The envelopes, filter, effects, compressor and 'varizer' (more on this later) are unique to each pad. This is when you start to realise that the simplicity and sparseness of the front panel conceal the true flexibility and power of the instrument. Clicking a pad's LED display causes the rest of the unit to devote itself to editing that particular sound. Additionally, mouse-clicking the pad will trigger the sound, with the nice touch of varied velocity depending on how far to the right you click. Each pad is assigned to a single note for playback from a keyboard or the host sequencer.

Half of RMIV's front panel is dedicated to 18 drum 'pads', each representing a slot that can be used to configure a sample, velocity-mapped stack of samples, or a drum synthesizer. Copy protection is handled by typing your serial number into the field on the Reason-style 'back' of the unit (accessed by clicking the logos).

See the separate box for a look at the supplied kits, and info about compatibility with other sample banks. Installation is from a single CD, including the 1GB (after decompression) sound and kit library. However, Linplug are working on Audio Units support, which will bring Logic and DP users into the fold. I couldn't get it to run in any of the OS X 'wrappers', so this pretty much limits you to using it with Cubase if you're on the Mac. The result is that users familiar with, say, Reason's Redrum, or a hardware drum machine, will be more comfortable with RMIV than with a typical sampler package.Īt present RMIV requires a VST host, running under either Windows or Mac OS X. The module's features and capabilities (and price point) place it in the same ball park as Native Instruments' Battery and FXpansion's DR008, but Linplug have tried to set it apart by their choice of user interface. RMIV is a VSTi that packages powerful sample playback and analogue-style synthesis into a very user-friendly virtual drum machine. You can check this out for yourself by downloading their freeware Alpha synth, a two-oscillator analogue clone that gives the BassStation a good run for its money. Linplug's name actually comes from founder Peter Linsener, and the company is steadily making a name for itself with some great instruments. Until recently I'd ignored the Linplug range of VST Instruments, as the name mistakenly led me to believe they were associated with Linn, and I've never been a big fan of Linn drum machines. With their new VST Instrument, Linplug are aiming to combine the flexibility of a software synth and sampler with the simplicity of a hardware drum machine.

Linplug rmv library