Sonarworks update SoundID VoiceAI With the latest update installed, SoundID VoiceAI is capable of generating up to eight unison parts from a single voice recording.

Best free plugins 2025: 14 free drum machines that’ll help you make beats fasterPhysical drum machines are brilliantly tactile and can give you punchy percussion sounds that aren’t always immediately available in your DAW. However, there are plenty of plugins that can get you in the groove and shake up your workflow with functions that most hardware is simply not capable of achieving. We love the charm of hardware, but sometimes it’s best to build interesting beats in the box and experiment with the power of software.

READ MORE: Best free plugins 2025: 15 free synths that you didn’t know you needed

What’s even better is there is a range of drum machine plugins out there that are free to download, with many compatible on both macOS and Windows. We’ve collated some of the most impressive drum machine plugins that come at no cost at all and are far more fun than lining up samples in your DAW’s arrangement window.
The best freeware drum machines at a glance:

Native Instruments Beats Collection
BPB Cassette Drums
99 Sounds Drum Machine
606 Koncept
Synsonic BD-909
AudioSpillage MiniSpillage
Beat Factory Drums
Drum Pro
MeldaProduction MDrummer Small
Manda Audio MT Power Drum Kit 2
Jamstix 4 Free
Speedrum Lite
Triaz Player
BFD Player

Native Instruments Beats Collection
Image: Native Instruments
NI’s Beats Collection is part of Native Instruments’ free Komplete Start plugin suite. It offers 288 pre-made Grooves across 90 kits for fast rhythmic patterns. You can play your own rhythms with a keyboard or pads, export Groove patterns with MIDI drag and drop, and customise drum sounds with studio-grade effects like chorus and reverb.
Features:

288 pre-made Grooves across 90 kits
Customisable drum sounds with studio-grade effects
Dedicated parameters for tweaking built-in effects
Grooves page for pattern playback adjustment

Find out more at Native Instruments.
BPB Cassette Drums

The BPB Cassette Drums plugin bundle includes three digital drum machines, using sounds sampled from BPB’s Cassette 606, Cassette 808 and Cassette 909 drum sample packs. You get Roland TR-606, TR-808 and TR-909 replicas that sound pretty convincing. Not bad, considering you’re not paying a dime for them.
Each of these lovely-looking and easy-to-use plugins have three modes, effectively giving you nine separate drum machines to play with. The clean original sounds of each drum machine are available, while the Warm and Hot modes give you saturated recordings and have been re-sampled from an audio cassette deck, giving each engine a slightly different feel.
Features:

Compatibility: VST/AU, 32-bit, 64-bit, PC/macOS
Number of voices: 7
Clean, Warm and Hot kits
Release and volume knobs
Options to route drums to individual outputs
On-screen keyboard

Find out more at BedroomProducersBlog.com.
99 Sounds Drum Machine

The simply named Drum Machine by 99Sounds is a nifty little thing used, in the developer’s video tutorial, to make bright, energetic EDM beats. But, of course, it can be used to build drum patterns for any genre and style, so long as you spend the time getting to know it.
It boasts 12 kits with the ability to include eight drum sounds per kit, with each sound being sourced from the 99Sounds Drum Samples library. Users can pan each drum sound, or the whole pattern, to their preference. There is also a low-pass filter and a high-pass filter, giving you options to tweak your sound within the plugin.
Features:

Compatibility: 64-bit VSTi/AUi Host, macOS & PC
Number of voices: 8
12 drum kits
Low filter & high filter
Multiple outputs

606 Koncept

Sample Science’s 606 Koncept plugin is a free 606 emulation with its unique own processing capabilities.
You can pitch sounds down or up using the plugin’s intriguing pitch control feature, change the decay of each track, and set the individual levels and panning. There are multiple LFO options including the depth and rate of filters. You can add glide, reverb and set the cutoff of your drum sequence, and, on top of all that, users are able to add vinyl, tape and sub sound layers to provide a layer of texture over everything.
Features:

Compatibility: 64-bit VSTi/VST3/AUi Host, PC & Mac
Number of voices: 7, each with polyphonic, monophonic and legato modes
Vinyl, tape-hiss & sub sound
Multi-pitch sum mixers
LFO & room reverb effects
Amplitude range controls

