Native Instruments, the manufacturer of software and hardware for digital music production and DJing, unveiled on Jan. 17, SOUNDS (sounds.com), a new online sounds platform for music creators.
SOUNDS, an online service for a growing community of music producers launches in Beta today consisting of a free version available globally and a U.S. only paid subscription version with an introductory price of $9.99 per month. For its initial launch, the platform hosts more than 500,000 sounds from over 200 partners as well as all of Native Instruments’ loops and sample content, former Maschine Expansions and all upcoming Native Expansions, accessed via a monthly subscription service. In addition, SOUNDS will host exclusive audio content from leading suppliers such as Looploft, MVP Loops and Symphonic Distribution as well as diverse artist releases from the likes of Jamie Lidell and Hank Shocklee. With new content added on a daily basis, SOUNDS is intended to become the go-to source for music creators to access premium loops and samples, spanning all genres and styles.
The project has been spearheaded by Chief Digital Officer, Matthew Adell, known for his leadership roles at Beatport, Napster, and Amazon. SOUNDS has been developed from Native Instruments’ Los Angeles office and marks the company’s entrance into the loops and samples domain, completing the music production sound portfolio alongside the instruments and FX offerings already available through MASCHINE and KOMPLETE.
“Over the past year we’ve hired a best-in-class team in Los Angeles to build and manage SOUNDS and we’re excited to share the first iteration today. We believe that today’s music creators are looking for one destination to fuel their creativity, at an affordable price point. With our introductory pricing, many free and exclusive loops and samples, we are excited to share SOUNDS with them today,” says Adell
SOUNDS’ user experience is focused on ease-of-use and utilizes Native Instruments’ own MIR (Music Information Retrieval) algorithms to help users find the perfect sound quickly when they need it.
For suppliers, the platform provides access to Native Instruments’ diverse audience of music creators and a new way to distribute content to a growing market. Sounds.com also leans on NI’s rich heritage of music software development over the last 20 years and suppliers will benefit from a simple and fluid approach to making content available, and new ways to merchandise and cross-sell products, offering a significant commercial opportunity.
The subscription options available at launch include a free mode available globally and a U.S. only paid Pro subscription for a limited introductory price of $9.99 per month (usually $19.99 p/m), which enables access to the entire catalogue. In addition, global users can preview all loops and samples without the need for sign-up.
Free Tier
- Preview unlimited sounds from the industry’s top publishers
- Download royalty-free loops and samples from our free collections
- Weekly free sounds and collection updates
- Available globally
Pro Tier (introductory price of $9.99 p/m)
All features from Free plus:
- Save and download royalty-free loops and samples from the Sounds.com library
- Manage your personal sound library online
- Download any sound at no extra cost
- Exclusive premium content added weekly
Native Instruments will host their partner conference Native Summit at this year’s NAMM event in Anaheim, CA Jan. 25-26, where more details around the platform’s vision and progress will be shared with media and industry peers.
