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Top 10 Best Sample Packs of 2022
30 Dec '2022
We’ve crunched the stats and pitted the most popular sample packs of 2022 against each other across the biggest genres, as well as selecting an overall top 10 from the year.
Sounds are inspiring – when you’re staring at your DAW, looking for that something to spark a creative idea, sometimes all you need is a simple melody loop, vocal sample or drum beat to get you in the zone. On Loopcloud, 2022 has been a fantastic year for inspiring samples; with new packs added to our library every week the inspiration is endless, and in this article we’ll share the packs that the Loopcloud community has been loving the most.
This year we’ve collaborated with some of the best producers of 2022 and beyond to bring you the sounds that get them inspired. We’ve collaborated with producers and DJs at the top of the pile to bring you sounds straight from their studios. Global artists like Max Chapman, Steve Lawler and UMEK have put their signature brand of sonics in your hands, making it an exciting year for the Loopcloud community. That’s not to mention the countless inspiring packs from labels and other curators that have made a splash on the scene.
We’ve collaborated with producers and DJs at the top of the pile to bring you sounds straight from their studios. Global artists like Max Chapman, Steve Lawler and UMEK have put their signature brand of sonics in your hands, making it an exciting year for the Loopcloud community. That’s not to mention the countless inspiring packs from labels and other curators that have made a splash on the scene.
With so much on offer it’s difficult to know where to start, but with a folder full of analytics under our arm we’re here to help. After a careful review of all the points spent by Loopcloud users this year, we’ve come up with a list of the top 10 sample packs of 2022. These are the best sample packs of the year, as decided by you!
The 10 top sample packs of 2022 are…
10 - Steve Lawler - Dark Percussive House & Techno - Beatport Sounds
9 - Mirrors - Vocal Future Pop - ODD SMPLS
8 - Martin Rizzola - Organic Percussion Grooves - Loopmasters
7 - Ultimate Dance Vocals - Volume 1,Soul Rush Records
5 - UMEK - Techno Fundamentals - Beatport Sounds
4 - Ultimate Garage Vocals - Soul Rush Records
3 - Max Chapman - Minimal Tech - Loopmasters
2 - Retro Funk Vocals - Renegade Audio
And don't forget to catch our Top 3s for four key genres
Top 3 Tech House packs of 2022
10. Steve Lawler – Dark Percussive House & Techno
Coming in at number ten on our list of the top sample packs of 2022 is a legacy sample collection from the one and only Steve Lawler. With over twenty years at the top of the dance music world, Lawler is known for his peerless dance floor appeal and is as in-demand as ever on the biggest festival lineups and club nights.
Steve Lawler Dark & Percussive Techno was originally released in 2011 on the Loopmasters label and has gone on to be one of the most crucial releases on the platform. The sounds within are still as relevant today as when it first came out, and to preserve its history Beatport Sounds have reformatted the original collection to allow a new generation of samplists to discover it.
Inside, you’ll find a mega 975MB of techno tools, with 1390 Wav samples nestling alongside over 500 loops at 125 and 127 BPM. Expect immaculately produced and processed percussion, bass, synths, FX and more that you can use to instantly upgrade your next track.
9. Mirrors – Vocal Future Pop
Have you ever imagined what pop music might sound like in 2030? If not, don’t worry, because producers and artists have got there already with the future pop genre. A blend of synthpop, EBM and trance beats, future pop is minimal, luxurious and of course, futuristic sounding.
Mirrors – Vocal Future Pop by ODD SMPLS is a blend of the best future pop sounds, whether it’s gentle piano loops, smooth keys, dreamy lo-fi guitars or punchy drums. As the name suggests, it’s also got a heavy focus on vocals, featuring five vocal kits with everything you need for your future pop productions: lead, adlibs and backing vocals.
8. Martin Rizzola – Organic Percussion Grooves
One of the world’s leading percussionists, Martin Rizolla is a master of all things rhythmic and has lent his considerable talents to leading contemporary electronic artists including The Blessed Madonna, Guti and De La Swing. Martin’s playing is influenced by iconic percussionists like Giovanni Hidalgo, Pedrito Martinez and El Panga, and you can have him as your very own session player with this pack.
Martin Rizzola – Organic Percussion Grooves is an exclusive Loopmasters pack that introduces producers to a diverse spectrum of his dynamic percussion abilities. That means hits, sampler patches and both wet and dry loops that are infused with the universal rhythms of the Argentine maestro, covering genres such as tech house, moombahton, nu disco and funk.
Inside you’ll find an electronic, club-ready mix of blissfully rendered djembe drums, urgent congas, shivering tambourines, rounded cowbells and wistful chimes, along with a whole host of other percussive delights. There are also eight soft sampler patches for EXS24, Nnxt, Sfz and Kontakt to give you even more playability.
7. Ultimate Dance Vocals – Volume 1
One of the best ways of adding a professional sheen to your productions is by making sure you’re using the best quality vocals you can get your hands on. Ultimate Dance Vocals – Volume 1 makes that easy by providing a repository of infectious toplines sung by a selection of elite vocalists.
