VSL: Up to 35% Off Pianos & Keyboards

[cclarry]

At Best Service

https://www.bestservice.com/deals/vsl_up_to_35_off_pianos__keyboards_4148.html

[PhonoBrainer]

Apparently , 30% off of overpriced is about $400. Looking at you, Synchron.

[Craig Fowler]

Well, about $400 is for the full packages, not the standards...and the standards are definitely not 'lite' versions!

 

$136 for the uprights put them quite a bit under the price of Modern U ($169). $200 for the standard CFX is pricey but not crazy.

 

All that to say, these are clearly not cheap instruments - but they are wonderful, not just for production but for practice. And that ain't something more than a handful of other piano VIs can lay claim to. I've got all 7 of the Synchron pianos now, and they've brought me a huge amount of pleasure! Sorry if I'm getting protective of my babies!

[PhonoBrainer]

Not at all, Craig! I half expected my snarky little remark to generate a full-throated defense, and yours was well put.

I agree about the quality! But do you find they have the room baked in?

Nine pianos later, once I got Garritan CFX (on sale!) I was done looking. Cheers!

[Craig Fowler]

2 hours ago, PhonoBrainer said:

Not at all, Craig! I half expected my snarky little remark to generate a full-throated defense, and yours was well put.

I agree about the quality! But do you find they have the room baked in?

Nine pianos later, once I got Garritan CFX (on sale!) I was done looking. Cheers!

I did think there was more room sound baked in at first - but not as much as Garritan (which has the advantage of it being a beautiful sounding room!). But, as with Garritan dialling back the release sample volume and, of course, lowering the mid/decca tree/room mics also helps. Something that I wrestled with at first was that there seemed to be two separate reverb controls, so I you *think* you should have a nice, close sound -- but you still don't!

There's much less room sound in the studio B libraries (both uprights, Bluthner, Bosie 280). And I don't know if I'm imagining it, but I feel like the room sound is harder to tame on the Steinway than the other big grands. 

I understand the charm of Garritan - I like it too. But it's practicing with the VSLs that I think has really helped my technique.

 

[Fleer]

Never got into that Garritan CFX. Too much noise in there. Don’t shoot me now.