ENVOY ANALOG PERCUSSION BY EMERGENCE AUDIO
KK-ACCESS REVIEW
Emergence Audio has for sometime been quietly hard at work developing their new Kontakt engine called Cadence™, which represents a significant new step in their line up of product releases, and follows the resounding success of their Infinite Motion Engine.
Envoy Analog Percussion is now the first product to use the new Cadence engine, and is a rhythmic library featuring a wealth of entirely analog and synthetically generated percussive sounds and evolving patterns, with plenty of presets and a whole host of varied time meters to explore and experiment with.
Emergence Audio CEO & founder Michael Vignola, has painstakingly developed the engine, and also sampled and cu rated over 600 sounds from a diverse range of purely analog equipment and modular systems, to deliver a veritable treasure trove of rhythmically animated patterns with an end goal to banish the limitations of those often ultra synced and predictable loops.
The end result delivers plenty of ideal material for cinematic, avant garde, soundscape, Experimental, and really any of these hybrid and electronic based music genre variants you may care to think of.
TECH SPECS
Envoy runs in Kontakt 8.1 or higher, either full version or the free Kontakt player, and is compatible with all iterations of Komplete Kontrol that is hosting these Kontakt specs.
The library requires 2.4GB of disk space for installation, there are 6000 samples which equate with the 600 sample sources each of which have 10 round robins.
Included are four master Kontakt NKI preset files, and these represent a different workflow approach to the keyboard layout within the Envoy library, (more of which later).
These then have a further collection of 273 associated Kontakt NKSN snapshot presets which are distributed between each of these four types.
DOWNLOAD & INSTALLATION
The download and installation of Envoy comes courtesy of Native Access, which accessibly handles all of the install process, it’s just a case of registering your post purchase serial number, and hitting the install button.
Once complete, running Komplete Kontrol in either standalone or as a plug-in instance in your DAW, will add the library to your factory browser ready to use.
FULL KOMPLETE KONTROL NKS PARAMETER MAPPINGS ARE AVAILABLE AT THE END OF THE REVIEW FOLLOWING THE MEDIA SECTION
ACCESSIBILITY
Emergence Audio have clearly made some very good efforts to make Envoy accessible, with 38 pages of NKS mapping being available directly from the Komplete Kontrol hardware in the NKS classic view.
There is however a bit of an elephant in the room that I should address from the outset, this being that It is not currently possible to program our own Envoy rhythms on an individual step by step basis either via NKS, the DAW parameter view, or using screen reading software.
Disappointing as this may seem, this is not an uncommon dilemma when it comes to accessible sequencer programming.
Given that with Envoy there are two sound layers each with 32 steps, and each having such attributes as note placement, velocity, pitch, panning, filtering and other factors, we can easily begin to see that the total number of additional host automation controls and thus page count can very quickly escalate and become unwieldy to use.
having said this, in the absence of a solution, this is something I would have happily try to live with , but sadly with this first release it will remain elusive, and instead a GUI based X,Y grid with slider controls has been adopted as the choice for the Envoy programmable interface.
This does not render Envoy totally inaccessible, there are still plenty of presets, with so many user controllable variables to play with, that Envoy can still be a viable and creative analog percussive tool to work with.
THE CADENCE ENGINE
As we have already established, Envoy works on the premise of a two layer sound engine, with each layer having its own duplicate set of in dependant controls.
The sound sources for each of these layers are accessible from the sequencer page, with the source control allowing you to choose from a collection of sample source sets for each of three pitch types.
In the typical Omni & Split Omni presets, there are Low, Mid, & High sound collections.
In the Split Zone & Zone presets the sounds are designated by roup numbers rather than pitch.
As an editing example, we can easily use any of the supplied snapshots and then quickly swap out the existing source samples to then change their original sound into something distinctly different from the original preset.
THAT SYNCING FEELING
The clock rates of each layer sequencer can be set independently from one another, but I did note that these rate selection controls were not offered in the standard NKS classic view, this means that M32, A-Series, & Komplete Kontrol MK2 owners will instead need to look at their DAW parameter list in order to find this setting as an available host automation parameter, this seems an odd omission to the NKS mapping template.
If however, you have the newer Kontrol MK3 keyboard, then going into the NKS2 extended parameter view, where controls are grouped together on the soft function buttons, they can be found on the second sequencer control page.
Having control of these two different layer meters can prove an interesting pathway for rhythmic experimentation.
