Sie mit MonoGrizzly 2 einen kleinen, aber feinen Mono-Synth mit einem Faible für aggressive Bass- und Lead-Sounds. Angesichts seiner Stärken wie dem charaktervollen, rohen Klang und den gelungenen Presets sieht man wohlwollend über die genannten Mankos hinweg. Nicht zuletzt dank seiner durchdachten, intuitiven Benutzeroberfläche ist der Synthesizer insbesondere für Einsteiger zu empfehlen. Rating: 4/6 + Preis-Tipp!

CFA-Sound – FilterGrizzly 2 VST
Grizzly Filter 2 ist ein schnörkelloses Filter-Plug-In, das neben einer ansprechenden Oberfläche dank überzeugender Röhrensimulation einen warmen, Satten Sound bietet. Rating: 4/6

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals 1
Wer jedoch genau jeen Siebzigerjahre-Touch sucht, erhält eine Menge durchsetzungsfähiges und originelles Material. Rating: 4/6

SOR – Clicks & Glitches Vol.2
Eine erfrischend andere Loop-Kollektion, bei der vor allem Freunde von Minimal-Techno und -House oder Glitch voll auf ihre Kosten kommen. Rating: 5/6

CFA-Sound – Dubstep Frequency 1
Stilsicher und auf hohem Niveau gibt Dubstep Frequency Vol.1 zeitgemäße Dubstep-Bässe zum Besten. Dabei stellt die Sammlung eine gelungene Alternative für alle jene dar, die bei Synthesizer-Sounds lieber mit Samples als mit Synthesizern arbeiten.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
Das musikalisch hervorragend einsetzbare Klangmaterial kann sich hören lassen: Druckvoll, futuristisch und vielseitig tönt es aus den Boxen. Klasse!

CFA-Sound – Reload 01 Thrillogy-1
Mit rohen Bässen, kraftvollen Lead-Klängen, lebendigen Flächen sowie abgefahrenen Sequenzen und Eff ekten stellt das 7,2 GB große Paket eine ausgezeichnete Ergänzung zu den gängigen Loop-Sammlungen für Trance dar.

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
Nothing to complain!

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Oliver Schmitt konnte sich in den letzten Jahren einen hervorragenden Ruf als Sounddesigner für Synthpatches und Clubsamples erarbeiten. Auf dieser DVD widmet er sich stilsicher dem House-Genre… Rating: 5/6

SOR – Revolution Virus C/TI Vol.2
…aufwändig programmierte Klänge mit interessanten Modulationen. […] Fans von Trance-, Future-Pop-, Techno- aber auch Ambient-Klängen kommen bei diesem Set voll auf ihre Kosten. Rating: 5/6

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
[…] one is enthusiastic about the solid sound and the thereby high assertiveness of the material. Here one never feels just to get one more “filling material”, all loops seem to be original and perfectly conditioned. A novelty are also the contained 575 no-kick-loops!

SOR – Revolution ES2
Mit druckvollen Bässen, weichen bis kreischenden Lead-Sounds, warmen Flächen und interessanten Effekten liefert das inspirierende Soundset eingelungenes Klangarsenal, um die Tanzfl ächen zu erobern. Rating: 5/6

SYNMAG GERMANY

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Fazit: PunchBOX kann durchaus als innovativ bezeichnet werden, was das Gesamtkonzept inklusive der Zusammenstellung der Teilmodule, das Routing und die Umsetzung einzelner Ideen wie Randomize und Sample Export angeht. Dank der Effekte ist Punchbox ein kompaktes Sounddesigntool, das man durchaus auch kreativ zur Umgestaltung anderer, eigener Souds umfunktionieren kann – auch wenn vielleicht ein Hall fehlt. In erster Linie ist es aber natürlich ein Kickdrum Spezialist, und es gibt kaum eine elktronische Bassdrum, die ein Punchbox-Besitzer nicht nachbauen kann. Die Kombination aus Sample Libraries und Drumcomputer-Simulation überzeugt. […]
Positiv: guter Sounds / gute Library / gute Effekte mit zahreichen gut klingenden Nuancen / zweckorientierter Spezialist mit hierfür optimiertem Workflow.
Negativ: etwas wenig Modulationsoptionen für Samples / Effektauswahl etwas reduziert

KEYS MAGAZINE GERMANY

Deep Techno
[…] The kicks press with a lot of power, and the claps also cut through the mix. However, the fact that you look for snares in vain spoils the fun with the drums a little. The synth loops sound dynamic, massive, and sometimes even happy, even if they are not very catchy, which is not unusual for this style. The (sometimes also rhythmic) pads are characterized by a pleasantly spherical sound. The sound effects mainly used noise, which was skilfully processed with filters and reverbs.
Deep Techno is a high-quality sounding archive from which club-ready techno productions can easily be carved.

SOR – Moving Particles
[…] the kicks are powerful and perfect. The very good-sounding percussions are versatile and partly enriched with unusual sound effect elements. The noise loops produced from noise are also amazing. The sharp-edged, discordant synth chords might scare the faint-hearted. The basses are more subtly mumbling, sometimes distorted or spluttering, but groovy. A major highlight of this collection are the sound effects, some of which are granulated and offer great potential for sound design, including field recording effects. The vocal loops are thoroughly whisked and alienated beyond recognition.
Conclusion: Moving Particles is a great source of inspiring sounds that can be used not only for underground techno, but also for sound design.

MONOCOC – Techno Therapy
Die Kicks sind schön transientenreich mit knackiger Attack, aber leider viel zu ähnlich. Extrem sub- und tieftonlastig wummern die Bässe, die ihr Potenzial auf großen Clubanlagen sehr gut entfalten, aber mehr Variation hätte es auch hier gern sein dürfen. Eine düstere und industrielle Atmosphäre verkörpern die vielseitigen Atmosounds- perfekt für Dark-Techno-Produktionen. Richtig fett sind die Synthesizer-Elemente, die zwar weniger Hooks und Leads beinhalten, aber dafür massive, rollende Basslines, mal pur elektronisch, mal angezerrt.
Auch wenn der Titel sich auf Techno festlegt, ist eine Anwendung der Samples auch für Tech House oder Minimal Techno denkbar. Insgesamt ist Techno Therapy ein Pack, das aufgrund des Ableton-Live-Templates nicht nur für Monococ-Fans interessant sein dürfte.

SOR – Melodic Techbo 3
Der Soundguru Oliver Schmitt (SOR) hat mehr als zwei GB frisches Klangfutter zusammengestellt, das sich aus 713 Loops und 369 Einzelsamples zusammensetzen. Die Strukturierung der konstant mit 124 BPM aufgenommenen Techno-Loops ist wie folgt: Bässe (87), Experimental (91), Noise (13), Percussion (130), Top Drums (102), Vocals (7), Drumkits (42) und Synthesizer (193). Die One-Shots sind in Crash- und Ride-Becken (6), Atmos (47), Claps und Snares (41), synthetische Field Recording Samples (10), Hi-Hats (34), FX (109), Hits (12), Synthesizer (6), Percussion (71), Spectralsamples (12) und Vocals (33) aufgesplittet. Zusätzlich wurden noch 12 MIDI-Files hinzugefügt.
Die Bässe sind elektrisch knatternd und knarzend gestaltet, sodass sich die Sammlung auch für benachbarte Genres wie Minimal Techno und Electro anbietet. Die Drums gefallen durch ihre abwechslungsreichen Percussions, punchigen (teils auch sublastigen) Kicks und transientenreichen und oft „schmutzigen“ Claps und Snares. Dunkel, surreal und mystisch erklingen die Atmo-Texturen, die sich wunderbar ins Genre einfügen lassen. Die stark bearbeiteten und halbsynthetischen Field-Recording-Elemente bestehen aus geloopten Schritten, Ketten und Trommeln. Schade ist, dass die Vocals, bis auf wenige Ausnahmen, nicht als solche zu erkennen sind. Insgesamt beeindruckt Melodic Techno 3 aber durch eine Vielfalt an hochwertigen Elementen, die man in anderen Techno-Kollektionen kaum bis gar nicht findet.

Techno Maschinen
Raue, „schmutzige“ Klänge und ordentlich Druck verspricht die ausschließlich auf Techno-Drums fokussierte Sammlung Techno Maschinen aus der Schmiede Datacult mit rund 900 MB. Stolze 108 Kits und 1728 Drum kits werden insgesamt geboten. Das Soundarsenal wurde aus verschiedenen Drummaschinen und Modulen gewonnen und in sechs Unterorder kategorisiert. „Analog 808“ beinhaltet 256 Samples und reflektiert die Klänge des Roland-Klassikers, allerdings in druckvollerer Form und angereichert von feinstem Analog-Equipment. Nicht minder analog sind die „Blck_Noir“Drums, deren Kits jeweils vier Bassdrums, Snares, Hats und Toms beinhalten. Im „Brute Drums“-Ordner warten eine Vielzahl an mächtig klirrenden und scheppernden Drops neben zahlreichen langen Subkicks, die alle aus Arturias Drumbrute stammen. Nichts für schwache Nerven ist das brutal drückende Set „Techno System“ mit deftig harten, mitunter auch verzerrten Drums, die sich nicht nur hervorragend für Techno empfehlen, sondern auch für Drum & Bass und Electro. Last but not least gibt es die brutalen, durch Röhrenverzerrer gejagten „Tube Drums“. Techno Maschinen besticht, abgesehen vom sehr guten Preis-Leistungs-Verhältnis, sowohl klanglich, als auch durch die vorgefertigten Presets und vielen Sampler-Formate (Battery 3+, Kontakt 5+, Ableton Live 9+, Maschine 2+, Geist & Geist Lite 1+, SFZ und WAV).

