Native Instruments’ original Massive synth was always going to be a tough act to follow. Released in 2007, Massive became one of the best selling and most influential software instruments of all time, helping to define the sound of 2010s EDM with its gritty wavetable oscillators and copious modulation tools.
Following a decade of small, incremental updates, NI released a fully-fledged Massive sequel in 2019 in the form of Massive X. Although NI hasn’t released any sales figures for the plugin, anecdotally it seems clear that Massive X hasn’t achieved the same mass-market appeal as its predecessor – or contemporary synths like Arturia Pigments and Xfer Serum, both of which borrow heavily from Massive’s design ideas.
It would be unfair to call Massive X a failure – it’s an undeniably powerful and sonically impressive instrument – but its design is deeper and less intuitive than the synth it follows. Although Massive X clearly has a dedicated user-base committed to exploring the depths of its semi-modular capabilities, it’s never risen to the must-have status of its predecessor.
Now, six years on from its release, Native Instruments appears determined to broaden the appeal of Massive X with a significant upgrade that also introduces a new free version, named Massive X Player.
Player of games
Massive X Player is a preset-driven version of the synth that gives users free access to sounds created by Massive X without having to worry about what’s going on under-the-hood. Users can select a sound from a bank of presets that contains basses, leads, pads and more, all of which can be adjusted using a bank of eight macro controls.
In the words of NI: “Whether you're chasing growling basses, shimmering leads, or ambient pads, Massive X Player offers instant inspiration with a premium preset library and no steep learning curve.”
While these free sounds are appealing on their own, Massive X Player also features a trio of features that have the potential to turn the plugin into a bountiful source of sonic inspiration.
The first of these is the Morpher, which allows users to assign multiple presets across the points of an X/Y pad and blend between these selected sounds. This can be done manually, by clicking and dragging the visual interface, or be modulated using the second of the synth’s new features, the Animator.
This features a set of pattern-based modulation curves that can be used to add rhythmic sound shifts as the control node maps an automated course around the Morpher interface. This movement can be synced to project tempo and comes with direction and rate controls to adjust the movement of the pattern.
The final creative tool in Massive X Player’s arsenal is a Randomize button, which will generate a randomised sound that can be adjusted using the macro controls.
Massive X Player is available to download as part of NI’s free Komplete Start bundle, which also contains a variety of other instruments and effects. Of course, it’s also accessible to current owners of Massive X, and those with access to the full plugin can open up Player presets to dive under the hood using the full synth engine.
We’ve seen Massive X Player in action, and it certainly has appeal as a fast and fun source of quick-access sounds. Our only criticism right now is that owners of the full version can’t assign their own custom presets to the Morpher grid, which is a shame – and something we hope NI will address in future updates.
Massive X Player is available to download now. It also comes with the Bass Music Essentials expansion pack, offering additional sounds for low-end loving electronic music makers.
Head to the Native Instruments site for more information.