For example you can have your DAW tempo set to 100bpm where both layers share the same main clock speed, but instead set one layers sequencer to a 4/4 meter, whilst the other could be a different meter entirely.
Both would start together, but there would be a cyclic drift which would eventually go full circle, temporarily resolving the rhythmic tension until it begins again, or perhaps never!
Still on the topic of synchronisation, the master LFO rate can be set between BPM & Hertz, this allows you to sync either to the host DAW tempo, or the internal free running clock.
The two sequencers layers can also use the Envoy internal clock, however I suspect most users will generally be using their DAW project as the host tempo.
This is also something to be aware of with some of the factory presets, if they do not appear to be syncing to your DAW, check that they are set to Host rather than Internal.
THE BLOCK PARTY – WHAT THE FLUX?
Each of the Envoy sequencers has a total of 32 steps, and these have been divided into four groups of eight, which are referred to as Blocks.
You can turn on or off each of these Blocks according to your needs, and when a block is selected, the note steps contained within it will be effected by the Flux engine, which is a collection of specific parameters, Velocity,Pitch, Length, Panning, & Filter.
Each parameter has their own dedicated per layer NKS page, which can all be turned on or off separately per block, and with use of the Flux controls their individual intensities can also be randomised and adjusted in order to evolve the selected modulation types over time in either a subtle or aggressive manner, but reassuringly whatever you may do is non-destructive, as simply switching it off returns you to an un effected state.
These five parameters are quite powerful and obviously thoughtfully selected for the attributes that they can bring to the table, being the important core elements to deliver dynamics, timbre, tuning, & motion, which when you think about it are pretty much the prime human constituents THAT WE USE TO INFORM our perception of music AND RHYTHM.
ENVOY EFFECTS
Each layer within Envoy also features it’s own set of 7 effects.
Included are Saturation, Distortion, Lo-Fi, Tape Saturation, Delay, Chorus, & Convolution Reverb.
Again, these can all be turned on or off to create your own bespoke per channel effect chain, where things like the sync able delay could be used creatively to further enhance the rhythmic patterns, or maybe add one of the convolution reverb impulse responses for a touch of ambience, or perhaps even choose to audibly degrade things a bit by using the Lo-Fi section, these are all useful tools to work and play with which can help to develop unique and unusual rhythmic movement in your project.
ENVOY PRESETS
Envoy offers users four different keyboard layouts, these having been designed to offer various project scenario workflow’s.
Omni
Omni is where each layers sounds are stacked together simultaneously so that although the loaded sounds may be different, they will play together at the same time as a key is press or held.
Split Omni
Here the layer 1 sounds are assigned to one half of the keyboard, and layer 2 are set to the other, allowing for the singular playing of each half.
Split Zoned
This mode again splits the keyboard into layer 1 & layer 2, however each layer is also sub divided into multi zone kits.
Zoned
This layout presents a kit style assignment, with Low, Mid, & High being spread across the keyboard, with a different source sound being available for each mapped key within the three zones.
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All of the presets have been named using an informative convention that describes their status, such as Omni, the preset name, the suggested BPM, and also the meter.
If you have either a Komplete Kontrol MK2, or the Kontrol MK3, you can use the banks feature to filter these into the various keyboard layout modes as described above.
ENVOY SOUNDS
As stated, Envoy comes with 600 totally analog generated sounds, each with 10 round robins, which are drawn upon at random rather than just being cycled through.
In terms of sounds there are plenty of classic synth tones, white noise bursts, synthetic percussive timbres, toms, hats, low kicks and booms that adequately cover the entire percussive frequency range.
Add to this the possibility to shift the samples up or down by 2 octaves, and the results can sonically exceed the initial 600 samples in terms of the sounds Envoy can produce.
It can be a little tricky to find the individual sounds you might be looking for in the convenience of a single group collection, but having multiple instances of Envoy loaded did not present any problems as a solution.
It is also possible to completely turn off the sequencer for either or both layers, whereupon the sounds will be available to you as conventional oneshot playable samples.
In Oneshot mode, you could of course just use your DAW to record your patterns, although keep in mind that as the sequencer is not engaged, then the Flux engine with it’s block effects would also not be running.
Nevertheless this can work very well as an enhancement in tandem with the running rhythm sequencers.
SUMMING UP
Envoy is quite a different beast from other rhythm and percussive libraries you may have used, it is in fact totally unique in this respect, and thus does take a little getting used to.