CFA-Sound – Massive Berlin Techno Presets
Die Presets decken einerseits puren Techno-Sound ab, streifen jedoch auch die Genres Minimal Techno und Tech-House. Bass-Presets wie “Alligator”, “Log“, “Subway” und “Buzzer” lassen die Membran der Boxen mächtig vibrieren. Die rauen Pads passen optimal zur Stilistik. Hier sollte man keine butterweichen Schönlinge erwarten. Elektronische, teils minimalistische Plucks mit langer Hallfahne sowie die düsteren und vielfach aggressiven Synthesizer-Klänge passen sich selbst gewählten Thema an. Auch die Sequencer-Prescts, wie etwa „Ghost“ mit seinem enorm nach vom schiebenden Basslauf, wissen zu gefallen.

Psytrance Reflection by Datacult
Die Samples sind punktgenau produziert, um Clubund Festivalgänger klanglich zu fesseln. Die knackigen, teils zap-lastigen Goa-Kicks üben mächtig Druck aus. Unter den 83 Drum-Loops gibt es sowohl Loops mit und ohne Bassdrum, sodass flexible Kombinationen kein Problem sind. Auch das Soundarchiv mit den 117 Multisamples klingt fett und voluminös. Hier finden sich unter anderem analoge Synthesizer-Leads, üppige Pads und wuchtige Bässe. Auch die pluckartigen Synthloops und viele der Effektklänge, wie beispielsweise die acht Effected Crashes, sind sehr gelungen. An passenden Momenten eingesetzt, wissen auch die 50 Soundscapes zu überzeugen. Insgesamt ergibt sich so ein empfehlenswertes und dazu günstiges Potpourri an progressiven Samples in vielfältigen Formaten, das jedem Psytrance-Produzenten zu neuen Ideen verhelfen dürfte.

SOR – Melodic Techno
Klanglich fokussiert Melodic Techno vorwiegend auf das Techno-Genre. Dennoch lassen sich in der Praxis viele der Elemente auch für Produktionen angrenzender Stilistiken wie beispielsweise Minimal, Deep und Dub House oder Electro nutzen. Das macht die Kollektion sehr vielseitig und rechtfertigt auch ihren Preis.
Klanglich stechen vor allem die DrumLoops hervor. Deren Ordner ist mit einem Construction Kit vergleichbar, sodass sich hier pro Kit ein komplettes Drumgerüst aufbauen lässt. Liebhaber von Noise- und Glitch-Sounds sowie experimenteller Musik werden hier aber ebenfalls fündig. Die Einzel-Samples der Drums sind schön knackig, transientenreich und wissen sich in der Mischung durchzusetzen. Die atmosphärischen Klänge zeichnen ein recht düsteres, vielfach auch unwirkliches Klangbild, das für entsprechende Texturen bestens zu gebrauchen ist. Die Synthesizer-Loops bestehen vielfach aus wabernden Pads oder kurzen Melodien, die für meine Begriffe auch gern etwas einprägsamer hätten ausfallen können. Schön tief in die Magengrube und nach vorn treibend präsentieren sich schließlich die Bassloops.

Audio Boutique – Techno Elements 3.0
Die typisch technoiden Kickdrums und Basslines sind die Würze dieser Kollektion. Letztere sind kurze genretypische Sequenzen, die mitunter auch Assoziationen an Acid wecken. Von der Effektabteilung überzeugen mich die Up- und Downlifter am meisten. In den Top-Loops verstecken sich Hi-Hat und Percussion-Elemente, die jeden Rhythmus beleben sollten. Die Drumeinwürfe sind zwar ebenfalls gut produziert, man hätte aber an Delay-Effekten sparen können.

Audio Boutique – Deep & Tech Elements
Knackig, frisch und punchy sind die Drums, die durchweg überzeugen. Zur Wahrung der Flexibilität durch individuelle Kicks wurde bei den Drumloops und Top-Loops die Bassdrum entfernt. Durch schöne Groove-Delays und Filter-Fahrten im 4/4-Takt wirken die Loops stets lebendig. Wunderbar gestalten sich die Atmos, um düstere Klangbilder oder angenehme Bewegungen zu entfachen. Die Synth-Fills haben ihren Reiz in Form von vielfach resonanzlastigen gefilterten Phrasen oder kurzen Sequenzen. Überwiegend minimalistisch ertönen die Synth Loops, die sich wohldosiert gut in Arrangement einfügen. Die Effekte der Downshifter, Uplifter und sonstigen Soundeffekte sind sauber produziert und klingen sehr gut. Als nettes Gimmick sind die Vocal-Phrasen zu erachten -irgendwie fehlt mir jedoch die Bindung zu der Thematik.
Insgesamt ist Deep & Tech Elements eine Kollektion, die alles mitbringt, was man für ruhige, an Techno angrenzende House-Produktionen benötigt.

Resonance Sound – Drum Depot
Wer auf der Suche nach elektronischen analog klingenden Drums mit mächtigem Bassfundament ist, soll laut Resonance Sound in Drum Depot fündig werden. Dabei handelt es sich allerdings nicht um neues Samplematerial, sondern um eine Zusammenfassung älterer, zuvor einzeln erhältlicher Sample-Packs, die die Grundlage für die in Drum Depot enthaltenen sechs Hauptkits bilden.
Mit 1,3 GB Samplematerial, 50 Loops, Sampler-Patches, MIDI-Dateien und 781 One-Shot-Samples soll diese Library für Produzenten von Electro, Deep- und Tech-House, Techno, Minimal, Trap sowie andere elektronische Musikrichtungen keine Wünsche offen lassen.
Drum Depot offeriert hierzu sechs Drumkits, die wiederum unterschiedlich viele Variantionen enthalten – insgesamt kommt man so auf 48 Kits.
Besitzer von Ableton Live 8 kommen zudem in den Genuß einer kompletten Live-Session, die voll bestückte Drum Racks mitsamt Macro-Belegung enthalten – bequemer geht es nicht. In allen anderen Samplerformaten erhält man lediglich das Format des entsprechenden Samplers mit den gemappten Samples.
Alle Kits beinhalten jeweils 16 Samples. Geboten werden verschiedene Bassdrums, Snare-, Clap- als auch Hi-Hat-Variationen. Desweiteren stehen je nach Kit verschiedene One-Shots zur Verfügung, mal als Percussion-Sounds, mal als stark modulierte Effektsounds. Die 50 Drumloops, bei denen ich mir Tempoangaben gewünscht hätte, stammen ausschließlich aus Vermonas DRM1 und decken den Techno- und House-Bereich ab. Als Samplequellen dienten Hardware-Geräte wie Vermona DRM MKIII, Korg Radias, Novation Nova, Waldorf Blofeld, Jomox AirBase 99. Diese Sounds wurden mit diversen Vintage-Hardware-Geräten bearbeitet und optimiert.

SOR – Drum Revolution
[…] Mit 2.543 One-Shot-Samples und einem Datengewicht von über 400 MB hat dieses Sample-Pack einiges zu bieten. Die Ordnerstruktur erweist sich auch hier als aufgeräumt mit eigenem Ordner pro Samplekategorie. Zu finden sind Bassdrums, Snares mit und ohne Effekte, Claps, Percussion, Cymbals und Toms. Hinzu kommen noch klassische SID-, Synth- und Vocal-Sounds. Der Inhalt unterscheidet sich je nach Kategorie. Dabei reicht die Spanne von wenigen Samples (Vocal Sounds) bis hin zu mehreren hundert bereitgestellten Sounds für die Bereiche Bassdrums und Snares. Samtliche Samples liegen ausschließlich im Wav-Format vor, Presets für diverse Sampler sind nicht zu finden.
Alle Sounds in Drum Revolution sind sauber produziert und klingen hervorragend. Die Bassdrums und Snares sind druckvoll und sorgen für den nötigen Schub im Song. Auch die Toms knallen nach bester Simmons-Art aus den Boxen und werden durch Hi-Hats und Becken diverser Drum-Machines sinnvoll ergänzt. Generell ist die Klangauswahl vielseitig. Von harten, teilweise verzerrten Hard-Kicks bis hin zur analogen Bassdrum ist alles vertreten. Insbesondere die klassischen perkussiv und geräuschhaft klingenden SID- und Synthesizereffekte bringen die nötige Würze. Die Vocal-Fragmente sehe ich mehr als Zugabe. Es handelt sich hierbei nicht um ganze Wörter, sondern lediglich um Fragmente, die sich bestens für den Bau der in Trap und Dubstep beliebten abgehackten Vocal-Lines eignen.
+ große Sampleauswahl
+ durchsetzungsfähiger guter Klang
+ aktuelle Sounds

