FRAMES BY VOID & VISTA

FRAMES BY VOID & VISTA

KK-ACCESS REVIEW

As I commented in a previous review, Void & Vista may not be considered as prolific in their sample library output, however they are consummate in their quest for quality, originality, and attention to detail.

With their prior cinematic sound design libraries such as Strands, and last years excellent Vocal library ‘folds now well established on the market, we are now privileged to be taking a look at Frames, which is the very latest product from Void & Vista to hit the scene.

INTO THE FRAME

Using Void & Vista’s own words, “Frames is an exploration of experimental sounds, prepared instruments, extended techniques, and aleatoric performances”. This I believe perfectly summarises the library, and simultaneously makes me the worlds laziest review writer!

TECH SPECS

Frames runs in Kontakt version 7.17 or higher, either full or free Kontakt Player editions.

It is compatible with all versions of Komplete Kontrol provided they are hosting the appropriate Kontakt version stated above.

The library requires 16GB of disk space for installation, and uses the NCW lossless compression format for the sample sources.

There is a single master Kontakt NKI preset, which is also the initial source for an additional and extensive collection of over 300 cu rated factory presets, in the NKSN snapshot format.

DOWNLOAD & INSTALLATION

Frames being fully Kontakt Player compatible, makes the download and installation a simple and accessible affair using Native Access 2.

Simply paste in your post purchase serial number to register the library, and then the installation process will be entirely handled for you, placing the library in your chosen default content location.

Finally loading up Komplete Kontrol will add Frames to your factory library database following the automatic start up scan.

FULL KOMPLETE KONTROL NKS PARAMETER MAPPINGS ARE AVAILABLE AT THE END OF THE REVIEW FOLLOWING THE MEDIA SECTION

ACCESSIBILITY

There are no disappointments regarding the overall NKS access to Frames, the mapping template remains consistent with Void & Vista’s last release folds, which provides good access to the libraries rich sound design content through no less than 25 pages of NKS parameters.

Perhaps most crucially for a sound creation orientated product such as Frames, the dual layer Kontakt engine offers us the ability to select and load content from the libraries sample pool, which contains 40 original sources, and these can be blended and shaped in any dual combination to create your own unique sounds.

FRAMES – EXPLORING THE FACTORY PRESETS

The factory presets are divided into 3 main categories:

Highlights, as you would expect,showcase the broad range of sounds that Frames can produce, and does well to exemplify the included samples.

Designed, will provide you with a more focused collection of material, with sub divisions that explore Pads, Motions, Drones, Textures, Keys, Bass, SFX, & Leads.

Foundations, Perhaps places a little more emphasis on the available sample pool, with sub categories, Instruments, Objects, Effected, & Textures.

The designed category has the most content in terms of presets, which is perhaps a testimony of how enjoyable it can be to create your own presets, and clearly Void & Vista has had a ball in doing so, evident with the large supply of quality presets!

FRAMES – INCLUDED SAMPLES

Next, let’s take a quick plunge into the sample pool that will form the foundations for any of the sonic journeys you may take within the library.

rain Piano, String Piano, Tremolo, Ricochet, Overblown, Reeds, Tongue drum, Roto Toms, Dragged, foiled, Spokes, Gate, Bottles, Pan Vibes, Paper Marimba, Motorised, Misaged, Paper Forms, abrasive, Wrapped, suspended, Casservox, Bias, Crumble, Riddle, Dropsticks, Friction Piano, Chair, Rummage, Table, Macaroni, Cage, Sine, Triangle, Square, Saw, supersaw, Noise Low, Noise, Mid, Noise High,

I acknowledge of course that some of those names might not immediately describe what they are, and indeed some of the ones that seemingly do, can turn out to be something quite different from what is expected, but in a good way.

There are pianos, mallets, strings, percussion, and a gathering of real world sounds and textures, as well as a nice selection of wave forms and noise types supplied from Kontakt’s own internal stock.

It did cross my mind that moving those waveforms to an additional third or even fourth sound layer of their own might add another extension to the creative options.

At times I found some nice dual sample combinations, and having those other Kontakt waveforms as something extra as a back up to further enhance them would have been fun to experiment further with, for example a splash of white noise, or perhaps just a hint of saw wave.

FRAMES – THE KONTAKT ENGINE & SOUND DESIGN CHAIN

The NKS mapping template for Frames has been well thought out, first beginning with the performance related controls that users would typically want quick access to.

It then gradually progresses through an ergonomic sound design workflow where you first select your samples for each of the two layers, and then logically progresses its way through to staging, filtering, shaping, modulation, LFO, and the final application of effects and processing to add that final bit of spit and polish.

Who would ever have guessed that combining container rattles of some dry Macaroni transposed 3 octaves down, and then blending them with the pitch bent squeals of a chair across a floor, would create such disturbingly pleasant sounds!!!

Depending upon which octave I played my new creation, it ranged between the growls of a prowling dinosaur, to the cacophonic squeals of multiple scraping fingernails across a chalk board, a most unsettling sound, yet ideal for horror scores which is my own particular penchant!

