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Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

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Guy Rowland
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Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by Guy Rowland »

I'm guessing this won't be much use to TSB members, but it looks like a significant industry moment. The free version is up now at www.sounds.com for all, the paid option is for USA only at the moment.
Native Instruments has unveiled Sounds.com, a new online platform for loops, samples, and sound packs for music creators of all genres. The Sounds.com beta launches exclusively in the US. Customers can try it now with a free selection of loops and samples, or go Pro and subscribe to the full library at a special introductory price of $9.99 per month.

The platform already hosts more than 500,000 royalty-free sounds – from orchestral scoring to pop, rock, and trap – and new releases are added daily. Current sounds include loops and sample content from Native Instruments' Maschine Expansions – plus exclusive content from over 200 creators, including suppliers such as The Loop Loft, MVP Loops, and Symphonic Distribution. Curated collections from the Sounds.com team provide ready-made inspiration to producers of all skill levels and genres.

Simplicity and ease-of-use are central to the Sounds.com experience: All loops and samples are available to browse and preview, with no sign-up required; sounds are tagged and easily sortable by genre, key, BPM, and other attributes; and search functionality is powered by Native Instruments' own MIR (Music Information Retrieval) algorithms, which helps users find exactly what they need, when they need it.

Sounds.com is spearheaded from Los Angeles by Native Instruments' Chief Digital Officer Matthew Adell, previously known for leadership roles at Beatport, Napster, and Amazon. The platform marks Native Instruments' further expansion into the loops and samples domain, complementing their portfolio of instruments and effects.

"Over the past year we've hired a best-in-class team in LA to build and manage Sounds.com," says Adell. "And today, we're excited to share the first iteration of our vision with the global community of music makers. This marks the next step in Native Instruments' amazing journey of creating truly unique experiences for all music makers, and we have many exciting plans for the coming months. We hope that hobbyists and professionals alike will provide us with valuable feedback and help us shape Sounds.com into the ultimate daily resource for musical inspiration at a great price point."

For suppliers of loops and samples, Sounds.com represents a new commercial opportunity. Suppliers will benefit from Native Instruments' expertise in empowering partners through platforms and technology. They can expect a simple, fluid process for hosting and distributing content, top-notch backend services, and access to Native Instruments' global audience of music creators.

More details about the platform's vision and progress will be shared with media and industry peers at the 'Native Summit' partner conference, held at this year's NAMM event in Anaheim, CA, from January 25-26.

Pricing and availability

Free Tier:

Preview unlimited royalty-free sounds.
Curated collections.
Weekly free sound and collection updates.
Find the perfect sound with sound recognition technology.
Download selected free sounds.
Free forever.

Pro Tier (introductory price of $9.99 per month)

All features from Free plus:

Download any sound from Sounds.com.
Access exclusive premium releases added weekly.
Cancel any time.
Exclusive to U.S. customers during beta testing.

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Bebop LaCour
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Joined: Jun 23, 2017 3:43 am

Re: Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by Bebop LaCour »

It seems especially significant since it's bound to wind up integrated in Kontakt, and that worries me a bit. Once the way for subscription based Kontakt libraries is paved, who knows how long it'll be before we're all forced into the Kontakt equivalent of Composer Cloud. Obviously, that's the darkest timeline take on it. It might end up not being that big a deal, but since streaming and subscription services is taking over everywhere, it's hard to argue that the sample world will somehow be left out of that development.
- Rasmus


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Guy Rowland
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Re: Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by Guy Rowland »

I guess the key word there Rasmus is "forced". Composer Cloud isn't mandatory. So far, the only audio product I can think of that is subs only is Adobe's Audition (and funnily enough it doesn't get talked about much... I'm an enthusiastic Audition user but I'm on a paid-for old version). Oh, and there is Roland's Cloud... again, it doesn't get talked about much, does it?

Maybe it is inevitable in the long term - I can only presume everyone is watching each other waiting for some kind of definitive evidence that the market would bear an all-out switch to subs.

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Bebop LaCour
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Re: Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by Bebop LaCour »

Totally agree Guy. It WAS the most pessimistic prophecy I brought forth - one in which we will be forced :)
There's probably also the lesson learned from Spotify and the likes: That you can't really make money off it, unless you have a product that "sells"/streams by the billion. I guess an expensive subscription service would chase too many composers away to make niche libraries viable (and they more or less all are, right? :) - and a cheap one would not generate enough revenue to match selling libraries outright.
I dunno... We'll see what happens. For all I know, it might turn out to be glorious progress?
- Rasmus

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X-bassist
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Re: Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by X-bassist »

I can see how this would be an advantage for NI, getting monthly fees that go on even if it's only rarely used (like the gym!) but for the composer? I'm always surprised how people want access to everything. I'm at that point where I don't want to spend too much time choosing. And my personal collection is already pretty large. ;)

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soundbylaura
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Re: Native Instruments launch sounds.com loops and samples site

Post by soundbylaura »

NI bought The Loop Loft. Looking forward to finally getting Flutes of Fire next time NI has a 50% off sale!
Be an upstander.

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