Version history

ADDED: AAX Plugin migration is now available from Kontakt 6 and 7 to Kontakt 8

ADDED: New amp and stomp effects, Super Fast 100, Chainsaw, Kolor, Skreamer Deluxe

FIXED: Space bar did not get picked up by the DAW after a Tool has been loaded

FIXED: Crash when showing the Batch Resave dialog in default view

FIXED: Crash when restoring a ProTools project with a large number (>10) of Kontakt instances

FIXED: Previews continued to play after Tool or Leap presets were loaded from the Default View side pane

FIXED: Drag and drop to create an instance of Kontakt in ProTools brought up the Missing Content dialog

FIXED: Tool “Retrigger” and “Dyn Mode” macro knobs did not show values in Maschine/Komplete Kontrol or when automated

FIXED: Tool “Retrigger” and “Dyn Mode” macro knobs did not show values in Maschine/Komplete Kontrol or when automated

IMPROVED: Bass Invader amp can now process stereo signals

FIXED: Playback stopped if pointer is moved while playing

FIXED: Macro knobs on play page were missing hover states

FIXED: Issues after duplicating samples

FIXED: Snap functionality took points after the sample end and start into account when snapping in Auto or REX mode using Beat Machine 

FIXED: Stuck latched notes in scaled mode

FIXED: Parameter labels were not drawing on Kontrol MK3

FIXED: Changing audio device in Bitwig brought up the Missing Content dialog

FIXED: Changing the engine of any sample killed all current voices

FIXED: Replacing a playing latched loop led to a stuck note on virtual keyboard

FIXED: Could not load Leap presets in ProTools if they reside in a path with extended characters

IMPROVED: Perform FX and Macro FX toggles are now pinned to both Sound and Engine tabs

CHANGED: Send FX now allow different delay and reverb effects to be selected

CHANGED: Snap mode now defaults to Grid

ADDED KSP: $NI_EPP_EQ_MODE_E_GRAND built-in constant

FIXED KSP: Regression with $EVENT_NOTE and $EVENT_VELOCITY built-in variables having random values in multiscript

FIXED KSP: (N)RPN messages sent from multiscript did not reach instrument scripts

IMPROVED KSP: NKS2 parameter groups can now have up to 48 parameters

ADDED API: set_zone_group() command

ADDED: New side pane Navigator and Browser in the new Default view

ADDED: Browsing can now filter by Preset types (Instruments, Combined, Tools, Leap, Loops, One-shots)

ADDED: Full-screen Browser now shows onboarding information about different Preset types

IMPROVED: Full-screen Browser now shows Presets in a single column

IMPROVED: Bank chain can now be edited when tagging Presets

IMPROVED: Overlay and side panel browsers can now display high-resolution assets

ADDED: New default sample instrument type for loop and oneshot based workflows - Leap

ADDED: New MIDI processing instrument type - Tools (Chords and Phrases)

ADDED: 5 new effects from Traktor: Beat Masher, Beat Slicer, Gater, Reverse Grain, Transpose Stretch

ADDED: Wavetable source module now has a second Shaper and a Modulation Oscillator, allowing various audio rate processes: frequency, phase or ring modulation, mixing in with the wavetable

IMPROVED: Instantiation time with a lot of content products and 3rd party plugins installed

IMPROVED: Kontakt now has 28 stereo outputs specified by default, allowing easier multi-out workflows out of the box

IMPROVED: Beat Machine now supports reverse sample playback

IMPROVED: Increased the maximum amount of external modulators to 64 per group

IMPROVED: Replika delay has greatly reduced memory usage and feature parity with the standalone plugin (except Dual mode)

FIXED: Polyphonic Aftertouch modulator was not applied per voice correctly

FIXED: Beat Machine playback did not take sample start and end markers into account

FIXED: LFO Fade In now behaves as expected (previously it clamped to maximum value earlier than it was supposed to)

FIXED: MIDI Transpose setting in Instrument Options now also transposes MIDI Polyphonic Aftertouch events

REMOVED: Memory server functionality on macOS

ADDED: Support for Komplete UI language

ADDED KSP: New MIR functions for key and tempo detection

ADDED KSP: Engine parameters for newly added effects, Replika parameters and Wavetable source module parameters

