Simeon Amburgey

Great library for the HALion family. Quick Look | Sonic Atoms - Baltic Shimmers | Library for HALion | Replay

My excitement blinded me 🤓

After 2 years of work, we are really excited to announce PREPARATO Piano, the first library of the Preparato Series recorded in a beautiful church in the center of Rome. Flavio and Filippo, the minds behind this project, followed the idea of John Cage,searching for new sounds from the most interesting acoustic sources. PREPARATO is not just a prepared piano library; thanks to the “Acoustic Modular Instrument” engine based on a multi-layering system, PREPARATO allows you to have an incredible control over the acoustic source, with endless possibilities of combination. The use of both acoustic sampling and creative modular software bring to PREPARATO the feel and power of a real synth, designed to meet the endless intricacies of a musician’s mind. Introductory price $99.00 (reg. $149) More info here: https://www.xperimentaproject.com

This should keep you busy. ISW Pearl and Wholesound’s Baldwin are in the pipeline. CinePiano CinePiano from Cinesamples | Is This The Best Cinematic Piano Library? | First Look Embertone 1955 Walker D Embertone | Walker 1955 Concert D Piano Library for Kontakt Wavesfactory’s Mercury (With Grand Rhapsody Bonus) Side by Side: Wavesfactory Mercury and Waves Grand Rhapsody

It’s about time 😂🤣😂🤣 No seriously, thanks so much, I really appreciate all of the support. I am always looking for feedback and suggestions on what to cover next. Thanks again.

So just uploaded my playthrough of Production Voices Concert Grand LE. This is a very beautiful Steinway library. Check it out here:

Here is a video of my first experience with five of the Sampletekk libraries. Enjoy!

So after typing my lengthy response above I forgot all about the Uprights! 🤯 The new VI Labs Modern U is tops in that department. The Novel Piano from Sonic Atoms is a free library for HALion that is very surprisingly good. Fracture Sounds Woodchester Upright is also a real beauty. And who can't forget Spitfire Audio LABS Soft Piano I am not sure if any moderators are watching but I thought it might be helpful to put some sort of sticky thread "Simeon's Piano Corner" where I can list the piano libraries I have reviewed and give a little blurb about their specs and such. It could be in the Instruments and Effects section, who knows? 😎

This is probably the question I get asked the most seeing how many piano libraries I have reviewed since the first of the year and not counting the ones before that. It is more of favorites that I am really leaning into and really just need to do more actual production with these as I have been doing a lot of videos because not enough productions, it is a moving target. I would say in no particular order: Signature Grand This one hit me out of the blue and I think it changes the game in many respects. This developer took the same piano and recorded it in the same hall as another major piano library (hint: HZ) and provided it to us for an unheard of $49.00. The feel of the room around you and how they were able to bring so many different attitudes to the piano through the presets was really something. The developer has been very responsive as well to feedback so I am sure we have not heard the last from him. Production Grand (as it was the last one I just played): The standout feature here is playability and the amazing microphones and ability to control them that really have this one at the top of any list. The Ribbon and Tube microphones are just outstanding and having 8 mic setups to choose from is very desirable. NOIRE Noire has always been one of my favorites due to how it was put together, you feel the heart in it. Noire also broke new ground with the Particles Engine that many libraries have followed suit with their variations. ASCEND Heavyocity's take, except using a Steinway that has a little more depth and edge in some respects. Garritan CFX The Garritan CFX has something intangible about the shear power and yet a gentle quality about it. Being sampled in Abbey Road Studios also gives it a special something that is hard to explain. You are also given a full compliment of mic choices and somewhat can control the room and feel. It is definitely a choice for "true" classical players as it provides real Una Corda, Soft Pedal, and Sostenuto for a real playing experience. Having only a sustain pedal kept me from exploring this area more. Embertone Walker 1955 D Another stunning and huge library that also provides "true" pedal support. Also the number of velocity layers allows you to get a wide amount of expressiveness. Also the way it was recorded takes the room out of the way and gives you more flexibility in regards to the recording space in general. VSL Synchron Pianos: Bosendorfer Imperial and Yamaha CFX These libraries take things to another level, especially in regards to the velocity layers and ability to mix them using the amazing array of mic positions. The Bosendorfer especially stands out as being very powerful and warm but with a little attitude. The CFX was just BOOM! It was a little hard to get used to the hard right position on the Synchron stage but thankfully they allow you to use panning to help position the pianos. The Full library having the extra Tube and Ribbon mics again are absolutely amazing in how smooth, transparent and silky they are. There are more on the horizon, so stay tuned. I am continually learning so much about these libraries and hope to continue providing helpful observations that can help in deciding which one is right for you. All the best! Simeon

