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El Jaguar

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El Jaguar Colombian Picó re-amped Afro-Caribbean instrument plugin — MNTRA
Instruments

El Jaguar

Re-amped Sonic Monuments from Colombia’s Caribbean Coast

A vibrant sonic journey into the heart of Barranquilla’s underground music culture, El Jaguar captures the raw sonic energy by re-amping through Colombia’s iconic Picó sound systems. Fusing Afro-Caribbean percussion, marimba, vintage drum machines, and modular synths—each re-amped through a towering Picó—this toolbox of sounds pulses with warmth, distortion, and movement. Crafted in collaboration with local artists and transformed through analog processing, El Jaguar offers a versatile palette of textures designed to cut through modern Latin rhythms, hip-hop beats, and experimental electronics alike. It’s not just a sound—it’s a living spirit built to move bodies to all kinds of rhythms.
$129
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Inside El Jaguar

Elements Presets
190
Atelier Presets
73
Sample Maps
240
Size
9.20 GB
Round Robins
Up to 20
SSM powered samples
All sample maps enabled
Recording format
384 kHz / 32 bit
Multi-mics
Up to 4 Stereo Channels

El Jaguar

$129

Proprietary Engine

VST/AU Plugin included. No additional software required.

3-Axis Universal Controls

Simply map your favourite controller once for all plugin instances.

Intuitive Performance GUI

Custom animation driven performance interface & mouse hover interactions.

Industry Leading Audio Quality

Up to 384khz/32-bit extended ultrasonic range sample sources.

Watch

El Jaguar in action

Audio Demos

Hear El Jaguar

Picoton Andino

Instrument demonstration · 0:00

0:00 / 0:00

The Story of El Jaguar

To bring El Jaguar to life we had to follow the sound—into the heat, colour, and movement of Barranquilla, Colombia, where towering Picó sound systems pulse at the city’s core. These aren’t ordinary speakers. Hand-built and painted like mythical beasts or street heroes, each Picó is a living monument to rhythm, reshaping music with sheer force and personality. Since the 1950s they’ve carried Afro-Colombian and Caribbean currents—always loud, always alive.

A towering hand-painted Picó sound system in Barranquilla

But before the Picós could leave their mark, we built a toolkit worthy of them. Deep in the wintry woods of Quebec, inside La Hacienda Creative’s studio, we recorded everything that would become El Jaguar: hollow-bodied wooden drums, marimbas, hand-played African percussion, never-repeating hand-built modular lines, electric plucked strings—and the unmistakable punch of early drum machines. With our Montréal-based synth-sage Yulian Pugachevsky, we drove a classic 808, a LinnDrum, and a bench of vintage analog boxes past the red—saturating, bending, and resampling every hit. Nothing was polished, only energised.

Re-amping sessions through the Picó stacks in Barranquilla

Only then did we head south—not to document Picó culture, but to participate in it. In Barranquilla we re-amped every acoustic strike and electronic thump through towering Picó stacks, letting raw air, concrete walls, and punishing volume sculpt fresh shapes. The Picó didn’t just make things louder; it made them physical. Notes drifted and blurred, taking on the grain of the street and the pulse of the crowd. Chaos was the point; distortion, our compass.

A Barranquilla Picó operator at the controls

That same spirit sparked a live collaboration with Circuito Sonoro Lab — Laura Katic and Ximena Delat’s handmade-modular workshop in Cali. Instead of simply sampling their synths, we invited them to patch and perform through the Picó in real time. The sessions were improvised and electric; we stretched those performances into playable textures, layering a modern Colombian identity that’s entirely its own.

Modular synth performance through the Picó system

The instrument’s design honours Picó aesthetics: every custom hand-built stack has a name, a palette, and a signature sonic energy. El Jaguar follows that tradition—bold, unpredictable, built to move people. And it’s personal: many of our team trace roots to Colombia and across Latin America. Channelling that heritage—sharing a sonic world often overlooked yet overflowing with depth and innovation—fuelled every take.

El Jaguar is the fourth instalment in our Portals series—living instruments that let you step into a place, a culture, a moment. It’s an interactive virtual instrument that expands your colour palette with sounds and processes rarely accessible outside their source. What we discovered in Barranquilla surprised us, and we hope it surprises you too.

What's Inside?

Plucked Strings2
  • Jazz Bass, Mute

    Clean, electric jazz bass deep sampled. Reamplified in the Pacheco picó/soundsystem.

  • Electric Guitar

    Clean electric guitar. Slight distortion in the attack. Stretched sample over the keyboard, so the duration of the sound varies according to the note. Reamped through the picó/soundsystem El Pacheco.

Drum Kit16
  • Bright Drumkit

    Drumkit created with our brightest sources, full of snappy, full-resolution sounds with clear attacks.