ADDED KSP: $ENGINE_PAR_VOICE_GROUP, allows setting a group to a specific voice group

ADDED KSP: Support for MIDI 2.0 Per-Note controllers (on note_controller callback, set_note_controller() command)

ADDED KSP: New command to send polyphonic aftertouch events, set_poly_at()

ADDED KSP: New command to get display value of an engine parameter based on externally provided value, get_engine_par_disp_ext()

IMPROVED: Warnings are not shown as errors anymore in Creator Tools Debugger and Kontakt Lua API terminal

IMPROVED KSP: get_folder() can now get the path of the Resource Container linked to the instrument

IMPROVED KSP: note_off() now has an optional argument for specifying the time offset after which note off will be applied

IMPROVED KSP: make_instr_persistent() now works with string array variables

FIXED KSP: Beat Machine did not respond to change_tune() commands

FIXED KSP: Regression in load_array() behavior when loading string arrays (since Kontakt 6.7)

FIXED KSP: Regression where $ENGINE_PAR_LR_SWAP and $ENGINE_PAR_PHASE_INVERT did not point to Inverter effect in instrument busses (since Kontakt 7.2)

FIXED KSP: Setting $ZONE_PAR_VOLUME was incorrectly clamped to 31.02 semitones

FIXED KSP: mf_set_event_par() created duplicate events when using $EVENT_PAR_POS

ADDED API: factory_snapshot_path and user_snapshot_path entries in the Instrument Options table

FIXED API: set_group_start_options() now properly obeys the given group index

ADDED: New effects: EP Preamps, Fuzz, Big Fuzz, Stereo Tune

ADDED: Option for double click Preset loading behavior ("Loading → Files, Libraries, Quick-Load: Double-clicking a file replaces currently selected instrument slot")

IMPROVED: Loading speed when switching between snapshots of an actively loaded Instrument, when initiated from Library Browser

IMPROVED: Increased the font size in Instrument Navigator

IMPROVED: Instrument focus indicator (orange strip on the left of instrument header) is now only visible in Rack View

IMPROVED: Use the resizer from Library Browser all across Kontakt

IMPROVED: Kontakt now supports “Open with…” OS behaviors with samples, creating an instrument that has the specified sample mapped

FIXED: Crash when Kontrol mk3 Hardware Connection Service not installed on macOS

FIXED: Crash when playing a note after changing the output configuration with an already loaded Preset

FIXED: Replika delay in Diffusion mode would not output sound when note duration was shorter than delay time

FIXED: Visual glitches when resizing Kontakt’s window across multiple displays

FIXED: Replika delay not recalling delay time values correctly when loading snapshots that switch to Tape, Analogue and Vintage styles

FIXED: CPU overloads during tempo ramps when Replika delay is bypassed

REMOVED: Several entries in Options, which are now permanently enabled

ADDED: Simplified application header for efficient access to key functions

Added: Text search enhancements to full-screen Browser, allowing searches across full or partial names of libraries, instruments, presets, tags, and more

Added: Search results display additionally available libraries in "New Instruments for you" panel

Added: Options → Interface → "Display fullscreen Browser when launching new Rack View" to display fullscreen Browser for new Kontakt instances in Rack View. The Browser is always shown in Single View

Added: 50% zoom setting

IMPROVED: Double-clicking a preset in Files tab, Libraries tab or Quick-Load will now replace the preset loaded in the currently selected slot, instead of adding it to the Rack

IMPROVED: Access fullscreen Browser by clicking Kontakt logo in application header. The About Box is accessed via the NI logo

FIXED: Intermittent CPU spikes on macOS (introduced in Kontakt 7.6.1)

FIXED: Regression in KSP message logging performance when Developer Options are enabled, causing CPU spikes in certain libraries

FIXED: RAM footprint no longer increases after prolonged use

FIXED: Instrument focus strip in instrument header now updates when using previous / next instrument buttons within instrument edit mode

FIXED: Correct visual state for Library button when instantiating Kontakt

REMOVED: "Batch resave" and "Batch collect / Compress samples" options in File menu will not show in plugin mode anymore