Find out more at Sample Science. 
Synsonic BD-909

You didn’t think we could possibly do a freeware drum-machine round-up without including at least one TR emulation, did you? This is (obviously) a 909 emulator, but only the actual kick drum from that machine. Okay, that’s not a lot, you might think, but the 909 kick has backed tens of thousands of dance tracks and there are plenty of controls to shape it into just any incarnation of that sound you can imagine. There are 16 presets, too, if you think you need them.
Features:

Compatibility: macOS and PC, 32/64-bit
Multiple tweaking controls: pitch, accent, decay, tune decay, attack, hold, tune depth, noise decay, distort
Distortion effect
MIDI control
Factory presets

Find out more at Synsonic.
AudioSpillage MiniSpillage

A returning drum favourite and must inclusion is MiniSpillage, a synth/drum plugin. It’s still macOS only, we’re afraid, but an essential download for that platform. It’s a cut-down version of AudioSpillage’s DrumSpillage with three drum pads for kick, hat and hollow drum. It comes with several kits and synth features – LFO, filter, modulation and distortion – to stretch those kit sounds far and wide. It’s been around for aeons, but several updates keep this as one of the best macOS drum/synth freebies.
Features:

Compatibility: macOS (AU), 64-bit
LFO, filter, modulation & distortion
12 exclusive drum models
Classic analogue, physical modelling and FM synthesis

Find out more at Audio Spillage.
Beat Factory Drums

Some of our free drum plugins do dance music, some rock – and Beat Factory Drums is designed to fill in the gaps, since it’s aimed primarily for hip-hop, dubstep and more. It features 10 kits, limited but essential sonic tweaks and hands-on MPC pads. It sounds great and is very well worth the 50MB download, which gives you the kick sounds and a plugin that runs on any system, old or new.
Features:

Compatibility: macOS & Windows/ 32/64-bit
10 drum kits
120 drum hits included

Find out more at Beat Skillz.
Drum Pro

Make no mistake, Drum Pro is unashamedly a shell drum machine to add paid-for kits later, but it does come with 20 kits sampled from nine drum machines (from Roland, Boss, Novation and more) so you get a very decent start, without paying a thing. You get MPC-style pads and basic mixing and while it won’t quite cover all your drumming needs as developers Studio Linked claims from the off – but will with their paid-for packs – it still delivers a great variety of beats, for free.
Features:

Number of voices: 12
Compatibility: macOS and PC, 32/64-bit
Attack, decay, sustain & release
Global ADSR/ reverb

Find out more at Studio Linked.
MeldaProduction MDrummer Small

Melda doesn’t seem to be shouting about MDrummer Small as much as it once did, but you can still download it from the download/archive part of the company’s website. It’s well worth it, featuring hundreds of drum sets, components, multisamples, rhythms and loops and some of the features from the larger, paid-for MDrummer. So it might be worth downloading fast before it (possibly) disappears.
Features:

Compatibility: macOS and Windows
30 drumsets
500MB of samples
400 drumset components
AI engine loads new editable loops (2,500 available)

Find out more at Melda Production.
Manda Audio MT Power Drum Kit 2

It was all getting a little bit too electronic around here, so how about a piece of freeware to rock your world? This will still shake your cones like any TR drum machine, though, because MT Power Drum Kit 2 is all about power sounds, albeit from a pop, rock or metal perspective. You get plenty of kit sounds and groove, fill and rhythm MIDI files to get you up and running. It’s a great real and acoustic option if your world is to machine led.
Features:

Compatibility: macOS and Windows
32/64-bit
Number of voices: 13
1000s of assorted rhythms
In-built compresser
Easy-to-use Composer tool
DAW-like track dashboard
MIDI capability

Find out more at Power Drum Kit.
Jamstix 4 Free
Jamstix 4 Free. Image: Press
This lite version of Rayzoon’s drum modelling instrument has no restrictions that will slow you down – just a smaller content set than the paid version. In VST and AAX formats for Windows only, it has 8 drummers and 21 style models as well as 200 acoustic drum samples. Focusing on the feel and style of a real drummer, it provides 3D models of real drums that sound great when programmed by MIDI or played by hand.
Features:

VST for Windows
Onboard sequencer
Onboard FX
200 drum samples
Can be upgraded to the full version with all content