Black Octopus – Leviathan
Ein Leviathan ist ein Seeungeheuer – eine Mischung aus Drachen, Wal, Krokodil und Schlange. Genauso könnte man auch das gleichnamige Sample-Pack von Black Octopus aus Kanada beschreiben. Mit über 4 GB Datenvolumen und mehr als 4.000 Samples ist diese Sammlung ein wahres Ungeheuer, das den kompletten modernen elektronischen Musikbereich abdeckt.
Die Ordnerstruktur ist aufgeräumt und in Kategorien gegliedert. Getrennt wird nach einzelnen elektronischen Drumsounds wie Cymbal, Hi-Hat, Kicks, Percussion, Snares & Claps sowie Toms, die als One-Shots vorliegen. Das gilt auch für die Effektkategorie, die bei Leviathan besonders umfassend gefüllt ist. Es gibt tiefe und weite Impacts sowie unterschiedlichste szenetypische lange und kurze sowie aufsteigende und abfallende Riser. Eine ganze Abteilung an Glitch- und Roboter-Sounds rundt die Effektabteilung ab – Transformers lassen grüßen.

Leviathan wartet zudem mit jeder Menge tonaler Synthesizer und Drumloops auf, die sauber nach Tempo (110 bis 140 BPM) sortiert sind – ideal für Electro, EDM sowie Dubstep und Trap. Neben den Drumloops findet sich auch noch eine Kategorie an Loop-Fills. So lassen sich Drops setzen, nächste Parts im Song ankündigen oder das Arrangement im Allgemeinen interessanter gestalten.

Schließlich wartet Leviathan noch etlichen tonalen Bass- und Synthesizer-Samples auf. Diese liegen teils als One-Shots, teils als Multisamples im Kontakt 4-Format vor. Dazu wird zwischen Samples mit kurzer oder langer Sustainphase unterschieden. Akkord-Samples im One-Shot-Format runden das gesamte tonale Paket ab und machen Leviathan zu einem universellen Werkzeug für die Produktion elektronischer Musik. Die Sounds sind allesamt aktuell. Inzwischen hat dieses Produkt mit Leviathan 2 sogar einen zweiten Teil erhalten, der das Konzepot mit weiteren Samples fortsetzt.

SOR – Shhh I Am Speaking
1. Exzellente und saubere Aufnahmequalität […] Ausdrucksstarke, einprägsame Stimme mit angenehmer britischer Artikulation […] Phrasen in unterschiedlichen Ausdrucksformen […} zeichnet sich durch eine exzellente, saubere Audioqualität aus, wie man sie bei Gesangs- und Sprachsamples selten antrifft. Den absolut trockhenen Samples fehlt es weder an Wärme, noch an Transparenz. Es ist geradezu erfrischend, dass hier ein Hersteller ganz auf die Effektmaschinerie vom Echo bis zum Pitchshifter verzichtet und damit dem Nutzer jeden erdenklichen Freiraum für die Nachbearbeitung läßt. Ob Granular Effekte für sphärische Stimmen-Cluster oder Lautsprechersimulationen für Lo-Fi Radiosound – die Phrasen laden zu den unterschiedlichsten Klangexperimenten ein. Rating: 3/3

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals Bundle
[…]Den besonderen Reiz macht die authentisch wirkende Patina aus. […] Eine eingeschränkte Übertragunsgqualität, die an Kurz-, Mittel- und Langwellensender erinnert, garniert mit Rauschen, Unsauberkeiten wie atmosphärischen Störungen, Knistern und Verzerrungen, katapultiert den Hörer Jahrzehnte zurück und lässt den Charme alter Sendungen wieder auferstehen. Auch Neben- und Hintergrundgeräusche, die zur Sendung selbst gehören, sind mit dabei. Ungeachtet dessen sind die Stimmen und ihre Botschaften danke gefühlvoller Restauration verständlich. Die einzelnen Ausschnitte wurden sinnvoll zusammengestellt, sodass sie auch in einem musikalischen Kontext zu längeren Passagen kombiniert werden können. […] einzigartige Sammlung aus Mitschnitten alter Radio Shows […] Hohe Authenzität Rating: 3/3

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Punchbox ist ein Muss für jeden Musiker, der elektronische Musik produziert. Neben der massiven Presetauswahl hat man hier im Handumdrehen überzeugend klingende Bassdrums mit Charakter für die eigene Produktion erstellt. Neben den sehr guten Presets spielen auch die mitgelieferten Samples in der obersten Liga mit. Wer auf der Suche nach der Bassdrum für den nächsten Trap-, EDM-, Dubstep- oder Techno-track ist, findet mit Punchbox innerhalb kürzester Zeit die passende Lösung. Bei einen Preis von 79 Euro muss man da gar nicht lange überlegen.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
Kick Free Vol. 1 widmet sich nur einem Thema, dafür aber mit großer Aufmerksamkeit. Diese Fundgrube ist eine echte Empfehlung.

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Angesichts des Umfangs von etwa 1 GB (WAV-Content) dürfte man neben dieser Library so schnell keine weiteren Electro House-Samples mehr benötigen.

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
The loops were programmed exclusively for this CD[…] a lovingly compiled production for dance styles…

SOR – Revolution ES2
…Viele Sounds wirken komplex und lebendig. […] angesichts der guten Qualität und des breiten Spektrums empfehlenswert.

SOR – Revolution JD800/990 Vol.1
SOR – Revolution JD800/990 Vol.2
Die Serie des Programmieres Oliver Schmitt besticht vor allem durch ihren elektronischen Purismus. Hier findet sich Material für jeden Frequenz- und Härtebereich. Rating: 10/10

SOR – Revolution Microwave
Als musikalische Einsatzgebiete kommen hauptsächlich Techno und House, sowie verwandte Stile in Frage. Wer bereits über mehrere Basis-Sets verfügt, kann mit diesem empfehlenswerten Produkt kaum etwas falsch machen.

BONEDO

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
PunchBOX ist ein Plug-in zur Gestaltung individueller Bassdrums, es lässt sich genreübergreifend von Trap über Pop bis Techno einsetzen. Durch authentische Emulationen beliebter Drum-Machines von Roland, kombiniert mit einer gut sortierten Sample-Library, ermöglicht der Bassdrum-Hybride aufwendige Layerings im Handumdrehen. Die Effekt-Module sind zwar nicht änderbar, bieten jedoch eine solide Grundausstattung zum Schrauben einer fetten Kick. Die praxisnahen Im- und Export-Features sowie die Random-Funktionen sind das Sahnehäubchen dieses mit 79 Euro ausgesprochen günstigen Plug-ins.

SOUND & RECORDING MAGAZINE GERMANY

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
Klanglich wird eine Menge geboten, von sanft und weich bis sägend-aggressiv mit viel Distortion und Ringmodulation.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
Kick Free ist jedenfalls sexy: Dance-orientiert, rhythmisch und inspirierend. […] Eine echte Empfehlung!

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Das Ganze ist wie immer auf sehr hohem Niveau, grooved exorbitant und liefert ganz ohne Construction-Kit-Korsett prima Sounds.[…]Daumen rauf!

CFA-Sound – CableDance
Zunächst wirkt das alles eher unaufregend und „normal“, aber im Zusammenspiel sind es genau die Sounds, die man prima als i-Tüpfelchen brauchen kann.

CFA-Sound – CableForce
Die Bässe wirken etwas poppiger und voluminöser, die Synthsounds harmonischer als bei CableDance. Das Highlight sind hier die Leads, mit denen man typische fette Hooklines spielen kann. Hier sägen die Oszis, dass es nur so einen Freude ist, und die eingebauten Effekte tun ihr Übriges für jede Menge Hypaa-Hypaa-Sound.

CFA-Sound – CableSphere
Die Pads würde ich „typisch modular“ nennen. Wiederum sehr fett und nach vorne arbeitend, aber etwas einfacher zu beherschen als bei CableForce. Die Wavetable-Sounds wirken teils kühl und schneidend, liefern aber Wellenformen, die man von einen solchen Modularsynth nicht unbedingt erwartet hätte. Auch hier also wieder fast nur brauchbares Material ohne Ausschussware.

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
[…] varied, authentic and powerful produced […] Here we don`t have only menue-programs, where you can audio test the same samples via the keyboard – added are real playable programs for each single tonal sound.

CFA-Sound – Futured E-1 Beats & Bytes
Die minimalen Club-Styles sollten es Ihnen angetan haben, wenn Sie dieses Soundset einsetzen wollen: Bässe, Sequence- und Synthsounds finden sie hier. Fast alle sind sie laut und heftig, kaum einer kommt bescheiden oder zurückhaltend daher. Meistens sägt und dröhnt es böse ausden Membranen, viel Filter-FM wurde eingesetzt.

