Plug-in Sales and Special Deals Sticky Topic

[mhschmieder]

MM, I think this is the first time that Korg have offered a full-collection discount like this, but of course it may become common now that it's perceived as "old".

To be frank, there is still little that achieves the level of analog realism, other than Roland's excellent offerings (which I have yet to buy as they are expensive) and the semi-abandoned TimewARP 2600. Maybe a few of Arturia's offerings as well. Korg did a bang-up job, and set the benchmark for others.

Teletype sounds are kind of like typewriter sounds hybridized with a ticker tape machine. I find that extremely useful when doing themes and inserts for news-oriented programs (although these are still sitting on the back burner, as my client flaked on me when I ignored some not-so-subtle come-ons).

[mikehalloran]

. . . Teletype sounds are kind of like typewriter sounds hybridized with a ticker tape machine. I find that extremely useful when doing themes and inserts for news-oriented programs (although these are still sitting on the back burner, as my client flaked on me when I ignored some not-so-subtle come-ons).

Funny how the sound is still useful even though there's a whole generation too young to know where the sound comes from.

I use a recording I made around 1975 for a comedy album. The Teletype room was in a news radio station where I worked part time—I recorded one and three dedicated wire service machines simultaneously. I never dreamed that the day would come when these would be rendered obsolete.

[monkey man]

Thanks guys.

Mark, I was asking bout Pianoteq, mate. I could have been clearer. Sorry.

I'd really like the all-you-can-eat bundle, but it's way out of my league at full price, hence my extreme interest in whether or not Black Friday or another opportunity could see the company's offering a heftier discount. I've tried to keep tabs on the pricing for some years, but can't recall ever seeing much of a reduction.

The same goes for Sample Modelling (trumpet, sax and 'bone), the other important-to-me VI set I've been watching for many years. I don't think I've ever seen a discount, but I'm confident that if there've been any, you'd know about at least some of them.

[mhschmieder]

MM, yes, I think this may be the first time that Pianoteq have put EVERYTHING on sale. Certainly the add-ons are rarely on sale; maybe just when they first come out, and by $10 only?

I am a bit confused about the super-duper package and whether one can "upgrade" from Pianoteq Pro to get all the add-ons one doesn't already have, for less than buying a la carte. It's a moot point now that I've filled out my collection, but relevant for next time.

Many vendors now have a calculator that applies incremental discounts to all-in-one packages. I used this at Orange Tree yesterday to buy the new flat picking acoustic guitar library and the electric sitar that I didn't think I really needed, along with applying orange points, for a sweet cumulative discount.

I don't know whether Pianoteq/Modartt does this or not. It doesn't seem to be described at their site and I never got around to contacting them directly to ask.

As for Sample Modeling, I don't think it's a cumulative discount but a one-size-fits-all loyalty discount, but I could be wrong. The prices are generated per-customer after providing a serial number of ANY product, but that may just be so they can look up your record easily in the database.

[monkey man]

Thank you, Mark!

Oh man, what a pity about Pianoteq, and SM to a lesser extent given that the three VIs I need (for pop/funk brass sections and soloing only), combined, still cost way less than Modartt's product (the all-in bundle).

Looks like it'll be SM late this year, if I'm lucky, and then who knows, maybe the better part of yet another year for Modartt. The MOTIF XS Rack and INTEGRA-7 pianos will just have to do in the meantime. Oh well.

Thank you so much, mate.

[mhschmieder]

Nicky, to be frank, I'd put more emphasis on Sample Modeling than Pianoteq, as a priority, as nothing really touches the former, but by now there are some sample libraries that are in many contexts as good or better than Pianoteq (even though Pianoteq keeps improving).

In the context of a mix, the differences between a bunch of top-tier piano VI's is less noticeable than the irreplaceable advantages of Sample Modeling's brass (I am less thrilled by their woodwinds overall). They keep improving too!

You might find the trumpet and trombone an easier financial reach, and those are the main ones to go for. The tuba is also great, but I use it mostly in klezmer, broadway style stuff, other old-time styles, so it doesn't get as much use. Trumpet is used the most, followed by trombone. Horn is great too, but I love Vienna's so much that I still mostly use VSL for that (as I do for most woodwinds other than sax).

