Based around what Sample Logic calls “the six elements of music,” Elements offers nearly 1,700 instruments, which are organized into six categories (hence the tagline): Ambience (456 patches), Bass (122 patches), Harmony (138 patches), Impacts (391 patches), Melody (353 patches) and Rhythm (227 patches). There’s a folder for each category, with patches being divided into sub-folders that have been given telling and informative names such as “Brass Winds” and “Metallic Morphing.” As someone who writes music on tight deadlines, I appreciate this kind of musical, right-brained naming, because it makes it easier and faster to find appropriate material.
The instruments are formatted for the included Native Instruments Kontakt Player 2, and they work fine in NI’s full-scale soft sampler, Kontakt 3, as well. From the care and craft that went into programming Elements, it’s clear that people at Sample Logic know how to present sounds in a musically useful way, not to mention how to get the most from Kontakt’s scripting abilities. All of the patches use a custom “skin” that provides direct access to controls for shaping the overall sound. For example, delay and reverb can be switched on quickly, along with several types of filters, and you can tweak the ADSR amp envelope, all without having to dive deeper into an instrument’s edit view.
Sonically, it’s an impressive and extensive collection of atmospheric textures, rhythms, and accents. Obviously, we don’t have space here to go into great detail about each of the sounds, but generally speaking, it’s all grade-A material. I was immediately drawn to the Ambience folder, which is chock full of pads and beds that range from light and relaxed to disturbing, dissonant, and dark. Likewise, I found a seemingly infinite supply of inspiration from the Impacts folder, which has 18 subfolders with names like Piercing, Scrapes, Macabre, and The Whack Shack.
Many of the basses aren’t my style (I tend to use more sub-heavy pads than conventional synth and electric bass guitar sounds in my underscore), but I found several that supplied the right kind of foundation for me to build on. Depending on your aesthetic, your mileage may vary.
In addition to the selection of utilitarian pads you’ll find in the Melody category, there are plenty of one-note “cue starters,” where a slowly evolving melodic phrase has been sampled and keymapped across the keyboard — really beautiful stuff. Sample Logic has several demos online that were made entirely with sounds from The Elements. These clips will give you a good idea of what this library is about, and I encourage you to check them out.
Criticisms? I was disappointed to find that the samples that form the basis of many of the keyboard-oriented sounds in the Harmony category aren’t set up with loop points, so you can’t hold down a note or chord indefinitely or have it sustain via a sustain pedal. In other words, the sound stops when it gets to the end of the sample. This was a bit of a problem when I needed to stretch a cue for an industrial video I was working on. Ultimately, I ended up having to program a loop in the sample myself, which wasn’t too difficult. However, given the otherwise top-notch programming that went into The Elements, I was surprised sample loops weren’t set up. Fortunately, this is only an issue with some Harmony instruments and the basses; most of the pads in the Ambience category are looped.
Bottom line: Sample Logic’s The Elements is a serious collection of production-ready sounds for composers who work in TV, film, video games, and the vague-yet-aptly-titled area known as “new media.” If this is the kind of work you do, The Elements is a must-have that will keep you inspired for years.
Film- and television-focused sample instrument with embedded Native Instruments Kontakt Player 2.
Pros
Loads of excellent, usable sounds for composers. Good organization. Expertly programmed.
Cons
Some keyboard-type patches don’t have sample loops, so the sounds end too soon when sustained.
$299
Sample Logic, www.samplelogic.com