It is most certainly not trying to emulate real drums or percussion, and is unapologetically entirely synthetic by design.
The Cadence & Flux engines have been cleverly thought out and designed to evolve and if you so wish never repeat themselves, which is a similar winning trait that previous Emergence Audio libraries have always possessed and championed, this is surely an appealing unique and creative selling point.
Do checkout the walkthroughs linked in the media section, this explains in greater detail the concept behind Envoy and how it works.
Emergence Audio will also be launching a tutorial series for the Cadence Engine™shortly after the initial release, which will be going into greater detail on each section.
CONCLUSION
It is fantastic to see Envoy finally released after a great deal of development time, it definitely compliments the Emergence Audio existing catalogue to deliver a fresh and innovative approach to rhythmic sound creation using Kontakt as the vehicle.
The main drawback for blind & visually impaired users is the inability to program their own steps, which is certainly a creative frustration.
There can be a bit of a learning curve in using Envoy, as refining the included factory presets to work within your own project can take a little time to master.
On a positive flip side if you are producing experimental soundscape and ambient music, then this process of experimentation can be a really enjoyable part of the learning journey.
During the review process, I found myself regularly saving user snapshots of my edits in order not to lose something I liked and had stumbled upon.
Envoy is a great first outing for the new Cadence engine, and I look forward to future releases, the possibilities are boundless, and the ability to import your own samples would also be a desirable future option for many users.
Envoy by Emergence Audio is available for the introductory price of $149.00, (regular price will be $199.00).
Envoy Product Page:
Envoy Preset Playthrough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v7iASq3PnY
Envoy – A Look Behind the scenes, development & Cadence Engine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEwbjZPqYNk
Venus Theory – Building a track with Envoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wy9vxadK4Zg
Envoy User Manual:
https://emergenceaudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Envoy_Manual_web-1.pdf
KOMPLETE KONTROL NKS & AVAILABLE DAW HOST AUTOMATION PARAMETERS
Rather than listing NKS pages directly, we are including all available host automation parameters, this provides a broader view of all possible controls rather than just those specifically created and mapped for NKS.
For Envoy there are 320 host automation parameters, which equates roughly to 40 pages, showing that there are some available beyond the NKS template.
0 # L Randomise
1 # R Randomise
2 # L ARP Power
3 # R ARP Power
4 # L Velocity Power
5 # L Pitch Power
6 # L Octave Power
7 # L Pan Power
8 # L Filter
9 # R Velocity Power
10 # R Pitch Power
11 # R Octave Power
12 # R Pan Power
13 # R Filter
14 # R SEQ Randomise
15 # R SEQ Power
16 # L SEQ Power
17 # L SEQ Randomise
18 # L SEQ Forwards
19 # L SEQ Backwards
20 # L SEQ Fw-Bw
21 # R SEQ Forwards
22 # R SEQ Backwards
23 # R SEQ Fw-Bw
24 # R LFO Vol Polarity
25 # R LFO Pan Polarity
26 # R LFO Width Polarity
27 # R LFO Vol Polarity
28 # R LFO Pan Polarity
29 # R LFO Width Polarity
30 # R LFO Sat Polarity
31 # R LFO Sat Power
32 # R LFO Dist Drive Power
33 # R Dist Type
