Cloud-based sampling software like Splice & Loopcloud are great tools for music producers looking to expand their library of samples. They allow you to pick and choose sounds from professional packs, and use credits to purchase the ones you like.
This has revolutionised the way samples are consumed by producers, and it means they can pay a small monthly fee to get the sounds they want, rather than buying endless packs and not using half the sounds.
But for all its pro’s & cons – is Splice really worth it?
In this article, we’ll answer that question as a TLDR, and as an in-depth answer, if you’d like to read on and learn more.
Contents
Is Splice Worth it? (Quick Answer)
Splice is worth it for beatmakers. For as little as $7.99/month, you get 100 credits to use on samples and presets, as well as unlimited cloud storage to back up your projects. If you want fresh, high-quality samples from popular producers – get Splice.
Pros
✅ Great, 100% free, royalty-free samples for a low price per month
✅ Cloud storage to backup project files to, and share with artists to collaborate
✅ Fantastic UI & search, that can help you find the exact sound you’re looking for
✅ Selection from presets, loops or one-shots
✅ You get to keep all the samples you purchase, even without a subscription
✅ Great rent-to-own subscription model for plugins that are expensive
Cons
❌ It’s hard to use all the credits you get per month. Would be better as pay as you go service.
❌ Annoying to constantly flick through samples & download. You can only use them from the splice UI, which is also a drawback
Sample Quality – Are Splice Samples Any Good?
Splice samples are great quality. There’s a huge library of incredible melodies, one-shots and even presets for synths. They’re best for beatmakers. Genres like Hip Hop, EDM, and heavy beat-based, quantised genres will be perfect for Splice.
Splice has a large range of music producer driven sample packs.
What we mean by this is that, you can expect to find sample packs from popular producers, rather than record labels and professional sound designers.
Some of the most popular packs include:
- Decap Drums That Knock (All Volumes)
- The Kount Drum Packs (All Volumes)
- Karra Vocal Packs (All Volumes)
- Tchami Serum Presets & Samples
Splice is especially good for heavy, electronic beats. It isn’t as good at instrument samples, RnB, soul and things of instrumental nature.
You will find good piano and guitar samples, but there are better options for electronic stuff. There’s also a lack of packs for more niche genres like Hyperpop sample packs, and emerging genres.
All samples are quality checked before being allowed on Splice, and they have strict rules for new producers submitting packs to them. This ensures that you’re getting the best quality sample packs possible.
Ease of Use & Search – What’s The UI & Usability Like?
The UI is really clean and easy to navigate. You can search by genre, key, BPM & more, filtering your results. The usability is a bit poor though. You have to use a browser to search sounds, spend credits on them, and then use the desktop app, to download them for use in your DAW.
This is a bit of a frustrating process, and we really wish they’d include a search function inside the desktop app, like Loopcloud does.
Inside the desktop app you’ll be able to find your project backups, samples, presets and plugins, but won’t be able to preview or download sounds that you want to purchase.
The samples tab is really well laid out, with filters for instruments, genres & favourites, and can get you to the perfect sound in moments.
Other than the annoying flip between browser and app, Splice is a pleasure to use.
Plugins – Is Splice Rent To Own Good?
Splice also include the ability to purchase plugins at a reduced, monthly price. These plans are called RTO (or rent to own), and they are offered at 0% interest.
They allow you to buy a plugin like Serum, and pay it in monthly installments for 18 months, until you own it fully.
This feature in Splice is really what sets it apart from the competition.
Plugins can get expensive, especially when you’re starting out, and you need a good set of VST plugins to be able to produce professional sounding music.
Having the option to spread the cost, at 0%, and being able to freeze the subscription at anytime (without losing your progress, or being pressured to reinstate it ASAP), is simply amazing.
You can get plugins from iZotope, Soundtoys, Xfer, and more!
Cloud Storage – How Much Can I Use?
One of the other features of Splice that sets it apart from the competition, is the free cloud storage. No other sample based service offers this for free. You have to keep paying monthly, or you lose your storage.
And, the benefit of Splice is that, you can use an unlimited amount of cloud storage for your project file backups.