Find out more at Rayzoon. 
Speedrum Lite
Speedrum Lite. Image: Press
This cool MPC-style sampler instrument comes for macOS, Windows and Linux. Designed to be quick and easy to use with a fast workflow, it provides 16 MPC-style pads onto which you can drag and drop samples, plus swap samples between pads.
There are a couple of filters and mono or poly voice modes, and flexible pad behaviours, including cut and cancel for more advanced performance styles. Edit waveforms inside the plugin and route each pad to one of 16 outputs if required.
Speedrum Lite has support for all major audio formats so you don’t even have to convert files first – just get making beats and loops! Also check out Transperc by the same developer, a transient shaper that pairs well with the instrument.
Features:

16 MPC-style pads
Supports multiple audio file formats
Onboard sample waveform editing
Cut and choke groups for pads
Multiple audio output routing

Find out more at Apisonic Audio. 
Triaz Player
Triaz Player. Image: Press
Triaz Player by Wave Alchemy is a surprisingly fully-featured free version of Triaz, a sample player plugin for macOS and PC. It comes with 4,000 samples and 200 presets and lets you tweak sounds with filters, envelopes, LFOs and other effects. You can import expansion packs, and though some features of the full instrument are disabled in this free version, you are able to export beats by dragging and dropping audio stems, mixes, one-shots or MIDI right into your DAW. While the full version offers more content, this free one has a ton of cool stuff to get you started.
Features:

4,000 samples
200 presets
Mac or PC plugin
Sound tweaking
Drag and drop from plugin to DAW

Find out more at Wave Alchemy. 
BFD Player
BFD Player. Image: Press
BFD is a legendary “real” drum plugin, and the Player version is completely free! With a slick interface based on the paid version, it runs as a plugin or in standalone mode, and the developers have provided a mixture of professional drum kits sorted into separate elements and grooves to get you up and running, making beats in no time. It also supports expansions, should you want to grow your sound set in future.
Though you can play it manually, BFD Player encourages you to use any of the 340 bundled grooves across the different kits to make a backbone for your tracks. Then, use the built-in mixer to tweak your sound, even routing the drum sounds out individually for more processing with your favourite effects plugins.
Features

Plugin or standalone for Mac and PC
340 bundled grooves
Expandable with new packs
Built-in mixer
Kits split by drum element

Find out more at BFD. 
For more buyer’s guides, check here. Looking for more freeware? Head this way.
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Apple’s ‘Mythic Quest’ is ending with an updated Season 4 finale“Mythic Quest,” the Apple TV+ workplace comedy about the making of a popular online roleplaying game, is ending after four seasons. A new version of the show’s fourth season finale — first aired on March 26, and now the de facto series finale — will premiere on Apple TV+ next week, with a new ending. […]

Audeze’s LCD-S20 headphones are the most affordable in its LCD series – and pack in its ground-breaking SLAM technologyAudeze has unveiled the most affordable instalment in its LCD series of headphones to date. The LCD-S20 Closed-Back headphones channel the company’s high-end audio quality and SLAM spatial imaging into a much more affordable package, costing just $499.
First introduced for the company’s CRBN2 headphones, Audeze’s SLAM technology – Symmetric Linear Acoustic Modulator – improves the way air pressure is distributed across each diaphragm using precisely-tuned acoustic channels to boost certain frequencies. CRBN2s cost $5,995 – and the LCD-S20 loads in the same technology for much less.

READ MORE: Depeche Mode’s Memento Mori tour will live on forever through Depeche Mode: M

The LCD-S20s also boast magnetic ear pads, allowing users to swap out and replace them with ease. As well as offering rich acoustics, the ear cups have reliable noise-cancellation, meaning your listening wont be disturbed by external noise or microphone bleed.
There’s also a detachable single-sided cable, meaning you can switch your wire to either earcup and avoid getting tangled up in the studio.
The headphones also boast the same design as Audeze’s Maxwell line, with a spring-steel headband, forged aluminium and glass-infused nylon components. There’s also the same 90mm planar magnetic drivers, which includes Audeze’s Fluxor magnets, Fazor waveguides, and Uniforce voice coils.
 
Credit: Audeze
“With the LCD-S20, we’re bringing Audeze’s renowned studio-quality sound to a broader audience without compromising on innovation or performance,” Audeze CEO, Sankar Thiagasamudram, explains. “The integration of our SLAM technology is a leap forward in both audio fidelity and user experience.”
“LCD-S20 is not just an entry point into the Audeze family; it’s a testament to our commitment to making world-class audio accessible to everyone, from budding musicians to seasoned audiophiles,” he adds.
The headphones have also already received praise from audio engineer Marc Urselli. The three time Grammy-Winner has insisted that the LCD-S20s “a game-changer for tracking headphones in the studio”.
LCD-S20 headphones are available now for $499.

