Native Instruments' FM8 comes with lots of killer pre-programmed sounds. You can browse through them in much the same way as you browse a web site using Safari, Netscape, Firefox, etc. The first step is to go to the Browser, which is your "roadmap" for locating particular Sounds by using the powerful system of Attributes that characterize each and every Sound, not just in FM8, but in all NI Sound products. This unified format helps when you are switching between NI's various virtual instruments.

Once the Browser is open, you can click on the Database View button. Now the FM8 library is at your fingertips. On the left are the five Category columns. These contain the Attributes used to tag, classify, and search all Sounds across the entire NI family of instruments that support KORE Sounds. From the far left you could choose Piano/Keys from under Instruments, then Electric and Synthetic under the Source header. Next you could click on Bright from the Timbre Category, and from under Articulation, you'd select Decaying (since we're starting with a keyboard sound). Each time you select one of the Attributes, your search narrows until finally, you choose from the Search Results displayed on the right. In this case, we'll select the FM8 Sound Soft Rhodes. This is the best way to grasp the depth of the Factory Presets. For the great majority of players, there will probably never be a reason to go beyond the library of Sounds that come standard with FM8.