Virtual Instruments - Package recommendations
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This forum is for most discussion related to the use and optimization of Digital Performer [MacOS] and plug-ins as well as tips and techniques. It is NOT for troubleshooting technical issues, complaints, feature requests, or "Comparative DAW 101."
This forum is for most discussion related to the use and optimization of Digital Performer [MacOS] and plug-ins as well as tips and techniques. It is NOT for troubleshooting technical issues, complaints, feature requests, or "Comparative DAW 101."
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Virtual Instruments - Package recommendations
Hey all, I've been using DP for some time but strictly to only record and mix audio until now. However the time has come that I need to get up and close with VIs. I don't have much, in fact hardly any, experience with them but am amazed at what I'm seeing available.
Any good directions to go in, recos on manufacturers, packages, what to look for, etc, specifically to work well with DP? My signature indicates what I'm working with. TIA!
Any good directions to go in, recos on manufacturers, packages, what to look for, etc, specifically to work well with DP? My signature indicates what I'm working with. TIA!
Last edited by kemccarthy1 on Thu Feb 15, 2018 3:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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- mikehalloran
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Re: VI Package recommendations
No need to go overboard at first, probably. Packages from NI (Komplete) or IK (Sampletank) will get you started with a good variety of useful sounds. No one stops at one and, once you've begun, there will be email offers for discounts on upgrades and add ons.
DP 11.31; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sonoma 14.4.1, USB4 8TB external, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3 6/10/12; 2012 MBPs Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5.2, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 Pro, Toast 20 Pro
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Re: VI Package recommendations
Thanks! I've been checking out Komplete - that's the Kontakt company, right? Native Instruments? Looks like Komplete Select is a good place to start.mikehalloran wrote:No need to go overboard at first, probably. Packages from NI (Komplete) or IK (Sampletank) will get you started with a good variety of useful sounds. No one stops at one and, once you've begun, there will be email offers for discounts on upgrades and add ons.
Last edited by kemccarthy1 on Wed Feb 14, 2018 2:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: VI Package recommendations
I really Like Expand II from AIR. Great VI to get started. It has everything and you can get it cheeeeep
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- mikehalloran
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Re: VI Package recommendations
Komplete Select includes the free version of Kontakt only. I don’t consider that a very good deal but, as mentioned earlier, there will be upgrade offers.kemccarthy1 wrote:Thanks! I've been checking out Komplete - that's the Kontakt company, right? Native Instruments? Looks like Komplete Select is a good place to start.mikehalloran wrote:No need to go overboard at first, probably. Packages from NI (Komplete) or IK (Sampletank) will get you started with a good variety of useful sounds. No one stops at one and, once you've begun, there will be email offers for discounts on upgrades and add ons.
DP 11.31; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sonoma 14.4.1, USB4 8TB external, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3 6/10/12; 2012 MBPs Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5.2, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 Pro, Toast 20 Pro
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sonoma 14.4.1, USB4 8TB external, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3 6/10/12; 2012 MBPs Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5.2, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 Pro, Toast 20 Pro
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Re: VI Package recommendations
This is all pretty new to me, very confusing exactly what is what with Kontakt and Komplete. I like what I've heard of theirs so far. Basically I'm looking for something to get started with within DP but not sure what exactly I should buy. I put in a request to my guy at Sweetwater, he knows what I have and I've made plain what I'm looking for. Hopefully he can narrow it down for me. Any thoughts on your end?mikehalloran wrote:Komplete Select includes the free version of Kontakt only. I don’t consider that a very good deal but, as mentioned earlier, there will be upgrade offers.
iMac (Retina 5K, 2017) 4.2 GHz Intel Core i7 running 10.13.6 / 64GB RAM 2400 MHz DDR4/ DP 9.52 / Cubase 10.0.15 / UAD Apollo x8p / MOTU 828es / MOTU 8pre / Mackie 1604VLZ4 / Yamaha S80
Re: VI Package recommendations
I would just start with the NI full Kontakt package. The included samples are completely serviceable, although nothing to write home about. The main advantage is that you will have access to the de facto sample standard for just about all VI libraries, some free and great, and many paid and not so great. All of them require the full Kontakt package. The free Kontakt Player will play these libraries too, but only for fifteen minutes with no saves. Perhaps you might just want to get your feet wet with the Kontakt Player and see where you can go from there. It couldn't hurt.
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Re: VI Package recommendations
+1 for NI Komplete. Omnisphere is another staple worth investing in early.
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- HCMarkus
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Re: VI Package recommendations
Make that another +1 for both.Rusty Shackleford wrote:+1 for NI Komplete. Omnisphere is another staple worth investing in early.
Komplete, especially Ultimate, has tons of bread & butter stuff, plus enough in the esoteric department to keep you busy for a long, long time. As suggested by Mike, if you can wait until the inevitable sale, which will take place just before NI releases the next version of Komplete, you can snag a very good deal.
Omnisphere is less well-rounded, but there is so much great stuff there that I use it on almost every project.
- midilance
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Re: VI Package recommendations
+1 Komplete is amazing for the price.