  • Classic-bite Drumkit

    A clear, short-attacked drumkit made to get the classic sounds of 70s Caribbean sound.

  • Dragged Drumkit

    Electronic drumkit with a distortion that drags the attack to make it long and edgy.

  • Growling Drumkit

    A distorted synthesized drumkit with growling sounds perfect for combative compositions.

  • Guttural Drumkit

    Drumkit with a muted high end, but full of the fierceness of El Jaguar’s throat, mysterious and ready!

  • Hip Feline Drumkit

    Classic and timeless, this drumkit is a palette of deep, lightly distorted, and useful sounds for any hip creation.

  • Light Crush Drumkit

    Grouping lightly effected source, this drumkit provides some crush without hiding the character of the sounds.

  • Lo ‘n’ Heavy DrumKit

    Drumkit build with our best sources and a serious low end. Saturated and full of harmonics.

  • Muted DrumKit

    A dark and muted drum kit with a lo-fi electronic vibe.

  • Quinto Kit

    Full 12-sound drumkit of a Quinto drum.

  • Roaring Drumkit

    Drumkit with a roar, distorted and threatening, full of harmonics.

  • Saturated DrumKit

    Saturated Drumkit collection with saturated kick, snare, clapsticks and cymbals.

  • Too Bright Drumkit

    Drumkit with clear, snappy and cut through sounds. Lots of high frequency, lots of detail.

  • Tremor Drumkit

    A drumkit with a snaring sound that adds interest and vibration to the classic electronic drumkit.

  • With Fangs Drumkit

    A drumkit designed with distortion in the low end, to create a sound with a combative attack and with a lot of vibe.

  • Woody DrumKit

    Electronic drumkit with a sound texture evocative of the texture of wood grain. Darker and saturated.

Synth17
  • AstralVibrato

    Clean modular synthesizer with a subtle vibrato effect and an airy, dynamic tonal movement.

  • BrightSynth

    CS50 synth note with a clear midrange presence and a crisp transient, captured direct-in for a clean sound.

  • BubbleMatrix

    Playful and fluid, bubbling with modular textures.

  • CelestialFilter

    Modulated, evolving frequencies with an expansive cosmic character.

  • DarkCircuit

    Clean, saturated and shadowy, with deep harmonic textures.

  • DeepSynth

    Deep, warm synth tone from the CS50, recorded direct-in, with a short, percussive attack and a rounded low-end response.

  • DistortedGrit

    Clean, melodic yet gritty, blending saturation with expressive tonal movement.

  • HarmonicDrive

    Clean strong, saw-based waveform with dynamic, cutting motion.

  • HarmonicVoltage

    Clean strong, electrified sawtooth wave delivering rich harmonics.

  • MelodicSawpath

    Clean, softer, more melodic take on the sawtooth wave, warm and expressive.

  • MysticHarmonics

    Clean modular synthesizer with a deeply melodic and expressive harmonic structure.

  • NoiseCascade

    Clean, chaotic and raw, a modular FX explosion of sound.

  • QuietReverie

    Clean, quiet, harmonious, and warm synth voice.

  • RogueBass

    Deep, resonant bass sound with an extended low-frequency response and smooth sustain, ideal for foundational grooves.

  • SaturatedSawline

    Clean, dark, rich, and powerful sawtooth tones with deep saturation.

  • SawCore

    Clean, gritty handmade modular synthesizer featuring a rich sawtooth wave, delivering sharp harmonics.

  • StellarDrift

    Clean, outer-space vibes infused with celestial melodies and harmonic movement.

Pitched Percussion74
  • 808 Kick (Clean, Picó)

    Kick Drum from the famous 80s drum machine that allowed for rhythm creation and produce sound through analog synthesis. Snappy and Classic, and a version reamped through the picó.

  • Alegre Drum

    Wooden and goat leather conic drum used in the Colombian Caribbean region. Clean adn reamped through the El Pacheco Picó.

  • Breeze Grain Shake

    A light and airy shaker with an earthy feel.

  • Bright Hat Snare

    A bright, cracking snare-hat fusion.

  • Bright Kick

    Snappy and clear kick drum with a crisp attack and a well-defined high-end, making it cut through a mix easily.

  • Campana (Closed, Muted, Open, Rim)

    Medium-sized cowbell with a clear, cutting tone and a bright metallic ring, perfect for Latin and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

  • Chaff Shaker

    Shaker with a husky, seed-like texture.

  • Clap Stick (Hi, Low)

    Two thin pieces of wood carved into a conical pyramid shape and played by hitting them to each other.

  • Classic Mid Tom

    Balanced mid-range tom with a traditional, clean attack and a natural decay, suitable for versatile drum arrangements.

  • Classic-bite Kick

    Punchy, vintage-style kick with a sharp attack and a slightly compressed feel, ideal for classic electronic and acoustic grooves.