You can open these backups on other computers, or use the Splice cloud storage to share it with other producers that want to collab with you. It’s also really useful for scenarios where your computer might pack in on you.
And, on top of that, you can recover old project files you may have deleted from previous PC’s.
Splice has a record of my music projects since the day I installed it. That means I can recover my old Logic Pro X files if I wanted to. And, I have done that before, taken melodies, and re-purposed them in new tracks, with my improved production skills.
Having the Splice desktop app installed is a must, and you can use it for free, for however long you like.
Are Splice Sounds Royalty Free?
Splice samples are all 100% royalty-free. This means you can use them for profit in beats you sell or get streaming revenue on. However, you can’t re-purpose the samples in your own pack and sell them for profit.
Remember: we are not lawyers, so please seek professional advice before selling anything in the music industry.
Unlike Tracklib, Splice is 100% royalty free. Each sample is an original loop from a sound designer, or music producer that has agreed to offer their samples for purchase on a royalty free agreement.
Every pack on Splice is royalty free too, and that’s a part of their terms when someone submits as pack. So there won’t be any fine-print on different packs that catch you out.
Pricing – How Much Does Splice Cost?
Splice has 3 different pricing plans to choose from and a range of RTO options on plugins.
With the RTO plans, you also get access to the community and back-up features of Splice, so that’s something to keep in mind.
Here are the pricing options:
- 100 Credits – $7.99/month.
- 300 Credits – $13.99/month.
- 600 Credits – $21.99/month.
- 1000 Credits – $29.99/month.
Who is Splice For?
Splice is mainly for beat-makers, and electronic music producers, who want high quality sounds on tap, for a low, monthly price. It’s also for people looking to split payments of highly-priced plugins or looking to store their project files in the cloud as a backup.
The cloud based sample service has many uses, and can suit a lot of musicians’ situations.
We recommend you try it out with the 30 day free trial, and see if it works for you. Some people prefer buying sample packs and having them stored on a HDD.
But, even if you don’t get Splice for the samples, we’re sure you’ll find some use with it as a storage system, or for the low prices on plugins.
Is Splice Good For Beginners?
Splice is great for beginners looking to build a sample library. It offers an endless amount of, high-quality sounds for a low price. You can search, find whatever you’re looking for, and create ideas in moments. For $7.99/month, you get access to unlimited sample libraries.
Sample packs can be a big expense when starting out music production, and it can be difficult to know where to download the best sample packs.
Splice offers a huge range of sample libraries that are already quality tested and makes it easy for beginners to find great sounds, ranking packs by popularity. You can search by genre, and listen to everything before you spend your credits on them too.
This gives beginners a great platform to find the sounds they like, quickly and easily. You can also get presets for your favourite synths, helping you to learn sound design, and start off production with professional-grade patches.
On top of that, you get cloud storage, and amazing rent to own plugins. This makes expensive plugins affordable to beginners and prevents them from losing their hard work.
We would thoroughly recommend Splice to any beginner starting music production.
Verdict – Is It Worth Paying For Splice?
Splice is worth paying for. For as little as $7.99/month, you get 100 credits to use on samples and presets, as well as unlimited cloud storage to back up your projects. If you want fresh, high-quality samples from popular producers – get Splice.
If you’re a music producer who predominantly makes Rock, Classical, or other, more instrument-based music, then Splice won’t be as good for you.
Something like Loopcloud might suit a more instrument-based musician better, but in this case, you’d be better off buying specific packs for your specific genre.
Splice is great for Hip Hop, Rock, Pop, EDM, and other beat-based genres that are quantised.
It’s also great for a couple of other things and includes some bonuses for producers such as, rent-to-own plans on popular plugins like Serum, iZotope and more.
These plans allow you to pay for, an otherwise expensive plugin, in small chunks, and pay towards owning it on a 0% interest contract.
Additionally, Splice is very community-based and offers its users a lot of cool features for collaboration. You can open basic project files from any DAW in your browser, and you can share your projects on the cloud, for use later on different devices, or for collaborating with other artists.
Splice also offers a place to download templates from other, professional artists, that you can download and use, to learn mixing & mastering, sound design, or even composition.
They’re also extremely ethical, having paid out over $11m in royalties to artists.
