Beat Garden ROM review.
2003-10-21 by rabidmusic
After owning the XL and Techno ROM's I eagerly purchased the Beat Garden. This ROM has some of the best sounds available on an Emu ROM, yet it is also one of the most disappointing compilations. As demonstrated by the mp3's posted on the Emu site, the Beat Garden ROM is aimed at the techno market. It is meant to compliment the Techno ROM and is included in the Orbit 3 module. As you explore the patches the ROM starts out very strong. Rob Papin did a good job at creating some unique sounds from the versatile Emu engine. There are loads of kits and I assume this is why it is named "Beat Garden". My dissatisfaction is with the balance of the included sounds. While it has some of the best synth patches, the primary focus is on percussion. The ethnic percussion patches to not quite match up to those available on the World Expedition, Sounds of the ZR, or Ensoniq Project ROM. Some of the full kits are nice and the synth percussion sounds are great, but then you get into what seems to be a flood of bass drum and snare patches. A few people may like the variety of bass drum and snares. If you are very picky about these sounds and searching for a lot of variety then Beat Garden is a must. To me this ROM seems to be rushed into production. Testing the presets brings a lot of excitement and satisfaction, and then the bottom suddenly drops out. It is almost like the sound designer ran out of ideas. Patch after patch of bass drums and snares made me feel like I had purchased half of a ROM. Maybe this is why the price dropped on Beat Garden before any other ROM. For value I place it behind the XL, Techno, Mo Phatt and Ensoniq Project when considering ROM's based on techno or hip-hop sound sets. Pros Some of the best synth patches and synth kits on any ROM. Cons Way too many junk patches and way too many bass drum and snare sounds. Once you use the signature sounds on the ROM there is not much left. Robert