We’ve scoured the internet once again to select a handful of sample pack releases that have stood out this month. Our top picks for February include synth-driven horror scores, muted trumpet riffs, retro pop construction kits, resonant acid basslines, 16-bit console sounds and more.
- READ MORE: Best freeware of the month: February 2023
UNDRGRND Sounds – Breaks Techno 2
- £34.95
- Download UNDRGRND Sounds
UNDRGRND Sounds kicks this list off with a fantastic, genre-bending pack that combines the sounds of 90s rave and breakbeat with modern techno production.
Breaks Techno 2 includes a whopping 705 loops and 255 one-shots that cover chugging beats and chopped-up breaks, spaced-out textures and soundscapes, melodic and ethereal synth loops, stabs and arps, weighty basslines, bongo-driven perc loops and plenty of sound effects.
All loops run at 132 bpm and can be purchased in WAV, Apple Loops or Rex2 formats, plus you get sampler patches and kits for use with all modern DAWs.
ModeAudio – Spook: Dark Cinematic Loops
- £18
- Download ModeAudio
Taking influence directly from the synth-driven horror scores of filmmakers such as John Carpenter, Spook is filled with ominous noise textures, soaring pads, haunting melodic riffs, punchy drums and thundering basses.
ModeAudio’s pack weighs in at 454MB and includes 154 loops, 43 drum samples and 16 sound effects samples that perfectly capture a sense of foreboding and tension. You also get 75 key and tempo-labelled MIDI loops, and you can choose from either WAV or Rex2 formats.
Big Fish Audio – After Midnight: Retro Pop Kits
- $129.95
- Download Big Fish Audio
Big Fish Audio’s large new library manages to capture the retro, nostalgia-tinged pop sound that’s filling the charts right now. There are 20 construction kits in total, created in the style of artists such as The Weeknd, Nick Jonas, Regard and Wake The Wild.
The brand employed a wide range of kit, including a Roland Juno-60, a Yamaha CS-80, a Korg Polysix and various Nord keyboards. All of these were then processed through outboard SSL, Neve and API hardware, and then analogue tape to produce a warm, but high-end sound. You can choose from either a multi-format version that includes ACID WAV, Apple Loops and Rex2 files, or a Momentum version that loads into Big Fish Audio’s own, free Momentum plug-in.
EarthTone – Turkish Electro Saz 2
- £24.95
- Download EarthTone
Let’s switch this list up with something a little different. EarthTone continues its run of exotic instrument packs with Turkish Electro Saz 2 – a 525 MB collection of beautifully played electro saz loops.
There are 91 riffs spread across 100, 120 and 140 bpm, and you get both dry and wet versions for added flexibility. The evocative sounds could be used in a variety of genres to add an organic touch. It might be especially useful for film and TV music where the unique tuning can be used to add a Turkish flavour.
Toontrack – Progressive Metal EBZ
- €80 (requires EZbass)
- Download Toontrack
Progressive metal is a genre that’s constantly shifting and reinventing itself. For Toontrack’s latest EBZ release, the brand chose to meticulously capture the sound of a versatile Ibanez BTB1836 six-string bass, with a range of A0 to A4, and finger, pick, slap and tap articulations.
The tones on offer cover the entire width of modern progressive metal styles, from clean, subtle expressiveness, to raw, aggressive power that’s drenched in distortion, saturation and compression. The expansion also comes with a library of custom, driving MIDI riffs and a broad collection of presets with a wide range of tones.
Heavyocity – Foundations: Emotive Choir
- FREE (requires Kontakt 6.7.1 or free Kontakt 6 Player)
- Download Heavyocity
Heavyocity has expanded its excellent free Foundations series with this new atmospheric choral release. The dynamic vocal performances and lush timbres offer versatile and ethereal, cinematic vocals.
Foundations: Emotive Choir includes dramatic vowels and ambient choir texture sound sources that can be mixed and blended with two volume sliders. There’s also an ADSR, gate and arp for building rhythmic patterns, Master FX with Punch compression, delay and reverb, plus 10 custom presets. You’ll need Kontakt 6.71 or above, but it can also be loaded into the free Kontakt 6 Player.
BandLab Sounds – Q Tha Horns: Trumpet Pack Vol.1
- FREE
- Download BandLab Sounds
We see a lot of orchestral brass packs, but not so many with straight-up jazz/funk trumpets. BandLab’s free collection of 98 loops and 2 one-shots includes muted trumpet riffs, trills and swells, plus stacked chord progressions and shorter chord stabs.
Everything has a clean and crisp sound, with a touch of tasteful reverb and delay to add some depth. All loops are key-labelled, with tempos ranging from 75 to 140 bpm, which makes this pack useful for anything from jazzy hip-hop and brass-laden house, through to drum ‘n’ bass.
Resonance Sound – Melodic Elements 04 – Acid Bass Machines
- €25.79 (WAV or MIDI versions available separately)
- Download Resonance Sound
Sometimes you just can’t beat a squelchy, acid bassline. If you’re worried that this new pack from Resonance Sound might sound a little dated, then fear not – its 100 unique analogue sequences come in both wet and dry versions, and there’s plenty of variety.
Melodic Elements 04 includes loops crafted on the MFB Dominion, Behringer TD-3 and Black Cooperation Kijimi analogue synths, and then further processed for added character via a Roland Space Echo, Moog MF-108 Cluster Flux, Sherman Filter Bank, Erica Synths Fusion Box and more. All loops are at 124 bpm, and you also get MIDI file versions so you can experiment with your own synths and instruments.
Loopmasters – Dance Electro Pop
- £19.95
- Download Loopmasters
Loopmasters’ new sample pack combines dancefloor aesthetics with euphoric pop melodies, making it a stellar toolkit for writing nu-disco, funk and electronic that’s destined for the club or the radio.
The full package weighs in at 394 MB and includes 94 loops and 72 hits. You can expect to find dreamy synths, glistening arps, sequenced synth bass, driving drums, glitched vocal elements and more. All loops are recorded at 120 bpm and are key-labelled, with crisp and polished production throughout.
Audiokit Pro – SAGA Synth
- $14.99 (Standalone app and iOS AUv3 plugin)
- Download Audiokit Pro
This unique sampled instrument by Audiokit Pro captures the iconic 16-bit sounds of the SAGA Genesis and MegaDrive.
Both consoles are fitted with a Yamaha YM2612 FM synth chip, and five different chips were used for the making of this app, alongside two rare Twisted Electrons MEGAfm synths. There are over 300 presets created by Brian Funk, MobyPixel, Electronisounds, Red Sky Lullaby, DJ Puzzle and more, and the sounds can be edited via the built-in filter, effects and free-running sequencer. Other features include audio recording, WAV export, and Ableton Link.
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