[ddots-l] Re: question about strings
- From: Bryan Smart <bryansmart@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 30 Apr 2011 20:24:00 -0400
When you get experienced, and get picky, you find that you can't just make it
with a single VST, keyboard, or sample library.
If I had to get by with a single board, I'd choose the Motif any day, as it
does a fair job at most everything, and a great job at many things. That's why
I love to use it stand-alone for writing, as it's all integrated, all
sounds/effects in one box, no tweaking VSTs, program settings, crashes, etc.
You push a button and get a sound, you push a button and record, you push a
button and select an effect, etc. Much faster than spending lots of time trying
to dial up the perfect sound, with the perfect effects chain, on the computer.
Still, when it is time for a final version, other tools are needed for the
sounds that I'm picky about.
Bryan
From: ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Omar Binno
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2011 10:29 PM
To: ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ddots-l] Re: question about strings
Roland's orchestral strings certainly sound great. In my opinion, if a Roland
synth could duplicate the type of articulation that a high-end virtual
orchestra synth possesses, the Roland Orchestrals would hold their own compared
to the vst. The only thing Roland's orchestra lacks is a decent sounding
violin. I actually liked the Motif's violins more, but overall, Roland's
orchestras and brasses sound way better than the Motif's. Sorry, just rambling
a little. grin.
----- Original Message -----
From: Bryan Smart<mailto:bryansmart@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx<mailto:ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2011 9:47 PM
Subject: [ddots-l] Re: question about strings
The most important thing to think about is what sort of strings do you want?
What if someone asked what is the best guitar? You'll get a million opinions,
and they will be largely influenced by that person's favorite styles of music
and other personal tastes.
The Garitan ones are probably the best for symphonic arrangements, as they
sound like they were recorded in a hall, are mixed very neutral, and have
typical symphonic articulations. If you try to use them in a pop song, though,
they won't be the best.
Pop strings are brighter, are recorded with mics at closer range, and are often
layered with themselves or synth pads (at least to some degree). This is the
sort of preset that is included with DSF Studio Orchestra, and so it is best
for pop and contemporary songs. The whole idea of the "Studio Orchestra" pack
is to sound like the takes that you get in the real world when you bring
orchestral players in for overdubs, not when you record them in the symphony
hall.
The E-Mu Proteus Virtuoso has a very different sort of strings. They're pretty
good quality (long loops, multiple velocity layers), but are mostly mono. Why
would anyone want them, you might ask? From the mid 80's to the turn of the
century, if you were composing for film or television with a computer, and you
were serious about it, you had E-Mu and Kurzweil gear. The sounds, even with
their flaws, are very recognizable. Sometimes, you might want to use those
sounds for the point of adding a certain type of nostalgic or retro flavor to a
composition. Some people that sequenced with them back then also swear by a few
particular presets.
I know people that absolutely love the Roland orchestral strings, available via
the old SR-JV expansions, on the Fantom series via SRX cards, and, on the
computer, mostly, through the old Edirol Orchestral softsynth. Some of them
sound very nice to me, but I think they're more lush pop sounding than typical
symphonic. It doesn't matter as much what they should be for, though, as much
as it matters if they're usable by you.
In any case, I really don't like the Dimension Pro factory strings. The Full
Strings preset is fair, but that's about it. I can't ever get an attack for the
factory presets that aI like. They either end up sounding too sluggish or too
syntheticly sharp. Some of the string samples are recorded dry, which is very
wrong in any scenario.
Cakewalk tried to sample their own stuff, instead of licensing it from pro
libraries, like most other companies do. It saved them money, of course, but
the results are very poor. Without expansions, Dimension Pro has very weak
sounds for a 7GB library.
Bryan
From: ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Omar Binno
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2011 5:59 PM
To: ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ddots-l] Re: question about strings
Based on what i've heard about garritan, and after hearing its demos, and based
on my own experience with dimention, I'd definitely say garritan over dimention.
----- Original Message -----
From: Greg Brayton<mailto:Greg@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx<mailto:ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: midi mag<mailto:midimag@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2011 5:56 PM
Subject: [ddots-l] question about strings
I have a couple soft synths that I like a lot, the dimension studio orchestra
ex pack, and omnisphere. I've heard a lot about gariton and just wondered is
it lots better than dimension, or are they pretty close? Or is there something
else that you like?
Just interested.
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