There is little doubt that Frames has an extensive range of controls that can transport you far away from the vanilla sound samples that you initially select, merely transposing the pitch may unlock frequencies and harmonics that were not at first audibly evident, and to this end, with Frames, Void & Vista have employed some more detailed recording techniques in order to preserve the finite detail that could potentially be lost or deteriorate when more drastic de tuning is used.

It is then possible to apply the ensemble control to multiply voices, cascade, and offset samples, and apply traditional AdSR to the envelope, filters, and modulation on a per layer basis.

there are also the filters, both low and Highpass, LFO which is again on a per layer choice, this can either be free running in Hertz values, or synchronisable to your project tempo with multiple beat values.

Effects can be applied to the sound using the A, B, or C, Character FX slots, and there is a wide range of Kontakt stock selections to choose from. Depending upon your choice, the subsequent NKS controls are then automatically refreshed on the subsequent page to reflect the parameters pertinent to your selected effect.

MIDI CC control is once more incorporated into the Frames library, something we first saw in Folds the previous release. This feature enables the user to opt to assign Morph, Dynamics, Filter, Motion, ensemble, Lofi, Character, & space to a MIDI CC value of their choice, which allows for extended control possibilities, or even just being able to reassign what the modwheel is already controlling to your personal preference.

Finally, on the topic of user preset creation, another possible future addition might be to include a randomise button, which could throw a dice on certain parameters, to create auto generated presets.

Still, regardless, it’s easily possible and a wholly enjoyable process to come up with plenty of useful and satisfyingly unique sounds of your own, which is great for any sort of media creators, where something original is called for, and enables any composer to genuinely put their own stamp on their work.

Do checkout the walkthrough video linked in the media section to hear Frames in action, and the user manual, shock horror, is actually an enjoyable read!!!

CONCLUSION

Frames continues to build on the success of Strands and Folds, and is an ideal companion to these previous libraries, especially if you already enjoy the Void & Vista sound and workflow.

The Frames product page reads like a whos who of movie composers, Charlie Clouser, Michael Stein, Brian Trifon, all offer praise for this and other libraries, and their professional output nods in the direction of Frames leanings in terms of vibe and genres.

Frames does have plenty of darkness, however it is also capable of delivering some lighter shades, enhanced by it’s morphing and animated sound capabilities, there is plenty to hold interest, making it a good prospect for a wide range of media composition.

Accessibility remains very good, with no notable omissions or bang for buck deal breakers, backed up with a plentiful supply of factory presets.

Frames can be purchased directly from the Void & Vista website, the regular price is £129.00, however during the intro there is a discount of 20% until June 4th 2025

Frames Product Page:
https://www.voidandvista.com/products/frames

Frames Walkthrough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz-Jv49OUY8

Frames User Manual:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/115N9yB40zOC03oFdLvFxozobaVjscGlU/view?usp=sharing

KOMPLETE KONTROL PLUG-IN EDIT NKS PARAMETER MAPPINGS

Page One – Perform

Knob 1 – Morph
Knob 2 – Dynamic
Knob 3 – Filter
Knob 4 – Motion
Knob 5 – Ensemble
Knob 6 – Lo-Fi
Kknob 7 – Character
Knob 8 – Space

Page Two – Sound Source, Morph

Knob 1 – Sound Source Layer 1
Knob 2 – Sound Source Layer 2
Knob 3 – Morph Mode
Knob 4to 8 – Unallocated

Page Three – Staging, Spread

Knob 1 – Staging Pan 1
Knob 2 – Staging Distance 1
Knob 3 – Spread 1
Knob 4 – Staging Pan 2
Knob 5 – Staging Distance 2
Knob 6 – Spread 2
Knob 7 – Spread Mode: 1 & 2
Knob 8 – Unallocated

Page Four – Dynamics, Envelope, Sample Start, Cascade

Knob 1 – Dampen
Knob 2 – Velocity
Knob 3 – Unallocated
Knob 4 – Envelopes Link
Knob 5 – Sample Start Offset 1
Knob 6 – Sample Start Offset 2
Knob 7 – Cascade Time
Knob 8 – Sync On/Off

Page Five – Amplitude Envelope Layer 1 & Layer 2

Knob 1 – Layer 1 Attack
Knob 2 – Layer 1 Decay
Knob 3 – Layer 1 Sustain
Knob 4 – Layer 1 Release
Knob 5 – Layer 2 Attack
Knob 6 – Layer 2 Decay
Knob 7 – Layer 2 Sustain
Knob 8 – Layer 2 Release

Page Six – Pitch Layer 1, Pitch Layer 2

Knob 1 – Sample Pitch 1
Knob 2 – Note
Knob 3 – Sample Pitch 2
Knob 4 – Note
Knob 5 to 8 – Unallocated