CFA-Sound – Futured E-2 Expander
Ambient, bedrohliche Filmmusik (Sci-Fi und Horror) oder auch elektronische Club-Intros lassen sich damit bestens vertonen. Biestig sind sie aber auch hier, sanften Schönklang gibt es nur selten und auch keine ausgedehnten Workstation-Fantasy-Sounds àla Korg.

CFA-Sound – Futured E-3 Hardsync
Trance und Co. ist bei diesem Set angesagt, und dementsprechend gibt es Bässe, Sequencer-Sounds und vor allem Leads. Sie alle sind fett und böse und sägen sich schön durch alle Membranen, die ihnen im Wege stehen.

RELEASETIME

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Die Klanggeneratoren und Effekte, kombiniert mit einer spielerisch entworfenen Automation diverser Parameter macht die PunchBox zu dem mit Abstand lebendigsten Spektakel der Bassdrum-Geschichte. …Unter dem Angebot an virtuellen Bassdrums für die Sparte Club/Dance (wo es nicht auf fein aufgelöste Velocity-Layer ankommt und rein akustische Bassdrums weniger gefragt sind) ist die PunchBox das Top-Produkt schlechthin. Top product award

KEYBOARDS MAGAZINE GERMANY

SOR – Revolution Virus
Im Gegensatz zu vielen anderen Soundsets nutzen die Sounds auch die Anschlagstärke des Virus. Dadurch erhalten Sie lebendige Klänge.

SOUND AND GEAR

CFA-Sound – Thrillogy-1
If you find yourself looking for some more patches for your Virus TI, definitely give these a look. Though they are aimed at trance and electronic styles, I find the sounds are just really well programmed and will please anyone that loves a good synth sound. Rating: 4.5/5

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
If I had to choose one word, it would be “groove” […] Well recorded, well produced and just plain fun to play.

BEDROOM PRODUCER BLOG

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
PunchBOX by D16 Group is a very complete toolkit for making modern kick drum sounds. It can give you anything from punchy analog style kicks to heavily layered house kicks, trap 808s, pitched 808 basslines, and even distorted industrial and hardcore kicks.

INTEGRAUDIO

CFA-Sound – GRIP Valve Drive Compressor
In my opinion, all these features packed into one at the price of 25.17 € net is a steal. If analog hardware or even hardware emulations excite you and you love how analog equipment colors your sound, you won`t regret buying this.

SOUNDBYTES MAGAZINE

Melodic Elements 01 – Moog Matriarch
New to Resonance Sound is their Analog Series of libraries featuring various analog instruments. The idea of the series is to offer loops in wet and dry versions. Not only that you would get the audio files, but the MIDI files (source sequences) as well. And the first one to come out from this series is Melodic Elements 01 – Moog Matriarch. This 695 MB pack contains 200 analog sequences (100 dry, 100 wet) of techno sounds. You can use them as is or you can completely further process them to fit your own liking. The dry sounds are a good candidate for this. But the wet versions are really good, too. They were processed with some of the best effects hardware around, such as Elektron Analog Heat, Sherman Filterbank and Roland Space Echo RE-201 to name a few. This resulted in good, ready-to-use samples for electronica production. If you’re someone who likes to create additional loops using external hardware and/or software synthesizers, you can load the 100 MIDI file into your DAW and use that to trigger synthesizers, then render to loops. It’s not going sound the same, but at least you will end up with a unique set of new loops. I love the sound of the Moog Matriarch. I think it’s an amazing semi–modular synth, and this pack showcases what you can do with it.

SOR – Moving Particles
This is the second library in the Particles series and SOR continues to put out inspiring content for various producers. The goal this time is to give producers a beautifully-crafted movement samples. Moving Particles is geared for techno, melodic house, melodic techno, minimal, tech house, deep house and many more electronic sub-genres. Sound categories include atmosphere, bass loop, clap+snare, click loop, experimental loop, field recordings, SFX, SFX grain, synth loop, top loop and many more. It is just a staggering amount of samples you get from this 1.15 GB library. In fact, there are 895 total files. All loops are recorded in 44.1 kHz/24–bit sampling rate. Certain loop folders have been key and tempo-tagged for ease and maximum use. A few MIDI files are thrown in for good measure. I really liked what I’m hearing when I auditioned the samples. The production is top notch. The samples sound crisp. The overall vibe of this pack is just great. My favorites are the Synth Loops and the Experimental Loop folders, in which there are numerous samples that will serve as an inspiration for your next track. Check out the video demo of what this pack is all about.

Soniqe Sound – Deep Tech Essence
This is my first ever review of Soniqe Sound – a new label at Resonance Sound. Deep Tech Essence comprises 785 cutting-edge bass, drums, top, kick, hat, perc, snare and clap, texture, synth, FXs, bass shots, synth shots, vox shots and drum hit samples. The focus here is to bring commercial-ready sounds for deep tech, but it’s diverse enough for any electronic music genre like house, deep house, tech house and minimal productions. All loops are recorded in 127 BPM and delivered in 44.1 kHz/24-bit format. They’re tagged with key and tempo information for ease of use. Also, this pack comes with a decent amount of MIDI files – both synth and bass patterns. This library is all about modern sounds needed for constructing futuristic grooves. You have full drum kit loops, including split stems, and more-than-enough melodic loops to inspire you to create complete tracks. With the use of high-end gadgets (latest plugins and analog sound generators), I would say this is fine release. The loops themselves capture the deep tech genre on-point. They are nothing new, but they just work. The drums and percussion sounds are my favorites, along with the 69 synth loops that I would call “idea starter”. Deep Tech Essence is a nice 853 MB sample pack that will surprise you once you start auditioning the sounds.

SOR – Ultimate Bundle
Sounds Of Revolution Ultimate Bundle is a 28000-strong collection of samples Oliver Schmitt has created over the years. It includes 33 titles and 39+ GB of sampling materials that will forever be inexhaustible. You’ll get plenty of loops and one-shots, along with sampler patches that were expertly made by SOR. Although this bundle is mainly for electronic and dance music producers and musicians, there is a high versatility of content here. What can I say?! Great titles, great well-recorded samples that were processed properly at a very attractive price. This is a no-brainer. Ultimate Bundle is an instabuy.

SOR – Dynamic Particles
Last but not least in this month’s Sound Investments is SOR’s newest sample library called Dynamic Particles. Though tagged as a techno library, this actually works on other electronica sub-genre such as melodic house, melodic techno, minimal, tech house, deep house, and many more. It’s built on Oliver Schmitt’s imaginative head utilizing drum machines, synthesizers (hardware and software), and various studio gear to deliver a modern library inspiring both musicians and producers alike. It weighs in at 1.07 GB with 938 files in total. You’ll get the usual loops (403 files) and one-shots (532 files) along with three bonus MIDI files. The bulk of this library seems to be percussion, drum, and FX samples, but it’s good to see some atmos and a few of vocal loops included. The drums and percs, both one-shots and loops, sound amazing. Oliver has obviously been doing this for so long that he knows his craft, from programming and recording to editing and post-processing, he makes it easy for the end-user to utilize the samples as is. But he leaves some (dry versions) for creative freedom, and others to practice their skills in sound design. Highly recommended.

SOR – Melodic Techno 3
This 3rd part of Sounds of Revolution’s Melodic Techno series has a club vibe to its drums, bass, synth, SFX, atmos, and field recording samples. Its strong features are the synth and bass loops made with some of the best analogue gear and studio toys by SoR head honcho Oliver Schmitt. This pack sounds really tight, deep, and flavorful. The assortment of sounds packed in this 2.05 GB library is great. In total, there are 713 loops (recorded in 124 BPM), 369 one-shots, and twelve bonus MIDI files. Although not a whole lot, I should mention that the spectral and grain, processed field recordings, and noise loops are also great for adding a bit of flair to your mixes. Like many of Sounds of Revolution’s library releases, Melodic Techno 3 excels in usability. I really like this pack and Sounds of Revolution should make some more. Hey, if it’s successful why stop? Looking forward to Melodic Techno 4.

Black Octopus – Lovers Lane Synthwave
This offering from Black Octopus Sound features 1.3 GB of loops, one-shots, song starter kits, various stems and multi-sampled synths. I’ve reviewed synthwave packs from Black Octopus before, but Lovers Lane Synthwave gives you a lighter and more elegant side of synthwave genre. A total of 240 24-bit WAV sounds can be sampled and further manipulated at your heart’s content. It includes plenty of drums, instruments, arpeggios and basses. The sounds are driven to inspire the user, especially the loops that have been recorded in 97 BPM with key information for flexibility and ease of use. The starter and full-mix loops are great song aid to get you going. A good set of five multi-sampled synths can be loaded in your soft sampler of choice so you can make your own patches. Although this is a very genre-specific library, Lovers Lane Synthwave is still useful for pop and electronica. If you like the nostalgic sounds of the 80s, look no further. Two thumbs up.