Loopcloud users this year have loved Ultimate Dance Vocals – Volume 1 for its ready-made hooks and vocal melodies, sung with plenty of emotion and flawless vocal technique. The unique phrases in the pack have been recorded for a range of BPMs – 128, 140 and 174) – so you’re bound to find something to suit your next dance production.
Every vocal sample in the pack is available in either wet or dry versions, ready to be chopped, pitched or treated in any way you like in your DAW. Each of the seven singers who contributed to this pack were hand-picked by vocalist and producer Tigerlight, who has collaborated with the likes of Far Too Loud, Dodge & Fuski, Document One, High Rankin, and more.
6. Hope
Cinetools have built up a sterling reputation for designing unique and innovative sounds for film, TV, video games and cinematic/multimedia projects. Their packs can be used for all-out cinematic compositions and scores, or to inject large atmospheres and emotions into other genres.
Hope is a truly memorable sample pack that covers the full spectrum of Hollywood love stories, taking you through all stages of a romance on the silver screen. Featuring over 15GB of glamorous SFX, this collection of sounds can function as an inspiring resource for emotional moments, whether you’re working on a romantic trailer cue, a dramatic underscore or a track that simply needs to pull on the listener’s heartstrings.
Specifically, you’ll get atmospheric beds, subtle melodies, intense atmospheres and soundscapes, organic drums and percussions, ticking clocks, deep synth pulses and electronic patterns, epic cinematic hits, stings, deep booms and pounding drum hits, and powerful transition effects such as risers, sweeps, reverses and more.
5. UMEK – Techno Fundamentals
Kicking off the top five is the debut sample pack from UMEK, a DJ and producer who has seen and done it all since first appearing on the scene in 1993. A nearly 30 year career has brought in accolades such as Beatport’s Best Techno Artist and Best Techno Track and Best Techno/Tech House Artist at the International Dance Music Awards.
All of this means that you better believe UMEK knows how to fit out a sample pack with the essential elements needed to make high-impact techno, and he well and truly delivers with UMEK – Techno Fundamentals. Dystopian rave sounds, intense jacking beats, urgent trance-inducing melodies and piercing basslines from the backbone of this pack, reflecting UMEK’s decades-long techno trip.
4. Ultimate Garage Vocals
The second vocal-only pack on our list is Ultimate Garage Vocals, a whopping collection of samples influenced by classic garage and house tracks. UK garage has an inimitable flair when it comes to vocals, and this pack from Soul Rush Records captures lightning in a bottle and uncorks it in your DAW.
There are no less than 100 standout 32-bar vocals in Ultimate Garage Vocals that will set the tone on any garage, house, or other electronic music production you’re working on. All in all, that makes for nearly two hours of acapella goodies, with a combination of male and female singers, and a variation in vocal deliveries at different BPMs.
Loopcloud users voted with their points spent this year, and you can see why Ultimate Garage Vocals was so popular. If you’re looking to drop some vibe-laden, soulful and riotous vocals into your tracks, then this pack is the mother load you’ve been waiting for.
3. Max Chapman – Minimal Tech
Who better to take us into the top three sample packs of 2022 than underground tech-house star Max Chapman? The Essex-based DJ and producer has been on quite the journey since he burst onto the scene in 2011, reaching the top with an overall number one on Beatport and playing at the biggest parties and festivals in the world.
Chapman’s flawless production can be felt all over Max Chapman – Minimal Tech, and the pack is an arsenal of throbbing bass, sizzling hi-hats, pounding drums and subtle percussion. Having been consistently played by Loco Dice, Jamie Jones and Hot Since 82, this pack is an essential treasure trove of one-shots, loops and synth patches for any ambitious producer.
All in all, you’ll get 773MB of versatile samples and loops delivered between 126BPM and 130BPM in Max Chapman – Minimal Tech, making it an unmissable stop-off for deep, groovy sounds.
2. Retro Funk Vocals
Narrowly missing out on the top spot is Retro Funk Vocals from Renegade Audio, proving that vocal packs are some of the most popular options in the Loopmasters universe. Performed by world class Canadian recording artist Selena Evangeline, this sample pack takes that late ‘70s sound and classic lyrical phrasing giving you high energy calls to the dancefloor.
Getting pristine vocals can be difficult as a producer, but Retro Funk Vocals makes sure you’ll never that problem again, delivering over 2200 loops performed at a variety of tempos and keys and processed using authentic 70’s era vocal FX and modern production techniques. You’ll hear the legendary Capitol Records chamber reverb and an Eventine Harmonizer emulation, along with an eclectic range of vocal effects, as well as dry loops.
This is a pack that’s been designed with versatility in mind, with each main vocal part also including individual harmony parts, as well as single line phrases. The vocals are delivered with the upbeat, hip-shakin’ attitude of the seventies and are sure to supercharge your productions.
1. Mythica
Drum roll please! The top sample pack on Loopcloud in 2022 according to the entire points spend on the platform is Mythica by Cinetools. The second Cinetools pack on this list, Mythica is a stunningly epic cinematic library of sounds right out of the Medieval battlefield. Think heroism, mystery and adventure, and think of it on the largest scale possible.
