An awful lot of software instruments are available today, making it difficult for such products to have an impact on the market. However, there are a couple of ways to get your product noticed. For example, make your instruments so good that they are used by high-end studios and composers. However, this tends to make your product out of reach for the vast majority of users (and definitely for schools with limited budgets).
The alternative is to make your product distinctive. LABS achieves this in two ways. The first is the uniqueness of the choice of sounds; the second is the price. It's totally free – not even freemium, where you get a basic sound for free and then have to pay for add-ons.
Installation
The process begins from the LABS website, where the list of available instruments is shown alongside examples of them being used. If you decide to install one, you click on the GET button and it'll ask you either to log in or set up an account and download the Spitfire app. When the app has been downloaded, installations of particular sound libraries can be managed from here, and it shows you a list of libraries that are available on your system. Every time you hit the GET button on the LABS website, it allocates that library to your account, and it'll appear as an instrument to download on to your system.
Once the app and the library have been downloaded, everything is ready to go, and you can start making music with the instrument. Open your DAW of choice, load up a software instrument track, and you'll find that LABS is now an option to use. If you get stuck, the LABS website has lots of quick, useful YouTube videos that walk you through installation and operation in a range of DAWs.
A clean interface with minimal controls
This entry-level product has access to some high-quality sounds
Sounds
Spitfire Audio has a reputation as one of the big, high-end sample library companies. It has marketed its products to film composers, games designers and the very best studios. Therefore, this entry-level product has access to some of the highest quality sounds – but, obviously, Spitfire aren't going to give away their absolute best sounds for free.
So what we get instead is access to libraries of some of the more interesting sounds: experimental string sounds, synth pads, world music instruments and muted pianos, alongside some traditional string instruments and choirs. This might sound like a set of sounds that aren't useful – but I have found myself consistently inspired by the textures provided.
The soft piano in particular is very nice. Many existing piano sounds found in instrument libraries can be quite bombastic. Having a soft piano allows me to explore the instrument in a different way, and I have found myself writing music that reflects this. The pad sounds are also very useable, and I found myself embedding them into tracks to thicken the texture of a mix.
Operation
The plugin itself is very straightforward to use. Once open, you'll be greeted by a clean-looking white interface with two sliders and a rotary control. The function of these varies depending on the sound used, but the rotary control seems constantly to be a reverb control. There is a simple text display indicating which sound you have loaded, and to change the sound, simply click on it.
New sounds can be downloaded from the website
The selection of installed libraries then appears as a list, and you can preview the different sounds from each library before selecting it. Once you have selected your sound by clicking on it, you return to the main white screen, and you can fine tune the sound to your own preference.
I have a number of sound libraries installed on my computers, and LABS is one that I am constantly inspired by. It has great potential for student compositions, because the quality of the instruments is so high in both the traditional sounds and the more esoteric. I find that the less familiar instruments inspire me as a composer, and the more familiar instruments are useful in a range of musical contexts.
Given the price of this product – and the fact that it's from one of the biggest sample library companies in the world – it's definitely got to be worth trying, regardless of how often you think your students might use it. This product is totally recommended, and I hope you will be as inspired by it as I am.
To find out more and download LABS for free, visit www.spitfireaudio.com
