Loopmasters' Puremagnetik Injection Bundles
Loopmasters (loopmasters.com) has teamed up with sound-developer Puremagnetik (puremagnetik.com) to release theme-based bundles of Puremagnetik's Micropacks for Ableton Live, Native Instruments Kontakt, and Apple Logic. Each downloadable Injection Bundle (approximately $35 per host) combines several Micropacks devoted to a single instrument type such as keyboards, guitar, analog synths, and so on. The price is a considerable discount to buying the Micropacks individually. Injection Bundles typically contain virtual-instrument and effects presets and samples, and they often have accompanying MIDI and audio loops. Check out the details and listen to audio examples at Loopmasters' Website.
Tonehammer's Kontakt Libraries
Tonehammer (tonehammer.com) has added four downloadable sampler libraries to its offerings. Two of these, Waterphone ($99) and Lakeside Pipe Organ ($59), are multigigabyte collections of underrepresented instruments. The organ — from The Lakeside Temple in Oakland, Calif. — is a hybrid analog and electric beast with a wide range of timbres. The Waterphone is a 1960s invention of Richard Waters (richardwaters.com). In this collection, it is bowed, struck with mallets, and subjected to various forms of torture. Forgotten Voices: Francesca ($99) is a compendious collection of vocal textures, chanting, phrases, and effects by alto Francesca Genco. Cylindrum ($49) extracts a broad range of percussive effects from giant PVC pipes and corrugated plastic tubes.
Sony Creative Software's Evolver
Evolver: Distinctive Electronica ($39.95) from Sony Creative Software (sonycreative.com) comprises 513 ACIDized WAV files (609 MB) spread across ten construction kits and a batch of bonus content. Created by American electronica group 3kStatic and guest musicians including Kevin Max, David Manion, and Robert Bond, the collection promises to “open wormholes to electronica's storied past and…possible futures.” You'll find six-string wails, 808s, synths, basses, processed percussion, and evolving pads. The material is tightly organized and well documented, making it easy to mix and match between construction kits and the bonus material. A companion audio CD shows off songs created from each construction kit.