Soundtrack your next project with blood-pumping basses, intense atmospheres, pounding drum hits, epic cinematic percussion and enchanting melodics, and take the listener all the way back to 1092. If you want even more Medieval and fantasy sound foliage, try out the pack’s ancient fight sounds, war chants, yelling, deep breaths, medieval laments, fantastic creatures and more.
In total, there is 9.6GB of premium sounds in Mythica, including 1092 ready-to-use cinematic SFX divided into two main folders: Designed FX and Designer Tools. The Designed FX folder contains 730 sounds created by top sound designers and delivered in film standard quality, while the Designer Tools folder includes 362 sounds and materials that will allow you to exercise your own creative muscle and create new sounds of your own.
Top 3 House packs of 2022
3. Deep Chill Vocals - Looptone
This, we think, is a sample pack that will stay strong for years. Racking up nearly 200 mellow female vocal phrases, this pack is most at-home in house but could reasonably find its place in many genres. The samples are presented both dry and wet and from a range of keys. There are also a few choice bass and synth loops to fit it all together, for some added gravy
2. Slap House Hitmaker 2 - Singomakers
A solid arsenal of 124bpm loops, including vocals, and some one-shots to boot. Slap House Hitmaker 2 was inspired by artists like Imanbek, Vize, Tiesto, Alok and HVME, with the aim of bringing you hard-hitting house hardware, right out of the (virtual) box.
1. Ultimate Dance Vocals - Volume 1 - Soul Rush Records
Coming from a line-up of seven singers, the 429-strong pack of female accapellas is a diverse set of high-quality vocal toplines that can bring a huge range to any project. Recorded at 128bpm, 140bpm and 174bpm, there's something for almost every electronic producer waiting to be discovered inside this vocal vault.
Oh, and if it sound familiar, it's because this pack is seventh on the list of 2022's bestsellers above!
Top 3 Techno packs of 2022
3. Matt Sassari - Into The Groove
Join the producer for an exploration of his techno-meets-tech-house sound, and grab hits and loops to cover every stage of the hitmaking process: vocals, drum loops and individual hits, synth and synth bass, FX, percussion and more. Our guide has also provided MIDI files and sampler patches to help weave it all together. Thanks, Matt!
If your aim is to make contemporary-sounding techno, do yourself a favour and arm yourself with sounds from one of today's most successful names. Rise Techno gives you a collection of sounds to cover almost every imagineable techno base. But don't take our word for it – find out more about the making of this sample pack itself in our full interview with Alex.
If you recognise the name, it's because Techno Fundamentals made it to Number Five on our list of 2022's top sample packs above. Dystopian rave sounds, intense jacking beats, urgent trance-inducing melodies and piercing basslines from the backbone of this pack, reflecting UMEK’s decades-long techno trip. To go under the lid of the pack and its creation process, check out the interview with UMEK that saw the launch of the pack alongside the Beatport Sounds label.
Top 3 Tech House packs of 2022
3. Tech House Evolution Mega Pack by Incognet - Singomakers
You can cut right to the chase in your next tech house creation with the help of Tech House Evolution Mega Pack, a compendium of hits and loops that'll fit perfectly into any project in the genre. At 1.47GB, it's brimming with slapping basslines, lead synths, drum & top loops, percussion, SFX, vocal chops, 18 huge construction kits, and presets for Xfer Serum and NI Massive.
2. Steve Lawler - Dark Percussive House & Techno
Weighing in at nearly a gigabyte, Lawler's pack is stacked with exactly the kind of drums, percussion, synths and bass that have established his driving style of music. It's also available is a techno-flavoured pack for the Loopcloud Drum plugin, with patterns and kits to scratch your various techno itches.
Also taking up a spot as the third best Loopmasters sample pack for 2022, Minimal Tech is chock full of Chapman's production techniques, and the style that has seen him take the stage at some of the world's biggest festivals. With throbbing bass, sizzling hi-hats, pounding drums and subtle percussion in the line-up, the pack acts as a cure-all for any tech house headache.
Top 3 DnB packs of 2022
3. SHARKS: Drum & Bass - Ghost Syndicate
With modern drum and perc sounds, synths, synth bass, and a particularly impressive FX section, we can guarantee that this pack's bark is not worse than its bite. You can grab ten of SHARKS' samples for free on Loopcloud Sounds to check the purity for yourself, and at about a tenner, the quality on offer makes this a steal for any DnB producer.
The Hospital man puts his jazzy touch on liquid drum n bass in his musical career, and you can blag his melodic and harmonic talents for your own productions thanks to his debut Loopmasters pack. As well as solid keyboard and Rhodes vibes, there's plenty of bass, synths and drums to fill the larder, and even a bit of vibraphone – what's not to love?
1. EVOLVE: Liquid Drum & Bass - Ghost Syndicate
Rounding up the DnB hit parade for 2022, this pack tips the hat to artists including Waeys, Monty and Lenzman to bring you a detailed tour of liquid drum n bass, pushing up to roughly 1000 drum samples, but with more than enough synths, bass and pads in tow as well. EVOLVE is also available as a pack for Loopcloud Drum, netting you patterns and kits that are mix-ready throughout.
