DEEP POOL BY INSESSION AUDIO
KK-ACCESS REVIEW
Deep Pool by InSession audio is a Kontakt based down tempo loop library with a difference.
Not only does it offer a substantial collection of laid back drum and percussion patterns, but the whole library is entirely customisable, allowing you to deconstruct rhythmic layer elements from each of the full mix versions of the loops, along with it’s included constituent one shot samples.
Furthermore, each full loop, or deconstructed component or one shot, can individually and most importantly accessibly be modified to a high degree, which in practice provides us with an unprecedented parity with sighted users.
These advanced features are all due to InSession Audio’s development of what they call their Catalyst Engine for Kontakt, which has been rolled out for Deep Pool, but will also form the foundation for future releases.
TECH SPECS
Deep Pool runs in either the full version of Kontakt 7.1.0 or above, and the free Kontakt Player, it will also naturally work in all versions of Komplete Kontrol, as an application host for Kontakt.
The library requires around 3.84GB of disk space for installation, there is a single master Kontakt NKI preset file, with a further 52 NKSN presets.
DOWNLOAD & INSTALLATION
Download came as a provided link, giving access to an archive zip file, that once extracted creates the fully assembled library folder, which should be placed wherever you keep your authorised library content.
Registering the provided serial license within Native Access is an easy enough secondary stage, and locating your library within Native Access seals the deal.
Running an instance of Komplete Kontrol will add Deep Pool to your browser, and you will then be all set to explore.
Full Komplete Kontrol NKS parameter mappings are available at the end of this review, following the media links.
ACCESSIBILITY
InSession Audio have quite literally pulled out all the stops to work out a game plan for delivering a fully inclusive user experience for Deep Pool.
I will expand upon this in more detail throughout the article, but suffice to say, that having achieved this goal, and then further taking the additional time to present customers with a well described talk through guide specifically for their visually impaired customers, is in my experience something hitherto unheard of.
DIVING INTO DEEP POOL
As InSession Audio point out, the use of the term down tempo is all too often associated with chillout and lo-fi music tracks.
While this is certainly an acknowledged part of the vibe, Deep Pool seeks to offer somewhat more to the relaxed style, with an abundance of unique and carefully sampled programmed patterns, which successfully preserve the atmosphere of the genre, yet deliver far more in the way of both detailed rhythmic patterns and instrumentation variety.
Deep Pool provides the user with 20 suites of loops, which for simplicity sake can be thought of as individual songs.
The traditional song sections, Intro, Intro Fill, Verse 1, Verse Fill, Verse 2, Chorus 1, Chorus 1 Fill, Chorus 2, Chorus 2 Fill, Bridge, Bridge Fill, & Endings are laid out on the keyboard in a series of zones.
The main song elements are four bars in length, and mapped to the white keys, whilst fills, transitions, and less typically used loops are assigned to the black keys.
The zones themselves relate to the specific loop parts , full mix, minimal, low, mid, & top. ,
low meaning bass timbres like kicks, floor & low toms, mid sounds are snares, percussion, mid toms, whilst top relates to the hats, cymbals and higher percussion.
Pressing a key in the full mix zone, will trigger all three related loop components across the 3 ranges to play simultaneously, which are referred to as stacks, Stacks can optionally also be turned off.
You can of course alternatively opt to play only the equivalent single note in a related octave in order to isolate certain elements from the full mix.
Another zone provides you with one shot hits, which can be triggered with a single key press, and these are great to embellish an existing loop (which I will demonstrate in the upcoming audio section), or perhaps to create your own rhythm patterns from scratch by recording them within your DAW.
There is also a useful real time playable FX zone, which through the use of keyswitches allows you to temporarily invoke between 1 and up to 7 of the available fx, which include Panner, Filter, Crush, Phaser, LoFi, Delay & Reverb for as long as you hold down the key or keys, which is a really useful performance tool to have at your fingertips.
The above serves only as a simplistic description of the operational concepts behind how Deep Pool can work for your own music creations, however the really clever stuff comes to fruition when we lift the lid on it’s more detailed editing features.
