TabMuse — a Home for Digital and Analog Music Inspiration

Tag: Spitfire Audio Hans Zimmer

Cakewalk Sonar is Now a Free Download – Synth News Digest 15
Welcome to another edition of our look at a few interesting synthesizer and music technology news stories from the last few weeks. Hopefully, you find something to inspire your creativity and possibly make your wallet a bit lighter. However, that likely won’t be a problem with our lead story!

BandLab makes Cakewalk Sonar available as a Free Download

Way back in those halcyon days of the early 90s, I picked up a MIDI interface and sequencer for my PC. This morning, I am forgetting the name of the interface, but the sequencer software was Cakewalk. I remained a Cakewalk user until the poor implementation of audio tracks in Cakewalk Pro Audio made me embrace Pro Tools, which I’ve been using for nearly two decades.

I’ve kept an eye on Cakewalk Sonar over that time. We even reviewed their excellent iOS synth app, Z3TA+. As such, I was sad to see Gibson discontinuing the venerable sequencer application as part of an overall company divestiture. It appears that BandLab, a newer music tech conglomerate, is saving Cakewalk Sonar while making it available as a free download.

Sonar is essentially being relaunched as “Cakewalk by BandLab”, a free download available to users of BandLab’s music collaboration software. It is the full 64-bit Windows application and retains compatibility with Sonar’s plugin collection. If interested, simply click on the following link for more information.

Spitfire Audio introduces Hans Zimmer Strings

Hot on the heels of their Hans Zimmer Percussion sample library, which we reviewed here at TabMuse, the folks at Spitfire Audio teamed up with the legendary soundtrack composer for Hans Zimmer Strings. If you are in the market for orchestral string samples (and have the 184 gigs of hard drive space) you need to put Strings on your shortlist.

Spitfire brought together a collection of world-class string players and recorded their efforts in London’s venerable AIR studios. A robust cornucopia of violins, violas, cellos, and basses is the result. A dedicated plugin facilitates access to the right sample for your composition need.

We would have loved to review Hans Zimmer Strings, but frankly don’t have the 200GB of hard drive space to install it. If interested, check out Spitfire Audio’s product page for additional details. This looks to be one of the best classical sample libraries on the market.

Pittsburgh Modular Synthesizers announces the Desktop Microvolt 3900

A leading American synth brand, Pittsburgh Modular Synthesizers continues to garner praise for their full library of Eurorack modules. The company recently introduced the Microvolt 3900, a desktop semi-modular analog synthesizer worthy of notice. The unit looks similar to the Moog Mother 32, and bears a slight resemblance to the Make Noise 0-Coast, as well as similar semi-modular synths from Arturia and others.

The Microvolt 3900 in all its semi-modular glory. Photo courtesy of Pittsburgh Modular.

The Microvolt sports a unique dynamic VCA architecture that controls oscillator harmonics as the amp is open and closed. This adds to the organic character of the synth. The West Coast-inspired wavefolder circuitry also offers the means for sonic mangling.

A 39-point Eurorack compatible patch bay lets you integrate this Pittsburgh Modular unit into your existing modular setup. If interested, the Microvolt 3900 hits the market later this month at a street price of $629. This also looks to be a great intro to the world of Eurorack.

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April 9, 2018
The TabMuse Top Audio Plugins of 2017
After covering the best iOS synth apps of the year, our eyes now turn towards the top audio plugins we encountered in 2017. Expect a mix between effects plugins and their synth or sample-based counterparts. Feel free to check out our Top iOS Synth Apps article if so interested. Thanks!

Hans Zimmer Percussion conquers all

No sample library ever kicked my ass as much as Hans Zimmer Percussion. Straight out of the superlative technical forge of Spitfire Audio and the engineering acumen of Mr. Zimmer himself, HZP belongs in the collection of every serious electronic drummer. Expect a stunning collection of cinematic and world music percussion, sampled with a wide array of playing techniques and mic placements.

Hans Zimmer Percussion in action. Screenshot by author.

In short, it may revolutionize how you approach electronic drumming. I’m working in a few uses of HZP on the upcoming Church of Hed album. The tympani samples especially inspire. Check out our full review of Hans Zimmer Percussion right here.

PolyM brings a Top Notch Polymoog Simulation to your Desktop

The Polymoog remains one of the classic synths in the Moog Music collection – arguably their most underrated product. It essentially operates like a mid-70s string synth as opposed to a polyphonic analog. PolyM provides all the wonderful uniqueness of the original in a low overhead plugin available in most popular formats.

The PolyM in virtual action. Screenshot by Author.

XILS-Lab did a great job of programming the PolyM. Its quirky analog synth architecture works beautifully with a user interface essentially the same as the original. I spent a whole afternoon conjuring up psychedelic synth overdubs working on my new album.

