Kontakt libraries are wonderful. It's multi layered samples from the actual instrument (Scarbee samples real Fender Mark 1 Keys).

Only reason why I have kontakt libraries is because i kept the software provided with maschine. You got to make sure you have enough cpu... unless your gonna play things one at a time in oppose to using different midi channels with your midi keyboard.

they recommend 6GB of RAM.
i'm clocking 8GB..

When I mess with Kontakt & any other vst, that's what I do (bounce to audio) & I prefer doing it, even if it isn't overloading my cpu. It allows me to mess with it as a vst & use whatever features it has & then after bouncing it, I can mess with it as a sample. You can come up with some cool shit that way (first play with the sound as an instrument then play with the sound as a sample).

That's basically my workflow now.
I want to use more than one instance sometimes though... so i push it right before my fan turns on

Kontakt is definitely an underrated sampler!
real time time stretching that not even maschine mk3 has
i made a couple of beats with the kontakt sampler... if it were more ergonomic (like a dedicated midi controller for all the parameters) then i'd recommend that for those looking for a digital sampler.

As far as commercial plugins I regularly use Infected Mushroom Pusher and J37 Tape from Waves (both great), plus Decimort from D16, some plugins from Soundtoys and Native Instrument Reaktor, Massive and Replika. Daw Cassette from Klevergrand is amazing. So are SPL Attacker and Rockrack from Plugin Alliance. I recommend them.

But I also use free plugins which are fantastic, such as the ones from HorNet, Atom, George Yohng's W1 Limiter and many more.

I feel the same way about cheap limited gear. Or using found sounds. Pretty much anything that's considered challenging in some way. Like not using quantize, not using a sequencer, making your own sounds, using free vst's, ect.

It's impressive when someone can make an amazing beat using sounds and device's that most people have a hard time with.

That's actually a good idea for a beat battle - Make a beat only using sounds from free vst's.

I am definitely going to try this!

Any one interested in a "free vst" battle, check out the arena, Lif started an all synth battle, can only use the free vst's he posted. There is still about a week left.

I've always hated cheap/fake drum sounds from vst's (hard to describe "cheap/fake" is the best I can do), but Bye is so right...... adding effects does a lot. I pulled up the free drum vst Lif posted, added reverb to some of the hits (which is included in the vst), dumped the drums into the sx, put lofi on all of the drums, the sx lofi is a little harsh, so I resampled all drums with lo-pass, you could still hear a bit of the tone lofi adds, but lo-pass makes it not so harsh & just doing that made the drums sound pretty good. I was impressed! Doesn't sound analog But still soundin good! & I really didn't do much to them.