Gear Reviews

Gear Review: Vermona Kick Lancet

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That solid four-to-the-floor sound of pummeling percussion, which permeates sound systems and ignites the soul, sums the driving force of modern dance music. Since this hard-hitting kick drum sound is the life of the music, it would only be a matter of time before someone built a piece of gear dedicated to creating this epic hit.

Vermona has been crafting handmade boutique analog instruments for many years and has been one of Germany’s hottest instrument exporters since day one. This sexy little box of knobs has been meticulously developed with everything you need to create the perfect kick drum. Encased in this vintage-styled box is not just some PCM based sample chip that plays back recorded drum hits; this machine has a 100% analog signal path and is essentially a drum synthesizer.

Starting with a sine or square wave, this lead oscillator seamlessly morphs from one wave to another depending on the overtone content you are looking for. Next, two envelope generators and a dedicated FM (frequency modulation) LFO to modulate the pitch, decide what sort of timbre and feel your custom kick drum will have. Add a bit of noise from the noise oscillator and you are on your way to blowing up the club. If your new kick sound isn’t fat enough, Vermona equipped this unit with a feature called “balls,” which for obvious biological reasons makes for a heavy-hitting addition to the kick’s man bits. Triggered via MIDI or your vintage drum machines, this box is easy to set up with whatever your studio profile demands in a matter of moments. When I first plugged this bad mo-fo into my mixer, I was instantly disturbing my neighbors with the pumping kicks that were at my disposal, ranging from deep 808 booms to more svelte 909 pitched knocks.

However, as easy as it is to get something up and running, the real magic lies deep within the programming, as a little knob turn here or there goes a long way. After hours of listing to the perfect kick of your dream, a slight adjustment of the pitch and subtle tweak of the FM knob could transform your timber to exactly where you never thought a kick could go. One of the things that really sets this device aside from all the other drum gear out there, is the fact that you can really tune your kick to the project that you are working on. Beyond just tuning the pitch of the kick to the pitch of your in-the-face bassline, you can impose very delicate subtleties to the tonal quality of your kick drum.

With the advent of inexpensive loop libraries and sample packs available to anyone with an internet connection, it is really an important epoch to start developing sounds unique to your inspiration. Look no further than this brilliant piece of German engineering, crowds worldwide will thank you eternally.

Vermona Kick Lancet (MSRP: $399)

Gear Review: Audio Raiders Sasha Soundlab

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For today’s dance music enthusiasts, great sounds and chart-topping loops are only a click away. But with this rush of data, there are a lot of weeds to sift through to get to the pay dirt, but the game is starting to change thanks to Audio Raiders. These computer wizards have teamed up with the globetrotting superstar Sasha to collaborate not just another sample pack, but a whole new sample-based instrument.

Hosted in the Native Instruments Kontakt Player environment, this uniquely crafted sample pack is not just pick and play, but rather edit and redefine. Included is a host of useable sounds in addition to just killer loops. There are 20 pad and lead synths, 69 drum and percussion kits, and 100 various loops and grooves. Each of these sounds were brilliantly produced and recorded using the top lusted hardware instruments we all stalk on those XXX gear sites.

Within each sound or loop, you have full control over pitch, envelopes, filters, effects and glitch bits, just as if you would on a proper soft-synth. After loading up a few patches and jamming with a kick drum, it’s easy to see why this pack is constantly in demand. The synth’s sheer sonic girth is amazing; the drums are hard-hitting, and the loops are not just some recycled Electronic Musician free sample CD library from 2001.

Get ready to work your way up the Beatport charts with your first release using this sample instrument, as now you have free reign ofo some of the world’s greatest machines.
Audio Raiders Sasha Soundlab (MSRP: $99)

Gear Review: WMD Acoustic Trauma Review

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When the goal is to get people to fist pump on the dance floor so hard that their heads feel like they are going to explode, the key to achieving this moment is a big sound. A big sound comes from not just the right gear, but sounds with tons of overtone content, tamed in a way that will open up the ears and minds of the people listening. Sure, we can all get a computer, load some huge presets from a popular soft-synth and start plugging away, but if you are after a unique blend of popular sounds and your own special touch, you are going to need some more eccentric tools to get the job done.

That’s where WMD comes into the equation. The company’s brilliant electronic circuit designers have developed a line of effect pedals that make traditional distortion pedals and modular synth circuits look like they are still wearing pull-ups. The Acoustic Trauma distortion pedal is by far no exception, in fact it packs so much fortitude that it would even make John Denver sound like he has balls the size of a Tanuki.

Built completely on point-to-point analog circuits, this pedal is built on two separately voiced pre-amp circuits, one with a more tamed input, and another with more power than the Illuminati! In addition to these massive pre-amps, the two signals each receive their own dedicated 3-band boosting parametric EQ circuits. With this extensive EQ section, you can custom tailor your synth and drum sounds to rattle the floor boards loose, or shatter thick panes of glass, whatever seems more appropriate. After the dual-stage distortion circuits are processed by EQ, they are summed into a mixer stage, where once again you have ultimate control of how much force you want to apply to your sound. Knowing well that heavily deranged distortion processing can make for a noisy acoustic nightmare, the WMD guys included a fully adjustable gate circuit post mixer to keep things tamed down.

If you are afraid of giving your delicate downtempo mixes some serious crunch, then this pedal is not for you. However, if you are looking to ignite your tracks with huge synth lines, powerful drums and guitars that could potentially harm small children’s ears, then this momentous distortion unit is a one-stop for all your heavy processing needs.

WMD Acoustic Trauma (MSRP: $299)

Gear Review: DiscoDSP Corona Synthesizer

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Now in its third edition, this monster virtual-analog synth from DiscoDSP, formally known as the Corona Synthesizer,  is not just another plug-in gone viral, it’s a whole world of sound waiting to be discovered. At first glance it appears to be loaded with features you are all quite familiar with, but upon closer inspection it become apparent that this isn’t just some middle-of-the-road three-oscillator soft-synth.

Designed for today’s most sophisticated machines, this synth is offered not just as a 32-bit application, but as a 64-bit as well, allowing for the best possible computing algorithms, offering pristine audio clarity. The voice begins with a three virtual-analog and wave oscillators, which sound anything from a dissonant wind chime, to a full-blown port city foghorn. Programming the beast is a blast, as the 32-step arpeggiator allows you to build the craziest leads you have always dreamed of. The arp has a unique MIDI out feature as well, which allows you to use its vast programmability with your other soft synths or outboard hardware as well. Several high-quality digital effects allow for further processing, freeing up more CPU by not forcing you to stack more plug-ins on your synth channel. The best feature of this synth however is its huge analog-modeled filter section, which just makes for massive bass bits, and speaker crushing lead lines.

After a simple install, I started pulling up the vast number of presets (which are all quite excellent I may add), I selected one and began to program my own voice. The workflow is quite easy, as the controls are all exposed and there is no need to go from menu to menu like some other products out there. The modulation matrix is easy to use as well, no need to hunt all over to find where your LFO is going. From big pads to eccentric sound effects, this brute of a plug can do it all. If you have been lusting after some of the finer hardware virtual analog units and just can swing the investment, this modestly priced synth will surely exceed all expectations.