The post Audeze’s LCD-S20 headphones are the most affordable in its LCD series – and pack in its ground-breaking SLAM technology appeared first on MusicTech.

Sound Radix receive Academy Plaque for Auto-Align Post 2 Sound Radix have announced that they are to be honoured with a Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy Plaque) for their popular Auto-Align Post 2 plug-in.

a16z backs Base Power in $200M round for home backup batteriesThe money will fund a rapid expansion, including dozens more megawatt-hours of battery storage and plans for a domestic battery factory.

How a Tiny Relay Became a USB Swiss Army KnifeMeet the little board that could: [alcor6502]’s tiny USB relay controller, now evolved into a multifunction marvel. Originally built as a simple USB relay to probe the boundaries of JLCPCB’s production chops, it has become a compact utility belt for any hacker’s desk drawer. Not only has [alcor6502] actually built the thing, he even provided intstructions. If you happened to be at Hackaday in Berlin, you now might even own one, as he handed out twenty of them during his visit. If not, read on and build it yourself.
This thing is not just a relay, and that is what makes it special. Depending on a few solder bridges and minimal components, it shape-shifts into six different tools: a fan controller (both 3- and 4-pin!), servo driver, UART interface, and of course, the classic relay. It even swaps out a crystal oscillator for USB self-sync using STM32F042‘s internal RC – no quartz, less cost, same precision. A dual-purpose BOOT0 button lets you flash firmware and toggle outputs, depending on timing. Clever reuse, just like our mothers taught us.
It’s the kind of design that makes you want to tinker again. Fewer parts. More function. And that little smile when it just works. If this kind of clever compactness excites you too, read [alcor6502]’s build log and instructions here.

Dom Morley launches Multiband.io Multiband.io has been designed to align every stage of the production process and help creators to ensure that everyone involved with a project is working from the same page.

Music subscriber market shares 2024: Slowdown? What slowdown?Record label streaming revenue growth slowed to 6% in 2024 but there was no such slowdown in subscriber growth. In our just published ‘Music subscriber market shares Q4 2024’ report, we reveal that the 85 million net* new subscribers added in 2024 was only two million less than in 2023, resulting in 818 million subscribers and growth of 12% i.e., around double label revenue growth. 

So, just what is going on? How could subscriber and revenue growth become so de-coupled? Normally, the answer for music industry questions like this is ‘it’s complicated’ –but this time it is not. It can be boiled down to two key things: Global South and incentivised growth.

On to those in a bit, but first market shares:

Spotify continues to set the pace: Spotify’s market share (32%) is around where it was in 2015 and has remained relatively stable in all the intervening quarters. That might sound like stasis, but it is anything but. Between 2015 and 2024, the global base of music subscribers grew by more than 850%. So, to maintain market share, Spotify has had to grow at a similar rate. During 2024, Spotify added 28 million subscribers in 2024, that is more than the combined total number of subscribers added by the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th largest DSPs (Tencent, Apple, and Amazon). The simple arithmetic is that when you command a strong market lead, you have to add a lot more subscribers than the rest to maintain your market share. It is easy to take Spotify’s success for granted. Don’t! This is what a highly effective company that retains an obsessive appetite for growth looks like

Tencent Music Entertainment: Even though it operates in China, Tencent  is the 2nd largest DSP globally, with 120 million subscribers. What is more, it grew so strongly that it slightly increased global market share in 2024. Though its key competitor NetEase Cloud Music grew even faster and so gained China market share at Tencent’s expense

Apple Music and Amazon Music: Apple and Amazon held onto 3rd and 4th spots respectively, but both had underwhelming 2024s, adding just six million subscribers between them

YouTube making up ground, fast: In percentage terms, YouTube was the fastest growing global DSP in 2024, growing market share and only missing out on knocking Apple off 4th spot by a margin in the low hundreds of thousands. Spotify and YouTube are the ones setting the global pace and though YouTube is far behind Spotify globally, it is the top DSP in a number of key Global South markets, including India

Now, on to why subscriber growth is so much faster than revenue growth:

1 – The Global South

The Global South (by which we mean regions that are not North America and Europe) is now the music industry’s growth engine. Last year we entitled our music forecasts report ‘Rise of the Global South’ and our view was borne out in 2024, with these regions accounting for 78% of all subscribers added in 2024. Let that settle in for a moment: four fifths of all subscriber growth came from outside of Europe and North America. Of course, those two regions still account for the majority of revenues, but as subscriber growth slows in those markets, it is lifting off elsewhere. This is nothing less than a rebalancing of the global music industry.