ADDED: Kontakt can now be used directly with Kontrol MK3 keyboards

CHANGED: Options → Loading → "Ask for confirmation when loading or replacing modified instruments" is now set to off for all users

CHANGED: Options → Handling → "MIDI channel assignment for loaded patches" option is now set to "Assign to omni" for all users

CHANGED: Options → Interface → both “Suppress drawing” options are now found in Mapping Editor’s Edit → Display options

CHANGED: It is now possible to focus on an empty instrument slot even in Single view

IMPROVED: Per instance persistence of the Kontakt GUI state, which includes the layout (e.g. visibility of keyboard, info bar, side pane), zoom settings and full-screen browser

IMPROVED: Loading an Instrument from full-screen browser now replaces the focused Instrument instead of adding it to the rack

IMPROVED: Quick-Load menus in the top left of the instrument header now tells the user if Quick-Load is empty

ADDED: 20 new Form shapes for the Wavetable source module

ADDED: Vibrato/Chorus and Wow/Flutter factory presets from Guitar Rig 7

FIXED: Kontakt would not respect offline rendering mode flag sent from host with the VST3 target

FIXED: S1200 and MP60 sampler modes did not work

FIXED: Typing a value for the Rate parameter of Vibrato/Chorus did not work correctly

ADDED KSP: NKS2 parameters and navigation can be defined with KSP commands

ADDED KSP: New control parameter, $CONTROL_PAR_TYPE, which returns the type of UI widget belonging to a specific UI ID

ADDED KSP: New control parameter, $CONTROL_PAR_CUSTOM_ID, which allows assigning a custom value to each UI widget

ADDED KSP: New internal constant, $NI_UI_ID, which returns the UI ID of the widget that executed the UI callback

ADDED KSP: $EVENT_PAR_MIDI_CHANNEL can now be set for events in instrument scripts

ADDED KSP: Engine parameter for Raum Predelay tempo sync ($ENGINE_PAR_RAUM_PREDELAY_UNIT)

FIXED KSP: Twin Delay Predelay tempo sync, Cross and Width engine parameters did not work correctly

FIXED KSP: $EVENT_PAR_MOD_VALUE_(EX_)ID getter now works properly when there is an active voice attached to the specifie d event ID

FIXED KSP: Incorrect wording in script warning for get_group_idx() command

IMPROVED: “Version too old” dialog now refers to the exact Kontakt version required to open a preset

IMPROVED: Orange instrument focus rectangle is now reduced to a strip on the left side of the instrument header

IMPROVED: Mapping Editor display option adjustments are now stored immediately upon change

FIXED: Crash when attempting to save an instrument that attempts to MIDI learn or host automate above 512th instance of a KSP widget

FIXED: Crash when instantiating a send effect when the output channel is set to Mono

FIXED: Crash on quickly swapping presets while notes are playing under certain condition

FIXED: Rare seemingly random voice dropouts in DFD mode when using loop crossfades

FIXED: From script modulator could cause Kontakt to hang under certain conditions

FIXED: Virtual keyboard was not shown by default when instantiating Kontakt on fresh install

FIXED: Kontakt did not instantiate in single mode on fresh install

FIXED: set_controller() did not work in persistence_changed callback when instrument is set to Omni

FIXED KSP: $ENGINE_PAR_RINGMOD_LFO_WAVE getter always returned 0

FIXED KSP: DFD preload buffer issue when using zone parameter setters on purged zones

CHANGED: Minimum supported macOS version is now 11.0

ADDED: Seven new effects: Bite, Dirt, Freak, Raum, Twin Delay, Vibrato/Chorus, Wow/Flutter

IMPROVED: Context menus now follow zoom scaling settings

IMPROVED: Rendering quality of raster images in Native UI based instruments

IMPROVED: MIDI files dragged out of Kontakt don't have the copyright message anymore

IMPROVED: NKG files are now visible in Files browser and also loadable or importable via double-click or drag and drop

IMPROVED: Maximum number of host automation slots increased to 2048

FIXED: Legato button did not work in any Tone/Time Machine mode except TMPro

FIXED: Clicking on virtual keyboard when Kontakt was in Single view did not respect the MIDI channel setting of multiple loaded instruments

