synful orchestra: "awesome"

[kensuguro]

After thoroughly demoing synful orchestra, I decided to pull out the credito and give it a go.

I've been trying to beef up my samples recently, esp percussion and strings. For percussion, I bought the new Korg Wavedrum in Japan, and it'll be coming in next week. For strings.. well, I've been eyeing Goliath, Synful, or Yellow Tools. I didn't want anything like of VSL or EWQLSO's magnitude. I didn't want to mess around with articulation after articulation. I just needed something like GPO, that I could just play and get ok results without fiddling around to get the nuance of each bow strike correct.

Goliath and Yellow tools both have that hollywood style sound. That genre has become so saturated with high quality samples that they're all starting to sound the same. They all sound good, but it's become very formulaic. It won't be long before every hobby game programmer will have hollywood quality soundtracks.

Synful's sound is a little different. It's more like how GPO sounded different. It's much more sedate and "classic" sounding compared to the juiced up hollywood sound. That in itself isn't too attractive, but the "classic" sound combined with synful's auto articulation feature makes the performances sound unnaturally realistic. That is, unnatural for a vsti.

Synful builds its sounds on the fly depending on your MIDI input. If you play legato, it'll slur the notes for you. You play staccato, it'll put in an attack for each note. For string instruments, it also does a slight portamento when you play legato. Actually, each instrument reacts how it should, and it's all done automatically. All I need to do is use the mod wheel to control the intensity. (expression)

What sealed the deal for me, was a slider called "harmonic slope". I have no clue what it means, but whatever it is, when I turn it up, the strings get that silky sound. It's not like EQ, this slider literally changes how the sound is resynthesized. Now that's something I can't do with any other library.

Synful just added a new French Horn section, which uses its newest sampling technology. It seamlessly goes from its weakest sound, to its strongest sound continuously. The intensity is controlled with the mod wheel, and so I can do burning crescendos very easily. The only other horn section with such expressiveness is probably Walander brass.

The strings section is simple. It got articulations with the most recent update, and they are:
arco, pizz, bartok pizz, trem, sul-pont, and harmonic. (I'm wriitng from memory) But anyway, they're limited compared to the giganormous libs.. but I don't really care. I don't write horror film soundtracks that use crazy techniques. Just the arco alone is intelligent enough to be used for almost any situation. It already has legato, detache, bow switching built in, and all that is is selected automatically.

Synful isn't without its drawbacks though. Because it's resysnthesized (probably some form of fft resynthesis), you get the signature fft resynthesis artifacts. Especially when you play outside of the instrument's natural range, wich synful allows you to do, just for fun I guess. Anyway, artifacts are audible here and there, depending on what is played. Also, the viola's sound is very round. It's very, very round. It doesn't have the edge like the VSL detache samples. Which is fine in a classical context, but for more specific uses, like octaving detache with cello for a driving rhythm will never sound like the VSL/ewqlso counterpart. The double bass instrument also leaves more to be desired. It's very strange sounding, as if it's got too much high end. I needed to turn down the "harmonic slope" to get it dark and low. But the double bass also has the most audible artifacting.. so it's tough to say whether it's usable or not.

All in all though, synful just feels sooo good to play. It's also very light at a meager 150mb. Remember that unit? Mega bytes? The instruments just does what it's supposed to do, and you just need to think of a good arrangement. I spend more time writing, and not looking for the exact sample I want from a list of 5 billion articulations. It was a gamble, and it still is, buying into a somewhat underdog software. But so far I am very, very impressed. Extremely impressed.

Quick test arrangement retro tv theme style song:
"harmonic slope" turned up for violins and violas
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... bright.mp3

just synful
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... ustoke.mp3

"harmonic slope" set to default
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... lassic.mp3

Beautiful Love jazz
Sexy violas and 2nd violins doing jazz call & response with melody.
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... ullove.mp3

8beat syncopations / disco
listen to how the attack changes depending on context!
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... canfly.mp3

slow lyrical phrasing with subtle build up / break down
You can hear just a bit of double bass.
http://kensuguro.com.music.s3.amazonaws ... noloss.mp3

For these demos, synful is going through slight eq for treble gain (voxengo harmoniq), and blueverb.

[dawman]

Damn Brotha' Man, I think you convinced me.
I am migrating from my Miraslav Strings and still haven't chosen the right Live library.
Synful sounds like something I would enjoy.
If you get that kind of control from a ModWheel remapping it to an expression pedal and using Slope Modification and Lag times would be awesome.
I am checking it out now.
You might have saved me some jack.
The new Miraslav Strings are using Yellow Tools engine which is very similar.
They have some incredible Snare stuff like nobody else.
Thanks I shall get back to you.

[braincell]

Great! Wish I could afford it. Have fun!

[braincell]

I wonder could these blend well with orchestra samples?

[kensuguro]

well, at least compared with the k2 freebie vsl library, the strings sound a little too different.

[dawman]

Kontakt libraries are so lame.
They should call the VSL, WSL, for Weak String Library.
The shrill, thin strings are so annoying, they should pay us for auditioning them.
Scarbee is on NI's payroll so there's hope. I would much rather pay for quality than have 80GB's of foulness polluting my HDD's.
The drums are especially " white, " and only a bedroom suburban, caspery bastard might find usefulness.
Other than that,............It's a GGGGRRRRRRAAAAAAYYYYYYY8888888 application.......

[braincell]

The VSL is recorded dry. You are supposed to put reverb on them. I think synful sounds artificial. I only like it for the look ahead articulations.