34 # R LFO Dist Power
35 # R LFO Dist Damp Polarity
36 # R LFO Dist Drive Polarity
37 # R LFO LoFi Bits Polarity
38 # R LFO LoFi Bits Power
39 # R LFO LoFi SRate Polarity
40 # R LFO LoFi SRate Power
41 # R LFO LoFi Noise Polarity
42 # R LFO LoFi Noise Power
43 # R LFO TSat Warmth Polarity
44 # R LFO TSat Warmth Power
45 # R LFO TSat Gain Polarity
46 # R LFO TSat Gain Power
47 # R Delay Pingpong
48 # R Delay Sync
49 # R LFO Chorus Dry|Wet
50 # R LFO Chorus Depth
51 # R LFO Chorus Speed
52 # R LFO Chorus Phase Polarity
53 # R LFO Chorus Dry|Wet Power
54 # R LFO Chorus Depth Power
55 # R LFO Chorus Speed Power
56 # R LFO Chorus Polarity Power
57 # R LFO Reverb Dry|Wet Power
58 # R LFO Reverb Dry|Wet Polarity
59 # L LFO Volume Power
60 # L LFO Pan Power
61 # L LFO Width Power
62 # L LFO LFO Volume Polarity
63 # L LFO LFO Pan Polarity
64 # L LFO LFO Width Polarity
65 # L LFO Sat Polarity
66 # L LFO Sat Power
67 # L Dist Type
68 # L LFO Damp Power
69 # L LFO Drive Power
70 # L LFO Damp Polarity
71 # L LFO Drive Polarity
72 # L LFO LoFi Bits Polarity
73 # L LFO LoFi SRate Polarity
74 # L LFO LoFi Noise Polarity
75 # L LFO LoFi Bits Power
76 # L LFO LoFi SRate Power
77 # L LFO LoFi Noise Power
78 # L LFO Gain Polarity
79 # L LFO Warmth Polarity
80 # L LFO Warmth Power
81 # L LFO Gain Power
82 # L Delay Pingpong
83 # L Delay Sync
84 # L LFO Chorus Dry|Wet Polarity
85 # L LFO Chorus Depth Polarity
86 # L LFO Chorus Speed Polarity
87 # L LFO Chorus Phase Polarity
88 # L LFO Chorus Dry|Wet Power
89 # L LFO Chorus Depth Power
90 # L LFO Chorus Speed Power
91 # L LFO Chorus Polarity Power
92 # L LFO Reverb Dry|Wet Power
93 # L LFO Reverb Dry|Wet Polarity
94 # R Saturation Power
95 # R Distortion Power
96 # R Lofi Power
97 # R TSat Power
98 # R Delay Power
99 # R Chorus Power
100 # R Reverb Power
101 # L Saturation Power
102 # L Distortion Power
103 # L Lofi Power
104 # L TSat Power
105 # L Delay Power
106 # L Chorus Power
107 # L Reverb Power
108 # L Source Randomize
109 # R Source Randomize
110 # Matrix Crossfade
111 # Clock
112 # LFO Power
113 # LFO Sync
114 # LFO Waveform Triangle
115 # LFO Waveform Sine
116 # LFO Waveform Rectangle
117 # LFO Waveform Saw
118 # LFO Waveform Random
119 # LFO Lock
120 # R Layer Power
121 # L Layer Power
122 # L ENV Attack
123 # L ENV Decay
124 # L ENV Sustain
125 # L ENV Release
126 # R ENV Attack
127 # R ENV Decay
128 # R ENV Sustain
129 # R ENV Release
130 # L ARP Rate
131 # R ARP Rate
132 # L Dynamics
133 # R Dynamics
134 # L Humanize
135 # R Humanize
136 # J ARP Rate
137 # L SS Volume
138 # L SS Start
139 # L SS Tune
140 # L SS LP Cutoff
141 # L SS LP Resonance
142 # L SS HP Cutoff
143 # L SS HP Resonance
144 # R SS Volume
145 # R SS Start
146 # R SS Tune
147 # R SS LP Cutoff
148 # R SS LP Resonance
149 # R SS HP Cutoff
150 # R SS HP Resonance
151 # R LFO Depth Vol
152 # R LFO Depth Pan
153 # R LFO Width Depth
154 # R Volume
155 # R Pan
156 # R Width
157 # R Saturation
158 # R LFO Depth Sat
159 # R LFO Depth Dist Drive
160 # R Dist Drive
161 # R LFO Depth Dist Damp
162 # R Dist Damp
163 # R LoFi NColor
164 # R LFO Depth LoFi Bits
165 # R LoFi Bits
166 # R LFO Depth LoFi SRate
167 # R LoFi SRate
168 # R LFO Depth LoFi Noise
169 # R LoFi Noise
170 # R LFO Depth TSat Warmth
171 # R TSat Warmth
172 # R LFO Depth TSat Gain
173 # R TSat Gain
174 # R TSat HF Cut
175 # R Delay Lo Cut
176 # R Delay Hi Cut
177 # R Delay Feedback
178 # R Delay Dry|Wet
179 # R Delay Time
180 # R Chorus Dry|Wet
181 # R Chorus Depth
182 # R Chorus Speed