Which creates a major uncoupling of growth metrics for Western rights holders. Global South markets have lower ARPU and Western repertoire share is low there. So, Western rights holders see a double discount on subscriber value compared to Western markets.

2 – Incentivised growth

In the first phase of streaming growth, ad supported users acted as the key means of converting subscribers. In mature Western markets, most people on free tiers are there because they like free stuff rather than being prospective subscribers. This is why free trials have become the key tool for driving conversion. In saturated Western markets, it seems that these trials are being used liberally to try to squeeze out the last pockets of subscriber growth. In turn, denting ARPU. 

Consider the case of the US: According to the RIAA’s figures, subscription revenue grew by 5.3% and ARPU growth was 1.9%. Meanwhile US inflation was 2.9% but the streaming price ‘inflation’ rate was 9.1%. So, a $1 price increase resulted in ARPU decreasing by one percentage point in real terms (ie inflation adjusted).

Foundations for more growth

2024 was a great year for global subscriber growth and was a particularly good year for Spotify, YouTube, Tencent, and NetEase. The divergence between revenues and users is clearly cause for concern, but it is better for the long term to be growing subscribers as once you have them monetised you can start focusing on growing monetisation. Hello supremium.

*All growth figures refer to net additions i.e., the difference between the total number of subscribers one year to another. They do not account for churn. The total (gross) number of subscribers added is significantly higher. The net figure thus refers to the total after churned out subscribers have been removed from the totals.

Sonuscore release THE PULSE Sonuscore's latest composition tool draws inspiration from iconic scores such as Tenet, Blade Runner 2049, The Social Network and Stranger Things.

Qobuz is the first streaming platform to have its average payout per stream officially validated – this is its rate and how it achieves itQobuz, the platform for high-resolution music streaming and purchasing, has shared the results of an independent review into its average royalty payout per stream.
The platform is the first of its kind to have its average payout rate per stream officially validated, which it says forms part of its “commitment to fairer compensation for artists”. The review reveals that on average, it pays five times more revenue per user than the market average.

READ MORE: The music streaming revolution is here, thanks to these new streaming platforms

In the 2024 fiscal year, Qobuz paid an average of US $0.01873 per stream to labels and publishers. As a press release from the brand clarifies that if a track reaches 1,000 plays on Qobuz, this represents US $18.73 paid to these rights holders, who then pay out to the artists, songwriters and composers, according to the terms of their contracts.
In terms of average revenue per user (ARPU), Qobuz generated an average revenue of US $121.13 per year, where the market average is US $22.38 per year. The platform offers alternative approaches to streaming compared to its industry competitors, by offering an exclusive paid model only (no ad-free tier) to ensure higher compensation, for example.
Qobuz also offers access to uncompressed (lossless) and high-resolution audio quality to justify its premium positioning, and also has a download store where users (not limited to streaming subscribers) can buy albums in Hi-Res and CD quality.

Georges Fornay, Deputy CEO at Qobuz, comments, “Although numerous reports highlight our payout rates as among the highest in the industry, no streaming service had officially disclosed its rates until now. Today, we are taking this step for greater transparency.
“Our payout rates are now public. This unprecedented move in our industry is a necessary first step toward promoting a fairer and more sustainable streaming model. Choosing Qobuz means taking concrete action for fairer compensation for all artists and supporting musical diversity, values that our customers cherish.”
Find out more via the official Qobuz website.
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Bedroom Pop, Music Creation and ‘More Likes, Fewer Gigs’Is the traditional music career model dead? Learn about Bedroom Pop and how a new generation of artists are building fanbases without leaving their bedrooms.
The post Bedroom Pop, Music Creation and ‘More Likes, Fewer Gigs’ appeared first on Hypebot.

Fast Company names 10 Most Innovative Music Companies 2025Fast Company has released its annual list of the 10 most innovative music companies for 2025. Not one of the major streamers or record labels made the list.
The post Fast Company names 10 Most Innovative Music Companies 2025 appeared first on Hypebot.