Deep Pool, Adding a reversed percussion one shot to create a short riser,:
DEEP POOL, THE CONTROL FREAK!
The Deep Pool Catalyst Engine implements a last touch control paradyne for the first four pages of it’s NKS mapping.
This all sounds pretty impressive right?, well actually it really is, in short it means that when you press or hold down any of the single loops or one shots present in any of the aforementioned zones, then the available parameters from those four NKS pages, can be used to edit and tweak just that single last touched or held down loop or one shot.
This means that all of those available loops can be edited completely independently of one another when you select another key, which hugely expands the flexibility of what can be achieved in personalising the content of Deep Pool for your own creative needs.
InSession Audio have done the maths, and this effectively reduces what would otherwise have required some 240 pages of NKS mapping to implement, managing to boil it all down to just those four pages, the only caveat being that controls from these initial pages are not automatable, something most of us I am sure can live with in lieu of this far greater editing potential.
This all sounds amazing of course, but let’s take a look at what this might actually translate to in workingpractice for all of this veritable treasure trove of loops and one shot content.
First up, we can select both the bank suite and their subsidiary parts directly from the NKS controls, this means that we can use any element from the entire sample content pool, in order to mix, match, and arrange the chosen loops into a cohesive order that suits our track.
Then there is the ability to alter volume, pan, stereo width, tuning for -12 or +12 pitch steps, loop playback speed of up to double the 1 x tempo, sample start, low & high cut filters with slope adjustment, per part individual send controls for delay, and reverbs 1 & 2, sample reverse for one shots, Equalisation for 3 frequency bans, along with gain and width editing, Attack, Decay & Release for the one shot sample envelopes.
For the ardent control freaks, and habitual knob tweakers out there, this amounts to a whole lot of rhythmic loop and pattern editing fun, that will allow for some truly unique multi part loops to be created, that will sound entirely bespoke to you, and not just something that has been downloaded, un archived and thrown onto a track from some obscure off the shelf sample pack bundle.
DEEP POOL, GLOBAL GOODNESS
The journey far from ends here however, as there are a further 12 pages of NKS controls that work on a global basis across all loops, parts, & one shots.
First, there is a latch control which lets the loop play without the need to hold down the key, this can also be done by using your sustain pedal, but it’s nevertheless a useful option.
Quantise can be turned off, or alternatively set to lock the sync of the loops to the nearest 1/4, 1/8, or 1/16th note of your project tempo, meaning that you can start the pattern playback as a perfectly synchronised offset within a bar, and not just the first beat if required.
The Stack mode which simultaneously plays the low, mid, & high layers of a full mix, can be turned off if desired.
Global equalisation covers low, mid, & high frequencies with accompanying gain controls for each of the 3 bands.
Other global effects include Compression, Delay with time sync options, feedback, ping pong, saturation, low & high cut.
There are 2 separate reverbs, which include a fairly extensive choice of selectable ambience types, each with a pre-delay, filter, and send control.
We then have a panning page, featuring depth, pan pattern, and the option to route pan to the modulation wheel, which is a useful function, also mirrored as an option for other FX controls.
The Filter page has the modwheel option, along with the expected filter cut-off and resonance, and unusually the inclusion of pattern selection, which lets you choose how the filter gets introduced.
Crush, allows you to globally degrade the signal of your loops, again with the option for modwheel assignment, and pattern selection.
The Phaser brings in a traditional phase effect, with mix, depth, speed & feedback, and again that modulation wheel routing.
Low-Fi gives you access to a variety of choices such as several vinyl and cassette variants,as well as organic elements such as ocean, rain, or room noise which is an excellent contribution to the texture party, and yes again, there is that modwheel option!
We finally round things off for the NKS mappings with another page for delay, and another reverb.
DEEP POOL PRESETS
With so much in the way of accessible customisation, our usual absolute necessity for lots of factory presets in many ways becomes superfluous, but InSession Audio have provided Full and Minimal presets for all 20 of the included suites, that’s a combined total of 40.