Page Seven – Pitch 1, Glide, Pitch Envelope 1

Knob 1 – Lock
Knob 2 – Glide Time
Knob 3 – Intensity
Knob 4 – Pitch Envelope Amount
Knob 5 – Pitch 1 Attack
Knob 6 – Pitch 1 Decay
Knob 7 – Pitch 1 Sustain
Knob 8 – Pitch 1 Release

Page Eight – As Page 7 above for Layer 2

Page Nine – Layer 1 Filter & Layer 1 Filter Envelope

   Knob 1 - Filter Type: Low Pass, High Pass, Band Pass, Off

Knob 2 – Resonance
Knob 3 – Key Track
Knob 4 – Filter Envelope Amount
Knob 5 – Filter 1 Attack
Knob 6 – Filter 1 Decay
Knob 7 – Filter 1 Sustain
Knob 8 – Filter 1 Release

Page Ten – As per Page 9, relates to Layer 2

Page Eleven – LFO Layer 1

Knob 1 – LFO 1 Rate (switches between HZ & Beat Timings depending on status of sync)
Knob 2 – Sync: On/Off
Knob 3 – LFO 1 Shape: Triangle, Square, Saw, Razor Up, Sine, Random, Saw Down, Razor Down
Knob 4 – Re-Trigger: On/Off
Knob 5 – Fade: Time in MS
Knob 6 to 8 – Unallocated

Page Twelve – As per Page Eleven relating to Layer 2

Page Thirteen – LFO 1 & LFO 2 Ancillary

Knob 1 – LFO 1 Amp
Knob 2 – LFO 1 Pitch
Knob 3 – LFO 1 Filter
Knob 4 – LFO 1 Pitch
Knob 5 – LFO 2 Amp
Knob 6 – LFO 2 Pitch
Knob 7 – LFO 2 Filter
Knob 8 – LFO 2 Pan

Page Fourteen – Layer 1 Ensemble, Layer 2 Ensemble

Knob 1 – Layer 1 Ens On/Off
Knob 2 – Layer 1 Harmony
Knob 3 – Layer 1 Cascade: Timing in MS or Beats depending on sync status
Knob 4 – Layer 1 Sync: On/Off
Knob 5 – Layer 2 Ens On/Off
Knob 6 – Layer 2 Harmony
Knob 7 – Layer 2 Cascade: Timing in MS or Beats depending on sync status
Knob 8 – Layer 2 Sync: On/Off

Page Fifteen – Ensemble, Lo-Fi

Knob 1 – Ensemble Width
Knob 2 – Ensemble Detune
Knob 3 – Lo-Fi Noise
Knob 4 – Noise Type: Tape, Wire, Room, Hall
Knob 5 – Warble
Knob 6 – Tone
Knob 7 – Saturation
Knob 8 – Unallocated

Page Sixteen – Character FX, Phase

Knob 1 – Character A Type:
Knob 2 Character B Type:
Knob 3 – Character C Type:
Knob 4 – Phase Inversion On/Off
Knob 5 to 8 – Unallocated

Page Seventeen – FX Slot A

Knob 1 to 8 – Controls are dynamic and vary relative to effect type selected

Page Eighteen & Nineteen – As per page Seventeen controls relate to Character FX B & C

Page Twenty – Space & Delay

Knob 1 – Space Crossfade
Knob 2 – Unallocated
Knob 3 – Delay Time: Presented in eith MS or Beats depending on status of Sync Switch
Knob 4 – Sync: On/Off
Knob 5 – Delay Feedback
Knob 6 – Delay Dampen
Knob 7 – Stereo
Knob 8 – Unallocated

Page Twenty One – Reverb – Pre Delay

Knob 2 – Time: In Milliseconds
Knob 3 – Reverb Size
Knob 4 – Modulation
Knob 5 – Tone
Knob 6 to 8 – Unallocated

Page Twenty Two -Modulation Amount

Knob 1 – Morph
Knob 2 – Dynamic
Knob 3 – Filter
Knob 4 – Motion
Knob 5 – Ensemble
Knob 6 – Lo-Fi
Knob 7 – Character
Knob 8 – Space

Page Twenty Three – Modulation Source

Knob 1 to 8 – As above Modulation sources with switchable options for each between midi cc & add

Page Twenty Four – Midi CC Number Selection

Knob 1 to 8 – As above modulation sources with midi cc number selections between 1 & 127

Page Twenty Five – Pitch Bend, Voices, Preset, Settings

Knob 1 – Layer 1 Pitch Bend: Plus or Minus 12 semitones
Knob 2 – Layer 2 Pitch Bend: Plus or Minus 12 semitones
Knob 3 – Pitch Bend Layer 1 & 2 link: Locks Pitch Bend amount for the two layers
Knob 4 – Unallocated
Knob 5 – Voices: Mono or selectable from 2 to 64 note polyphony
Knob 6 – Preset Volume
Knob 7 – Not Allocated
Knob 8 – Settings: Settings can be defined as per each factory snapshot, or retained globally

(c) Chris Ankin

KK-Access.com

1ST May 2025

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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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