RAW-Kick £67

Developed in partnership with DJ Free-K and DJ Promo, and based on Papen’s RAW synth (5/10, cm216), RAW-Kick is a synthesis- and sample-based kick drum designer plugin that specialises in sounds at the harder edges of dance music, but gives enough sound-shaping versatility to make it a viable option for less hammering genres, too.

Three layers are mixed to form the final kick sound, each one outputting a synthesised sine/noise combo, or a sample. Up to 16 harmonics can be introduced to the sine wave in a graphstyle editor, adding character and midrange interest when pushed through the XY-controlled RAW processor and/or the various onboard distortion effects. Pitch and volume envelopes are provided; each layer has its own filter, dual EQs and two insert effects; and the Master page houses dual parallel EQs, LP/ HP filters, and a mono-ising filter. Top it off with a powerful modulation system (counting the levels of individual harmonics among its targets) and you have a very powerful, aggressive kick drum instrument that really lets you get into the details.

n8/ 10n