+ Producers, Synth Heads and Sci-Fi Nerds, our new course with synthwave pioneer, Com Truise: Mid-Fi Synthwave Slow-Motion Funk, is out now!
In a rut with your productions? We’ve all been there. I have put together a comprehensive list of the best Massive presets, both free and paid, for producers of all kinds.
There’s no better feeling than being able to stumble onto new presets, especially for such a great software like Massive. There are a ton of Massive preset packs and the reason why I wanted to put this article together is so that I could highlight the ones that I’ve used and been able to do research on so you don’t have to.
But first, here’s a handy explainer from our YouTube channel on how the oscillators and waveforms work in your synth, and how this knowledge can help you design custom patches for any imaginable sound!
Before we get into the list, let’s just do a quick history on Massive and the requirements. All of the following options that I list are royalty-free.
What Is Massive?
Massive is a wavetable synthesizer plugin similar to Serum. It came out in 2007 and quickly became a go-to option for a bunch of different genres because of its versatility, ease of use, and overall quality.
Massive was created by Native Instruments and it is easily one of their biggest creations to this day. With a total of 1300 stock presets, it gives producers a look into pretty much every type of sound you could want to explore.
System Requirements for Massive by Native Instruments
One thing I want to note with running Massive and downloading presets is that you will want to have a fast PC or laptop. I recommend having at least the following specs to provide you with a good experience.
There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to check out new Massive presets and having your computer freeze for 20 seconds at a time. The following specs will help prevent this:
- 2–3 GHz processor
- 16 GB of RAM
- NVIDIA Quadro FX series graphics card
- MacOS 10.12, 10.13, 10.14 or 10.15 (latest update)
- Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10
While these are the requirements for Massive, you will need additional space for the following presets listed below.
Best Presets for Massive
I graded the following presets below and placed them on this list based on the overall quality and uniqueness of the sounds in each collection. I have also listed which presets are best for which genres to make it easier to decide.
1) Loopmasters Ultimate Massive Presets (All Genres)
Loopmasters is a fantastic company that specializes in providing producers with high-quality sample packs and production software overall. This preset pack comes with over 400 presets for Massive including patches for all styles of production.
You can expect the presets to include EDM synths, drops, freaky house, glitch, techno, trap, dubstep, and DNB sounds. The reason why I really like these presets is that you get a wide variety of usable sounds and inspiration for all genres. If you’re someone dabbling with all sorts of genres, you will find this pack to be just what you need.
The one thing that surprised me with this pack is that you get 160 synth bass presets. This is a whopping number and most of these patches are ready for your mixes immediately.
2) Modern Massive Sounds (Trap/R&B/Future Pop)
Modern Massive Sounds provides you with 65 presets that are all targeted towards trap and R&B. These fit the production styles of everything that you might be hearing in current trap productions.
There’s a variety of bass sounds, plucked sounds, pads, and keyboards. Some of these keyboard patches are super slick and made me want to instantly download them and make tracks with them. These presets are more on the chill-trap side of productions, so if you’re looking for something less aggressive and dark; these are a good start.
3) Loopmasters Atmospheric Pads and Drones (Presets for Film Scoring/Trap)
Get ready for 64 presets of pads and drones. Drones have been all over modern productions for genres ranging from rap to even country. With this being said, I would recommend this batch of presets for those looking to make film-score productions. They have a warm feel to them that also feels mysterious and hopeful.
You can expect wide stereo pads along with some huge cinematic soundscapes.
4) Loopmasters Massive Drum Presets (DNB/House/Trap)
This collection of presets is all percussion presets for Massive. You can expect kicks, snares, hi-hats and one shots. The drum presets in this pack work best for those looking to make DNB, trap, house, and techno.
In other words, they work for a wide variety of electronic music and hip-hop. All in all, there are 80 custom presets that you can place into your productions from the second you download them.
5) Complextro Presets (Dubstep)
Complextro presets is a unique take on dubstep presets. You can expect a lot of wobbly bass sounds that blend and mix into an even more indie rock type of sound. There are 64 presets total with this pack and it provides you with 33 ripping leads and 20 basses. These sounds are very high energy, so get ready to create the next dance floor anthem.
+ Read more on Flypaper: “How to Build the Reese Synth Bass Patch in Netsky’s ‘Escape’”
Free Massive Presets and Samples
The above list represented my favorite overall Massive preset packs that are valuable for the price. Below is a list of different active free presets for Massive.
- Rekkerd – 70 presets
- Tri Samples – individual free samples for Massive VST
- Pulse Presets – 500 free presets for Massive (Dubstep)
- Amidy’s Secret Weapons – 10 free presets (EDM)
- Angelic Vibes – 100 free presets
- Synthmob – 50 presets
- Hidden Gems – 91 presets
- Samplephonics – over 100 presets (to try before you buy)
- Bitter Sweet Beatz – 30 presets (Garage and House)
What to Avoid with Massive Presets
Stay away from sketchy websites when it comes to downloading any software or plugins on your computer. All of the options that I have listed are all from reputable sources and secure websites.
Massive presets can elevate your game to the next level, whether they’re simply sparking inspiration or good enough to use immediately. And because these are all royalty free, you never need to worry about permissions to use these sounds in your final tracks.
I hope this list gives you some great options that can help you along on your journey.
Don’t stop here!
Continue learning with hundreds of lessons on songwriting, mixing, recording and production, composing, beat making, and more on Soundfly, with artist-led courses by Kimbra, Jlin, Kiefer, RJD2, Ryan Lott, and of course, Com Truise: Mid-Fi Synthwave Slow-Motion Funk.