SOR – Deeper Sylenth1 Sounds
Here we have another Sounds-of-Revolution sound bank review courtesy of Resonance Sound. SOR returns with Deeper Sylenth1 Sounds for Lennar Digital’s Sylenth1 software synthesizer. Included are deep, moody, melodic, and dirty Sylenth1 presets expertly crafted by Oliver Schmitt. The sounds are custom-built for deep house, tech house, bass house, progressive, minimal techno, techno, or other electronic music styles. Different sound categories are supported with huge emphasis soaring leads, classic chords, epic sequences, expansive pads, special FX, bombastic basses, and retro keys. Like the Summer Deep House Sylenth1 soundbank I reviewed (see above), the patches respond to modwheel, velocity, and aftertouch. The patches are also enhanced by Sylenth1’s powerful functionality, modulation system and built-in effects. Because of this, the result is a soundbank that is stunning, punchy, useable and analogue-sounding.
Deeper Sylenth1 Sounds was truly designed to be a strong support companion to Sylenth1. The patches have that overdriven, warm and analogue feel that a VA synth can produce. If you’re looking to expand your Sylenth1 preset collection, this bank is a good choice with an unbeatable price.

SOR – Summer Deep House Sylenth1
With the blazing sun emitting UV rays outside, things are heating up everywhere. Summer is here in Florida, and what way to celebrate it than to review a sound bank appropriate for this year’s midsummer edition of Soundbytes Magazine! Sounds-of-Revolution have cooked up a special EDM sound bank for Lennar Digital’s Sylenth1 software synthesizer. The aptly named Summer Deep House Sylenth1 was expertly created by Oliver Schmitt (aka Sounds-of-Revolution). There are 71 meticulously crafted patches including everything from classic deep house signature sounds to a plethora of brand new EDM-inspired content. The patches are meant to give producers a ‘ready-for-production’ sounds instantly. And with sounds ranging from dusty melodic keys to sun-kissed synth leads, you’ll be banging out new tracks in no time.
Sylenth1 is rock solid, warm and raw to the core. Sylenth1’s superior sound is evident in this sound bank as Oliver Schmitt was able to harness Sylenth1’s powerful features: alias-free unison oscillators, state-of-the-art filters, vast modulation options and professional effects, making this sound bank a top-notch product. Many of the patches included are of highest quality. Here are some that I really like when I auditioned them.
I find that Sylenth1 is a workhorse synth capable of generating many useful sounds. You just have to have the magic touch to sound design new and exciting sounds. Summer Deep House Sylenth1 showcases what the synth is capable of. This sound bank definitely sounds warm, relaxed and with a sort of a vintage vibe at the same time. To those of you looking to expand Sylenth1’s stock presets, this is highly recommended. The 50 MIDI and 56 WAV files included makes it a no brainer.

Psytrance Reflection by Datacult
The thriving psytrance genre has been around for a while now. While it is great that there are still producers making psytrance for the dancefloors, the sample developers at Resonance Sounds are busy promoting this genre. This new trippy sample pack from them takes the genre to another level with wild pulsating basslines, hypnotic synth lines, acidic melodies, psychedelic leads, hard drum loops and much more. It is essential to psytrance to have quality synths and drums that’s why it is important to enlist some of the best synthesizers and outboard processing gear to create this library. The result is 800 MB of top notch 24-bit content. There are plenty of samples that are useable, but the Psytrance Reflection’s strong points are 97 drum and percussion loops. They’re so punchy and thumpy. Also, the synth and arp loops are worthy of thumbs up because they are programmed really well. This is quality material from samplesmith Datacult!

SOR – Hats & Tops Vol.2
Here we have another micro sample pack from Oliver Schmitt aka Sounds of Revolution. Hats & Tops Vol. 2 is a collection of 100 hats and tops loops geared for the creation of deep house, house, minimal, tech house and techno. This pack also includes fifteen kick-free loops (recorded in 127 BPM) as a bonus. Although this pack only weighs in at 130 MB, the materials included are very useable and inspiring. Plenty of them are good as starter loops to get your tracks going. Like many of Sounds of Revolution’s releases, every sample in this library was meticulously crafted from scratch and expertly programmed for full sonic potential. Soundwise, I like how the 100 loops as they are very detailed and clear. They are just right at 124 BPM, though you can always speed them up using a pitch and timestretching software. Overall, this is a good micro pack, and once again I’m blown away by Oliver Schmitt’s sound design skills.

Black Octopus – Amy Kirkpatrick: Fortune
There have been plenty of vocal sample packs popping up lately, and this one from Black Octopus relies on Amy Kirkpatrick’s vocal chops. Fortune is a construction-type kit library that is oozing with greatness. There are ten construction kits included in this library, all with the stems for song starters. Each folder is labeled properly with tempo and key information. There are also four effect folders that are named Pitched One-Shots, Risers & Reverses, Vocal Atmospheres, and Vocal Glitch. Two extra vocal folders of Ooooh and Ahhhhh and Spoken Word round out this massive library. Over 1 GB of content, Fortune is organized at an extremely high level. Music producers will find this library easy to use. Fortune is definitely geared for electronic music such as future bass, dubstep, trap, house, progressive, EDM, garage, and drum and bass. Her great voice works well with these genres. The inclusion of 105 FX, atmospheres and glitches samples makes this sample pack quite nice and attractive. If you’re looking for a nicely recorded vocal pack that is of high-quality Fortune has a vast selection of ready to use samples.

Synthwave Reflections
Eighties-themed sample libraries are ever growing. Synthwave Reflections is an 818 MB library from Resonance Sound created using software, boutique hardware instruments and high-end processing tools. As the title suggests, it is geared for synthwave, retrowave and electro. Synthwave Reflection is comprised of two main folders of SWR 100 BPM Kit and SWR 110 BPM Kit. Within each folder are sub-folders of construction kits filled with individual stems that you can layer or mix together. A full mix file is also at hand for reference. A third folder called SWR Effects contains various effect samples that are useful for adding a bit of uniqueness to your mixes. And finally, a folder of 95 MIDI files is available so you can run sequences in your DAW. I noticed that Synthwave Reflections has plenty of great synthesizer patterns, melodies, and hooks. It would be this library’s selling point. The drum loops are good and can be useful in any situation. If you like synthesizers, drum machines, DeLorean, neon lights, and cool Miami sunsets, Synthwave Reflections will satisfy your need with its soothing 80s vibe. Highly recommended.

SOR – Melodic Techno 2
This pack is influenced by the sounds of Tale of Us, Mind Against, Amotic, etc., with a modern twist for producers of current techno, minimal, electronic, deep & dub house. As the name suggests, Melodic Techno 2 is a sequel with all-new, complex material for producing killer techno music. MT2 is comprised of 24-bit WAV loops, one-shots, and MIDI files. It weighs in at 2.1 GB with over 1300 samples in total. Expect to find different elements for song construction such as basses, atmospheres, grooves, leads, and more. There are also experimental loops, field recordings, FX noises, spectral and grain, and vocal samples to round out this library. With Sounds of Revolution’s expertise in producing, designing, and releasing libraries, the samples contained in this pack are recorded and processed well. The Top Loops folder sounds fresh and will have you creating music instantly. The Spectral + Grains folder will add a unique flair to your productions. To the fans of Resonance Sounds and Sounds of Revolution, you all have been treated with another fine library from Oliver Schmitt.

SOR – Melodic Techno
Following the highly awarded SOR Minimal Techno Revolution series, Oliver Schmitt, aka Sounds of Revolution (SOR), is back again with a banging sample pack for all of you technoheads out there. SOR Melodic Techno is dubbed as a rare species of techno music samples to allow you to add never-heard deep richness to your tune by Oliver. This is definitely geared for those who produce techno, tech-house, minimal, deep house, progressive, and all sorts of electronica genres. Melodic Techno is delivered in 24-bit WAV, MIDI files, and download size is a little less than 2 GB. There are 931 samples in total with majority of them in loops, but the 392 one-shots are available for dropping into your DAW sequencer song pane or for use as trigger samples. Plenty of the source sounds were created with both hardware and virtual gear for maximum character. Sound-wise, the samples are recorded and processed well. The 185 drum loops are crisp, the 83 bass loops are tight, the 151 synth loops conform to the techno genre very well, and the 64 SFX have enough swagger to be used in an arrangement. The synth loops includes patterns, riffs, sequences, and arpeggios that are good for song starters. If you’re looking for a new sample pack with style, this is a focused library for the techno genre. Check out the demo tracks at the Resonance Sound website.