“Perhaps the best tool ever created for producers of soundtracks and ambient music”: Beetlecrab Tempera review€670, beetlecrab.audio
I get to see so much cool music-making and sound-wrangling gear here at MusicTech that it can feel like I’ve seen it all. Not that I’m jaded, mind you — I’m regularly impressed, often delighted, and occasionally blown away. It’s just that surprises are more rare.

READ MORE: Beetlecrab Tempera: “As soon as we placed our hand on the grid and played a chord, we knew immediately, ‘Okay, this is it’”

Huge kudos must therefore go to Prague-based Beetlecrab for reminding me what it’s like to be hit with simultaneous doses of “wha..?” and “wow!”

What is Tempera?
At its heart, the compact and solidly built Tempera is a sampler, so the unit’s eight-by-eight grid of pads, four rotary encoders and assorted buttons don’t look out of place. But hang on a moment! Contrary to expectations, those touch-sensitive pads are not trigger pads like those found on MPC-style samplers or MIDI pad controllers.
Instead, each column of the grid hosts an audio sample, and each pad (or cell) within a column represents 1/8th of that sample. Touching or swiping across a cell causes it to light up, either momentarily whilst being touched or via various latching options, and when a note is played into the instrument the sample segments associated with any lit cells will sound.

Touching the grid to change the cells that are lit modifies the sound in real-time, making for a delightfully tactile and accessible experience that’s unlike anything else. But what you actually hear, and the colour of a cell’s lighting, is determined by which of the four colour-coded ‘Emitters’ is active when the cell is touched.
What is an Emitter?
An Emitter is, in essence, a granular synth engine that derives its grains from the audio contained within all cells lit in that Emitter’s colour. (A quick recap: granular synths loop and layer snippets of audio data, referred to as grains, to create constant or repeating sounds.)
The Emitter specifies the size of the grain, from just a fraction of a cell’s length, through the entirety of the cell, and up to the whole sample loaded into a column. In this way, Emitters can produce static pitched notes, shifting textures, or loops and beats (depending on the source sample).

Emitters can also pull in sample data from other cells in the X and Y dimensions on the grid, either via an offset or via a pair of ‘Spray’ parameters that cause additional cells to be triggered along with the selected cells.
Offsets and spray values can produce particularly striking results, especially when bringing in grains taken from different columns within the grid. This has been made even more flexible in the v2.1 firmware released just before this review was published, with an Emitter’s X offset now crossfading between different columns and samples where previously it would snap to one column/sample or another.
Image: Simon Vinall for MusicTech
What is a Canvas?
A Tempera patch is referred to as a Canvas and incorporates all samples, Emitter settings, and the status of the grid cells at the time the Canvas was saved. The Canvas also includes additional sound processing stages.
A set of 10 modulation slots is provided, each with a choice of simple attack/decay or attack/release envelope, various LFO shapes, noise-based randomisation, and real-time input from the modulation wheel and aftertouch. The most recent firmware adds keyboard tracking and velocity to these available sources. Each modulator can only be mapped to a single destination, unfortunately, but this can be practically any Canvas- or Emitter-level parameter. With 10 modulators available, you’re unlikely to run out of options.
Similarly, each of the eight Macro slots, which are controlled via the unit’s rotary encoders when in Macro mode, can only drive a single parameter. This feels a bit restrictive – macros tend to be at their best when controlling multiple parameters simultaneously – but it does allow specific parameters to be made easily accessible for real-time performance control.
Image: Simon Vinall for MusicTech
Another duty of the rotary encoders is to set the volume of each Emitter. The mixed signal is then fed through a multi-mode resonant filter, offering low-pass, band-pass, high-pass and formant filter models. The v2.1 firmware adds keyboard tracking to the filter’s cutoff frequency, the ability to choose which Emitters are routed via the filter, and a new Rake filter model. This is similar to a comb filter, and features amplitude modulation when the filter emphasis is turned up above 0.5, resulting in exceptionally interesting resonances.
The signal then flows to an ADSR amplitude envelope triggered by the notes played into Tempera. Meanwhile, individual Emitters have fade up and down parameters to shape the volume of grains, and the v2.1 update adds the option to apply a fast attack to the first grain that’s triggered, allowing an Emitter to react quickly to a played note whilst also creating smooth-sounding grains.
Finally, there’s a Canvas-wide effects chain consisting of chorus, delay and reverb (with the latter two having been enhanced and improved in the new firmware). Each Emitter has its own send level into the chain, although per-effect sends from each Emitter would have been preferable. Hopefully, we’ll see this in a future firmware update.

