Website: http://www.discoverysound.com

What do we get?

We get 1 data CD absolutely jammed with a total of 387 Rex2 and Acid/Wav samples.
1 audio CD that 339 also includes a .zip file with 73 folders for multisampling, and
another with some very impressive Lei Qin (a Chinese stringed instrument) sound
effects.

The Meat and Potatoes of the matter.......

Discovery became legendary whern they released this collection onto the market in 1999.
It caused a huge stir, and with good reason too. The quality of the recordings, and the
sheer amount of samples in this library made it a hard one to ignore for people looking
for a range of authentic sounding Chinese.....um......flavors (did that last bit make sense?).

Percussion

The Percussion folder contains 21 loops, and 78 one shot phrases and samples. The
loops section may not be that large, but the quality is great, and provide a fantastic
example of eastern rhythms. The One Shot Phrases and samples folder is just as
enormous in content as it is in diversity. To travel phonically into a nightmarish world
of Chinese suspense thriller movies, you have to check out the "yun luo" samples.
My favourite.

Stringed Instruments

I love stringed instruments. All of them. Whenever I hear of a friend or family member
going to some exotic location or other i always give them some money and say "Hey,
bring me back some wierd lookin' instruments......". Invariably they almost always get
nabbed at customs for having animal skin echo chambers, or lower mongolian longhaired-
elk tail strings. What a waste. Of the instrument. Not the elk. But i digress......
The loops are where this collection shines. The string folder contains 101 loops, and 36
One shot samples and phrases. There are many types of authentic chinese stringed
instruments here. They are...

Bowed


    * Ban Hu

    * Er Hu

    * Gao Hu

    * Jing Hu

    * Ma Tou Qin

Plucked


    * Pi Pa

    * San Xian

    * Yang Qin

    * Zheng

    * Zhui Qin

Many of these instruments were familiar to my ears when i first heard them, and until
now my mind had put them into the "Eastern String Sound" catagory. Not hard to hear
the subtle differences now that i can listen to them closely. It's a bit like my sister
listening to an acoustic steel stringed guitar, and a classical nylon stringed guitar.
She can tell the difference, but only if i am playing it in front of her ;-)

Vocals

The vocals folder contains 18 loops and 74 one shot phrases and samples. From
beautiful, whispered dialogue to all out comedy gold, there is a lot of content here for
the vocal sample digger. A fair chunk of the samples here are from chinese theatre, with
funny voices and sound effects. The only drawback i can see is that it didn't come with a text
 file that translated the samples into english. I would love to know what they are saying,
as this might have been one more thing that would make me use it. I do like finding samples
that say something profound. It's even better when they are in another language, because
it gives it an air of mystery. Oh well. They do sound great as is.

Wind Instruments

The wind instruments folder contains 58 Loops, but only 1 one shot. I fear that this may
have been a folder packing oversight, as i can't see the point of putting just 1 sample in there. However, The loop folder has more than enough to keep me interested. There are eight types
of Chinese wind instruments showcased.


    * Da Guan

    * Da Suo Na

    * Di Zi

    * Qu Di

    * Sheng

    * Xiao Guan

    * Xiao Suo Na

    * Xiao

The samples range from happy uptempo phrases, to more melancholic "Yes Grasshopper"
sounding phrases, usually depending on the sound of the particular instrument. Rich, full
recordings. A warning that you shouldn't have the stereo up too loud when browsing these
samples, as the frequencies some of the reedier sounding instruments hit could make your
ears bleed. In a good way, ofcourse.

Extras

The CD contains two zip files of bonus material. The Lei Quin effects mimick the noises
of farm animals with astoundingly good results. This kind of playing is usually heard in
traditional chinese puppet theatre as an accompaniment to the action on stage. There
is an extra 273mb of samples. These are set out in 73 folders for multisampling. But wait,
that's not all. Did you say Steak Knives??? Well, we don't have any of those, but, there is
a great range of atmospherics included in the audio CD. These were recorded in market
places, street corners, apartments, restaurants, and even some straight from local TV.
All in stereo.

Conclusion:

Discovery deserves all of the praise that was heaped in wads upon it when this collection
was first released. When i got this, there was so much good usable stuff that i hardly new
where to start. Admittedly, in my opinion, this sample pack seems more suited to movie
and theatre scores, but anyone looking for traditional sounds would find it irreplaceable.
Never have i heard such a fantastic slice of life from one culture. Except maybe the Alma
Flamenco Release, but even that didn't have the diversity that this does. Butch give this a
well deserved RF award. Well done discovery ;-)