Arturia has announced the availability of Hardtek Essentials, the latest Expansion Pack for use with its SPARK Creative Drum Machine and SparkLE controllers combined with SPARK 2 sound-sculpting and performance drum machine software for Mac (OS X 10.7 or higher) and PC (Windows 7 or higher).
Hardtek Essentials is an addition to SPARK 2 that is suited to high-energy productions and live performances. As an effective EDM (Electronic Dance Music) genre, hardtek — also known as tekno — has evolved in tandem with the teknikal movement of the early 90s, named to reflect the fact that so many teknikal organizers and DJs were actively making music themselves.
Originally influenced by hardcore, rave, jungle, gabber, and techno, with producers taking the sound in a darker, more organic direction, early emphasis was placed on strategically positioned samples drawn from TV shows, films, and popular culture throughout. Today’s hardtek-style music is turbo-fast — typically between 170 to 200 bpm — and characterized by pounding, repetitive kick drums. Hardtek Essentials authentically delivers those sounds.
Drawing upon the collective hardtek talents of international creative collective SP23, Crystal Distortion (a.k.a. British electronic music producer Simon Carter), Ixindamix, and other former Spiral Tribe sound system members, Hardtek Essentials encompasses everything from heavy techno to sonic mayhem.
It includes 30 kits (spanning techno, hardtek, drum ‘n’ bass, and hardcore techno stylings, plus more besides); 480 new instruments (instrumentally expanding the SPARK 2 sound set); and 960 customisable pre-programmed patterns. It also packs killer basses, leads, one-shots, and effects.
The AAX-, AU-, and VST2.4-compatible Hardtek Essentials Expansion Pack is available to purchase as a boxed version for €29 EUR/$29 USD from authorized Arturia dealers or online as a boxed version or download directly from Arturia here.
Note that Expansion Packs are only compatible with SPARK Creative Drum Machine and SparkLE combined with SPARK 2 or with SPARK 2 alone — with which they will also run in stand-alone mode; they cannot be used with SPARK VDM, SPARK DubStep, and SPARK EDM.