I can't remember, but the Sample Modeling stuff might be on sale now due to the relatively new Cello product. I just don't recall whether they have limited instrument range sales, or even across-the-board sales, to celebrate each new product as it is added to the suite.

[monkey man]

Thank you, Mark.

That order's what I'd decided to pursue, as I said earlier. I'd figured I'd start with one of the two cheaper (brass or 'bone) instruments, followed by the other, and then after some time, grab the saxes, hoping that some sort of loyalty discount might be applied. I've hoped for a while now that by the time I buy into SM the two brass VIs would've been SWAM instruments 'cause I'd perhaps-naively always planned to avoid NI if I could. I realise it'd only be the free player I'd need to install, but hey, it's still NI. I know. The whole world uses Kontakt libraries, but again, perhaps-naively, I've chosen to hold out as long as I can for a MachFive upgrade, not least because v3 cost me around $600 AU, a major investment, and although I've obviously not used it (or anything) yet, I've set it up to read all my old AKAI, EMU and audio-sample CDs. No other sampler can do this.

Now, regarding Modartt: It's not just the pianos that I wanted; the clav, and EP/s especially, interest me very-much too. Once I've installed the AIEP3 bundle, I'll barely have any room left for anything else, so the more I can employ modelling rather than samples, the better the chance I'll be able to get away with my current drives as well as the inevitable 1TB SSD, as a replacement, down the track. It may be that I'll just have to face reality and aim for the Standard package, or whatever they call it, and either specify the tines or buy them as add-ons. Even if there are better sample-based libs out there, the same space-saving caveat applies, I'm afraid.

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond, Mark; I feel bad that I've bombarded you with so many questions this year. You are the man, brother!

[James Steele]

Here's something that looks interesting... especially at $29. It's called Drum Direktor. Sales ends at midnight PST tonight, 8/22.

http://www.thelooploft.com/products/drum-direktor-fnk-4

[terrybritton]

Here's something that looks interesting... especially at $29. It's called Drum Direktor. Sales ends at midnight PST tonight, 8/22.

http://www.thelooploft.com/products/drum-direktor-fnk-4

Like the reviewer on the video there, beats programming is not part of my usual workflow, but this does seem like a very approachable interface. Perhaps once I'm past the rudiments via this program I will feel more comfortable with my copy of Linplug's RMV drum sampler!

Thanks for the tip-off, James! Just picked it up.

Terry

[mikehalloran]

Here's something that looks interesting... especially at $29. It's called Drum Direktor. Sales ends at midnight PST tonight, 8/22.

http://www.thelooploft.com/products/drum-direktor-fnk-4

Saw this: It is also now licensed with Native Instruments to work in both the FREE Kontakt Player 5 and Kontakt 5.

I know that there are upgrade paths through licensed 3rd party Kontakt libraries. If I read right, this will get me on the path for $29. Who knows, I might find it useful... I'm gonna bite.

[monkey man]

Thank you for posting this, James. I do appreciate it.

I've spent probably six months researching Steve Duda's Nerve, FXpansion's Geist and Tremor, NI's Machine, Softube's Heartbeat, MOTU's BPM and God knows what else, in an attempt to knock the beatz-creation thing on the head. I just want a single plugin that sounds great, is stable and easy to use, and that's appropriate for EDM, electronic and "urban" stuff. These areas are generally not very-well covered by the Slates of the world, if at all, so I anticipate requiring something along these lines. Unfortunately, none of the products I've seen so far clearly screams "I'm the one", although Nerve comes close... I think.

This one you've added further complicates my decision. Thanks bro'.

The Platinum Pack, by the way folks, is normally $1,560.00 (now $308.00), and that's for 8.8 GB only... of loops only. This price scares the bejeezus out of me. Somebody, please say something. I mean, this makes RMX look cheap.

Lastly, I'm confused: Why would one spend so much money on (mainly) acoustic drum loops when one would be restricted to stereo processing of entire kits? What on earth am I missing?

