Somebody has to ask it.. (Proteus expansion pack topic)

Samples can be abused to create new sounds, and the proteus hardware's Z-plane filters are unique. The majority of people however are preset users so the power of these older synths were never fully utilized by the majority of users. However, the sample packs are high quality samples that can be used in ways beyond he original presets. But "presets" is a bit of a misnomer since the sample packs playing through Dimension is not the same as the samples playing through the hardware synth's z-plane filters.

I agree about the Kontakt version... he did a fantabulous job with those patches. I had kept the original Proteus VX versions around for a couple of years (got them for free w/ an emu x-board), but never really used them because the interface was crap. So when he came out with the Kontakt version I jumped on it (I think I got them on sale, IIRC), and it was well worth the $$$. 

Of course, you're getting what you're getting, which are base samples from a very dated hardware unit (+ expansion cards, obviously)... so the samples themselves are "small"... e.g., don't expect multiple velocity layers for a guitar patch etc. They had to fit into a 32-64MB or whatever ROM and PCMCIA cards. So... cut back on the sample rate (maybe 24-32kHz max), compress to under 16-bit or whatever, no sustains, loop points all over blue hell, limited to no multi-samples (for some patches, a single sample would be stretched across the keyboard), limited to no velocity layers depending on the sample, etc. etc.

That being said, if you're looking for a "ROMpler" type sound that you've have stuck in your head since 1993, it's a fantastic set of sounds. The Korg M1, Wavestation, et al plugs are another good example. Dated, but very very useful for the stuff I do, which is pop, fusion, some ambient creations, etc. It depends on what you want to do with them... if you're looking for a realistic lead guitar or B3 organ, you're probably better off with some other product, unless you can live within the limitations. If you need a punchy synth bass sound to layer with a real synth bass, or you need some sparkly pad with tinkle bells, or a "breathy chiffer flute" patch, then those dated synth sounds are not really that dated at all. 

Sometimes simple is better... the simple patches and sounds give you the opportunity to create your own layered thing, as mentioned by e.Blue.. as opposed to, say, Omnisphere... which is a great product, but you're not really going to be doing too much layering with an Omnisphere pad, for example… :)