Davide Carbone recently released a new sample pack on Loopmasters called s:amplify. The follow-up to 2007's successful Drum & Bass Masterclass sample CD, it's a new installment of tight and bright drums and breaks, lush pads and FX, bass hits and phrases, percussion and more. In total you get 1.48GB with 594 samples - 371 single hits and 223 loops - and 88 patches for NNXT. We spoke to Davide to find out a bit more about it...

Tell us more about your new sample pack...
It's a new sample pack I've developed for Loopmasters. It's been recorded and produced at my new music production house called s:amplify that I run with fellow producer Josh Abrahams. Myself, Josh and several other musicians were involved in the development of this product.

How does it compare with your previous one?
Well, Davide Carbone's Drum & Bass Masterclass was very successful and garnered some great attention both in the media and with users alike, so I just wanted to expand on that by offering better, more focussed content utilising the skills and techniques I've picked up since producing the first offering for Loopmasters.

What did you set out to achieve with it?
Listening to lots of feedback from the first sample pack I set out to address some of the original's shortcomings. As good as it was as an overall product I felt it was a little over produced and geared more toward the novice rather than seasoned professional. With s:amplify I wanted to keep its accessibility for novices whilst offering more for the professional producer. So a more 'raw' production technique and breaking loops and drum kits down to its constituent parts was my first objective. I guess I wanted more versatility and malleability to the package. Even though it is essentially a drum & bass pack I wanted it to be used by producers of various genres like dubstep, hip-hop and urban - much like the first pack.

Can we expect anything different on it?
Yes. Lots of musical loops that suit urban production like piano, keys, sax, guitar. Lots of raw drum breaks that retain their nuances to give them character. Bass patches that have been developed using lots of rare analogue gear and individual and unique sounds that allow you to fit them in with your ideas, or in fact, create original ideas from scratch. Even though the sheen may have been taken off this pack through familiarity of the first Loopmasters pack I did, I believe this is a much stronger, more comprehensive and more versatile offering.

Over what period was it made?
Six months of hard work. It's not a case of hitting 'record' and making samples. It's about a conceptual idea, planning, preparation, design and implementation for each sound. Sure, the musical stuff is more straightforward but each drum kit takes at least a couple of days, each bass patch a day. So you can't work on it full time for fear of going crazy, so you dip in and out over a period of six months. The true mark of success for me is its longevity, and this can be assured in its design stage.

Got any tracks or remixes coming out soon?
Well as s:amplify, we co-produce and co-write with Carl Cox. That brings us lots and lots of tracks and remixes. Moby, Giles Peterson and Miguel Boss remixes being our most recent and, of course, Carl's album which is pretty much complete. My own personal releases have had to take a back seat for now, although I am very inspired and motivated to write more of my own tunes when time allows.

What are you working on at the moment?
Several non-disclosure agreements prevent me from telling you this! I am currently involved in some amazing developments. Projects that are very new to me but appeal to where I am at in life at the moment. Let me just say this, 2011 NAMM. I am so excited about this date.

You've been back in Melbourne a while now, got any residencies or radio shows you'd like to plug?
DJing and radio hosting aren't an option right now. I remember those days fondly, but as DJs and radio hosts will tell you, it's a lifestyle - and a time consuming one at that. I must say, it's an area of my career I miss dearly. Especially considering that it is something I did incessantly for twenty years of my life! I'll be back, but more likely at a later stage in life.

Anything else you want to tell us about?
Yes, keep an eye out for our s:amplify website which is in its final stages of development. This is where you will be able to keep up with developments but also video and audio tutorials which people have been asking me to do for many years. Much like the BS1 Records site, which is also under re-construction, and how it is a very popular site because of its tutorials and free samples.

• Davide Carbone

Related Links:

• Loopmasters Mad Professor Samples
• Free Samples: Jungle Ammunition
• Free Samples: Davide Carbone
• Issue 59
• Issue 83

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