Black Octopus – Ill-Esha Intonations
Intonations by ill-esha is a new Black Octopus sample library that is focused on delivering high quality vocal samples for different styles of music. This library weighs in at 5 GB, delivered in 24-bit WAV format, along with software sampler patches for Kontakt, Ableton Sampler and EXS24. 25 custom wavetables and twenty presets for the ubiquitous Xfer Serum synthesizer are also included, and that’s just for starters. Inside you’ll find ready-to-go full song stems, phrases, vocal FX, tuned vocals, adlibs, atmospheres, phrases, tones, vocal drum hits, spoken word and other noises. ill-esha’s voice is powerful and off the charts. In her performance, she has total control of her vocal cords, without crackling. Intonations is massive library full of useable samples, especially the ones that were processed with vocoder/harmonic effects. If you like creative vocal FX and textures you’re in for a treat as this has some fine FX included. Like many of Black Octopus’ library release, the production is top notch with many tricks in the bag. Thumbs up!

Arthur Distone – Techno Prime Time 1
This techno sample pack is no slouch; it wants to be in the spotlight, in prime time. Techno Prime 1 includes more than 250 expertly crafted loops, influenced by artists such as Umek, ANNA, Pilldriver and Lützenkirchen. It weighs in at 748 MB with WAV files delivered in 24bit. Inside the pack, you’ll find all kinds of loops; bass, drum, kick, music, perc, top, vocal and FX. All loops are recorded in 125 BPM, handcrafted to be ready for a dance producer’s rhythmic and musical need. Lots of crowd pleasers here; from pounding drums to resonant percussion and pitch-black synthesizer sounds to vocals, the compilation of samples in this tight sample is great from the get-go. Should you buy it? Well, that’s for you to decide, but this is for technoheads seeking for some really high energy techno material.

Black Octopus – Cristina Soto Souls
Having worked with artists like Tritonal, Illenium & Said the Sky, Au5, Bassnectar, Psymbionic, Matt Lange, and many others, popular dance music singer Cristina Soto present her vocal prowess in a pack of 378 samples called Souls. The sizeable vocal content are performed in vocal layers, harmonies, doubles, verses, ad-libs and chorus. You’ll get vocal stems, six unreleased full songs (arranged in different keys and tempos should you want to remix or just play around with them), six vocal effect folders (atmospheres, chops, phrases, quotes, swells, one-shots) and a bonus 51 acoustic guitar loops. Sound-wise, the vocal elements are of high quality and professional. Cristina’s voice sounds top notch, though hypnotic at times, but it works well in the EDM context. The vocals sound very up-front and punchy. Of the materials on offer, I like the swells and the chop folders as they are very useable. This is a solid pack that is extremely versatile.

Resonance Sound – Drum Depot
Focusing on electronic drum samples, Drum Depot: Drum Kits & Loops delivers a selection of highly-charged drum samples to help you craft your own electronic tracks. The content has plenty of good, punchy samples and is so highly versatile that it covers a wide range of music genre. Whether it’s electro or deep house, minimal trap or tech house, hip-hop or techno, Drum Depot has got you covered. Weighing in at 1.3 GB, this library features 48 drum kits, 50 loops, 44 MIDI files and 781 drum samples in 24-bit WAV and REX formats. Several software samplers are also supported, such as Battery, Geist, Maschine, Live, Kontakt, SFZ and MPC, so you can load presets to open up premapped drum kits. The thing that I like about this pack is the drum samples themselves. They were created using hardware units such as Vermona DRM1 mkIII, Korg Radias, Novation Nova, Waldorf Blofeld, Jomox AirBase 99 and etc. The units were recorded through a TLA 5021 compressor and driven with a variety of vintage gear to give that warm analog sound. The samples were programmed and seasoned with just the right amount of compression and drive, in my opinion. The snares are superb. The kicks have a lot of punch and are suitable for modern electronic music productions. Overall, this is a fine collection of drum sounds worth considering of your next purchase.

SOR – Shhh I am Speaking 1
SOR – Shhh I am Speaking 2
Vocal sample libraries are a good tool if you can’t find a vocalist that can deliver the exact performance you’re looking for or someone you can’t hire for cheap or simply needed some vocal samples to inject into your dance productions. The idea of such libraries is to give producers something they can grab on the fly, as well as samples they can tweak to fit into their mixes. That is why there is Shhh – I am Speaking Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 from Sounds-of-Revolution. These libraries will help ease the process of adding vocal elements into your productions. If phrases, single word spoken, variable sentences and FX vocals are something you fancy, both libraries are equipped to deliver such samples.
Shhh – I Am Speaking Vol. 1 contains 465 MB of content, 788 vocal samples in total with 215 group phrases, 310 single phrases, 257 words and 6 complex FX vocals. Picking up where Vol. 1 left off, Shhh – I Am Speaking Vol. 2 includes 458 samples in content, 807 EDM vocals in total with 189 group phrases, 356 single phrases, 258 words and eight complex FX vocals. Both libraries were performed by a professional native UK speaker with so much liveliness in the voice. What’s nice about these libraries is that both are clean-sounding with a nice stereo image (but are 100% mono compatible). All the samples are recorded dry, so you can tweak, time stretch, pitch-shift or effect-mangling them to your heart’s content. These 24-bit WAV libraries are well suited for dance, breaks, dubstep, house and other electronica sub-genre. My favorites of this bunch are the single phrases because they are “complete” and you can just drop them in an assigned audio track in your DAW. I wish there were more vocal FX samples to round out this library. Overall, this is another S-o-R offering that is worthy to be considered if you’re in the hunt of some vocal samples.

Audio Boutique – Atmos Textures & Noise Elements
If you’re an atmospheric and soundscape samples aficionado, Atmos Textures & Noise Elements is a sample pack by Audio Boutique that you might like. It features an all-new and shiny collection of technoid atmospheres, never-heard-of-before ambiences, deep soundscapes, spooky vocals, vinyl dirt, tape noises and so much more. […] It has a pretty good selection of samples you need to compose electronic music, but is mainly geared for ambient, soundscape and score music. […] Of all the materials available, my favorites are the 50 Drones and 50 Moving Textures because of the samples’ usability. The 35 Vinyl Crackles, Scratches and FXs are also great for EDM, as well as the ultra-flexible 30 Vocal FX loops. Overall, this is a good sample resource for quick augmentation into your own atmospheric mixes.

SOR – Drum Revolution
This release from Sounds-of-Revolution has plenty of great drum elements that fits the electronic and dance music genre. Punchy, in-your-face and cutting edge are some of the adjectives I can use to describe Drum Revolution library. This massive collection of drum hits boasts some 400+ MB (24-bit WAVs) worth of materials. There are 2500 total sounds that include claps, snares, clicks, kicks, hi hats, cymbals, rides, toms, percs and more. The variety of sounds that make up this library are some of the best I’ve auditioned, especially all the bonus SID, synth madness and vocal cut one-shots. These would be perfect for dubstep and trap mixes. The hard kicks and snappy snares are excellent. The Click+Element folder features some marvelous trickery in layered sounds. Like many of Sounds-of-Revolution’s sample packs the recording, programming and processing of this library is top notch. If you’re looking for quality drum hits to make a big role in your music productions, Drum Revolution can’t be beat.

Black Octopus – Superfluidity Liquid Drum and Bass & Drumstep
Superfluidity was created by Paradigm Theorem, and is a handy tool for producers of drum and bass and drumstep sub-genre. This sound library from Black Octopus weighs in at over 3 GB with plenty of samples to choose from as you see fit. Including in this library are 800 perfectly mastered drum samples, 775 drum loops, 305 musical instruments and 300 effects samples. Producers who are looking to start on a new project will benefit from this variety of “ready-to-drop” samples, or you can slap on some loops for quick foundation of a track. Fortunately, Superfluidity sounds well-produced and provides you polished samples. Some of the sample categories are broken down into different sub-categories for maximum usability and flexibility in adding them to any arrangement. Sound-wise, the loops are very energetic, authentic and punchy enough to be used in mainstream dn’b productions. If fast drum and bass is your thing, I would suggest checking this library out.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.5
Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.5 covers a wide variety of sounds including elegant synth, mixed loop, basses, 303 loops, atmospheres and many more categories. This pack also offers a handful of good vintage vocal and vocal FX samples. As always, Sounds of Revolution delivers great-sounding drum hits, and there are quite many included in this pack. Sound-wise, the samples have an organic vibe, especially the bass and percussion samples. Bottom line: there’s plenty of useable material here that will work in any production, material that is fresh sounding so that it’s guaranteed to fill the dance floor.

Black Octopus – Beach Sessions
The performance on the percussion loops is great, but the real treat of this library, for me, are the synth phrases. They sound so good that they can be useful little fillers for anything. I like this sample pack even though there are only five construction kits available. With that being said, this is still a ‘go’ for me. Ocean breeze, salty air and sun kissed hair … that’s what Beach Session is all about.

Black Octopus – Kulture Neuro Bass
The varieties of sounds that make up this library are some of the best I’ve auditioned with, especially all the terrorizing granulized bass loops that would be just perfect for dubstep mixes. The grittiness and crunchiness of these basses are excellent. The Metallic folder features some well-programmed, mutated sounds. Like many of Black Octopus’s sample packs the recording, programming and processing of this library is top notch. If you like your music to be in high gear, the aggressive, devastating and furious loops in Kulture Neuro Bass will surely bring your track into the next level.

