Best Action Strings for Fast Ostinatos: A Composer’s Guide

For modern action scoring, NOVO is not a traditional orchestra. It is a weapon. Its 'String Designer' engine allows me to create pulsing, rhythmic loops that are far more aggressive than standard samples. I relied heavily on this library for a recent sci-fi thriller score where the director wanted strings that sounded "broken" and "digital" rather than classical. By blending the organic violin samples with the internal granular synthesis, I created a texture that felt completely unique to that film.

The macro control system is a standout feature for me. It allowed me to map the 'grit' and 'distortion' of the string section to a single mod-wheel movement, creating tension builds that would have taken dozens of automation lanes to program manually. It fills the stereo field instantly with a sound that sounds like a Hans Zimmer score that has been run through a guitar pedalboard.

STRIIIINGS is designed purely for modern, Hans Zimmer-style blockbusters where nuances take a backseat to pure power. You press a single key, and it plays massive, production-ready riffs that sync naturally to your DAW. I found this incredibly useful when mocking up a superhero theme where speed was more important than intricate orchestration details. The sound is already processed with compression and EQ, meaning it sits perfectly in a dense mix of synthesizers and percussion without requiring any additional plugins to make it cut through.

It definitely has a 'sound'-it's big, wide, and aggressive-but that's exactly what my clients often ask for. UJAM brings their 'virtual player' logic to the orchestra here, and while it limits your control over individual voice leading, the trade-off in speed is worth it. For a composer who needs to generate high-octane excitement in minutes rather than hours, this tool is a cheat code.

Unlike the original version, which felt stiff, Action Strings 2 brings a level of fluidity that I honestly didn't expect from a phrase-based library. It captures the sound of a real string section playing tight rhythms together, including the crucial 'ghost notes' and bow noise that add drive. I used it on a high-speed chase scene, and the ability to now edit the individual rhythms within the interface allowed me to create syncopated patterns that matched the on-screen action perfectly.

It is a massive database of live-recorded phrases, but the new engine makes it feel like a playable instrument. I no longer feel locked into the pre-recorded loops. I can chop, change, and rearrange the accents to suit my composition. If you want that specific sound of a 60-piece string section digging into their strings for an epic action cue, this library delivers it with zero fuss.

When I am on a tight deadline for reality TV or daily productions, The Orchestra Complete 3 is the first thing I load. Its 'Ensemble Engine' allows me to play full, animated ostinatos with simple block chords, generating complex rhythms that would otherwise take hours to program. I recently scored a 45-minute episode in a single day using this library almost exclusively. The engine took care of the rhythmic drive, allowing me to focus entirely on the melody and emotional arc.

What separates this from other auto-arranger tools is how lightweight it is. I can run it on my laptop without engaging my main template, making it perfect for mobile composing rigs. The presets are surprisingly usable right out of the box, and the ability to drag the MIDI directly into my DAW means I can use the engine to generate ideas and then assign them to more detailed sample libraries later if needed.

Pandora is designed to do one thing exceptionally well: hit the picture. Its 'Adaptive Sync' technology lets me play action runs, risers, and massive crescendos that perfectly time themselves to land on the next downbeat or cut. I used this extensively on a horror trailer where every visual cut needed a corresponding orchestral hit. Pandora made the process trivial, automatically stretching or compressing the audio in real-time to match my tempo changes without any artifacts.

It removes the math from scoring to picture, which is a huge creative relief. Instead of calculating how many bars I need for a riser to peak at exactly 01:02:15, I just press the key, and Pandora ensures the climax happens exactly when I want it to. For adding 'Hollywood' sheen and transition effects to a mock-up, there is simply no faster tool on the market.

Recorded at the legendary Teldex Scoring Stage in Berlin, Metropolis Ark 1 focuses entirely on the loudest dynamic layers (fff), and it is my absolute go-to for "Epic" music. The low strings are legendary for their power and grit. I have used them to cut through walls of distorted electric guitars in hybrid scores, and they hold their own without needing any reinforcement. It completely ignores subtlety in favor of raw fanfare power.

If you are writing trailer music, this library is essentially mandatory. I remember loading the 'Contrabassoons & Cellos' patch for the first time and being blown away by the sheer weight of the sound-it shook my studio monitors. It does not do quiet, and it does not do polite, but when you need your orchestra to roar like a jet engine, there is no substitute for Ark 1.

Albion One captures a massive 109-piece band playing together at Air Studios, the home of countless blockbuster scores. It was one of the first professional libraries I ever bought, and I still use it on nearly every project because that room sound is unmatched. For action cues, its 'Cog' patches allow for quick, synced rhythmic textures that sound expensive and polished without any mixing required.

It provides that massive blockbuster sound right out of the box. I frequently use the low string octaves to lay down the foundation of a track. The natural reverb of the hall binds the sound together in a way that close-miked libraries just can't emulate. While it lacks the detail of separate sections, for sketching big, broad adaptability, it remains the 'people's orchestra' for a very good reason.