ADDED: A button for loading the first preset directly from the instrument tile

ADDED: Filtering by brand

ADDED: Filtering by sub-bank

ADDED: User-authored presets can now have sound and character type metadata edited in bulk via multi-selection

ADDED: Warning dialog with a list of files that failed to import

FIXED: Scroll position is set to zero when the result list is resized

FIXED: Resizing the window no longer resets the result list selection

FIXED: Folders beginning with "-" can now be imported

FIXED: Content type does not update with the focused module slot

ADDED: Kontakt Lua API, enabled through the new Developer panel in Options dialog

ADDED Various options for showing or hiding incoming, script generated and ignored events in Mapping Editor

ADDED: Source module’s playback mode can now be retrieved with $ENGINE_PAR_SOURCE_MOD getter

ADDED: Option to snap sample start/end to zero crossings in Wave Editor

ADDED: Option to copy sample end setting to all selected zones in Wave Editor

ADDED: “continue” statement is now available in KSP

ADDED: Real arrays can now be stored to and loaded from NKA files

ADDED: Selection state of a zone can now be queried with $ZONE_PAR_SELECTED zone parameter, and a list of all currently selected zones can be retrieved with get_sel_zones_idx() command

ADDED: set_map_editor_event_color() KSP command, which allows changing color of script-generated events in Mapping Editor, individually per script slot

IMPROVED: Snap to value or zero crossing options in Wave Editor are now retained per instrument, rather than per zone

IMPROVED: Internal modulator and modulation target KSP information is now always shown if Developer Options checkbox is enabled

IMPROVED: TMPro polyphony can now be set to 0 via KSP, in order to match the range of the related parameters in Instrument Options->Voice Handling dialog

IMPROVED: Snapshot files (.NKSN) can now be loaded from the File->Load… dialog

IMPROVED: Reorganized Mapping and Group Editor context menus

IMPROVED: Reorganized effect selection context menu

FIXED: Boolean “not” operator would not correctly invert a boolean expression that consisted of only literals or constants

FIXED: Function call stack would collapse entirely if “exit” statement was used at the beginning of user defined functions, rather than only exiting the currently called function

ADDED: Zoom scaling of Kontakt application UI

FIXED: Snapshots couldn't be saved when Ring Modulator LFO Wave parameter was modified from KSP

FIXED: Crash when selecting items from dropdown menus in Playbox

FIXED KSP: Reset waitless while loop iteration counter on every while loop instead of once per callback and increased the amount of such iterations to 10 million

ADDED: Option to snap sample start and end to zero crossing in Wave Editor.

IMPROVED: Selecting one of the loop snapping modes in the Wave Editor is now global for the instrument instead of per zone.

IMPROVED: Any change in Options dialog is now stored immediately after closing the dialog instead of after exiting Kontakt.

FIXED: PsycheDelay and Ring Modulator Info Pane help texts were mostly missing.

IMPROVED: KSP in_range() command now also works with real expressions.

IMPROVED: KSP Added optional arguments to sort() command which allows sorting only a range of the array instead of the whole array.

FIXED: KSP Script warning for get_mod_idx() and get_target_idx() commands now correctly refers to the names of those commands.

FIXED: White noise burst in some cases when Spread parameter of Stereo Modeller was modulated.

ADDED: Link to online store for quick access to additional content.

CHANGED: Update to in-app branding.

ADDED: Bus amplifier section now includes phase invert and L/R swap controls.

ADDED: Naming voice groups is now possible in Group Editor.

ADDED: Stereo Modeller Pan parameter can now be modulated.

ADDED: Lo-Fi Color parameter can now be modulated.

ADDED: Lowpass and Highpass filters in Solid EQ.

ADDED: Repack NKR button in Instrument Options dialog (only shows if the instrument has a resource container assigned).

ADDED: Collection of new wavetables and single cycle waveforms.

ADDED: Several new mod shaper presets.

IMPROVED: Previous and next instrument buttons in Single View are now disabled if only one instrument is loaded.

