Dave Smith Instruments has released a new operating system for the Tempest drum machine, adding user-requested features, new sounds, beats and projects and more.
The new operating system, OS 1.4, and the new sound set ship with newly purchased instruments.
For users wanting to upgrade their Tempests:
- Version 1.4 is also available for download from the Tempest OS Support page.
- The new sound set is available from the Tempest Factory Sounds page.
Among the new features are:
- Increased sequence length (up to 128 sixteenth notes, or 8 measures of 4/4)
- Arpeggiation
- New modal scales
- Free-running LFOs
- Compressor envelope controls
- Quantize disable
- A total of 928 new factory sounds, 64 new beats, and 16 new projects
The new features are covered in the Tempest 1.4 Manual Addendum,
Here’s a video playlist that covers updating the Tempest and also the new features:
“The new OS adds several powerful new features to an already powerful instrument,” says Dave Smith. “And we’ve enlisted the talents of some heavy-hitting sound and beat designers to come up with an extensive amount of new content that’s fresh, inspiring, and versatile.”
“Our users have put Tempest to a lot of really creative and expressive uses and this upgrade is going to allow them to take it even further. We can’t wait to hear what they do with it next.”
The DSI Tempest has a MAP of $1999.
Merry Christmas. Hell has frozen over. Thanks, Dave!
Does that mean Tempest users will finally stop complaining on every DSI article?
I sure hope so. I wish they’d go buy an MPC if they’re not open to new ideas
DUH.
Sweet baby Jesus!!!
This is awesome. Downloading tomorrow! Free running lfos makes it a really powerful synth.
This is the update weve been waiting for. Tempest finally blossoms into full bloom!!
Cant wait to try this 🙂
I have the tetra and Mopho keyboard,I rank them as the best synths I have heard and owned. Heard the tempest recently at a friend’s it is stunning.
Drum machines are not my thing. (MPc user) but Dsi are the dogs gonads
call me ungrateful but they could have made updating the OS a little easer ………
am joking, many thanks to chris hector at dsi for his work it has always been appreciated, he should ask dave and roger if he can get his name on the thing.
Quote: ‘Be aware that the Tempest has a limit of 650 sound program locations’.
Number of new sounds in 1.4 is 450.
It’s a funny filesystem on the Tempest.
Not being a tempest user myself, but looking at those pictures here I see that they are different. Were there really 2 versions of tempest? Top left corner is different.
I would buy it now, if it played samples.
(And for the defenders, I don’t want everything, just the samples, and I don’t think a bit of memory would have increased the cost significantly. The functionality would have increased significantly.)
the voicing is setup to emphasize what you can do with the analog OSCs. It isn’t a sampler.
Half of its oscillators are NOT emphasizing nothing but what you could do with digital oscs…if they just implemented them well. It has samples, just no way to use your own.
It would have been better synth, if you could install your own samples. Put some memory into the MK2 and I buy it in a second.
GO and buy an MPC or analog Rytm.
better yet, get battery or simpler or something and use all the damn samples you want.
Dave smith offers a particular product, an analog drum machine with amazing capabilities that leaves many dedicated poly synths and stand alone sequencers for dead. They offer some in built samples which offer a broader horizon to supplement your sound design skills (required)
If you dont like this, bugger off and buy an MPC, its as simple as that.
its funny that people who own one love it, those who dont, dont. its that simple!!!
If you think you could make a better synth, insert into todays market, make a profit, then go ahead and show dave hows it done!!
bullshit. i own one and i don’t love it. if it imported samples (which at some point they said they consider implementing in future versions) – it’d make me love it indeed. now, how many years does it take to implement that? i’ve been waiting for the last 2 years since i bought it. anyways, this update is great, just not entirely what i hoped for so no love yet, no love…
Admin: Personal attack deleted.
Keep comments on topic and constructive.
The point is that this can do loads of things that the MPC can’t. Why not include that functionality too, just the ability to load samples, not necessarily chop and edit – you can do that on a PC. Then you have one device to rule them all.
Am I crazy for lusting over this for being an amazing 6-voice analog polysynth (the drums would an extra)? How are the filters? Same ones as in the P08/Mopho/Tetra?
yep, it s a curtis. Nice and metallic.
Wow, that’s a couple years too late…
Just installed new OS! Huge step ahead. Finally, sounds and projects designers starting to make justice to this amazing machine – really smart programming skills , hard to believe Tempest does not have any digital fx. Made for sound explorers, synth experts and music extremists , not for amateurs (they always going to complain about sample support, or reverb, or polyphony anyway)…the question is…even if I have enough $$$ to by this thing, do I have enough knowledge to use it how it really meant to be used?
This really is a HUGE update for the Tempest. The sound output is at least twice as loud which, for me, is a great addition. As some previous posters said, this instrument is extremely deep but you really have to spend some time with it to unlock the potential. It’s the type of tool that offers a lifetime of exploration.
Here is a cool track I made with the old OS. I’m really excited to implement it into new recordings. Again, if you spend the time with the Tempest, it will surely offer you capabilties that you simply can not get anywhere else.
Here is the track: https://soundcloud.com/damnrightmusic/stars-1
Cheers from Philly