Review: Wave Alchemy Drum Machines 02

Library: Drum Machines 02
Format: Downloadable 24-bit WAVs with mapped instruments for popular soft samplers.
Genre: Any genre that need electronic drum sounds
Developers Site: Wave Alchemy
Distributed by: Loopmasters
Price: £24.95
Demo: On product page (A selection of free samples from the library are also available here)

Drum Machines 02 is the latest release from Wave Alchemy, a company quickly building a name for itself as the source for some of the best sounding electronic drum samples on the market. This library collects the company's previous micro packs of Roland TR-808, Roland, TR-909, and Drumfire DF2000, and adds samples sourced from an MFB Schlagzwerg. The sounds were recorded and processed through everything from hi-end pre-amps to vintage samplers and filters, so they don't require additional processing to sound great in a mix. But doesn't the world already have enough 808 and 909 samples?

It's true that there is no shortage of 808 and 909 samples out there. Other sample libraries, both free and commercial, have explored this territory many times over already. But while you've no doubt heard these famous drum machines countless times already, I'd wager that you've never heard them sound this good. Wave Alchemy is known for the production quality of their drum sounds and this is no exception. Kicks and snares sound impossible snappy and present. The cymbals are clear as a bell. The percussion punches through a mix perfectly. In addition to tweaking the settings on the drum machines to obtain different sounds, a really wide range of processing techniques were used here to stretch the boundaries of sounds you'd normally expect from these machines. The overdriven variations are especially nice with the perfect balance of hardness and warmth.

Wave Alchemy may have suspected that 808 and 909 samples, good as these are, might still be a tough sell, so they've wisely paired those two machines with sounds from a duo of less common drum machines: the Drumfire DF2000 and the MFB Schlagzwerg. Both of these machines can do some very similar sounds to the 808 and 909, but both also offer more extensive sound shaping parameters, so the sounds are a lot more varied, including some synthy FX and ring mod sounds. The sound of both the DrumFire and MFB units are unmistakeably analog and while these sounds mostly pale in comparison to the more iconic Roland drum machines, what is here is recorded and processed very well and offers an extended palette for those in the mood for something more synthy sounding.

As always, the sounds are divided up into sub folders by sound types making it quick to find the sounds you need. A handful of mapped out drum kits is included for the various soft sampelrs out there, but these don't include all the samples in the library, so if you want a "sound menu" type mapping of all the sounds, you'll need to take that on yourself. As a bonus, all of the samples are also available as professionally dithered 16-bit sample for those of you dinosaurs who still favor hardware samplers.

If you need some 808 and 909 samples, this is your library. I've literally never heard nicer samples of these machines and the processing is just jaw-dropping. The additional drum machines round things out nicely, and while they're not as inspiring as the Roland classics, they still sound great and give you an even wider range of sounds to choose from. [10/10]