Should you buy Loop and Sample Packs online?

Last updated on August 4th, 2022

To buy Loop Kits & Samples or not is a common question among music producers and beat makers. Discussions about this topic have been going on forever. Many producers today are still in this conflict, mainly to prejudices like the following… ‘Tracks should be made only relying on your own creativity. Downloading and using loops or samples is not making music and cheating. That’s unfair to them who do everything by themselves. If you have to sample, at least you have to sample it all from rare vinyl.’ But if all of this were true…

Where do you draw the line?

This line of thinking can easily lead to an infinite regression. If you’re playing an instrument or using a VST it’s also sampling but from an original source of sound. So, did you build that bass guitar yourself or to go even further, did you invent the scale you’re playing in? The question about originality in the “real vs. electronic” music debate has been going on since the 1930s. However, the only truly original sounds have been synthesized! Most of the biggest artists out there use samples and loops. Does it mean they are all cheating? What about people who use synth presets, or take a preset and just tweak it a tiny bit? Are they cheating too? Was Bowie or any of the classic rock and pop artists of the 60s & 70s cheating by using session musicians?

Our advice

In this topic we’re going to tell you why you shouldn’t bother with this question anymore. Do you know how many hit records have been made using loops and samples? The answer is… countless tracks! Of course, this is still a matter of taste but if you wish, you should definitely buy Loop Kits and Sample Kits. This will expand your creativity and challenge your abilities. This is especially true with the rapidly growing sound design markets that supply today’s music industry with inspiring and high quality sounds in form of Construction Kits, Loop Kits, Kontakt Libraries, Sylenth Banks, Sample Packs and even more great products.
So many producers learned a lot from using sample packs which really improved their production skills and methods. Using loops and samples can also get really interesting if you modify them by applying heavy processing and effect chains, do crazy flips or granular sampling and completely use them out of their original context. These things can be a lot of fun and push your creativity to the maximum. However, everyone draws the line for themselves, either because of necessity, practicality, ignorance, ego, true artistic genius, or any number of other reasons.

To sum things up

However, we all know a few guys in our circle who won’t touch a sample they didn’t record themselves. They want to keep their whole work and productions perfectly original. The same goes for non-electronic musicians who don’t like sampling or any “computer music” at all because to them it “isn’t original”. But what’s the point? If it works it works – go for it regardless of the source! If you see a sample library, loop kit or anything else with sounds which absolutely fit your expectation then why not take it? Why reinvent the wheel? Buy Loop Kits or anything else. You still have be pretty creative to make your own music.
In conclusion, don’t quit using samples or loops. It is all about the end product – and the music!