Ami Sampler Is A Free 8-bit Sampler Inspired By The Commodore Amiga

Astriid released the Ami Sampler, a free 8-bit sampler inspired by the sound of the Commodore Amiga personal computer from 1985.

The sampler is available on the Astriiddev GitHub, and it’s a Windows, macOS, and Linux release for VST3, AU, and LV2.                

The retro interface for the Ami Sampler captures the era’s aesthetic and looks fantastic. 

Astriid states that the sampler brings the sound and feel of the Commodore Amiga to modern productions. 

The Commodore Amiga personal computer hit the shelves back in 1985, sporting colourful 16-bit graphics and four channels of 8-bit sampled audio. 

The Amiga featured sample sequencing software such as ProTracker and OctaMED, and as a result, it was revolutionary in terms of making creating music on a computer affordable and accessible to the public. 

Astriid explains that the Ami Sampler is not an emulation or recreation of the Amiga’s capabilities, but instead “the Ami Sampler strives to take the classic sound of the Amiga but still allow it to stand up with a modern DAW setting.”

The developer notes that the release is also inspired by “ProTracker and FastTracker, [and]it also draws inspiration from trackers like Triton’s FastTracker II and MilkyTracker in addition to some modern sampler VST plugins.”

If you want to hear it in action, there are two video demos embedded in the GitHub that showcase the Ami Sampler.

The sound of the Ami Sampler demos is very striking and definitely captures an evocative retro vibe. 

The sounds showcased in the demos bring to mind ‘80s underground electronic music, synth-wave, and retro game soundtracks. 

Astriid explains that the Ami Sampler has a fairly standard control scheme that you’d expect from a sampler plugin. 

There are 12 samplers included, with each one offering volume, pan, ADSR, solo and mute controls. 

You can also set each channel to operate in one of the following: monophonic, four-voice polyphonic (PT poly) or eight-voice polyphonic (Octa poly).

Astriid’s personal favorite inclusion in the control scheme is the Paula switch. This is named after the Amiga’s audio processing chip Paula, which had the “limitation to only be able to pan hard left or hard right.”

Astriid continued, saying “This limitation in the Amiga could allow the user to create uniquely wide sounding pads when multiple channels play the same sample as a chord.”

The Paula switch creates a similar effect by alternating the pan for each note played in a sample. 

Download: Ami Sampler (FREE)

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