STEM KITS

#5  !llmind’s Cocaine Synths

Normally known for his Blapkits, !llmind gave 100 folks the opportunity to grab the Cocaine Synth collection. Original compositions using synths of the late 70s and early 80s such as the Prophet 8, Arp Odyessy, Fender Rhodes and more. For those of you lookin for that Frank Lucas sound, this was it. FULL REVIEW

#4  MSXII Soulful Stems 

The stems that take you back….. waaaaaaaaay back. These great folks at MSXII are extremely talented musicians (as they have shown off many times) and The Soulful Stems are no exception. Everything from organs, guitars, pianos, and electric keys are played live by these guys to give crate diggers something amazing to chop. Inspiration comes relatively quick when digging through The Soulful Stems. FULL REVIEW

#3  Cardiak and Critacal The Scores 

The “Diced Pineapples” producer Cardiak teamed up with the homie Critacal to give producers 20 organic stems to chop, pitch, rearrange, and bang out for their next big hit. All 20 compositions contain the BPM in the folder title. With over 80 files to get into, you’d be hard pressed to not fall in love with this kit. FULL REVIEW

#2  !llmind Red Crayon Killer Kit 

Complete with the BPM labels, Red Crayon delivers that 80s sci-fi, synthy sound. Using instruments like the Minimoog and the Proteus 2000, the Clive Davis Institute instructor really out did himself. These stems are really a cut above mostly everything out and are great to get producers thinking outside the box. This limited edition was one hopefully you didn’t miss. FULL REVIEW

#1  Kingsway Lap of Luxury 

Inspired by the likes of Issac Hayes and Thom Bell, M-Rock delivers an absolutely NASTY collection of 11 original compositions (with and without drums) for the likes of all of us to chop up and get disgusting with. One of the standouts in this kit is the “Still Bluesy No Drums.” Absolute BEAST. FULL REVIEW

Honorable Mention: S1 Fire and Ice Kit

That wraps up our Top 5 Drum and Top 5 Stem kits (Mid 2014). Grab these and add them to your library instantly. While there were many, many great products to have been considered for this ranking, there had to be 10. Many products were left out by one vote. Some were fought for tooth and nail by the MaschineMasters.com staff to be in the ranking. At the end of the day, we found the 10 best kits to represent the first half of the year. Be on the lookout for the OFFICIAL Top 10 Kits of 2014 in late December.  

James Jaxin (@jaxin414)

Forum Moderator MaschineMasters.com

Product Review Specialist MaschineMasters.com