Steinberg

Perfect, a collection of house and techno sounds
and styles by producer/DJ Dean Coleman.
Best of analogue and digital
On the synthesiser front, Absolute 5 includes
both Retrologue 2 and Padshop 2, which we last
looked at in
183 and 184 respectively.
Whilst not based on any speciic synthesiser,
Retrologue is a distinctly vintage three-oscillator
analogue synth that combines the best
elements of classic synthesisers with a number
of modern features, such as advanced
modulation routing, a step-sequencer/
arpeggiator, and a lexible FX section. New here
is the Sounds of Soul expansion containing
more than 400 soul-inspired presets.
The versatile Padshop specialises in complex,
evolving sounds, which it creates via a pair of
sample-based engines that can run in either a
granular or a spectral mode. Three expansions
are included with the regular Padshop factory
libraries: Granular Guitars and Zero Gravity are
carried over from Absolute 4, whilst new to the
collection is Polarities. This moody expansion
from sound designer Simon Stockhausen
features over 250 patches that explore
contrasts, both sonic and conceptual, for an
eclectic mix of tonal, atonal and mysterious.
Last but not least we come to The Grand 3,
Steinberg’s ultra-detailed piano instrument. This
includes over 30GB of exquisitely detailed
multisamples taken from a variety of pianos:
Yamaha C7, Steinway D and Bösendorfer 290
grands, a Nordiska Pianofabriken upright, and a
Yamaha CP80 electric. Various aspects of a
loaded piano’s sound can be modiied, such as
the sustain resonance or damper release sound,
although the options available depend upon the
loaded piano. In addition there’s a four-band EQ
to help further hone the piano’s tone, and an
ambience section that lets you choose between
using algorithmic or convolution reverb.
Absolutely fabulous
The plugins included in Absolute 5 are an ideal
blend no matter where your particular focus lies:
if sound design is your thing then HALion and
Backbone will not disappoint; if you’re into
building beats and grooves then Backbone will
please you too, as will Groove Agent’s take on
the classic drum sample workstation; and if all
you want to do is create music then everything
in the collection will serve you well.
The asking price would be attractive if
Absolute 5 only included the plugins, but of
course there’s the huge library of content
thrown in on top too – you can check out the full
list on Steinberg’s website. The quality of these
expansions is consistently high, and they are
packed full of exciting and inspirational sounds,
beats and textures that cover a huge range of
genres and styles. Taken together, Absolute 5 is
a mightily impressive and deep collection that
will often surprise but never disappoint.
Web steinberg.net
Verdict
For Comprehensive collection
Over 130GB of high-quality expansions
Sensible HALion/HALion Sonic combo
Ace Groove Agent/Backbone pairing
Against No edition that includes every
Steinberg expansion
You may need a bigger hard drive
A near-perfect combination of Steinberg’s
inest instrument plugins coupled with a
vast library of expansions and content
9/10
Alternatively
Native Instruments Komplete 13
£539
Sounds to suit any style of
production or performance
Arturia V Collection 8
€599
Explore the history of synthesis
with this mouth-watering collection
of modelled vintage synths
Absolute 5 includes Steinberg’s
fascinating drum sampler, Backbone.
This hard-to-deine tool allows up to
eight samples to be layered together,
with per-layer ilters, envelopes and
modulation available, much like a
conventional sampler. The clever bit is
that Backbone can decompose these
samples, a process that separates them
into noise and tonal elements, which
for most drum sounds equates to the
transient and sustain portions,
respectively. You can then work to
rebalance these components within
the sound, use one component without
the other, or blend together
decomposed components of diferent
samples. This all adds up to a
tremendously efective way to create
utterly original drum sounds; it’s very
efective at creating special efects too.
Although intended primarily for
creating drum sounds, Backbone is
excellent for creating special efects
too. What Backbone isn’t though, is a
drum machine. So while you could run
multiple instances of it, each hosting a
diferent drum sound in order to build
up a full Backbone kit, the idea is that
you would export your Backbone
creations to audio iles that could be
then used as drum samples. You can
also drag a Backbone sound directly to
the timeline, or into a plugin that
supports it, as Groove Agent and
HALion do.
Get some backbone
Plus a collection of more than 400 Retrologue patches
based on classic soul sounds
New to Absolute 5 is Backbone, Steinberg’s fascinating drum sample designer
“The plugins included
in Absolute 5 are an
ideal blend no matter
where your particular
focus lies”
You get a toolkit for New York House, Future House,
Progressive House and Techno
December 2021 / COMPUTER MUSIC / 71
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