Samples From Mars has released SP 1200 From Mars, a sample pack featuring factory drums and custom drum sounds & synth instruments sampled with the SP-1200 E-mu.

Our SP has been around SFM headquarters for as long as we’ve existed, and it was only a matter of time before we got around to sampling this beast! The first thing we captured was the factory drums “Standard Traps” disk. Far from what you’d describe as a “trap kit” today, these drums are a pseudo-acoustic, Linn-esc 80s disco kit and they sound so fresh! We reached for an API preamp for its sharp and classic transient response, recording directly to tape (multi-sampling every hit with 16 SP tunings) and no additional processing was neccesary.

We also spent weeks creating custom drum sounds – incorporating drum machines such as the 606, 707, 808, 909, DX, vinyl drums (sometimes pitching up the record to 45rpm and tuning it down in the SP), and more – multi-sampling all hits at different tunings. Leaving some things dry, and massively processing others with compressors, filters, synths, and saturators, we sampled different outputs of the machine. All recorded to tape.

And finally, we sampled some synths (Juno 60, Polysix, DX-100) because the SP creates gnarly overtones for bass and magical fairy dust on house chords. The DX and SP especially liked each other.

The sample pack is available for purchase for $59 USD. The Factory and Custom packs are also available separately for $29 USD and $39 USD, respectively.

More information: Samples From Mars / SP 1200 From Mars