Bizarre Sitar: Compact Sitar Kontakt Instrument by Soundiron

The library covers three main sound sources. Plucked articulations include 10 round-robin variations across 5 to 6 velocity layers. Strummed articulations include 10 round-robins across 4 to 8 velocity layers, and the strums were recorded at several speeds for both the unison and fifth tunings.

The unison strum is tuned with strings in unison and several octaves, which gives a full sound. The fifth strum is tuned in fifths, similar to the Pancham-Kharaj tuning popularized by Ravi Shankar. Bowed articulations cover staccato, tremolo and sustained notes. An FX group adds string mutes, fret scrapes and other special effects.

An onboard Speed slider sets the timing of each strum, from tight, fast strums to slower, plucky ones. It is MIDI assignable and defaults to the mod wheel. The Kontakt interface also provides LFO, filter, pitch, vibrato, attack, release, and layering controls, plus an arpeggiator with a velocity table and a key and scale lock.

The modular FX rack holds up to 10 of 18 DSP modules in any order. Its convolution reverb includes 99 rooms, halls, chambers and outdoor spaces, plus 40 custom FX impulses. Twenty sound-designed FX and ambient presets are included. The sample folders are unlocked, so the wav files can also be used in other wav-compatible software.