75% off IK Multimedia SampleTank 4, now $49.99 instead of $199:

[cclarry]

$41.99 with code GROUP

https://www.jrrshop.com/ik-multimedia-sampletank

[Fleer]

Got it a long time ago, so why don’t I use it?

[fret_man]

Same. The interface just seems too difficult to navigate. And the samples don't seem to give me enough flexibility.

[cclarry]

52 minutes ago, Fleer said:

Got it a long time ago, so why don’t I use it?

 

18 minutes ago, fret_man said:

Same. The interface just seems too difficult to navigate. And the samples don't seem to give me enough flexibility.

By comparison to Kontakt this is not even "in the ball park"

[Fleer]

37 minutes ago, fret_man said:

Same. The interface just seems too difficult to navigate. And the samples don't seem to give me enough flexibility.

For me it’s the interface, that red GUI. 
Doesn’t inspire at all. 

[kitekrazy]

 It's the library structure that needs work.  I can move Kontakt libraries all over the place.   The presets and samples are often in the same folder.

[jude77]

I use ST quite a bit, but you guys are dead right about the interface and the library structure.  They're both harder than they need to be and making them more user friendly shouldn't be hard at all.  C'mon IK.

[Brian Walton]

Don't really want the foot the bill for a new interface though it needs one.

 

I also think they could reduce the file size a ton as many of the samples seemed like they were a bit redundant and changes the end user could make with effect tweaks instead of baking it in to a new sample.  

I like the idea of what the platform offers and while it gets some comparison to the NI platform it does cost a whole lot less on sale for quite a bit of content though in a closed ecosystem which makes it feel like a different product category.

[Milan]

IMO it needs:

Better articulations

Snappier/cleaner GUI that doesn't use CPU inefficiently (I think it redraws too often or inefficiently)

No fee to download samples after 6 months

Better control over what instruments to install/uninstall

[Jesse Screed]

For the person without much cash this would be a good price to get a lot of stuff.  It comes with a bevy of t racks effects, but you can't use them outside of the platform, and there are usable sounds.  I am not sure it compares at all to Kontakt, though others may have different opinions.

 

At $49 I would recommend this for sure to someone who just wanted to stick their toe in the water when it comes to sample players.

Edited August 22, 2023 by Jesse Screed

[PavlovsCat]

SampleTank is okay, but KONTAKT is in a completely different league.  When I compare the first version of SampleTank I had maybe 20 years ago, and how KONTAKT has progressed during the same period, it's a very dramatic difference.  When it comes to detailed samples and samples with various articulations where sophisticated scripting makes a major difference, it's an easy choice -- KONTAKT. Even if you're getting KONTAKT for the factory library and various developer freebies, it's still a much better option, IMO. Unless there's some monumental leap that brings it up to the level of KONTAKT, I think SampleTank 4 is the last version of SampleTank for me. I'd much rather use the hard drive space for KONTAKT libraries. 

I would only suggest SampleTank to someone who absolutely cannot afford KONTAKT and now, at $50 USD, it's a lot more compelling than at its typical sales price.  

 

Edited August 23, 2023 by PavlovsCat

[Craig Fowler]

1 hour ago, Jesse Screed said:

For the person without much cash this would be a good price to get a lot of stuff.  It comes with a bevy of t racks effects, but you can't use them outside of the platform, and there are usable sounds.  I am not sure it compares at all to Kontakt, though others may have different opinions.

 

At $49 I would recommend this for sure to someone who just wanted to stick their toe in the water when it comes to sample players.

Yup - when I think back to shelling out for hardware synths on the basis of the onboard sounds, ST4 at $49 is a steal. And there *are* some good sounds in there...but damn, if it doesn't make you work to find them!

I've opened ST4 to pootle around with out of curiosity, but the GUI just sucks the fun out of playing. I mean, I hate Kontakt's interface too, but the hatred I have for working with Sampletank is at a different level.

I know VSL are on the fancy side of things, but their Synchron player is a thing of beauty as these things go.

[ALC]

7 hours ago, Jesse Screed said:

It comes with a bevy of t racks effects, but you can't use them outside of the platform, and there are usable sounds.

The effects got spun off to a standalone product known as MixBox.

[TracingArcs]

I bought a boxed version of ST2.5XL years ago (that was a difficult interface!). And moving to Windows 10 trashed it. So installed ST3/4 CS and used the 2.5 samples in the new interface. Agree the new interface is poor. I use only a couple of sounds. And prefer the diversity and the ability to expand cheaply or for free  of Kontakt. I'm not sure that even at this price it is a long term viable product.

[DamienF]

you can also buy it at IK Store and use your jam points and so save some money 

if you can buy it at 35$/€, it would be the price of only one Kontakt library

Edited August 23, 2023 by DamienF

[dubdisciple]

It's worth it for the price, but agree that installs and interface needs work. I will say that when I do use it, I don't regret the results.

[JT music]

Just like syntronik are sample instruments that did not progress and were losing popularity over time due to the tremendous escalation of kontakt and so many other plugin of higher sound quality and was used professionally in studios, this more than clear that given such low popularity has to be reflected in low prices that more than crazy prices I would say are fair prices before products that are no longer so popular and would have no other way today to be able to sell themselves.

[User 905133]

I was thinking that the low price for ST4 might be a lead in to a Group Buy type of promotion for the libraries--kind of like Buy 1 ST Library at $29.99 and get up to 88 depending on how many people participate.   So, by selling ST4 for $50 they could really generate some serious revenue. 

[Magic Russ]

They had a group buy like that included a number of ST libraries a few years ago and I got a fair amount of content.  Some things were okay, some were good but redundant for me, and a few were unique enough to be interesting but I haven't used yet.

For someone who is starting out this is a great way to build a library of sounds, but only at this price.  Those that have a more komplete selection of sounds might find it a great way of putting unused space on their hard drive to work.

 

 

[iNate]

I generally didn't mind the ST UI, except the browser is terrible and that's the most important thing for a ROMpler type instrument. 

I do think red is the worst possible accent color. Our eyes are sensitive to that color, evolutionary speaking, so it is a bit too prominent. That's why Stop Lights and Signs are red, Lol. They should give the option for a less awful accent color...

Bad browser, too many patches with too extremely similar names (makes search less effective), CPU/RAM usage is too high (and no purge function), lacking articulations and round robins, no decent legato emulation for instruments that could benefit,  inability to manage content after installation (except manually in file explorer), and a lot of redundant bloatware just to manage activations.

Also, they really should use better efficient compression for the samples. 

I also had tons of issues accessing their servers. It only worked randomly, and always broke instantly when I tried to purchase anything. 

Last time I tried to purchase the TS3 upgrade, it broke. And I broke. So I deleted the entire account and moved on. 

I wasn't about to tether to my phone to download that much data, and I was not using it at that point. I was just going to upgrade simply to keep everything up to date.