EDIT:
It goes without saying that I've hoped all along that MOTU would include a bang-up(!) option within DP. I might be able to hold out 'til DP10 (started the wait at DP 5 or whenever the first VIs were included), depending on when that arrives, but that'd be my limit time-wise.

[monkey man]

OK, a couple of warnings:

From BeerGutz, where I could find only two references to it (a warning of sorts in my book), one of which was a review, and the other the original product announcement. From the review:

... ultimately it lacks some range and depth since external content can not be loaded or imported, restricting its use to the onboard sounds and therefore to the styles and genres that it covers.

... and

I also miss the option to route the different mixing groups to separate audio outputs, which makes mixing slower if you want to treat each sample or beat with your own DAW-based processing.

Also, I could find virtually no EDM stuff, even in the $1,560 pack.

Too many deal breakers for me, but that's just me.

[James Steele]

... and

I also miss the option to route the different mixing groups to separate audio outputs, which makes mixing slower if you want to treat each sample or beat with your own DAW-based processing.

Looking at the product description, they seem to imply that you can assign certain elements to groups which can then be routed to different outputs, hence it may be possible to process certain elements separately in your DAW.

Here's the quote:

"Highly customizable group options including user definable colors, choke times and external output for further processing and mixing within your favourite DAW software."

And a screen shot:



So it looks like it MAY be possible to process elements discreetly. There is a demo so I may download it and see, but at $29, not sure that's important enough to me.

Also, I could find virtually no EDM stuff, even in the $1,560 pack.

That doesn't bother me. I'm actually liking the fact that it's acoustic kits, etc.

[monkey man]

Yeah, it's certainly unusual for this to be the case in a loop-based "box", James. For quickly cobbling stuff together, I can see it being a boon for you. Perhaps the review at GS was for v1 and the multi-out thing has been introduced with v2. Either way, it does look from the pic like it's possible now. Woohoo for anyone who grabs it!

For me 'though, the closed, proprietary-only library and lack of EDM content kill it. If it were two less-important features for me, I'd be all over it as it does look like you've found a bit of a gem. Funny in a way, 'cause I've never even made any serious EDM before; it's not really my thing, but I'd like to include it in my arsenal down the track. Pop, rock, funk and EDM feel like a nice, groovy mix to me. LOL

Thanks again, brother. I know I'm gonna probably kick myself at some point for not snapping this thing up; I have $50 Aussie left in my PayPal account, with nothing to be added for at least a month, so I might just have been able to make this happen. Oh well. When dollars aren't as scarce, there's always that day.

May I take this opportunity to thank you and everyone here for helping to make my somewhat-extended 3-or-4-day stint an absolute pleasure? Thanks mate. Here goes:
Hey, everyone! Thank you for being who you are. This little simian appreciates your company more than he believes you could possibly know, but we all know that he's probably wrong about this. LOL

Time to disappear into the world of asian-pop video-clip downloading and assessing 'cause the Air Instrument bundle has finally finished downloading. I had disabled the vpn to ensure the best-possible conditions for the hefty files. I even used Folx Free, which you might remember I discovered and shared with you guys a little while ago when we were all having trouble downloading the Digital Sensations library due to so many people's having taken advantage of its free status at the same time. It's been Synsational, dare I say, this Folx thing. I imagine the Pro version would be killer. Hasn't failed me once, whereas Safari suffers download interruptions very often that I can't even resume.

Once again, thank you all, and hopefully I'll be blessed with being able to catch up again soon. Love you all!a
Nicky

[James Steele]

Yeah, it's certainly unusual for this to be the case in a loop-based "box", James. For quickly cobbling stuff together, I can see it being a boon for you. Perhaps the review at GS was for v1 and the multi-out thing has been introduced with v2. Either way, it does look from the pic like it's possible now. Woohoo for anyone who grabs it!

I believe not only can you use it for loops, but I think from what I saw in the video demos, it looks like they also have individual hits on various kit pieces that you can layer on top of the premixed loops and those kit pieces can likely be routed to a specific output and processed separately on your DAW. If I have time, I'll download their demo. I'm not sure I'll bite, although I'm thinking that for $29 it might be something fun for just starting various drum loops and playing guitar over as a way to spark some song ideas, etc.