Although the free Kontakt Player works perfectly fine for most libraries, Native Access libraries cannot be loaded via this method and require purchasing of full version of Kontakt. To gain access to them you must purchase full copy.
Many great companies provide libraries for both the free Kontakt Player and its full version, which significantly expand your sound palette.
Getting Started
Native Instruments Kontakt is one of the world’s most beloved sample-based software tools for music production, a favorite in almost every studio worldwide. As host for instruments created both by its users as well as third-party developers, and boasting one of the deepest communities of developers around. Although there are other soft-samplers such as Sine from Orchestral Tools or UVI Falcon – none has achieved as widespread popularity or widespread support as Native Instruments Kontakt.
Are You Looking to Expand Your Digital Sound Palette Beyond Freebies in DAWs? Then it is time to dive in to Kontakt. However, first it is essential that you understand some fundamental facts about this powerful tool.
The free Kontakt Player provides access to licensed instruments (those found in the Libraries pane) from both Native Instruments and 3rd party developers that use the Kontakt licensing system; however, some libraries that do not comply require purchasing the full version of Kontakt in order to run.
Each loaded Instrument in Kontakt features individual MIDI and audio routing settings. To select which MIDI Port or Channel it responds to in the MIDI tab by simply clicking its name and choosing its value from the drop-down menu, as shown here.
MIDI
KONTAKT PLAYER supports sample-based instruments created by Native Instruments and some third parties, with controls like sliders and knobs, that contain audio samples. Additionally, “licensed” libraries (showing up in Libraries browser) as well as unlicensed libraries from your files can be hosted here.
Kontakt is a powerful sampler that lets you create and edit software instruments before playing them back. In addition, it hosts hundreds of libraries from other developers – providing you with an ever-expanding palette of creative sounds to work with.
NI offers both the free version of Kontakt and its premium counterpart, Kontakt Full. Full provides more comprehensive support for libraries specifically created for it (not just serial-numbered libraries).
Kontakt has an integrated MIDI engine and supports standard MIDI messages and controllers, allowing you to connect any MIDI device directly with its interface and manipulate its knobs, switches and sliders.
Kontakt instruments offer many controls that can be assigned a MIDI CC number through their “MIDI Learn” function, making assigning controls to specific numbers easy. Simply right-click any control, choose “MIDI Learn,” and move an associated control on your MIDI device; instantly send this MIDI message back to the instrument which will cause its values to change on-screen.
Audio
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Kontakt is a sample-based music production platform with thousands of virtual instruments ranging from simple drum kits to complex orchestral arrangements. Furthermore, its powerful wave editor includes deep routing features as well as an advanced scripting language for power users. Native Instruments or third-party developers may license instruments through Kontakt Player while the free Player cannot create new instruments (only edit existing ones).
The full version of Kontakt, included with Komplete 14, includes an Instrument Creator and Editor that makes instrument creation much more complex, such as mapping samples to keys, adjusting amplifiers and envelopes, scripting behavior for special behavior etc. In addition, creating instruments in full version also gives access to additional audio/MIDI routing options that don’t exist within Player or 15-minute demo mode.
Many third-party sample library developers create instruments specifically for Kontakt’s full version to expand your sonic palette. These instruments are known as Licensed instruments as they have been issued a serial number and can be seen in its Libraries browser; the free Kontakt Player does not support them and instead displays red DEMO text instead of their actual instrument names.
Patching
Third-party libraries that don’t feature Native Access integration may not appear in the Library Tab and must instead be manually loaded using your operating system’s file browser to locate their instrument files and drag and drop onto an instance of Kontakt or your host sequencer.
Cinesamples’ free Diamond Jazz Trio provides a nice piano with some stunning pads, along with alto sax and double bass instruments – offering the ideal opportunity to test out their sound and playability before making a purchase decision.
Another potential source of incompatibility issues with an instrument can be when it was created in a version of Kontakt higher than yours; when this occurs, the Instrument will display a “Samples Missing” dialogue asking you for samples necessary for using it.
If this issue arises, ensure all instances of Kontakt and your host sequencer have been closed before launching the NI Service Center from within Kontakt (not via Native Access app). This will automatically scan for libraries installed or activated within your KONTAKT file folder and load them and display their details in the NI Service Center.