Audio Boutique – House Elements
The guitars, drums and basses have all that vibe and authenticity that even serious connoisseur house-heads will be ecstatic to consider getting this library. The 59 vocal samples by SELDA are great, but the chord and tops loops are top notch. Also worth mentioning are the 214 drum samples which are punchy and in-your-face.

Black Octopus – Echoes by Holly Drummond
The main selling point of Echos, though, is song construction kit folders. Each kit features sections such as verse, chorus, harmony and adlibs, which you can use in your own mixes. I love the samples with plenty of reverberation applied. Most of them sound huge, but that’s part of the clever sound design. The bone-chilling vocal atmospheres are my favorite in this collection as they sound lush and can be utilized in ambient compositions. As far as the sound design of the samples goes, they are very well made and the complex edits are top notch. This is a superb collection, and beautifully recorded!

Audio Boutique – Deep House Construction Kits
Majority of the loops have that undeniable deep house flair and have been programmed very well. The drums patterns sound big, the guitar loops are useful and the vocals are seasoned with the right amount of ambience. The inclusion of MIDI files is quite nice – useful to say the least. Overall, a very fun sample pack from Audio Boutique that plenty of hungry EDM producers will find enjoyable.

SOR – Prime Kicks Vol.1
So what do I think of Prime Kicks Vol. 1? It’s great and affordable. The kicks, especially the analogue ones, are deep and fat – lots of oomph. The FX kicks are my least favorite, but they are there if you need something extreme with plenty of reverb tail. If you’re an EDM producer, you’re going to love this pack as the majority of the kicks sound great. There are also plenty to choose from.

Black Octopus – Cyborg Onslaught by Paradigm Theorem
A lot of the sounds have that gritty, dirty and aggressive tone – very nicely done. And even the texture sounds have been stylistically programmed to fit well into today’s modern dubstep and neuro-hop productions. Although the focus of this library is the drum sounds, the basses can cover a lot grounds when it comes to electronica production. Overall, this library will prove its worth to any hard-hitting dubstep producer.

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals 2
But the samples themselves were cleaned up in Resonance Sound’s high-end studio, edited and mastered to give you that production-ready sound. What I like about this pack is the variety of vocal phrases it offers – it’s really great for spicing up breaks and drops in a song. If your arrangement is lacking something in the vocal phrases department, Vintage Movie Vocals definitely has the samples that can take your track to the next level.

Black Octopus – Cory Friesenhan Vocal Sessions Vol.1
Most of the samples are recorded in 135 BPM. But by chopping them up and manipulating them, you can create an endless supply of vocal licks for future use. Of the samples included, my favorites are the vocal “Swells” folder because they are great for fills and they can add drama to sections of your songs. The mutated loops are also great if you’re looking for a gated, robotic effect. Overall, this is a nice collection of samples worthy of checking out.

Black Octopus – Siren by Veela
In this collection, my favorites are the “Vocal FX” folder. Those vocals reverse with lots of dense reverb are so awesome for intros. Overall, this is a good sample pack especially if you’re looking to add a vocal flare to their productions. Sexy!

PLUGHUGGER

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.3
If you are after the kind of sounds that will help you concur the charts of modern trance pop, this is probably too advanced for your audience. Rating: “Get it now” Award

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
This is of the best collection of kick-free loops I’ve heard in a long long time. […] I can’t think of anything better than MTR1 right now. The skills of Oliver Schmitt when it comes to drum loops are considerable and he truly masters the art of creating sparse and highly intelligent loops that both inspires and leaves room for your own drum sounds.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
The highlights of this collection is when Oliver Schmitt is exploring minimalistic grooves and is playing around with odd time signatures – that’s when you forget that you’re listening to a sample library and start producing just by sheer pleasure.

WAVEFORMLESS

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
As always, the programming and sound design is extremely creative and interesting, making it stand out from other similarly-themed sample libraries. Sounds of Revolution have always made products with good production quality, but it feels like they upped things a notch this time around. The loops especially draw a better balance between loud/punchy and dynamic than before and sound professional and present without being smashed within an inch of their lives. Rating: 10/10

Black Octopus – Cory Friesenhan Vocal Sessions Vol.1
Black Octopus – Siren by Veela
The sound quality of both libraries is pretty much perfect. Great-sounding recordings and professional performances all captured with top notch gear. As you would expect, the vocals are mostly dry, allowing you to process them as you see fit. I really appreciated all the extras included in these libraries. The processed vocal loops are great for adding a bit of interest, and even seemingly innocuous things like breaths and sighs can be the basis for rhythmic loops or time-stretched into ambient textures. Rating 9/10

SOR – Clicks & FX Vol.1
As with all their libraries, the sounds and loops are full produced and ready to drop into your arrangement as-is, making it super easy to use in addition to sounding great. Rating: 10/10

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.3
It’s a fun collection to audition loops from because you’re never quite sure what the next loop is going to sound and feel like. This makes it very easy to recommend to musicians looking to add a little inspiration to their drum tracks. Rating: 9/10

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
Schmitt’s usual talent for creative and futuristic sounding programming continues here in abundance. All the sounds and production are absolutely current sounding and genre appropriate. […] it is clear that Sounds of Revolution are aiming for the top. Rating: 10/10

CFA-Sound – DSP-Drums 01 ACE
The percussion would work great in electro house and anything looking for a high quirk factor. There`s a lot of creativity in the sound design, the sound quality is top notch, and the price is very reasonable. Rating: 9/10

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
…the production quality is extremely slick and the effects themselves are often quite layered and complex. […] The only thing that keeps this from being a full 10/10 is the price. Rating: 09/10

AMAZONA.DE

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Puchbox lässt es krachen. D16 ist ja schon lange die Instanz für x0x-Emulationen jeglicher Art. Besseres wird man als Software nur schwer finden, obwohl StiX von Xils-Lab ja auch schon sehr fett rüberkommt. Die nächstliegende Konkurrenz […] Aber ich denke, keines davon hat die Balance zwischen unmittelbarem Zugang und Klangformungsmöglichkeiten so gut getroffen wie D16 Group Punchbox. Die komplette MIDI-fizierung wirklich jedes Parameters macht sie mehr zum einem expressiveren Instrument als die anderen Plug-ins. Durch die Verwendung von externen Samples lädt Punchbox noch zu den abwegigsten Soundexperimenten ein. Wenn man das Key-Tracking einschaltet, wird daraus sogar ein monophoner Synthesizer. Bewertung: Sehr gut (3/3)

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
…really wicked effect loops, in parts with vocals and pretty experimental. […] Again a must buy!

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
nice synthetic sounding […] immense groovy […] very varied […] absolut inspiring and a must buy!

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
+++++ geniale Snares /// +++++ Sounds fügen sich gut ein /// +++++ keine Poser-Sounds /// +++ gute Kicks /// +++ gute Construction- und Single-Loops

SOR – Revolution JD800/990 Vol.1
SOR – Revolution JD800/990 Vol.2
SOR – Revolution JD800/990 Vol.3
…es gibt auch sehr viele Nuancen, die ich aus dem JD800 so noch nicht gehört habe. Besonders die Pads und Retro-Sounds haben mich beeindruckt. […] außerordentlich gute Patches

NUEKO.NET

CFA-Sound – Spire Evolution Vol.1
These sounds were created in detail to exploit the full potential of the powerful and high performance of the Spire Reveal Sound, 90 sounds to make your productions incandescent EDM inspired by producers like Sander van Doorn, Martin Garrix, Firebeatz, R3hab, Nervo , W & W. All the sounds are editable, malleable according to your needs, a real collection of sharp sounds that will surely inspire you to create new melodies, harmonies and sharp riffs. Of note, the power of the lead synth and bass and decided disruptive, all without forgetting the beautiful pad.

Resonance Sound – EDM MIDI Weapons 2.0
EDM Midi Weapons 2.0 is essential to enrich your productions Electro, Progressive House and Trance, thanks to the flexibility of MIDI files, you can search for the perfect sound content using your favorite Vst to shape your productions, all of course Royalty-Free.

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals 2
An arsenal is essential to enrich your Dubstep productions, Trap, Electro, Progressive, House and Trance with exciting dialogues and vocals particular, all divided into folders to facilitate your research. All samples were carefully elaborated in studies of Resonance Sound, cut, edited and cleaned to be used in any musical context.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
Everything has been worked out in great detail in taking care of every detail so manic every nuance, nothing was left to chance, the end result is an arsenal of sound that perfectly expresses the true essence of the new age Techno sound.