IMPROVED: Output section now correctly recalls effect slot settings saved in output section presets.

IMPROVED: Show additional useful info about the instrument in Monitor > Groups and Monitor > Zones panes.

IMPROVED: All remaining dropdown menus are replaced with HiDPI menus.

FIXED: TMPro Legato behavior was incorrect since Kontakt 7.1.3.

FIXED: Kontakt would crash attempting to reveal a sample in the Mapping Editor with no sample selected.

FIXED: Bass Pro would always process the signal in stereo even if Mono button was enabled.

FIXED: Mismatch in sample rate during sample analysis for AET filter which caused incorrect frequency response for non-44.1k samples.

FIXED: In certain cases the performance view would be incorrectly shifted in the rack.

FIXED: In certain cases the performance view size would not be updated correctly.

FIXED: Slice Trigger group start condition listed available slices in the Trigger Zone menu, instead of Slice Index menu.

FIXED: Pitch Bend Down/Up Only mod shaper presets were affecting the tuning even when pitch bend controller was zeroed out.

FIXED: Harmonize and Harmonize - Tonal multi scripts produced an extraneous note off event for the original note.

REMOVED: Pop-out buttons for Mapping/Wave Editors in plugin versions.

ADDED: Purge all instances when Kontakt 7 is running as a plug-in.

ADDED: 6 pole state variable (SV) filters.

ADDED: Tone Machine and Time Machine 1 Smooth parameter modulation.

ADDED: Reveal sample location via Mapping Editor edit menu and Wave Editor command menu (cog).

IMPROVED: Maximum number of host automation slots increased to 1024.

IMPROVED: Flex envelope slope can now be modulated for the first 8 segments, and includes Loop and Oneshot parameters.

IMPROVED: Online KSP documentation can be directly accessed through the help menu.

FIXED: Right click to open Quick-Load not working.

FIXED: DAW key commands intercepted by Kontakt when running as a plug-in.

FIXED: Notes would auto repeat when holding a key when using QWERTY as virtual keyboard.

FIXED: Temporarily black performance view when loading Kontakt Factory Library 2 instruments.

FIXED: Plug-in window would not re-open after being closed in Renoise with Kontakt VST3.

FIXED: Crash using Quick-Load with a large number of entries. Number of visible entries has been reduced to 5000 as a consequence.

FIXED: Voices would hang with certain effects placed post amp.

FIXED: Time Machine Pro Legato would get out of sync when playing loops.

FIXED: Cabinet effect in Output section would cut off the sound.

FIXED: Excessive smoothing on group Tune parameter in wavetable mode.

FIXED: “Restore loops from samples” option in Wave Editor not working when using the same sample repeatedly.

FIXED: Auto-mapping using the “Make group name” token did not work properly.

FIXED: Pasting a group without samples would paste with samples, and pasting groups with samples was not refreshing the Mapping Editor.

FIXED: Loops 2-8 were not working in MP60, S1200 and TMPro modes.

ADDED: Presets list now displays and sorts Instruments, Multis and Snapshots by their file type.

ADDED: Reset Browser filter state.

ADDED: Import multiple Custom Libraries in bulk.

ADDED: Customize name of imported Custom Libraries (using the Alias field).

ADDED: Error messages for failed Library import.

IMPROVED: Tooltips display full text for Import Dialogue Folder path and Alias field, as well as Library tiles, in case when the text was truncated.

FIXED: Resized components are now correctly displayed when the Preset list is dragged horizontally.

Factory Library: The Factory Library has been redesigned and features seven new Collections of instruments, fresh sounds, effects, added functionality and a HiDPI interface. Refer to the Kontakt Factory Library Manual.

Library Browser: New Library Browser with advance filtering and tagging options. Refer to Browser and presets.

Two Effects: New PsycheDelay and Ring Modulator effects. Refer to PsycheDelay and Ring Modulator.

HiDPI: Kontakt is now HiDPI. To learn more, visit our FAQ.

Improved Engine: Updated time stretching algorithm.

Updated Side Pane: The Database tab has been removed, its function replaced with the new Library Browser. The Expert tab has been renamed to Monitor tab. Refer to Monitor Tab.