Plugin comparison
Specs, price and the Dubspot Score, side by side — with our verdict on which sampler to buy.
Independent score / workflow fit / buying signal
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Contenders
Battery 4 is Native Instruments' drum sampler plugin for building, editing, and triggering drum kits from a cell-based sample grid.
Gearmulator MD/MM is a free, open-source plugin that runs the real Elektron Machinedrum and Monomachine firmware inside your DAW as VST3, AU and standalone.
Technical matrix
| Signal | Battery 4 | Gearmulator MD/MM |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $199 | Free |
| Dubspot Score | 7.2 | — |
| Formats | VST, VST3, AU (macOS only), AAX | VST3, AU, Standalone |
| Plugin formats | VST, VST3, AAX (Windows); VST, VST3, AU, AAX (macOS) — 64-bit only | — |
| Built-in effects | Solid EQ, Solid Bus Comp, Transient Master, tape saturation, LoFi, and convolution reverb | — |
| Install size | 4.6 GB for complete installation (0.6 GB free disk space required to install) | — |
| System requirements | macOS 13, 14, or 15 (Intel or Apple Silicon) / Windows 10 or 11, with 4 GB RAM | — |
| Graphics | Graphics card supporting OpenGL 2.1 or higher required | — |
| Type | — | Firmware-accurate emulation of the Elektron Machinedrum and Monomachine |
| Formats | — | VST3, AU, standalone (macOS); VST3, standalone (Windows 64-bit) |
| Operating systems | — | macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows 64-bit |
| License | — | Free and open-source (GPL-3.0) |
| Sound source | — | Runs the original Elektron firmware, user supplied |
| Automatable parameters | — | 416 (Machinedrum), 348 (Monomachine) |
| Sequencing | — | Elektron sequencer with parameter locks |
| Data transfer | — | SysEx send and receive; multi-output routing |
| Version at launch | — | 0.1.0 alpha 12 (17 September 2026) |
See the full plugin database for more comparisons.