Native Instruments has announced new versions of its studio-standard software bundle. While Komplete 8 has been further expanded to include 27 individual products at an unchanged price, the new Komplete 8 Ultimate for the first time combines the full arsenal of Native Instruments' Komplete Instruments and Effects range at the same substantial discount, with 50 individual products provided on a dedicated external hard drive.

Further expanding its versatile sonic arsenal, the new Komplete 8 includes the latest Kontakt 5 and Guitar Rig 5 versions, and adds the West Africa percussion instrument. It also incorporates the versatile new Studio Drummer drum production instrument and the upcoming Transient Master dynamic processing effect. Furthermore, Komplete 8 includes over 1,300 additional presets for Absynth, FM8 and Massive, derived from several soundpacks previously available as individual products.

The new Komplete 8 Ultimate includes the full content of the regular Komplete 8 bundle and much more, combining the full range of all currently available Komplete Instruments and Effects on a dedicated USB 2.0 hard drive. The resulting collection comprises 50 individual products with over 13,000 sounds and 240 GB of sample content, at an effective discount of over 80% compared to the individual prices. The hard drive enables a fast and convenient installation process, and also constitutes a compact and robust backup medium for the software.

Both new Komplete versions are optimized for Native Instruments' groove production system Maschine, offering direct browser integration with attribute-based preset search as well as convenient automatic parameter mapping for the rotary knobs on the hardware controller.

Komplete 8 will be available in September 2011 for a suggested retail price of $559 / €499, with an update for owners of previous Komplete versions available for $229 / €199.

Komplete 8 Ultimate will be available at the same date for $1099 / €999, with an upgrade for owners of any version of the regular Komplete bundle available for $559 / €499.

Additional information on Komplete 8 is available at www.native-instruments.com/komplete

Additional information on Komplete 8 Ultimate is available at www.native-instruments.com/ultimate