The DrumSynth from the MPC Standalone is now available as a plugin for your DAW

Air Music Tech, a sister company to Akai Professional, has taken the DrumSynth engine from Akai’s MPC Standalone and packed it into a plugin.

Like its hardware-housed sibling, the software version of DrumSynth is designed for deep drum sound design. Percussive tones can be sculpted from the ground up, then processed with effects and saved as user presets so that you can use them again and again.

Sounds are created using DrumSynth’s multi-synth generator, which combines FM, analogue modelling and physical modelling algorithms. There are eight individual engines - Kick, Snare, Clap, Hi-Hat, Tom, Percussion, Crash and Ride - so you can create complete kits.

Effects and tone manipulation features include a transient shaper, tuning, EQ, compression, reverb and delay, and there’s also a dedicated mixer. 52 preset kits come included, ranging in sound from classic to contemporary.

DrumSynth runs on PC and Mac in VST/AU/AAX formats. The regular price will be $99/£99, but you can currently download it for the introductory price of $39/£39, and there’s also a 10-day trial version you can download.

Find out more on the Air Music Tech website.

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it. 

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