Sample CD: Loops-a-GoGo
Dec 1, 2001 12:00 PM, Dave Hill Jr.
Sample pimping seems to be the hottest game in town. With low-overhead Internet distribution, high-fidelity home studios, and professional music-making software, catchy new sounds are just a double-click away. Taking note of this development is Netherlands-based sound developer and sample purveyor Duke Leto. His Loops-a-GoGo site (www.loopsagogo.com) has seen a steady climb in sales since its inception a few years ago. Now Leto has released a CD (WAV or AIFF) of loops and musical samples, available from the site for $99. (If you want just a few of Leto's loops, you can download them from his site in smaller bundles for $9.95 each.)
Duke Leto's Complete Loop Collection covers many vibes and sonic shadings. Although the CD is his first effort, the sounds are mature and versatile. The collection's true value lies in Leto's composition sensibilities; the loops are musical and melodious. The disc does not have a vast quantity of beats and one-shot sounds, so if you're looking for a lot of options, it may not be the best place to start.
The collection contains all 57 loops from Leto's site as well as a batch of basic loops for sound design. Most of the loops are 2 to 4 measures long, with some as long as 16. In addition to the 57 loops, the CD has several sound folders: 5 Bass Loops, 24 Beats, 11 Light Loops, 12 Soundscapes, 11 Spheres, 8 Strings, and 15 Weird Loops. Many of the Beats loops are actually rhythmic synthesizer tones rather than percussion sounds, whereas the Spheres-sample section consists of various mixes of strings, pads, and organs. The Spheres samples may sound a bit thick at first listen, but you can use them to make some luscious-sounding pads.
The CD also contains a Flash preview function, which allows users to scroll quickly through the 199 MB of sounds. The feature was designed primarily to provide Flash Web designers with instant access to sounds, but any user will appreciate the preview function's immediacy.
One complaint I have, however, concerns the disc's volume-level discrepancies. For example, Sphere 1 registers at about 1 dB on my Sonic Foundry Sound Forge play meter, but Sphere 7 checks in at 30 dB. The varied volume levels make it difficult to audition the sounds, and the poor signal-to-noise ratio of some low-level samples greatly affects sonic quality. It would behoove all sample- and loop-CD makers to make sure they record at decent and consistent levels, use ample compression, and, if applicable, normalize the tracks.
Overall, Duke Leto's Complete Loop Collection is about calming, new-agey melodies and atmospheric, spacey, sci-fi sounds. They are not sounds for making banging dance tunes — they are more for soothing the soul. The quality of the samples has inspired me to discover what other treasures from Web-based sample sellers may be lurking on the Net. The idea of more and more independent producers releasing their sounds on the Internet is a welcome development.
Overall Rating (out of 5): 3.5
Loops-a-GoGo; e-mail duke_leto@loopsagogo.com; Web www.loopsagogo.com
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