Discover the latest industry news and audio post production.
Sound Ex Machina are back with another awesome library - Rain City. The library aims to cover the interaction between rain and the objects around the city, and does so very effectively.
November 23, 2021
Company: Sound X Machina
Product: Rain City
Price: $49
Our Rating: 4.5/5
Sound Ex Machina are back with another awesome library - Rain City. The library aims to cover the interaction between rain and the objects around the city, and does so very effectively. The recordings feel intimate, and have a texture often missing with weather sounds. Certain files also include noise from machinery around them, so be aware of that. The files are provided at 24 Bit 96 kHz WAV and total 8GB and include 230 minutes of content. Metadata is extensive and the included info folder provides a very nice thankyou note.
If you work with film noir city scapes, or hyper real Sci-Fi city scenes, Rain City will be an invaluable tool for bringing the audience closer to your world. In terms of general weather effects, it still probably beats what you already have, so go grab it.
DAW Cassette allows Musicians, Sound Engineers and Sound Designers to process music and dialogue through a cassette tape emulation.
November 23, 2021
Company: Klevgrand
Product: DAW Cassette
Price: AU/VST/AAX Version - $39.99
iOS Version - $12.99
Our Rating: 4.6/5
DAW Cassette allows Musicians, Sound Engineers and Sound Designers to process music and dialogue through a cassette tape emulation. As well as the ability to adjust the type of type (which really alters the effect), there is scope to adjust the playhead quality, tape quality, motor quality and noise level. It has a really gnarly sound, and could fool even the most hipster of cassette purists. Expect to use it in music mixing, dialogue futzing, Lo-Fi processing and general tape based madness. Building on their reputation from Brusfri, Klevgrand have brought another plugin to the market with a slick interface and even slicker sound. Here are some sound examples. Clean has no effects, Dirty has extreme settings, and Processed has moderate settings.
If you like walks on the beach, long vivid sunsets and high brow obsolete audio formats, you will love DAW Cassette. Just kidding, but seriously, if you are looking for that Lo-Fi sound, this is the plugin for you. Future updates could really enhance the interface and playability too.
Get DAW Cassette Now: Use Discount Code SUMMER2018!
If you are looking for a go to synthesizer, and are a modular freak or sample tweaker, you will fall in love with Hexaract.
November 23, 2021
Company: Auddict
Product: Hexeract
Price: $200 (Sale Price $100)
Our Rating: 4.8/5
Hexeract combines all that is good with modern software and hardware synths, adding some tasteful effects and a stunning GUI. Sound creation should be fun and intuitive, and Auddict have recognised that the needs of the modern Sound Designer, Composer and Musician stretch far further than simple analogue synthesis. A modular look with a 2018 twist, it sounds huge, and packs a punch. The variety of oscillator samples on offer provide scope for organic patches with a digital soul. The sequencer, multiple filters and sample/wavetable oscillators make this synth a versatile tool that we will use for years to come.
If you are looking for a go to synthesizer, and are a modular freak or sample tweaker, you will fall in love with Hexaract. The current 50% off brings the total price down to $100, which is frankly a steal for a synth of this calibre.
A collection of tools for the serious Sound Designer, we have wanted products like this for many years. Krotos have finally found ways to give both video game and film Sound Designers a mutual platform to get creative, fast.
November 23, 2021
Company: Krotos Audio
Product: Sound Design Bundle
Included Products: Reformer Pro,
Weaponiser Fully Loaded,
Dehumaniser 2,
Dehumaniser Pro Extended
Price: £880.80
Our Rating: 5/5
Wow, just wow. Reformer Pro is a stylish and responsive tool that answers most of Sound Designers questions about the original Reformer, including the possibility of building custom libraries. Turn live input into anything from tiger growls to electronic glitches. Not only that, but it responds differently to a variety of frequency content. Using it's procedural audio techniques, users can take advantage of Krotos' many Reformer libraries, or build their own.
Our Rating: 4.6/5
Weaponiser is a groundbreaking Sound Design tool which can generate tonnes of variations of Gunshots, both within the realm of reality and science fiction. Very useful in Game Audio and Complex Action Film Tracklay. It also comes with a tasty 2200+ assets, including gunshot recordings, impulse responses, sweeteners and more.
Our Rating: 4.7/5
Dehumaniser 2 is a staple tool in many a Sound Designer's secret weapon box. Morph live input into various modulated creature noises, some of which are just as effective as processing them manually, which is very impressive. It's a life saver with today's fast turnaround workflows. It is a modular processing environment with 10 modules and 100+ presets.
A collection of tools for the serious Sound Designer, we have wanted products like this for many years. Krotos have finally found ways to give both video game and film Sound Designers a mutual platform to get creative, fast.
Get Krotos Audio Sound Design Bundle Now!
SampleTraxx hit Sound Designers and Composers hard with their latest library - Stutter Matter. We are a big supporter of SampleTraxx, as each product has a family sound that sits well in mixes with minimal fuss.
November 23, 2021
Company: SampleTraxx
Product: Stutter Matter
Price: $49
Our Rating: 4.7/5
Stutter Matter comprises of over 180 sound effects totaling over 400Mb of content delivered in 24Bit 48kHz WAV. There are also 7 Kontakt multi instruments included, hosted within the popular Photosynthesis engine.
Files are separated into the following categories: Stutter Chopper, Stutter Filter, Stutter Reverse, Stutter Woosh, Stutter Sequences and Glitches, Unprocessed/Raw Stutter Elements, with a bonus folder - 40 Hi-Tech Hits.
As well as SampleTraxx shiny new re-branding, they have also put care and attention into the cover art and video walkthrough, which demonstrates how to use the product. There is also a free sound pack available for users who want to test out the quality of offerings here.
As with many other libraries from this vendor, there is a clear theme and outstanding execution throughout. Each section provides a variety of stutters and hit's which are useful in transitional film scenes, trailers and as sci-fi/horror stingers.
The Stutter Design folder offers a variety of jittery soundbites, while the Hi-Tech Hits offer some gnarly, crunchy, bit-crushed impacts, akin to glitch-hop meets movie trailer.
The Stutter Sequence folder offers up some ghostly robo-distortion movements, happily voicing a 'bad guy' robot or machine. Finally, the Stutter Kit Element provides subtle audio fragments, each carrying a unique flavour, for further experimentation - especially as UI sounds.
The implementation of the Kontakt instruments allows both Sound Designers and Composers to experiment with the built in Photosynthesis effects. Our personal favourite being the convolution engine, which when paired with Stutter Matter, is a force to be reckoned with for psychological weirdness.
As usual with SampleTraxx, most elements are heavily processed, and rightly so. Giving everybody from the amateur to seasoned professional a wonderful palette for painting sound tapestries.
One thing that could really take SampleTraxx libraries to the next level, is a custom interface with advanced Kontakt features. We believe this would encourage users to pay more for the libraries, and get more mileage out of their Kontakt portions.
What SampleTraxx do well, is reasonably priced packs that cover a specific theme - maybe it's time for a huge library combining them all with a proprietary Kontakt implementation and competitive pricing for more advanced users.
SampleTraxx are one of the most consistent vendors we know of, and their libraries have a family sound. If you ever use stutter effects in your work, this is an extra weapon in your arsenal.
