7DeadlySnares is a virtual instrument for crafting diverse snare sounds, using seven unique audio engines inspired by different genres and sources, with macro controls for quick tweaking.
Seven Distinct Snare Engines
7DeadlySnares from Beatsurfing offers seven separate snare engines, each named after a deadly sin and built on a different sonic concept. The engines range from classic analog rhythm box snares, as in the Sloth and Pride engines, to water-based field recordings in the Lust engine and Foley samples in Gluttony.
Every engine includes three variations and four adjustable macros, allowing for quick modifications of key elements such as attack, decay, brightness, and body. The morph section lets you drag a pointer within a triangle to blend between the three altered engine versions, enabling smooth transitions and experimentation.
Key Capabilities and Sound Design
Sloth delivers warm, booming snares with a snappy attack and long decay, ideal for cutting through a mix. Gluttony uses Foley samples to add depth and texture, with macro adjustments that change body, transient, decay, brightness, and introduce slight noise variations per hit.
Wrath provides dry, punchy boom bap snares with a pronounced crack, while Lust offers organic, granular water-based textures, also suitable for clap sounds. Envy focuses on sculpting noise across the frequency spectrum for retro-futuristic snares, and Greed introduces a pronounced fundamental tone, allowing the snare to be tuned to a key.
Workflow and Tweaking
The interface is designed for fast adjustment, with each engine offering four macros that control essential sound parameters. For instance, in Sloth, Macro A adjusts the noise-to-body FM amount, while Macros B, C, and D affect transient, decay, and tone brightness. In Gluttony, Macro A changes body amount, B and C adjust transient and decay brightness, and D adds a slight noise change with each hit.
The morph section provides a powerful way to evolve a snare sound by dragging a pointer in a triangle to blend between the three variations. This allows for real-time exploration of intermediate sounds, making it easy to tailor a snare to fit a specific track without digging into complex menus.
Practical Applications
These snares are suitable for various music genres, from hip-hop and synthwave to pop and rock, given the range of engines. The Wrath engine suits boom bap hip-hop, while Envy fits 80s-inspired synthwave and pop. Lust is great for adding organic textures or unique claps to electronic tracks.
Greed is particularly useful for melodic percussion, as its tuned fundamental allows for pitch tracking on a keyboard, making it a creative tool for musicians and producers. The presets cover a large scope, providing a quick starting point for any snare need, and the macro controls ensure easy integration into a mix.
Key features
- Seven unique snare engines, each with a distinct sound
- Three variations per engine, morphable via a triangle pointer
- Four adjustable macros per engine for tweaking key parameters
- A vast selection of presets covering a wide range of styles
- Includes analog, Foley, water-based, and melodic snare designs
- Engine variations include dialed-in alternate versions for quick sonic shifts
Best for
Producers and sound designers seeking a versatile snare tool with both classic and experimental sounds. Ideal for hip-hop, synthwave, pop, and electronic music, it offers quick macro tweaks and morphing to tailor snares precisely to a track, including melodic applications via Greed.