Sampling with Tempera
Creating custom Canvases is relatively straightforward. Samples are recorded (or imported) directly into a column and can be resampled from the unit itself, or be taken from a line or mic signal connected to the unit’s balanced jack input. There’s also a built-in mic for instant sound capture. It’s not the best quality, yet incredibly convenient.
My only complaint here is that any one sample is limited to just over 11 seconds in length. This is ample for creating textures and pitched sounds but is a definite drawback when designing samples to use as rhythmic or musical loops.

Recording samples involves placing one of Tempera’s columns into a record-enabled mode, and the v2.1 firmware has added an intriguing new feature here: the ability to use the record-enabled track as a real-time effects processor. When you do this, rather than the cells moving across the audio, the audio moves across the cells, whilst the Emitters continue to do what they do. If you are already struggling to grasp Tempera’s concept, then this will make you want to hide in a corner with a blanket over your head!
The results of this real-time processing are best suited to rhythmic effects, and so rely heavily on Tempera’s MIDI clock being synced to the incoming audio. They’re somewhat unusual and unpredictable too. It certainly plays to Beetlecrab’s penchant for the experimental and is a fascinating sound effect in its own right, but the jury’s still out on how useful or usable it actually is.
Tempera has 8GB of internal storage, some of which is used for the firmware and for preset Canvases and samples, but the vast majority is available for storing your own creations. Additional storage can be added via a micro SD slot, or by connecting a USB stick to the USB Host port.
The Host port can be used to connect USB-equipped keyboards and controllers, although standard MIDI in and out is also supported via mini-jacks. If you have no controller to hand, part of Tempera’s grid can be set to act as note triggers, although this then limits the area in which you can interact with the Emitters.
An additional USB Device port allows Tempera to connect to a computer, where it appears as a MIDI source and destination. When connected in this way, the unit can be switched to USB Bridge mode, allowing the computer to read and write directly to Tempera’s micro SD card.
Image: Simon Vinall for MusicTech
What is Tempera like to use?
Tempera is enormously engaging and satisfying from the get-go, its inviting touch-pads making it astonishingly easy to start exploring fascinating noises with barely any introduction to the hardware.
Beetlecrab’s ingenious user interface plays a big part in its accessibility. The combination of colour-coding, rotary encoders, mini displays and mode buttons have been implemented in such an elegantly intuitive way that you find yourself dancing effortlessly around the instrument in no time.
Admittedly, it takes more effort to fully get your head around what Tempera is actually doing and how to fully exploit its abilities and idiosyncrasies. But hey, that’s half the fun of it!
Like all granular synths, Tempera is well suited to creating evolving sonic textures and soundscapes. This ability is supercharged by its interactive tactility, not to mention the astonishing sonic flourishes and details that can emerge from exploratory touches and swipes.
Put simply, Tempera could be the best tool ever created for producers of soundtracks and ambient music.
However, this is not the only instrument that is suited to this. With the right samples loaded, and the Emitters configured appropriately, Tempera can be an expressive lead synth, an emotive pad machine, or the maddest loop-and-rhythm box you ever laid hands on.
Being so open-ended does mean that, no matter how familiar you are with Tempera itself, you have to invest time in exploring the Canvases you wish to use, learning their particular abilities and nuances. Thankfully, doing this is a lot of fun.
Tempera will be fascinating to anybody interested in synthesis or sound design, but there’ll be fewer for whom it will have a tangible practical application. At a lesser price, this may not have mattered, but at €670 Tempera is not exactly a toy.
What it is, though, is an amazing, unique, quirky and endlessly engaging machine, and I absolutely love it.

Key features

16-voice polyphony
4 rotary encoders with colour-coded rings
8-by-8 grid of touch-sensitive pads
Colour-coding fully customisable
4 high-resolution displays
8GB internal storage
Micro SD slot
USB Host port for USB sticks, keyboards and controllers
USB Device port for connection to computer
Stereo line/headphone out (headphone jack uses the left-hand jack socket)
Stereo sampling line input via a single TRS jack
Built-in mic
Optional live grain processing of incoming audio
MIDI in/out via TRS mini-jack
ARM Cortex A72 quad core processor
32-bit internal processing
VESA mounting holes on rear panel

The post “Perhaps the best tool ever created for producers of soundtracks and ambient music”: Beetlecrab Tempera review appeared first on MusicTech.

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