There is also a Selections category, with 12 presets.
The suite titles consist of:
Currents, the Depths, Refractions, Of Two Minds, Aphelion Tide, Low Light Dive, Halting Shift, Warm Escape, The Drift, Dirge Like, Creeper, Thermocline, Halation, No Surprise, Brittle Mind, Barren, Space Between, Submerse, Cresting, & Inkblot.
The names are proceeded by their suggested playback tempos, which range from 60 up to 84, but this is entirely arbitrary, the loop I was working with in my demo, sounded just fine at 100bpm, however a 180bpm drum & bass banger might not work quite so well!
The vast majority of the suites are in 4/4, with three out of the twenty being in 6/8, which are noted within the title.
The overall content of Deep Pool is impressively expansive, with an overall count as follows:
1794 Loops: 2.27 GB
1069 Kit Samples: 314 MB
585 Additional Samples (Motion, Cymbals, Pitch Moods and Reverses): 677 MB
And when you consider that all of this can be modified, tweaked, edited, and forged to your own creative specifications, it all becomes more than a little mind boggling.
We wanted choice, We asked for choice, and with Deep Pool We’ve certainly been given it in spades!
Do make a point of checking out the links in the media section, they include the guide for visually impaired users, as well as a general video guide.
CONCLUSION
Deep Pool succeeds in delivering a comprehensive and vast collection of Down Tempo drum & percussion loops in a unique and intuitive to use Kontakt engine.
With it’s almost endless customisation poss abilities, the use of loops within your music never need to sound stale, static, obviously contrived, or off the peg again.
Deep Pool represents a genuine step forward in NKS accessibility, and asserts that given the dedicated amount of thought at the design stage, then NKS still remains the current best option for blind & visually impaired music creative’s working with software based instruments.
Deep Pool by InSession Audio can be purchased directly from their website at an introductory price of $99.99
Deep Pool Product Page:
https://insessionaudio.com/products/deep-pool/
Deep Pool Preset Demo:
https://youtu.be/pUOcrIEW76U
Deep Pool Video Manual:
https://insessionaudio.com/products/deep-pool/video-manual/
Deep Pool Overview for visually impaired users:
https://insessionaudio.com/products/deep-pool/overview-for-musicians-with-visual-impairment/
KOMPLETE KONTROL PLUG-IN EDIT NKS PARAMETER MAPPING
Page One – Sound, Tune, Speed, Sample Start
Knob 1 – Bank Selection
Knob 2 – Part Selection
Knob 3 – Volume
Knob 4 – Pan
Knob 5 – Width
Knob 6 – Tune Steps
Knob 7 – speed rate (loop playback)
Knob 8 – Sample Start (offset)
Page Two – Tone, Part FX Sends, One Shot Sample Reverse
Knob 1 – Low Cut
Knob 2 – Low Slope
Knob 3 – High cut
Knob 4 – High Slope
Knob 5 – Part Delay Send
Knob 6 – Part Reverb 1 Send
Knob 7 – Part Reverb 2 Send
Knob 8 – One Shot Samples Reverse On/Off
Page Three – Part EQ
Knob 1 – EQ On/Off
Knob 2 – Freq 1
Knob 3 – Freq 1 Gain
Knob 4 – Freq 1 Width
Knob 5 – Freq 2
Knob 6 – Freq 2 Gain
Knob 7 – Freq 2 Width
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Four – Part EQ continued, One Shot Samples Envelope
Knob 1 – Freq 3
Knob 2 – Freq 3 Gain
Knob 3 – Freq 3 Width
Knob 4 – Unallocated
Knob 5 – One Shot Samples Envelope On/Off
Knob 6 – Attack
Knob 7 – Decay
Knob 8 – Release
Page Five – Loop Play, Vel Volume, Vel Filter, Stack Keys
Knob 1 – Loop Playback Latch On/Off
Knob 2 – Loop Quantise
Knob 3 – Velocity to Volume (Loops)
Knob 4 – Velocity to Volume (one Shots)