Mac Studio m2 Max // OS 14.3.1 // DP 11.3.1 // MotU Ultralite mk4 // Komplete Ultimate 14 // Arturia V Collection 9 // Korg Collection // Stylus RMX 1.8 // Omnisphere 2.6.2c // Scarbee Keys and Basses // T-Racks 5 // Amplitube 5 // BFD3 // Blue3 // PolyM //
- mhschmieder
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Re: VI Package recommendations
Hah, I thought this was another Vienna Instruments question, until I saw some of the responses.
Do you want sample library recommendations, or standalone synthesizer plug-in recs (including modeled stuff like Sample Modeling winds/strings)?
General MIDI oriented coverage of "all basic instrument groups", mostly acoustic instruments, vintage keys, synths, world instruments, etc.?
Are you interested in learning how to modify sounds, whether acoustic samples or synthesizer patches or what have you? That could affect your preference for Kontakt vs. HALion vs. Falcon vs. ENGINE vs. the free UVI player, e.g.
Do you want sample library recommendations, or standalone synthesizer plug-in recs (including modeled stuff like Sample Modeling winds/strings)?
General MIDI oriented coverage of "all basic instrument groups", mostly acoustic instruments, vintage keys, synths, world instruments, etc.?
Are you interested in learning how to modify sounds, whether acoustic samples or synthesizer patches or what have you? That could affect your preference for Kontakt vs. HALion vs. Falcon vs. ENGINE vs. the free UVI player, e.g.
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Re: VI Package recommendations
For now I'm mostly interested in acoustic samples of keyboards - piano, organ, etc. - in a package that will play nice with DP, but will in all probablity branch out from there. Not interested (yet) in modifying sounds at all but again I'm just on the first leg of this new journey.mhschmieder wrote:Hah, I thought this was another Vienna Instruments question, until I saw some of the responses.
Do you want sample library recommendations, or standalone synthesizer plug-in recs (including modeled stuff like Sample Modeling winds/strings)?
General MIDI oriented coverage of "all basic instrument groups", mostly acoustic instruments, vintage keys, synths, world instruments, etc.?
Are you interested in learning how to modify sounds, whether acoustic samples or synthesizer patches or what have you? That could affect your preference for Kontakt vs. HALion vs. Falcon vs. ENGINE vs. the free UVI player, e.g.
Has anyone experience with either Spectrasonics or Arturia at all? They each look like an amazing library of keyboards.
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- mikehalloran
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Re: Virtual Instruments - Package recommendations
Once again, you might want to look at SampleTank 3. IK has just dropped the price to $199.
http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/sampletank3/
UVI has many keyboard packages.
https://www.uvi.net
AudioDeluxe has either for 15% off — you have to create an account to see the discount.
The paid version of Kontakt is required for many 3rd party libraries. Quite a few are inexpensive.
http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/sampletank3/
UVI has many keyboard packages.
https://www.uvi.net
AudioDeluxe has either for 15% off — you have to create an account to see the discount.
The paid version of Kontakt is required for many 3rd party libraries. Quite a few are inexpensive.
DP 11.31; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sonoma 14.4.1, USB4 8TB external, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3 6/10/12; 2012 MBPs Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5.2, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 Pro, Toast 20 Pro
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- Rick Cornish
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Re: VI Package recommendations
+1 on both. Komplete (the”Ultimate” version is unnecessary) has a lot of good VIs as well as effect plugins. Once you have the full version of Kontakt (part of Komplete—all these “K” names are confusing), it opens up a whole world of third party stuff from Spitfire, Soniccouture, etc., etc. As for Omnisphere, I use it more than anything else for ANY synth sound, so that’s one I couldn’t live without. There are also a lot of great third-party patch libraries for Omni (Plugin Guru and The Unfinished) that add great sounds for not a lot of dough (if you need more that the 10,000 patches it ships with, that is).Rusty Shackleford wrote:+1 for NI Komplete. Omnisphere is another staple worth investing in early.
Rick Cornish
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64mB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs, and Mac OS Sonoma). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64mB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs, and Mac OS Sonoma). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
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Re: VI Package recommendations
Thanks, Rick. This definitely looks worth checking out.Rick Cornish wrote:+1 on both. Komplete (the”Ultimate” version is unnecessary) has a lot of good VIs as well as effect plugins. Once you have the full version of Kontakt (part of Komplete—all these “K” names are confusing), it opens up a whole world of third party stuff from Spitfire, Soniccouture, etc., etc. As for Omnisphere, I use it more than anything else for ANY synth sound, so that’s one I couldn’t live without. There are also a lot of great third-party patch libraries for Omni (Plugin Guru and The Unfinished) that add great sounds for not a lot of dough (if you need more that the 10,000 patches it ships with, that is).Rusty Shackleford wrote:+1 for NI Komplete. Omnisphere is another staple worth investing in early.
iMac (Retina 5K, 2017) 4.2 GHz Intel Core i7 running 10.13.6 / 64GB RAM 2400 MHz DDR4/ DP 9.52 / Cubase 10.0.15 / UAD Apollo x8p / MOTU 828es / MOTU 8pre / Mackie 1604VLZ4 / Yamaha S80