SHREDDAGE X: Electric Guitar Samples Reloaded
Shreddage X is an expansion to the megahit DI electric guitar library Shreddage, which we released in early 2010. As we pored over countless emails, forum posts and Facebook comments about what people wanted to see in future versions, we decided that a simple patch would not be enough. We needed to go deeper. And I think we might have gotten a little carried away.
With 1,000 24-bit WAV samples, Shreddage X is actually bigger than the original library, though it's available for only $20 to owners of the original, and $69 as a complete bundle.
Features:
* New articulation: vibrato (previously, only included as pinch squealed vibrato)
* New articulation: harmonics (traditional, not pinch harmonics)
* New articulation: tremolo picking (a metal must-have)
* New articulation: hard sustain picks (very aggressive, great for staccatos)
* Single note release stop samples (again, great for staccatos)
* True recorded slides up to and down from each note, single notes AND powerchords
* Hammered legato
* Script controls to tweak legato timing to your taste
* Drop tuning down to Ab (the "A" is for "Armageddon")
* New mapping to incorporate all this great new stuff - and yet, still no need for any keyswitches or complex CC mapping
* Kontakt 4 native (full version of K4 required)
As you can see, we didn't play around with this one. The combination of Shreddage and Shreddage X makes for a complete rock and metal riff arsenal. Just check out the library page and listen for yourself to the demos:
http://impactsoundworks.com/products/in ... hreddage-x
"Rock the Dragon" - Classic 90s American import anime theme, Shreddage-style. Shows off a number of new articulations.
"The Fire and the Fury" - Seriously fast and brutal metal riffing here (original song by Firewind.)
"Self vs. Self" - Mockup of a Pendulum feat. In Flames track. Showcases higher harmony playing with multiple amps and new articulations!
"Descent Into Darkness" - Composed by Robert Santolupo, a VERY dark + heavy track with quad-tracked amp work.
Of course, all this would be useless if it were hard to use. We're releasing multiple video tutorials showcasing tips and techniques for the library, starting with a 15-minute overview that demonstrates the new articulations and how to use them.
So check it out, enjoy, and as always, let us know what you think!
(Want to learn more about the original library? Check out the original post below:)
From the halls of Valhalla comes an electric guitar library so powerful, it needs two subtitles.
SHREDDAGE: Electric Rhythm Guitar: Rock & Metal
Forged from the hammer of Ragnarok, Shreddage is a next-generation rhythm guitar library. It has been designed to provide the most realistic and flexible sound for rock and metal playing, giving the user the ability to recreate nearly any riff.
Unlike many other guitar libraries, Shreddage is extremely focused and took nearly two years to become fully realized. We recorded and re-recorded samples and articulations, analyzing multiple types of playing techniques, classic riffs, guitars, strings, DIs and mapping methods. The result is not only extremely deep and realistic, but intuitive and easy to play.
Features:
* The sound of a classic metal guitar run through a pristine, high-end Avalon DI at 24/96 and downsampled to 24/44.1 for the final release.
* All multisamples, NO LOOPS
* Tuning all the way down to Bb (the "B" stands for "brutal")
* CLEAN recordings to amp however you want
* Every crucial articulation for rock and metal rhythms: open sustains, powerchords, palm mutes, fast mutes, powerchord mutes, fast powerchord mutes, powerchord half-mutes, chord stops, pinch squeals, pick scrapes and slides
* A staggering 8x round robin for just about all articulations, on every note - say goodbye to the machine gun effect
* Double-tracked patches/multis that can even be used to pull off quad tracking!
* Dead-simple interface with quick mix controls (attack, decay, release, filters, EQ)
* NO convoluted, complex scripted system that takes weeks to learn - just load up patches and play. No need for extensive MIDI CC control, modwheel, aftertouch or keyswitch manipulation
* A set of amp/cab sim presets for such plugins as Guitar Rig 4, Amplitube Metal, Amplitube 2, Line6 Podfarm and Overloud TH-1. Just load the presets and play - no tweaking needed.
SHREDDAGE is available now at the truly metal price of $49 (Kontakt 2 format.) That's not a typo - $49!
Demos
Sketch Montage - Montage showcasing a number of different metal riffs using multiple guitar amp tones.
Heroic Trailer Cue - An epic, heroic trailer cue. Used in the first half of the trailer video!
"Desertion" - An arrangement of a piece from the video game Final Fantasy 6. Shows how Shreddage can convincingly be used for the entirety of a full-length instrumental piece!
Deep Impact - Another trailer-style cue using Sitar Nation, Impact: Steel, Groove Bias and one external drumloop.
"Bleed" Mockup - Short mockup of Meshuggah - "Bleed" showcasing fast and normal mutes in action at very higih speeds. Simple sequencing + pitch bend.
FAQ
Aren't there enough guitar libraries out there already?
It's true that there are a lot of guitar sample libraries out there, including some that are even oriented toward rock and metal playing. However, you simply will not find a library that sounds as realistic as this for rock/metal rhythm playing that is also DI AND multisampled... and definitely not at our price!
Why didn't you include an amped version?
We actually recorded amped samples too. However, when we experimented with actually playing and sequencing them, they sounded much less realistic than the DI version. Nothing sounds as good as actually amping the guitar yourself. Luckily, we have amp sim presets to make that really easy.
How hard is it to play?
One of the things we're most proud of with this library is how great it sounds out of the box. You don't need any sort of fancy layering or automation to get it to sound good. Even a sequence of straight eighth notes with different velocities (to trigger the appropriate articulations) sounds excellent with absolutely no other humanization added. Once you load up one of the multis or master patches you'll see how easy it is to get a huge, realistic sound.
How much time did it take to make the demos?
95% or more of the time spent on the demos went to sequencing every instrument BESIDES Shreddage. Making the Shreddage parts took a few minutes at most. Just hit record, play in a pattern, load an amp sim preset included with the library, done.
Can I do lead playing?
The range of the open sustain patch is Bb2 to G5. This is not the whole range of the guitar, however, and we specifically did not record common lead articulations or implement any kind of legato system. That's because this isn't meant to be a lead library, and we accept that there are actually other (more expensive) products out there that can really do convincing leads. Rhythm was the weak area so that's what we focused on.
Can I do chords?
We sampled open notes and powerchords (1-5-1), and nothing more than that. You can of course play in your own chords using the open sus or mute patches, but again, the focus of the library is rock/metal and filling in the niche (big, chuggy riffs, rapid thrashing, etc.) that was previously neglected. We may at some point do another library that is oriented toward jazz/pop rhythm playing in which case we would dedicate more time + space to chords.
iirc Sampler can open Kontakt files. 