Knob 5 – Velocity to filter (Loops)
Knob 6 – Velocity to Filter Poly Aftertouch
Knob 7 – Velocity to filter (One Shots)
Knob 8 – Stack Keys On/Off
Page six – global EQ
Knob 1 – Global EQ On/Off
Knob 2 – LoW Freq
Knob 3 – Low Gain
Knob 4 – Mid Freq
Knob 5 – Mid gain
Knob 6 – High Freq
Knob 7 – High Gain
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Seven – Compression
Knob 1 – Compression Amount
Knob 2 – Output
Knob 3 – Compression On/Off
Knob 4 to 8 – Not Allocated
Page Eight – Delay Send
Knob 1 – Delay Send On/Off
Knob 2 – Time (in beat values)
Knob 3 – Feedback
Knob 4 – Ping Pong On/Off
Knob 5 – Saturation
Knob 6 – Low Cut
Knob 7 – High Cut
Knob 8 – Return
Page Nine – Reverb Send 1
Knob 1 – Reverb Send 1 On/Off
Knob 2 – Reverb Type: Multiple selections
Knob 3 – Pre-Delay
Knob 4 – filter
Knob 5 – Return
Knob 6 to 8 – Unallocated
Page Ten – Reverb Send 2
Knob 1 – Reverb Send 2 On/Off
Knob 2 – reverb Type: Multiple Selections
Knob 3 – Pre-Delay
Knob 4 – Filter
Knob 5 – return
Knob 6 to 8 – Unallocated
Page Eleven – Panner
Knob 1 – Panner On/Off
Knob 2 – depth
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Inverted
Knob 5 – Pan Pattern
Knob 6 to 8 – Unallocated
Page twelve – Filter
Knob 1 – Filter On/Off
Knob 2 – Cut-Off
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Resonance
Knob 6 – Filter Pattern
Knob 7 – Depth
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Thirteen – BitCrush
Knob 1 – Bitcrush On/Off
Knob 2 – Degrade
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Bitcrush Pattern
Knob 6 – Depth
Knob 7 – Output
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Fourteen – Phaser
Knob 1 – Phaser On/Off
Knob 2 – Mix
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Depth
Knob 6 – speed
Knob 7 – Feedback
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Fifteen – Lo-fi
Knob 1 – Lo-Fi On/Off
Knob 2 – Freq
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Noise Type: Vinyl, Cassette, Organic Textures (Multiple Options)
Knob 6 – Noise Level
Knob 7 – Output
Knob 8 – Unallocated
Page Sixteen – Delay
Knob 1 – Delay On/Off
Knob 2 – Mix
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Time (in beat values)
Knob 6 – Feedback
Knob 7 – Ping Pong On/Off
Knob 8 – High Cut
Page Seventeen – Reverb
Knob 1 – Reverb On/Off
Knob 2 – Mix
Knob 3 – Modwheel Assign On/Off
Knob 4 – Mode Dir: Normal, Invert
Knob 5 – Pre Delay
Knob 6 – Decay
Knob 7 – Width
Knob 8 – Unallocated
(c) Chris Ankin
KK-Access.com
23rd August 2024
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Disclaimer
The author can not accept any responsibility for subsequent purchase decisions made as a result of this review,or Any inaccuracies found therein. All opinions and product functions stated are based solely on information perceived as a blind user whilst using the product and/or gathered from official factual sources such as the developer, web or supplied product manual.
About the Author
Based in Buckinghamshire, England, Chris Ankin has worked as a freelance review writer and contributor with articles published in Sound On Sound, Home & Studio Recording and ST Format Magazines.
He has also successfully worked extensively in and around the music, recording, film Soundtrack scoring, Game & media composition, the creative arts, Charitable trusts,publishing, music streaming and property investments since 1982 whilst continuously and deliberately managing to evade any mainstream recognition under his own name by the use of various pseudonyms.
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