HAMBURG, Germany — Steinberg has today announced the immediate availability of
Groove Agent 6, which adds the ability to layer and replace kicks, snares and toms, the
brand-new Punch Kit, many new acoustic kits, a new pattern editor, and much more to
quickly and easily create the best grooves.
Also available as of today is the major update to Absolute 7, which includes the latest
release Groove Agent plus the Etude grand piano, the new Axe Machina guitar, The
Orchestra: Colors, Colors Lofi Tapes, and more.
New kits, new sounds
Groove Agent 6 adds powerful layering and replacement features for kicks, snares, and
toms in Acoustic Agent. With 47 new acoustic kit pieces — 24 snares,15 kicks and eight
toms in various sizes and materials — the ability to give a kick drum more punch, cut through the mix by adding a second snare layer or swapping out toms makes creating a unique, signature sound easier than ever.
Screenshot
The new Punch Kit delivers the natural, high-impact sound of a deeply sampled Tama Starclassic Bubinga kit. It includes 24 new presets, recorded by a professional session drummer with intros, outros, and multiple groove variations, each with its own mix and MIDI styles.
Even more new drum sounds and patterns come with Color Punch, a selection of kicks,
snares, hi-hats and percussion designed for modern pop production. Especially chosen to
blend seamlessly with synths, basslines, and vocal hooks, Color Punch delivers a dynamic,
rhythmic backbone.
New tools, new interface
Beat makers benefit from the new pattern editor, which has been designed for the straightforward but flexible programming of intricate beats. With each pad assigned to its own dedicated lane, inbuilt random and Euclidean step generators are included to inspire new ideas.
The Mixer panel has been redesigned to integrate into the lower section of the interface.
Alternatively, it can be undocked or opened in its own window. Kits and mixer settings can be edited side by side, while a unified mixer and effects editor is provided across all Agent types for straightforward fine-tuning.
Searching for sounds is easier with the updated, context-sensitive MediaBay: automatically filtering results based on the individual workflow, finding sounds and samples is now faster and more relevant.
All Groove Agent 6 operations are enhanced by the redesigned user interface, which is scalable from -50% to +100% and optimized for single-slot usage. It makes Groove Agent much more adaptable to personal workflows, with larger Acoustic Agent interfaces, an improved edit section, customizable toolbars, and more.
Groove Agent 6 includes more new and enhanced features:
• Shaper Mode with brush, pen, and eraser tools to intuitively draw and refine envelope curves.
• Five new effects: Auto Gain Compressor, Fuzz Distortion, Bit Crusher, Clipper, and Studio EQ 24.
• The pitch of drum samples can be checked with a single click, then tuned to match the key of the song.
• A new spectral algorithm in Warp Mode allows drum or melodic samples to be played in sync with the project tempo or beats.
• Every kit preset now includes a preview, automatically adjusted to the track’s tempo.
• Hardware mapping for e-drum kits, with presets for a range of manufacturers.
“With Groove Agent 6, we focused on simplicity, amazing sounds and flexibility. Users can now customize their acoustic kicks, snares or toms, which gives them so much more options for sound design,” says Senior Marketing Manager Florian Haack. “And for those looking for more, we’ve updated our Absolute instrument collection, which not only includes Groove Agent 6 but many more exciting instruments and libraries.”
And, There’s More!
Groove Agent 6 is also included in the Absolute 7 instrument collection alongside the
additional world-class Etude grand piano, the new Axe Machina guitar, The Orchestra:
Colors, and Colors Lofi Tapes, making Absolute 7 the most comprehensive version yet.
Groove Agent offers a diverse collection of expansion sets that complement the included
libraries, including titles like Rock Essentials, Funk Essentials, Jazz Essentials, Songwriter
Essentials, and the premium Simon Phillips Studio Drums, allowing producers to tailor the
instrument to virtually any musical style.
Availability and pricing
Groove Agent 6 and Absolute 7 are available through the Steinberg Online Shop. The suggested retail price for Groove Agent 6 is 159 euros and 159.99 US dollars. The suggested retail price for Absolute 7 is 499 euros and 499.99 US dollars. Prices may vary according to region.
Updates are exclusively available through the Steinberg Online Shop.
Customers who have activated Groove Agent 5 or Absolute 6 from January 22, 2026, are eligible for a free, downloadable grace period update to the latest version, respectively.
Key features of Groove Agent 6
• Powerful layering and replacement features for kicks, snares, and toms, with 47 new acoustic kit pieces
• Deep-sampled Punch acoustic kit with 24 presets, featuring intros, outros, and multiple groove variations
• Color Punch kicks, snares, hi-hats and percussion for modern pop production
• New Pattern Editor to simplify programming of complex beats
• Updated Mixer panel for enhanced fine-tuning
• Redesigned, scalable user interface
• Context-sensitive MediaBay makes finding sounds and samples faster and more relevant
Links
Product pages: www.steinberg.net/grooveagent and www.steinberg.net/absolute
YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/VSTinstrumentsplugins
About Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH
Steinberg is known the world over for its music and audio software solutions. The company
has been developing, manufacturing and selling innovative products for musicians and
producers in the music, film, post-production and multimedia industries since 1984.
Steinberg products are used by Grammy and Oscar award-winning composers, engineers
and producers.
Visit www.steinberg.net for further details.