Sound quality of all the instruments is 100% professional. To benefit fully from (mainly) the 'Big 5', you're just going to have to be patient and spend some time with them. I gave this an 8 instead of 10 mainly because I have the attention span of a nat, and want instant gratification when tweaking a new patch. Some effects and instruments are fairly straight-forward, while others offer a steep learning curve. Similar to a full-blown synth/workstation you may have to spend a little time with each VSTi to figure out the logic (and you'll have to spend the rest of your life realizing Reaktor's potential). No hard copy manuals for the included vst … read more effects or instruments.

The box also comes with a fairly basic install guide and some 'Komplete 8' stickers. Anyway, it's very convenient to simply plug it in, choose a folder to install and let it do its thing for the next (approx.) 2 hours. I suspect the packing methods used in the first run weren't refined like they were by the time I ordered mine, as those with faulty drives said the drive was loose in the box, flopping around during shipping.

I've read complaints about the hard drive being DOA for some people, but mine worked fine. Add everything else (Alici'a Keys, Studio Drummer, 70's Drums, Session Strings Pro, etc., etc.), and you have everything you need to make anything you need, from a Top-40 hit to a full-blown film score. Reaktor's included synths (i.e Razor, Spark) are stunning, and we're talking just the factory presets. Guitar Rig, Battery and Kontakt are industry-standard for a reason add Reaktor and you have limitless possibilities for sound design/manipulation. The sounds from the main synths (Absynth 5, FM8, Massive, Kontakt 5 and Reaktor 5.6) are worth the cost of admission. The only other products I regularly use are Spectrasonics' suite (Omni, Trilian, RMX).

NI products just keep getting better all the time. I can't see the day when I will outgrow this, but if/when they release Komplete 9, I'll be ordering my copy.

Komplete ultimate 11 review