183 # R Chorus Phase
184 # R LFO Depth Chorus Dry|Wet
185 # R LFO Depth Chorus Depth
186 # R LFO Depth Chorus Speed
187 # R LFO Depth Chorus Phase
188 # R Reverb PreDelay
189 # R Reverb Size
190 # R Reverb LP
191 # R Reverb HP
192 # R Reverb Dry|Wet
193 # R LFO Depth Reverb Dry|Wet
194 # L Volume
195 # L Pan
196 # L Width
197 # L LFO Depth Volume
198 # L LFO Depth Pan
199 # L LFO Depth Width
200 # L Sat Depth
201 # L LFO Depth Sat
202 # L Dist Damp
203 # L LFO Depth Dist Damp
204 # L Dist Drive
205 # L LFO Depth Dist Drive
206 # L LoFi
207 # L LoFi
208 # L LFO Depth LoFi Bits
209 # L LoFi SRate
210 # L LFO Depth LoFi SRate
211 # L LoFi Noise
212 # L LFO Depth LoFi Noise
213 # L TSat Warmth
214 # L LFO Depth TSat Warmth
215 # L TSat Gain
216 # L LFO Depth TSat Gain
217 # L TSat HF Cut
218 # L Delay Lo Cut
219 # L Delay Hi Cut
220 # L Delay Feedback
221 # L Delay Dry|Wet
222 # L Delay Time
223 # L LFO Depth Chorus Dry|Wet
224 # L LFO Depth Chorus Depth
225 # L LFO Depth Chorus Speed
226 # L LFO Depth Chorus Phase
227 # L Chorus Dry|Wet
228 # L Chorus Depth
229 # L Chorus Speed
230 # L Chorus Phase
231 # L Reverb PreDelay
232 # L Reverb Size
233 # L Reverb LP
234 # L Reverb HP
235 # L Reverb Dry|Wet
236 # L LFO Depth Reverb Dry|Wet
237 # Global BPM
238 # LFO Depth
239 # LFO Rate
240 # L Source
241 # R Source
242 # L Seq Direction
243 # R Seq Direction
244 # L Octave
245 # R Octave
246 # L Arp Mode
247 # R Arp Mode
248 # L Flux Velo Power
249 # L Flux Velo Block 1
250 # L Flux Velo Block 2
251 # L Flux Velo Block 3
252 # L Flux Velo Block 4
253 # L Flux Velo Amount
254 # L Flux Pitch Power
255 # L Flux Pitch Block 1
256 # L Flux Pitch Block 2
257 # L Flux Pitch Block 3
258 # L Flux Pitch Block 4
259 # L Flux Pitch Amount
260 # L Flux Length Power
261 # L Flux Length Block 1
262 # L Flux Length Block 2
263 # L Flux Length Block 3
264 # L Flux Length Block 4
265 # L Flux Length Amount
266 # L Flux Pan Power
267 # L Flux Pan Block 1
268 # L Flux Pan Block 2
269 # L Flux Pan Block 3
270 # L Flux Pan Block 4
271 # L Flux Pan Amount
272 # L Flux Filter Power
273 # L Flux Filter Block 1
274 # L Flux Filter Block 2
275 # L Flux Filter Block 3
276 # L Flux Filter Block 4
277 # L Flux Filter Amount
278 # R Flux Velo Power
279 # R Flux Velo Block 1
280 # R Flux Velo Block 2
281 # R Flux Velo Block 3
282 # R Flux Velo Block 4
283 # R Flux Velo Amount
284 # R Flux Pitch Power
285 # R Flux Pitch Block 1
286 # R Flux Pitch Block 2
287 # R Flux Pitch Block 3
288 # R Flux Pitch Block 4
289 # R Flux Pitch Amount
290 # R Flux Length Power
291 # R Flux Length Block 1
292 # R Flux Length Block 2
293 # R Flux Length Block 3
294 # R Flux Length Block 4
295 # R Flux Length Amount
296 # R Flux Pan Power
297 # R Flux Pan Block 1
298 # R Flux Pan Block 2
299 # R Flux Pan Block 3
300 # R Flux Pan Block 4
301 # R Flux Pan Amount
302 # R Flux Filter Power
303 # R Flux Filter Block 1
304 # R Flux Filter Block 2
305 # R Flux Filter Block 3
306 # R Flux Filter Block 4
307 # R Flux Filter Amount
308 # L Saturation Mode
309 # R Saturation Mode
310 # L Reverb IR
311 # R Reverb IR
312 # LFO Waveform
313 # Saturation/Compression Pwer
314 # Saturation/Compression Amount
315 # Solid EQ Power
316 # Solid EQ Amount
317 # Reverb Power
318 # Reverb Amount
319 # Limiter Power
320 # Limiter Amount
(c) Chris Ankin
KK-Access.com
14th August 2026
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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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