  • Claves (Hi, Low)

    Two thin pieces of wood in cylindrical shape that are played by hitting them with each other. They use the hand cavity to resonate too.

  • Crunchy Hybrid Snare

    A gritty, textured snare with a sharp slap.

  • Dusty Hybrid Snare

    An electronic snare with a mysterious and blurry attack with a long sustain.

  • Cymbal Jingles Short

    Medium-radius cymbal made with thick metal with jingles around the edges, played with wooden sticks and muted to create a short sound.

  • Cymbal Short (Hi, Low)

    Small and medium-radius cymbal made with thinner metal played with wooden sticks and muted to create a short sound.

  • Djembe (Dry, Short Hi, Short Low)

    Shaped as a goblet, open in the bottom end, it is a wooden and goat leather drum used several regions of West Africa, hit with a semi-open and left to resonate.

  • Dragged Kick

    Unique kick with a slightly dragging attack, featuring a layered percussive effect that adds a subtle, rhythmic pull.

  • Dry Snap Hit

    A minimal, crisp electronic snap.

  • Electronic Clave

    Synthesized high-pitched version of the claves, wooden and thin, the two sticks are played by hitting each other.

  • Electronic Güira

    Electronic, synthesized version of a metal güira, a Dominican hollow cylinder with protruding holes played by striking with a fork. Medium length sound.

  • Electronic HiHat (Med, Short)

    Electronic version of a closed hi hat played with a wooden stick to produce a clear a slightly longer sound.

  • Electronic Vibraslap

    Electronic, synthesized version of the vibraslap, a trapezoidal wooden box with resonant metal parts inside connected to a vibrating curved piece of metal.

  • Grain Snap Rim

    A textured, organic bright rim

  • Gritty Tom

    Electronic tom drum tuned to have a gritty attacked with lots of harmonics and a lower, longer fundamental.

  • Ground Maraquita

    Small, hand-played percussion instrument with an earthy, woody tone, offering rhythmic character and texture.

  • Growling Low Tom

    Dark and gritty low tom with a rough, textured attack and a deep, rumbling sustain.

  • Guttural Kick

    Dark, resonant kick drum with a raw, throaty quality, adding depth and character to heavy rhythms.

  • Hollow Wood Rim

    A crisp, dry wooden hit with a modern electronic edge.

  • Industrial Hybrid Snare

    A punchy, gritty snare with a industrial edge.

  • Large Bamboo Shaker

    Deep, earthy bamboo shaker sound, offering a natural percussive feel.

  • Large Campana (Closed, Muted, Open, Side, Side Muted)

    Large cowbell played with a wooden stick in different position and hand configurations.

  • Large Metal Shaker

    Brighter, metallic shaker, adding crispness and clarity to percussive arrangements.

  • LinnDrum Tom (1, 2)

    A classic LinnDrum tom, stretched for a deeper tone and reamped for added warmth and character.

  • Low ‘n’ Heavy Kick

    Deep, weighty kick drum with an extended low-end presence and a powerful, sub-heavy impact.

  • Maraca

    Bright and crisp maraca shake with a natural grainy texture, adding organic movement and groove to percussion lines.

  • Marimba Costeña

    Wooden marimba made of the chonta palm played with rubber beaters and left to resonate with its short decay. Reamplified through the picó/sound system Pacheco.

  • Metal Guiro (Hit, Mid, Short)

    Scrape on a metal guiro, offering a bright, textured rasp with a balanced harmonic spectrum.

  • Metal Güira Snap

    Metal cylinder with protuberant metal sections played with a metal fork to create a snappy, metallic and dry sound. Originally from the Dominican Republic and used extensively in Merengue and Bachata.

  • Mid Campana Close

    Strike on a mid-sized cowbell, offering a clear, focused attack.

  • Muted Kick

    Controlled and tight kick drum with a dampened attack, reducing resonance for a focused, punchy hit.

  • Quijada (Hi, Low)

    High-pitched strike on a quijada (jawbone percussion), producing a bright, textured rattle.

  • Quinto (Centre, Hi, Hi Open, Hi Rim, Hi Slap, Low, Low Bass, Low Open, Low Rim, Low Slap, Mid, Mid Bass, Mid Open, Mid Rim, Mid Slap)

    Group of quintos hit in different areas of the patch, providing a large palette of sounds.

  • Rim Snap Pulse

    A rhythmic and energetic snap.

  • Roaring Kick

    Bold and aggressive kick with a wide dynamic range, featuring deep sub-bass and an expansive, rumbling tail.

  • Root Knock Rim

    An electronic deep, earthy knock with rim qualities.

  • Rust Snap Hat

    A gritty, aged snare snap with a hi-hat bite.

  • Samba Drum (Low, Rim, Rim Snare, Side, Snare)

    Brazilian-style drum hit in different places to produce a collection of sounds.

