Drumopolis Harnesses the Skills of Tony Visconti – Sounds and Presets
Plus news sounds from GEOSynths, Marc Barnes and Luftrum
This week, we see the release of Drumopolis, a new SDX for Superior Drummer 3 created by Tony Visconti, plus new sounds for the MiniFreak, multi/poly and Omnisphere 3.
Sound and Presets
Tony Visconti’s Drumopolis SDX for Superior Drummer by Toontrack
Toontrack’s Superior Drummer 3 is the Omnisphere of the drum plugin world. It sits top of the pile, is as detailed and as powerful as they come and is essentially a drum DAW. You can use it as a plug-in, triggered by MIDI loops or just played in via your keyboard or pad controller.
It’s also best in class when it comes to being the main sound source for eDrummers. The level of detail and control it offers is astounding. Even the smallest and most basic of eDrum kits can sound like John Bonham is in your bedroom!
Their expansion packs, known as SDX packs gather up some of the greatest and best producers, engineers and players to deliver incredibly detailed kits that cover a multitude of styles, genres and environments. And now, they’ve added one of the most renowned producers of all time to their roster. Step forward, Tony Visconti and Drumopolis.
Synonymous with David Bowie, T-Rex and many more, Visconti has produced some of the biggest-selling and most influential recordings of all time. So, to now have Drumopolis, a huge collection of kits recorded by him in London’s Metropolis studio, is a big deal.
With the drums played by Stephen Gilchrist, and the whole production engineered by Liam Nolan, Visconti has been able to create eight complete drum kits in Drumopolis that can now be replicated and configured to the user’s taste.
One of the signature features of SDX packs is the immense detail that Toontrack go into with their micing, allowing for an almost infinite range of setups, including ambience and surround placement. As always, the kits and all their parts are presented in a beautiful virtual environment and they sound incredible. Drumopolis is no exception
The amount of presets in Drumopolis is huge, and there are also mix-ready presets for ease of use. The list of mic hardware and processing used is enormous, as is the sample count! Every possible articulation and velocity has been captured and reproduced with deep round robins.
You can buy Tony Visconti’s Drumopolis for €179 now. A full copy of Superior Drummer 3 is required.
Fragments Vol.2 for Arturia MiniFreak by GEOSynths
The Arturia MiniFreak is one of my favourite synths. It’s compact and yet sounds bigger than it has any right to do so. It’s a clever digital/analogue hybrid that doesn’t take up much space and is just begging for a larger version with even more power under its hood. C’mon, Arturia, what’s stopping you?
Equally impressive is Jamie Morden of GEOSynths, sound designer extraordinaire, who has, some three years after Volume 1, has finally delivered Volume 2 of his Fragments collection for MiniFreak and MiniFreak V.
The crucial thing to note here is that, since Volume 1, the MiniFreak has received some excellent firmware updates and in Volume 2, Jamie fully exploits these! Every one of the 64 patches utilises the mod wheel and macros to vastly change the sound in real time with ease.
Jamie’s banks are always incredibly reasonably priced and Fragments Volume 2 is no exception at a mere $19. And if you don’t already own Volume 1, you can grab a bundle featuring both volumes for just $35.
KORG multi/poly Vol.3 for KORG multi/poly by Marc Barnes
Of all the new, Raspberry Pi-based KORG synths, I think the multi/poly is my favourite. Not that the opsix, wavestate and modwave aren’t all great, but the multi/poly is such a powerful unit that it is incredibly hard to ignore.
Marc Barnes, who has compiled numerous banks for KORG synths has returned to the multi/poly for his third volume of sounds for this compact powerhouse. Containing pads, motion textures, atmospheres, soundscapes, brass and string sounds, this pack comes with 25 multi-layered performances and 100 original programs.
There’s also a selection of rhythmic sequences for plenty of off the cuff experimentation and performance. And Marc has made full use of the Kaoss Physics pad that adorns the top left of the multi/poly’s surface, as well as the macro controls.
These patches will work on every iteration of the multi/poly, including the native plugin. Marc has very kindly put together demo video that explores all 25 performances so you can buy with complete confidence. Talking of buying, you can grab this direct from Marc’s online store for just £9.99.
Equilibrium 3 for Omnishpere 3 by Luftrum
Omnisphere is the true Swiss Army knife of the synth world. Is there anything it can’t do and do well? It’s a mighty powerhouse that I longed for for some time, and was finally able to invest when version 3 dropped. And then I just regretted all the time I didn’t have Omnisphere.
Anyway, it comes with one of the most immense libraries of any soft synth, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t add even more to that mammoth sonic palette, which is exactly what the likes of Luftrum are banking on with the third package under the Equilibrium name.
Designed and produced by producer Arksun for Luftrum, Equilibrium 3 moved the series along its seasonal theme into spring, which is nice, seeing as we’re slowly entering that season here in the northern hemisphere.
The pack includes 64 brand new presets, all of which capture the spirit of the season with shimmering sounds, soft and wide pads and bright polysynth sounds as well as some decent bass patches and distorted textures.
As well as the 64 patches, Equilibrium 3 also contains Equilibrium 3 Mutations, a set of 32 selected mutations that make use of this new feature in Omnisphere 3. Using this feature, Luftrum generated over 400 variations of the core patches, then selected the best of the bunch for inclusion here.
It’s a delightful and moving addition to anyone’s Omnisphere 3 library for just $29, with discounts available if you buy the other Equilibrium libraries.
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