The story
The Viking Log Lyre is a unique sampled instrument that was created, by hand by Philipp aka “the Viking Woodsmith”. Philipp who found a old tree somewhere in the woods that he transformed into this awesome lyre 3 years ago. Likely this is the only log lyre in existence, perhaps ever in history (we’re not really sure if any other cultures made lyres out of giant logs… not very practical). Philipp put bass strings on this lyre and the resulting sound is uniquely mesmerizing and haunting… it was only natural that I ask if I would be allowed to make this Viking Log Lyre into a sample instrument! Philipp readily agreed and here it is.
This sample pack has 2 presets: Clean and Punished. Both versions have Picked, Plucked, Bowed, and Bowed Evolutions samples, which can be independently controlled or played together, using volume knobs you can get quite interesting mixes. The Clean version also has Delay and Reverb, as well as a Filter, though this filter has to be set very low to have much effect (as the sound is down in the low Cs). The Punished version introduces Wavetable Distortion into the mix, giving a Metal / Rock vibe to the Viking Log Lyre, dialed low it just adds a bit of crunch.
I truly hope you enjoy using it!
Interface
Reviews for The Viking Log Lyre
- Sound
- Character
- Playability
- Inspiration
- GUI
Leave a review to let others know what you thought of the instrument!
Deep and Resonant
This instrument gives a very dark, moody feel that I love. My favorite knob is the Pluck, crank that up and the notes rumble. Although the range is somewhat limiting, the notes that are there give a tonal punch that I will be using in my scores. Another useful instrument from Dekoningtan!
Distinctive clean sound that encourages experiment
This is a lovely and unique instrument. Nicely produced and sounds very even and well intonated to my (amateur) ears.
The "distressed" set is not really my cup of tea but useful for many to have it - it's well done but the sound doesn't suit my style..
Overall the very atmospheric character is an inspiration that could find a place in a number of genres. For me at least this is a welcome new way of adding a bottom end to compositions.A bit tricky to use, but very cool!
I love the story and the idea behind this. This really has a unique sound. It sounds like the instrument of choice for a voyage through the smouldering plains of Muspelheim.
From the technical side of things, to me this sounds like a well-sampled instrument. As for controls, there are various articulations that can be blended together, there is ADSR, LPF, reverb, and delay. The delay is a little bit fast for my taste, but hey, I can just use a post-effect for that.
From a musician's perspective, I find this a bit of a tricky instrument. Using it often or busily can get overbearing very quickly, and unless you're going for that sort of thing, I tend to be a bit more tactical where I use it. I use the plucks and the picks samples as one-offs in folk arrangements where volume picks up a lot or fades out suddenly, to great effect I might add! Slow, hulking bass lines work well too, but it's tricky for it to be subtle. Composers of the more cinematic persuasion will likely enjoy using it this way too.
The bowed samples I find harder to use, the higher harmonics of that sound are truly gnarly. They sound great, I just haven't found a place for them yet. Probably would work well together with a few effects in a dark ambient project.
To summarize: a nicely sampled virtual instrument based on a very unique real instrument. It has a feisty character that forces you to think about where best to put it to use. Comes highly recommended, as far as I'm concerned, well done!