You know you want to read our full PolyM review. Get to it!

Objeq Delay adds Otherworldly Effects to your DAW

Cool effects plugins abound throughout the world of desktop audio production. As computers become more powerful so do these plugins that rely on a healthy amount of RAM and robust microprocessor horsepower. Objeq Delay won our hearts with its intriguing mix of a quality delay with physical modeling, offering some mind-blowing sonic manipulation.

Objeq Delay in action. Photo by author.

It completely transformed a basic drumbeat into something out of a seedy bar on a remote outpost three galaxies over. Like the best effects, Objeq Delay warrants a copious amount of experimentation. As such, read our full review and then head over to your favorite online music retailer to pick up your own copy. You don’t even need to thank us!

Well, that’s it for our soon-to-be annual look back at some of the best music technology products that inspired us in the previous year. As always, thanks for reading!

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November 28, 2017
Review: Hans Zimmer Percussion adds Cinematic Drumming to your Tracks
Spitfire Audio brings another world class sample library to their lineup with the introduction of Hans Zimmer Percussion. An updated version of the original released a few years ago, HZP belongs on your shortlist if you need top shelf percussion samples. The Grammy Award-winning soundtrack guru produced and mixed this collection leveraging his talented engineering crew at London’s legendary AIR Studios.

Hans Zimmer Percussion Features
- Nearly 50 GB of Uncompressed Percussion Samples (20 GB Drive Space Required)
- Tympani, Taiko, Tamtam, Tombek, Bass Drum, Gong Drum, and More!
- Stunning Sound Quality
- Includes all Samples from Spitfire Audio’s HZ01 and HZ03 Libraries
- Full Control of Mix (with Close, Room, and Surround Mic Perspectives)
- Updated Intuitive GUI
- Requires NI Kontakt Player (Included)
- Support NI’s NKS (Native Kontrol Standard)
- Available for a Street Price of $399
Simply stated, Hans Zimmer Percussion offers a top shelf collection of cinematic quality samples for your own projects, whether soundtrack, world music, or beyond. This collection frankly blew me away!

A Top of the Line Percussion Sample Collection

Installing Hans Zimmer Percussion requires around 40 GB of hard drive space during the install and at least 20 GB once it completes. This extra bandwidth is worth it, as these samples offer mind-blowing sound quality. Most include multiple playing techniques (rolls, flams, dynamics, etc.) and round-robins; those extra samples being essential when recording drum tracks.

Hans Zimmer Percussion in action. Screenshot by author.

HZP offers two main Kontakt instruments. One features a whole host of timpani samples, while the other includes everything else. Expect Taikos, tamtams, tombeks, a real deep bass drum, and so much more. The small number of metallic sounds was a minor disappointment.

The HZP interface fits snugly within the Kontakt player. A grid in the middle of the screen lets you select a collection of related drum samples. You map the different sounds and playing techniques to different MIDI notes using a menu on the right sidebar. The Timpani samples come already mapped, but you are able to transpose them to better match your controller.

Owners of a Native Instrument controller supporting their NKS standard gain an extra advantage of an on-screen keyboard to help identify mappings. I just used my TrapKat after some initial exploration with my non-standard MIDI controller. BT Phobos, another Spitfire Audio plugin we reviewed, also supports NKS.

The left sidebar includes other useful settings for EQ, MIDI CC, dynamic envelopes, or even mixing the mic placements between close, room, and surround. You also gain a measure of control over stereo separation. HZP also supports MIDI automation of these settings.

Putting Hans Zimmer Percussion through its Paces

After mapping HZP to my TrapKAT, I was truly able to put the samples through their paces. After an initial period of latency issues once I started playing, everything settled down; shocking me at the overall quality, especially the natural sound on successive hits on the same drum. This illustrated the quality provided by Spitfire’s round-robin sampling technique. I channeled Jerry Marotta’s drumming work on Peter Gabriel’s classic Security track, Rhythm of the Heat.

The response stayed quick, even with my tendency to overplay while cranking out Brufordian fills over the entire TrapKAT. Even with the timpani as revealed in the video below.

Sure, the traditional trap kit style of playing doesn’t apply in this case, and my mind conjured up new ideas for percussion tracks on upcoming Church of Hed releases. I hadn’t done this much world music styled drumming since the mid 90s. Fun. Check out HZP in action during the second half of this Church of Hed track, Quarrydosing, from our 2018 album, Sandstoned.
<a href="https://quarkspace.bandcamp.com/album/sandstoned">Sandstoned by Church of Hed</a>
The bottom line remains simple. If world music and cinematic percussion interest you at all, Hans Zimmer Percussion belongs in your collection. I give it my highest recommendation. So there.
November 13, 2017