Here is the updated replay of the Livestream. Enjoy!

The livestream was a lot of fun. I have been really diving into this one, especially loving the mic selections (the ribbon and tube mics are especially delicious). Check out the new video in a new comment below.

There are a few days left for the Bundle Sale. i wanted to share a post from Ben at Vienna Symphonic Library. They are offering free 30 day demo licenses for the pianos so you can test drive them. The sale on the Bösendorfer is until the 30th. Check it out, https://vi-control.net/community/threads/synchron-bösendorfer-imperial.93827/post-4577054

This was a surprise livestream in a way as I just found out about the current bundle sale that VSL is currently holding. The special bundle pricing is still good until June 15th. I was really amazed at how different each piano sounded and performed. The Steinway and Yamaha CFX were recorded in different positions on the Synchron Stage. I hope you enjoy the replay, edited for content and clarity ;^)

@Christian Jones, let me say that this piano was recorded in the same hall as the Spitfire Hans Zimmer grand Using the same piano. This really impressed me that this piano just sounds so good and was playable, equivalent to a $300 library. This is based on a Steinway which has that particular sound as well as the spaciousness of how they recorded and scripted the library. I will have to brush up on my soap opera themes, 🤓 Thanks for watching!

This is one of the most amazing piano libraries I have come across (and no, this is not a paid endorsement) ;^) More information here: https://simplesamsamples.com/signature-grand.html It just took me by surprise and I am featuring it today (around 3:30) going live. I hope you join me.

Just got this in: https://heavyocity.com/product/gravity/

This library is possibly the most massive I have experienced. It has such powerful and at the same time can be a very subtle instrument to play. I really enjoyed the livestream as I learned so much along the way along with everyone who participated. Enjoy!

Actually Soundiron's Emotional Piano is sampled using a Kawai. I also did a video on that. It is a very nice sounding piano indeed. They also had the Kawai you mention at the church where I grew up playing, nice memories indeed.

Here is a review I did on the Ivory Pianos.

Here we go. The VI Labs Modern U will no doubt find its place alongside of VI Labs Ravenscroft 275 as one of the finest piano libraries. They really did a wonderful job in capturing so much detail, along with very thoughtful mic positions and effects. I hope you enjoy spending some time as we explore VI Labs Modern U together.

I never know exactly where things will go in these livestream reviews, but I always enjoy sharing them. I am working on editing the livestream and I will repost the replay once things are live. Thanks everyone for the support and I hope you enjoy watching? Simeon

e-instruments is currently having a 35% off sale on many of their libraries for Kontakt and HALion. More info here: https://e-instruments.com/ I just did a video on the Session Keys Acoustic Bundle which is a collection of three pianos (Steinway Model D, Yamaha CFII, and a beautifully sampled Upright). You can watch it here:

Here is a very interesting idea I have been learning more about. Check it out. https://lbry.com

Here are a couple of vids I did for Ascend. It is somewhere between NOIRE and Motion Keys. Being a Steinway gives you that different tonal color, and then there is Heavyocity’s spin on things which is very nice.

Select products up to 50% off and an additional 10% off when you purchase 3 titles. https://bit.ly/Heavyocity_summer_Sale_2020