Precisionsound has released Sonic Laboratory, a toolkit of 500 sound effects, from brutal hits to evolving soundscapes, atonal clusters to retro electronica.

Audio designer Iain Morland took some of the strangest plucks, scrapes, thumps and noises from Precisionsound's huge library of sampled acoustic instruments, then subjected them to bizarre processing to create evocative textures and effects.

Sonic Laboratory contains:

• 500 stereo 44.1khz 24-bit WAV files.
• 10 programs for all versions of Steinberg HALion.
• 10 programs for NI Kontakt 1 and 2.
• 10 programs with scripted GUI for NI Kontakt 3 and 4 (not compatible with free Kontakt Player).

The total size of Sonic Laboratory is 1.28 GB. The audio files are sorted into 9 folders by category, and each file has a unique descriptive name. The categories are: hits, mechanical hybrid, organic hybrid, pads and textures, retro electronics, reversed, stings, tonal - dark, and tonal - light.

The Sonic Laboratory files are intended primarily to be placed on the audio timeline of a music sequencer or video editor. The included sampler programs are for easy auditioning of sounds, with one program for each category of sounds (two in the case of the largest category). The programs for Kontakt 3 and 4 (Full version needed) display the name of the played file on the GUI when you press a key:

Precisionsound founder Lars Westin, says: "If you are an audio designer for movies or games, Sonic Laboratory complements traditional Foley collections by providing production-ready sounds that add instant drama and interest. For composers working in genres such as IDM and ambient, Sonic Laboratory brings moments of contrast and depth when layered with musical content. Users of sample-based synthesisers can also load the sounds as oscillators for further mangling and exploration."

Sonic Laboratory costs $69 (+$11 if you want it on DVD) and all formats are included.