Voyager (Kontakt Edition) Review

Despite being ten years old, the Moog Voyager remains one of the most sought-after analogue mono synths. Although its features may seem paltry by comparison to the complex modulation matrices of modern soft synths, the rich sounds of the oscillators and the famous Moog filter are highly regarded by many top producers. With its latest release, PinkNoise Studio has attempted the difficult task of capturing the sounds of this elusive analogue beast.

Manufacturer: PinkNoise Studio
Price: €36 (Kontakt 3.5 or above required)
Contact: Via Website
Web: www.kontaktbanks.com

Voyager (Kontakt Edition) is a massive 1.77GB library that contains 385 Kontakt patches and an array of multisampled synth, bass, arp and FX sounds. The pack is also available as a slightly more substantial Reason ReFill, which features instruments formatted for multiple samplers alongside additional bass, arp and noise sequence loops.

It’s clear to see that a great deal of care and attention has gone into extensively multisampling each sound, with clever use of multiple velocity layers, alternate triggering and sample start points to retain the lively nature of the original patches. This can best be heard in the superb Arp & Sequence section, where large timbral changes are triggered at random via Kontakt’s arpeggiator, creating detailed, cascading synth melodies. A simple but effective GUI offers up 12 knobs for filter, filter envelope, amp envelope and delay/reverb effects, plus additional pages to control unison, portamento, the arpeggiator settings and more. The effects are good for adding some depth to the patches, but you’ll have to delve deeper into Kontakt if you want to edit parameters.

Further exploration sees folders of thick, resonant bass and lead sounds, warbling FX/noise sweeps, and atmospheric pad and keys instruments. The majority of the sounds might be considered a little tame by some as they are fairly raw, with only a little reverb and delay added to taste in Kontakt. They are, however, drenched in the kind of thickness that defines real analogue, making even the most basic of sounds incredibly satisfying to listen to. Although this simplicity may make parts of the pack sound a little dated, there’s certainly plenty of variety on offer, and a large number of very usable sounds that could easily be shaped further.

Verdict

A decent collection of vintage synth sounds and complex arpeggios with a solid analogue thickness.

8/10