The fifth and final surprise of Propellerhead's series of Reason 5 and Record 1.5 announcements is Kong Drum Designer, an instrument that promises to give Reason 5 users a much greater degree of control over their beats.
Kong combines virtual analogue synthesis, physical modelling, sample-playback and effects to create a frankly fearsome looking virtual drum sound designer. The sound sources include four virtual analogue generators (bass, snare, hat and tom), three physical modelling generators (bass, snare and tom), NN-Nano (a simpler sampler in the style of NN-XT), Nurse Rex (a Dr. Rex-style ReCycle loop playback engine), Noise and Tone "support generators" (simple virtual analogue synths to supplement the other modules), and nine effect modules including transient shaper and reverb effects.
If you think you're going to go ape waiting for Reason 5 to launch, remember you can sign up for the beta here.
