Install a sample pack

What it is for

Take a folder of downloaded samples and copy it, organized, into your library, seeing the result before copying. Your originals are not changed.

Video

Step by step

1. Open the Packs tab and click Install New Sample Pack.
2. Under Pack folders:
   • Sample source: click Select and choose the pack folder.
   • Output directory: where the library is created (it comes from Settings).
   • Pack name: optional. If you leave it empty, the folder name is used.
   • Multi-pack: tick it if the source folder contains several packs at once.
3. Organization mode:
   • Type → Pack: the type folder first (Kicks, Snares…), then the pack.
   • Pack → Type: the pack first, then the type.
4. Audio File Types: tick the formats (WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, OGG, M4A). At least one.
5. Sample filters: leave All or tick only the types you want (Kicks, Snares, Claps, Hats, Perc, Ride, FX, Loops, Vocals, MIDI).
   • Custom filters: create one (name + keywords) and click Add. Sonora looks for the words in the file name.
6. Click Analyze.
7. Under Preview Installation you see the folder tree that will be created, with the file count in each folder.
   • Untick a folder to leave out all the files in it (and in its subfolders).
   • Include all / Exclude all tick or untick everything.
   • Use the zoom (− / 100% / +) or Ctrl + wheel to see better.
8. If you change a filter or folder, the “Preview is outdated” notice asks you to Analyze again.
9. Happy with it? Click Start Installation. Follow the Log.
10. At the end you see Installation completed! and the pack joins your library (Samples tab).

Tips

• Always Analyze first: it is your safety net.
• When installing, Sonora copies the files into the structure chosen in the preview.
• Custom filters cover cases the default types do not (e.g. “Riser”, “Vocal Chop”).

If something goes wrong

“Invalid folder. No supported samples or structure was found.”

The folder has no files in the ticked formats. Tick more formats or choose the right folder.

“No file type selected.”

Tick at least one audio file type.

I installed it wrong.

Go to Packs, then Installed Packs, and click Remove on the pack. That deletes Sonora’s copy, not your originals.

Still stuck? See Section 23 or talk to Support.

Questions about this section

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