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I'm just about to step into the water of using software sample players to supplement my audio tracks. So far I've done almost all straight audio (i.e. live miked instruments/vocals) with occasional use of outboard MIDI sources.

I've done some research on various products and I find myself facing a basic choice between two paths:

1) Buy a general-duty sampler like MachFive or Kontakt and then accumulate libraries for it.

2) Buy specialized VI's for each kind of sound source--for instance, since I'm mostly interested in traditional keyboards, drums and orchestra, I might buy BFD, B4, Ivory, and GPO or EWQLSO Silver.

I'm guessing that the basic advantage of (1) is flexibility/expandability, and the basic advantage of (2) is that it should be easier to get high-quality results since the UI is specifically designed for working with a particular set of sounds.

Any opinions about the pros and cons of these two approaches?

Originally posted by Brian Middleton:
I'm just about to step into the water of using software sample players to supplement my audio tracks. So far I've done almost all straight audio (i.e. live miked instruments/vocals) with occasional use of outboard MIDI sources.

I've done some research on various products and I find myself facing a basic choice between two paths:

1) Buy a general-duty sampler like MachFive or Kontakt and then accumulate libraries for it.

2) Buy specialized VI's for each kind of sound source--for instance, since I'm mostly interested in traditional keyboards, drums and orchestra, I might buy BFD, B4, Ivory, and GPO or EWQLSO Silver.

I'm guessing that the basic advantage of (1) is flexibility/expandability, and the basic advantage of (2) is that it should be easier to get high-quality results since the UI is specifically designed for working with a particular set of sounds.

Any opinions about the pros and cons of these two approaches?

By and large, your assessment is a pretty good way of sizing up VIs, at least in a cursory overview way.

Some other variables and adjustments to weigh in:

About samplers...

Samplers like MachFive and Kontakt allow you to build your library incrementally which can be more affordable.

They also let you pick and choose from various sample formats since they all have some degree of built-in multi-format conversion.

Many libraries for samplers have very high, authentic sound quality. You can find many traditional keyboards and orchestral samples libraries that sound great.

All samplers ship with their own starter collection of sounds.

They also ship with built-in effects which can be helpful.

About specialized VIs...

Most VIs do have interfaces that allow better control. In the case of orchestral VIs, where mod wheel adjustments can really make an impact, that's a real boon.

Many VIs do have great quality sounds. The ones you list are among that group. Not all do, though, so research wisely (seems you have).

Some have "real world" reverbs which add to their authenticity. I know BFD and EWQLSO do.

Many operate as ROMplers, which is to say they're not sound-expandable (or have limited capacity as such). Some, like BFD, allow you to expand your palette, but only through their own library sources; that is, BFD requires BFD samples.

Lastly, to consider...

A multi-purpose app like Propellerhead's Reason will give you a little bit of both worlds. I've found that I've been able to cover a lot of bases with just Reason, MachFive and some selective sample purchases. That said, I've also picked up specialized apps like BFD to fill out the authenticity vibe, and haven't been disappointed.

In short, once you're in this, and you like it, you'll probably end up with both samplers and VIs.

<small>[ May 20, 2005, 12:15 PM: Message edited by: chrispick ]</small>

If you are going to do work requiring lots of sampler voices you might want to consider a dedicated CPU sampler that runs on a whole other box. I recently put in GIGA Studio3. Lots of voices, lots of tracks lots of production headroom. Also for about 60.00USD you can get a piece of software to convert virtually any other library you may have to .gig format. I use a fair amount of VIs as well and you need DSP headroom if you are going to use some cool ear candy.
With GIGA you can add to your library as you go as well.

These are not your only choices if you are just getting into synth tracks. VIs are great and a great convenience, but do not under estimate the value of using some outboard gear for your work. Even a lowly PC88 (Kurtzweil) is extremely useful, as are such other items as Proteus 2 (Emu) and the Wavestation series from Korg.

I hear the flames already! I use MachFive and MX 4 (not really applicable to acoustic synthesis). But I still use my PC 2 (the 88's successor), Proteus and Wavestation SR. The other good thing about this approach is that you can generally find these outboard rigs on eBay and they are very often in great shape. Just a little outdated. Again, still VERY useful.

So while this doesn't answer your question in terms of 'options' it is yet another option to consider.