BANG THE DJ

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.3
The best part for us though is the loops section, You’ll find loops that are well constructed and flexible enough to use in any EMD genre. The loops are not over producer either like some sample packs. Oliver is a master of his craft and although he’s created some killer loops he has also left enough scope for the you to further edit, glitch ,stutter smash and mangle which is exactly what you want from a good sample pack. Rating: 10/10

CFA-Sound – Massive Electro House Tools
If filthy dirty aggressive bass driven house is your thing look no further than CFA-Sounds latest release Massive Electro House Tools as CFA-Sounds successfully focus on recreating all the huge Electro House sounds that you can hear smashing club dance floors all over the world. Rating: 9/10

AUDIO DESK

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
You get top-notch quality, huge variety and usability ‘Sounds of Revolution’ has proven once more why their products are one of the best out there. Rating: 94%

CFA-Sound – DSP-Drums 01 ACE
Furthermore the product delivers crisp and experimental drumshots from claps to kicks to various percussion elements, which makes “DSP-Drums ACE” probably one of the best choices for a very unique electro production including never-heard sounds: almost every sample is inspiring as such, besides the sounddesign being top notch: precise cuts, very different sounds. Rating: 92%

OHMLAB MUSIC

Resonance Sound – Vintage Movie Vocals 2
All of that plus a perfect 5 star rating from the customers who have already grabbed it and a couple of big thumbs up from OhmLab! All samples fall under a Creative Commons license and you can easily make them work in any kind of modern music production, from Dubstep and Dn’B to ambient electronica and techno.

LOGICUSER

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
Wirklich einzigartig […] völlig neu produzierte und wirklich innovative Loops, wie man Sie bei keinem anderen Anbieter findet. […] Meiner Meinung nach die besten Kick Free Loops 2010. Rating: 10/10

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
The sounds are extreme clear and noiseless. With FX Revolution Vol.1 Oliver Schmitt sets high standards.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
In my opinion the best ‘No Kick Sample CD 2009′.

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Mir ist kaum eine DVD bekannt, die derart facettenreich und inspirierend ist. Rating: 10/10 Punkte – Redaktionstipp!

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
…programmed with much love for the details. Drumssounds or loops aren´t sampled/ripped from any other archieves.

SOR – Revolution ES2
Das Soundset bietet vor allen fette Leadsounds sowie knallige Bässe. […] Trotz der mageren internen Effeksektion des ES2 klingen die Sounds äußerst druckvoll und kräftig ! […] Die Sounds decken eine enorme Bandbreite ab.

PROFESSIONAL AUDIO MAGAZINE GERMANY

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
[…] auf hohem, professionellen Niveau produziert. […] Die Loops […] erweisen sich als perfekte Add-on Beats zu bestehenden Arrangements.

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
[…] Especially impressing are the experimental- and kick-free-loops […] Very good sounding sounds, that are also interesting for all kinds of …

VST-CAFE

CFA-Sound – Divorce 1 VST/AU
E-Play Divorce is a great addition to my arsenal. I love to layer it and overall I’m impressed. You can’t compare it to another product because the sounds are pretty much unique. It consumes low CPU and the price is very fair. As far as I know, demo version will be available very soon…

WUSIK SOUND MAGAZINE

Aiyn Zahev Sounds – Tundra Vol.1 DUNE
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.

Audio Boutique – Electric Elements 3.0
Given the attention to detail of the production, Electric Elements is ready to be dropped into any EDM construction because the quality is just hard to beat.

Audio Boutique – Tribal Elements 2.0
With this library, you mainly get killer percussion loops, such as bongos and congas and top loops (kick-free material) that you can add to your own drum mixes. Plus, there are four folders of drum hits should you want to program your own drum patterns.

SOR – Abstract & Weird Vol.2
This is not a collection that is going to provide your full rhythm track, but rather the perfect sort of thing if you want to add a distinctive edge to your existing beats. Rating: 9/10

SOR – Clicks & Glitches Vol.2
This library can be used in conjunction with other loops or drum mixes that requires certain charm or lacks edge over others.

SOR – Abstract and Weird Vol.1
I love this library’s superior quality in terms of how the loops were recorded. The spiky and glitchy drum loops are top notch and the best offering.

SOR – Clicks and Glitches Vol.1
This pack lives up to my expectations, with some pretty useable esoteric loops that can add a little ‘extra’ to your compositions […] you can’t go wrong with this.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
As for the overall delivery and programming of the loops, and as I expected from a Sounds of Revolution product, this is a high quality sample pack worthy of praise.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
They say that sequels are supposed to be better than the original, and Vol. 2 delivers. Although both libraries are kind of pricey, they are superbly programmed with many usable sounds.

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
…carefully crafted and edited with the use of clever processing…even the additional 300+ kick-free loops rock.

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
It’s intended to give producers a mix and match option for building new and unique drum patterns. […] superbly programmed with many usable sounds.

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
…the samples are easy to work with because most of them were left dry for further processing. This is a big plus because, sometimes, I’d like to torture my samples beyond recognition.

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
Although this CD covers a wide spectrum of electronic dance genre, the highlight of this library is the 575 kick-free loops. These serves as “top” loops that can be used to augment your main drum loops.

RECORDING.DE

D16 PunchBox Bassdrum Synthesizer
Ich bin von PunchBox absolut überzeugt und kann es mit gutem Gewissen jedem empfehlen, der sich mit gesampleten Kickdrums oder laschen Synth-Kicks nicht zufrieden geben will. PunchBox ist ein vielseitiger Kickdrum-Generator, der mit einem MIDI-Controller wahrlich zu einem mächtigen Kick-Instrument emporsteigt. Die vorbildliche Klangqualität, die breitbandige Sample-Auswahl und nicht zuletzt die Möglichkeit des eigenen Sample-Imports machen PunchBox zu einem kompromisslosen Partner für beeindruckende Kickdrums. Redaktionstipp!

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
…zu einem Preis, der wirklich absolut konkurrenzlos ist. Wer hier nicht zugreift, ist selber Schuld.
Rating: Redaktionstipp

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
Diese FX sind in der Tat eine absolute Bereicherung. […] Aufgrund des sehr guten Sounddesigns, des Umfanges und des fairen Preises ist FXR Vol.1 für mich ein klarer Redaktionstipp. Rating: 10/10 Punkte Redaktionstipp!

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.1
Der Untertitel verspricht, dass es sich um “Unique Loops by Oliver Schmitt” handelt. Das ist mittlerweile schon fast ein Gütesiegel in der Branche […] Einmal mehr stellt Oliver Schmitt unter Beweis, worin seine Leidenschaft liegt: Im programmieren von Loops.

SOR – Electro House Revolution Vol.1
Für mich ist die Scheibe ein klarer Redaktionstipp. Die Qualität der Samples ist durchgängig hochwertig. Alle Sounds sind 1a in Handarbeit produziert. In dieser Library steckt viel Arbeit und das Wichtigste: Man hört das auch.

SOR – Club Revolution Vol.1
Über Club Revolution Vol.1 “Treibend, frisch, groovy! […] Die Vielfalt und dennoch gleichbleibend hohe Qualität bei dieser CD ist wirklich bemerkenswert. […]

APFELWAHN MUSIC

SOR – Tribal Progressive Revolution Vol.1
Auch bei dieser Library stellt Oliver Schmitt wieder unter Beweis, dass er in Sachen Qualität und Sorgfalt bei der Auswahl und Nachbearbeitung seiner Samples nicht nachlässt […] Redaktionstipp!

SOR – Abstract and Weird Vol.1
SOR – Clicks and Glitches Vol.1
Beide Libraries bieten für einen absolut attraktiven Preis unverbrauchte Loops an, die sich fast in jeder Produktion gut machen können. […] Die Qualität der Loops ist wie gewohnt hoch […] Redaktionstipp und meine uneingeschränkte Kaufempfehlung.

SOR – Minimal Techno Revolution Vol.1
[…] Oliver Schmitt liefert hier sowohl Quantität als auch Qualität ab. Es wurde nicht unnötig geloopt und alle Samples wurden wie immer exklusiv produziert.[…] Alles in allem eine wirklich umfassende und hervorragende Auswahl ohne Ausreißer! Rating: Testnote 1

SOR – Kick Free Revolution Vol.2
Mit Kick Free Vol. 2 hat man in Windeseile einen komplexen Groove bis hin zu einem Arrangement zusammengebastelt […] Im Gegensatz zu vielen anderen Libraries gibt es keine Ausrutscher: Alle Loops und Samples sind durchgängig sehr sorgfältig erstellt und das Ergebnis minutiöser Detailarbeit. Rating: Testnote 1

SOR – FX Revolution Vol.1
Im Gegensatz zu vielen anderen Libraries gibt es keine Ausrutscher: Alle Loops und Samples sind durchgängig sehr sorgfältig erstellt und das Ergebnis minutiöser Detailarbeit. Rating: Testnote 1

PRO-TONE

SOR – Abstract and Weird Vol.1
[…] there they are, those special sounds, weird, not really percussion, not very obvious, but they all do one thing: making a track unique and groovy. Until now we couldn’t find any similar sample collection to this one. Rating: 10/10

SOR – Clicks and Glitches Vol.1
For every fan of electro house and progressive, for sure also other genres, there’s no better collection of these kind of sounds. Rating: 10/10