Sample Magic - sample dvd's and downloads for house, dance, electro and trance music

"Funky House Groove 2 is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the follow-up to Sample Magic’s first essential collection of classic house grooves and – like its well-regarded predecessor – it’s a class act from start to finish.

The pack contains drums, percussion, bass, guitar, brass, keys and FX, all recorded in sparkling 24-bit resolution. The layout of the pack is well thought-out, with loops sensibly divided into 125, 127 and 130BPM folders. Individual hits are formatted for all the main software samplers. The 400-plus drum and percussion loops range from commercial funk grooves to some face-melting raspy electro shuffles

The live percussion displays an excellent balance: it sounds tight while still managing to retain a natural groove. Similarly – unlike some other house collections – the basses and keys aren’t at all ‘computery-sounding’: they’re generally of the live funk variety with the occasional synth flourish, and the original three-piece brass riffs are ready for some disco action. Although the high EQ on the guitar parts initially seems quite aggressive to even the untrained ear when heard in isolation, this is so that they can cut through the mix and not sound muddy when ducked. Everything is backed up by appropriate touches of reverb and chorus at every stage. What’s more, each sample has been expertly produced and injected with a toe-tapping quality – useful for a pack with ‘groove’ in its title!

Verdict: Great-sounding pack guaranteed to vitalise your loop collection without sounding at all generic. 9/10"

Music Tech, February 2009

"Sample Magic are relatively new to the scene, but they’ve so far proven themselves capable of producing some of the very finest sample libraries available. This sequel to their earliest title is no exception. It takes us on an exotic trip from the styles of afro and Latin, right through to jazzy and tribal house. The loops are all cutting edge, with a huge clear and very funky character. This library is an essential buy for anyone creating funky house tracks, and highly desirable for producers of all related genres. Rating: 10/10."

Computer Music, January 2009

"Following on from Sample Magic's debut Funky House sample pack, everything here is grouped in 125, 127 and 130 BPM folders. There are hundreds of floor-melting programmed beats to choose from, and it's all broken down into individual instruments and BPM rates, making it easy to find what you are looking for, whether that's an Afro, Latin, jazzy or a tribal vibe.

The featured keys include soulful Rhodes and funked-up clavs while the drum samples draw on classic 808 and 909 sounds. The jazzy live bass runs and Afro-infused muted guitar licks make up just a part of the bass and guitar samples. For the disco movers, the brass section will not disappoint: these tight and punchy disco-tinged three-piece sections offer an array of original riffs to get the creative juices flowing. Add in the authentic African ensembles, congas, bongos, shakers for the percussion licks and you're almost there - just throw in a few FX and filters for good measure. The 24-bit samples can all be easily previewed and/or loaded on the fly into your sampler and they even include a demo track for inspiration. The DVD takes care of the most common patches for Steinberg, Propellerheads, Logic and the like.

Sample Magic have perfected their art over their previous collections, and this is evident in Funky House Grooves 2. If you are looking to be a Master At Work you should certainly check this sample set. Team it up with the original Funky House Grooves and you've got one helluva sample library!"

IDJ magazine, December 2008

"There are no prizes for guessing that Funky House Grooves 2 is Sample Magic’s follow-up to the original Funky House Grooves, which received a five-star review in SOS December 2006. The format of the new release follows that of the first, with the 1200 samples (about 800MB) in the WAV format I auditioned) being provided in 24-bit quality in a range of formats: WAV, REX, Refill, Apple Loops, EXS24, Halion and Kontakt. The collection is split into drums (loops and hits), bass, brass, guitar, percussion, keys, FX/Stabs, tops and hats, and filtered one-shots folders. In the case of the loops, many folders are split into three tempo-based groups (125, 127 and 130bpm).

Given that house is a dance-based format, the drums in a library like this are always going to be important, and Funky House Grooves 2 doesn’t disappoint. There are some 180 drum loops, and they’re uniformly good – in terms of both sound and performance. Fortunately, the drum mixing has also been done with good taste, so although the kicks are all very solid, the bottom end never gets out of hand.

The percussion folder can also be layered with other elements, and this is a real highlight, offering some excellent conga, bongo, shaker and ensemble performances. The sounds themselves are great, and they can easily add a convincing Afro or Latin influence. The rhythm component is rounded off by a collection of over 400 individual drum hits, so if you do need to programme some additional variations you’ll have plenty of ammunition available.

Of the rest of the loops, the keys – which comprise a combination of clav, Rhodes, synths, and the occasional piano and organ – are probably the pick. The clav loops are particularly good, which means it’s a shame that there aren’t a few more of them (or perhaps I’m just being greedy!). Both the bass and the guitar playing maintain the funky feel, with plenty of super-clean, bright and tight rhythm playing. The filtered one-shots and the FX and Stabs folders provide the usual selection of processed hits, whooshes and sweeps as ear-candy. Perhaps the only area that I thought left a little to be desired was the brass. What’s included here is fine, but it’s perhaps not FHG2s’ strongest suit, and I felt that the choice was a little limited.

This minor quibble aside, FHG2 packs plenty of punch, and the bulk of what’s here, while not breaking any radical new ground, works very well indeed. The sounds are good and the performances hit the right musical spot. As the collection also represents good value for money, I reckon FHG2 is well worth a five-star score. Rating: 5 stars"

Sound on Sound, January 2009