Native Instruments
Industry-standard virtual instruments, sample libraries, and production hardware.
What it is
About Native Instruments
Native Instruments (NI) produces virtual instruments, sample libraries, audio plugins, and hardware controllers. Its Komplete bundles are the most widely used collection of software instruments in professional music production — covering synthesisers (Massive, FM8), acoustic instruments (Kontakt libraries), drums, and effects. Komplete Start is a free entry-level bundle available to anyone.
What you can do with it
Capabilities
Load and play high-quality sampled instruments (strings, brass, piano, drums) inside a DAW via Kontakt
Design synthesiser patches by modifying oscillators, filters, envelopes, and modulators in Massive or FM8
Audition and drag-and-drop loops and one-shots from the NI Browser directly onto DAW tracks
Use Maschine hardware to finger-drum beats and arrange sequences without a traditional keyboard
Apply professional mixing and mastering effects (Guitar Rig, Replika delay, Solid EQ) to individual tracks
How to learn it
Learning Resources
Download Komplete Start free — it includes Kontakt Player and several instruments to start with
Native Instruments' own YouTube channel has instrument-specific tutorials for every major product
Point Blank Music School on YouTube covers Kontakt programming and Massive sound design in depth
Spend time in the NI Browser just auditioning sounds — understanding what's available is half the skill
Pro Tip
Before buying any Komplete bundle, download Komplete Start and load it into your DAW. If you find yourself constantly hitting the limits of the free instruments, the upgrade is worth it. If you don't use Start, you won't use Ultimate.
Skills that use this tool
Roles that use this tool