Battery vs 'Fully-fledged samplers'

Hi
Can anyone advise me as to why I need Battery if I'm planning to buy, say, Gigastudio or Halion? I've seen a review
of Battery which says it's the dog's doodahs, but I'm wondering what the point of it is if I buy a 'proper' sampler.
Thanks in advance.

Battery has a very different interface than your standard sampler - it's tailored more toward single hit samples, including layers. Key mapping is very simple - load the sample into the 'slot' and then choose it's trigger key - done! You can also edit loop points, loop repeats, envelopes and all the rest of it, but it's almost all right in front of your face - no hidden menus. For doing multi-layered sampled drums/sounds, I think it's almost essential, especially if speed and ease of use are important.

I agree with bombastique, to work with Battery is really fun and very easy. But to have a sampler that is as flexible as possible, Kontakt (also from Native Instruments like Battery) seems to be very interesting. Is there anybody who already tried Kontakt?

If you need something to get by until you drop the serious bucks for Halion, Battery, etc., check out LoopAZoid (free download, www.loopazoid.com). No velocity layers/switching at all, though (big limitation), but if you'd just like to occasionally use a "real" perc. sample instead of whatever telltale "fake" sounding version your synth provides (say, cymbals or a specific snare/kick), it might be just the ticket - & it's rock-solid.

[This message has been edited by SoundWrangler (edited 06-03-2002).]