But, although Splice offers a lot of benefits, it may not be for you.
And, you may want to explore other cloud-based sample services that might fit your needs better.
To do some more research on whether Splice is for you, check out our Loopcloud vs Splice breakdown, and our Splice vs Tracklib review.
If you’re undecided, get a free 30 day trial with Splice, so you can test out the service, sounds and see if you really like it. As long as you cancel before then, Splice will not charge you.
FAQ
Is Splice Free?
Splice is not free to use. However, it is 100% royalty free. You will still need to pay for a subscription, but Splice does not charge royalties on the samples you download from them. This means you can use their samples in tracks that earn money. But, a Splice Subscription itself costs money.
You can additionally download Splice and try it for free for 30 days to see if you like it or not. After this period they will charge you if you don’t cancel.
Which Plan Should I Get? How Much Should I Pay For Splice?
The basic Splice plan is more than enough for most producers. This costs $7.99/month and you get 100 credits with it. Often most producers opt for this plan and still have credits left over for the month.
If you need more samples, then you’ll need to opt for a more expensive plan. You might need to do this if you’re a sample beat maker, or you have more work to get through.
However, for casual use, and even some professional us, 100 credits is absolutely fine.
Do Credits Compound if I Don’t Use Them?
Unfortunately, credits don’t compound on Splice, meaning that you will only get your plan’s credit number for the month and it will reset back to this number when a new month begins.
This would be great if this was a feature, but of course it’s not in Splice’s interest to introduce this as it would drop monthly revenue.
Is Splice Better Than Arcade?
Splice is better than Arcade for samples & choice. However, Arcade is much better than Splice if you want a creative sampler VST instrument. They’re two entirely different services and better used in conjunction with each other, rather than choosing one or the other.
Arcade is a fantastic sampler instrument that you can use to create awesome melody loops using MIDI, whereas Splice is a cloud-based sample service that licenses you samples. You don’t get an instrument with it that can be used for sound design.
Splice is better for drum samples and melody loops. Arcade is better for composing pieces.
Can You Sell Beats Made With Splice?
You can sell beats that use samples from Splice and earn money from them. Splice is 100% royalty free, meaning you can monetise your beats. However, the loop you used in the beat creation will not be exclusive to you and others could still use it.
Here’s what the licensing agreement on Splice says on the matter:
“Sounds are licensed, not sold, to you. Subject to Section 6.b below, you are granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable, perpetual right to use Sounds you obtain through Splice Sounds in combination with other sounds in music productions to create derivative works. This means that, subject to Section 6.b, you may modify, reproduce, publicly perform, distribute, transmit, communicate to the public and otherwise use Sounds, including for commercial purposes.“
“You may not (i) use the Sounds in isolation as sound effects or as loops, (ii) use Sounds in a manner competitive to Company or its licensors, or (iii), sell, loan, share, lend, broadcast, rent, lease, assign, distribute, or transfer all of the Sounds to a third party except as incorporated into a derivative music production. Additionally, for clarity, you may not use the name, image, or likeness of the artist associated with a Sound in any way without that artist’s express written permission.“
“You are free to register a copyright in a derivative work you create using a Sound (“Your Work”). However, you do not own the copyright in the Sound, and if you submit a takedown notice to any third party sites for Your Work, then you are responsible for ensuring that such takedown notice is not being issued for a different work on the basis that the different work includes the same Sound. Submitting a takedown notice in violation of The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (the “DMCA”) may subject you to liability for damages under Section 512(f) of the U.S. Copyright Act.“
Splice.com
Is Splice The Best for Samples?
When it comes to cloud-based sampling Splice is one of the best services alongside LoopCloud and TrackLib. However, all services are pretty evenly matched and your decision will depend on what you need them for.
LoopCloud is a better creative tool and has a much better interface, let’s you try out samples in context and even offers the ability to add FX, pitch and morph samples before downloading them or wasting a credit.
Splice has better sounds than LoopCloud, with some of the best producers on the platform releasing packs on it.
Tracklib is for clearing samples from tracks and is different to what Splice and LoopCloud offer. If you like to sample records, Tracklib is for you.