  • Saturated Kick

    Heavily processed kick drum with rich harmonic saturation, adding warmth, punch, and a slightly distorted edge.

  • Saturated Low Tom

    Deep, resonant tom with rich harmonic saturation, giving it a warm, full-bodied tone with extended sustain.

  • Small Campana (Inside, Muted, Open)

    Small cowbell hit, producing different sounds when hit with a wooden stick.

  • Small Drum (Centre, Centre Snare)

    Tight, punchy small drum, hit perfect for high-energy percussive layering. Different sounds to be used in all genres.

  • Small Guiro (High, Mid, Short)

    High-pitched guiro scrape to offer three different tones of the instrument.

  • Small Leather Shaker Long

    Long and short, smooth leather shaker sound, adding a flowing percussive texture.

  • Small Quijada (High, Mid, Short)

    Rattling sound from a small quijada, featuring crisp articulation and a natural, buzzing resonance.

  • Small Triangle (Close, Open)

    Triangle hit with a bright, bell-like tone and minimal sustain, ideal for subtle rhythmic accents.

  • Smoke Blast Snare

    A sharp, explosive industrial snare.

  • Snare Crisp Attack

    Modern snare with a crisp attack and a blend of electronic and acoustic elements, delivering a dynamic, hybrid character.

  • Squeaky Snap High

    Sharp, high-pitched percussive snap with a slight squeak, adding a unique, organic texture to rhythmic patterns.

  • Stick Hit (Resonant, Sharp)

    Tight and resonant stick hit with a controlled, woody tone and a well-defined transient.

  • Tactile Tap Soft

    Soft, percussive tap with a responsive, tactile feel and a warm, natural resonance.

  • Tambora (Hit, Rim, Rim Open Slow Hit)

    Different tambora strike with a rich low-end presence and warm overtones, ideal for adding traditional Afro-Caribbean percussion to any rhythm.

  • Tambourine (Controlled Dark, Shimmer Bright)

    Slightly darker and shimmer bright tambourine sounds with controlled sustain.

  • Tenor Kick Punchy

    Deep but articulate tenor kick with a punchy midrange and a round, resonant tail.

  • Tick Snare

    A short and snappy hi-hat/snare combo.

  • Timber Tap Sharp

    Sharp, percussive tap with a balanced mix of wood and metallic textures, giving it a natural yet processed attack.

  • Tom (Expressive Open, Midrange Focused, Muted Dark, Punchy Warm, Rich Dynamic, Smooth Attack)

    Tom with different expressive hits to provide a collection of tom sounds to be used in every genre.

  • Trunk Slam Industrial

    Powerful, industrial-like percussion hit resembling a heavy object slamming, great for cinematic effects.

  • Tumba (Muted, Quemao, Tapao)

    Deep and warm hit on the lower conga drum. Hits with a full resonance, a muted sound, a sharp-attack sound, and a muted and hi-cut sound.

  • Whistler Snap Sharp

    High-pitched, whistling snap with a sharp transient and a subtle tonal variation.

  • With Fangs Kick

    Sharp, aggressive kick drum with pronounced mid and high-end frequencies, giving it a biting, almost snarling presence.

  • With Fangs Tom

    Sharp, aggressive tom hit with pronounced attack and a biting midrange presence for added punch.

  • Wood Zap Thud

    A bright, snappy wood hit with a synthetic zap.

  • Woody Kick

    Kick drum with a natural, organic tone, featuring a warm, wooden attack and a deep but subtle sustain.

  • Zing Hat Ride

    Hybrid Ride/Hit Hat sound capturing the sharp, zippy electronic vibe.

Drum Machine3
  • 808 Drumkit (Clean, Reamped)

    Full 12-sound drumkit of an 808 drum machine that allowed for rhythm creation and produce sound through analog synthesis. Includes cymbals, snare, toms, claps, etc.

  • LinnDrum Kit (Clean, Reamped)

    Clean source of 12-bit drum samples from the legendary LinnDrum

  • LinnDrum Conga Kit (Clean, Reamped)

    Clean and reamped source of 12-bit Conga samples from the legendary LinnDrum

Animistic Performance Interface

Control a deep network of parameters with 3 real-time rendered animations

Technical Specifications

Samples

  • Recorded at 32-bit 384 kHz E.R.A Extended Range Resolution
  • Up to 4 stereo microphone positions

File Size

  • 10 GB installed, 20 GB recommended for setup

Engine

  • AAX, VST3, and AU plugin for Windows & macOS (10.14+) including full M1 chip support
  • No-fuss copy protection — simply install and the instrument is uniquely encrypted to be used within your system
  • Seamless downloads, updates, and installation within MNDALA 2 with a registered MNTRA account

System Requirements

  • Recommended 16 GB of RAM and an i5 or better CPU required
  • Supported by all 64-bit VST3/AU/AAX compatible DAWs
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