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  • Close mics on Steinway D

    M
    M

    Hello!

    I currently have the standard Steinway D library and while it is good, I would like to have a closer sound which gives me the impression of actually sitting at the piano and also gives me the opportunity to tame the sometimes pingy impressions I get from the high octaves.

    Can somebody who has the full library send some examples of how it sounds with a mix of close mics? 

    I was wondering if I should upgrade given the current discount.

     

    Best,

    Mango
  • D
    D

    deleted
  • F
    F

     

    Not sure if I understand your request. I try to answer to different options:

    - did you already try the "Player" perspectives in your standard Library presets? In case you didn't just learn how to use the GUI to select it, in case you did already, did you try to exclude the Reverb? It makes the sound more direct.

    - did you try to mute the Room Mix and Mid microphones? the close one is the "condenser" you may use it alone. In case you did it already, I'm not sure if the other mics can improve the feeling of being in front of the piano keyboard.

    - about the sound, being a bit metallic in treble range, you may try to add a bit of "Body": to my taste some 2% or 3% is already doing the job of rounding the excessive brightness, when it's not requested (e.g. for solos). A more extreme solution is using the "Timbre shift" at -1, (but it's playing trasposed samples, and it sounds a bit too dark/digital to me).
  • M
    M

    Hello,

     

    basically, what I am asking is: is the full library worth it?

    I already muted the Room Mix and Mid microphones but I like to keep the Reverb on (-10.3) with just the Condenser Mic. Disabling the reverb completely kind of makes it more direct but also more digital sounding (you always hear the room in which you play in as well, I might experiment with reducing the Reverb further). 

    Your suggestion about the Body was right. I felt an improvement with that.

    I am just asking to hear how the three close mics or even two sound together because on some forums that is considered to be the ultimate experience :)

     

    Best,

    Mango
  • M
    M
    last edited
    last edited

    Hi Mango,

    I definitly love the microphones of the full library. I use them a lot and I even can colour so much with the microphones that I almost don't need equalizing. The three close microphones have all a different character and with mixing them you can search for your favourite sound.

    For you I recorded "Consolation", what I posted earlier on this forum, anew, now with only the three close mics plus the mid mic 2, that comes with the full version. You find it here: Consolation.

    The version with the ambient mics you find here: Consolation.

    I send also a picture with the mixer settings. The last three channels sound only with the version with ambient mics.

    I hope this will help.
  • M
    M

    Hey MMKA,

    thank you for your reply. I was on the fence about the Full version but yes, they sound very beautiful. Both the close and the ambient version actually. It helped me a lot :)

    I'm sure this will also help other people wanting to know more about the library and the sound you can achieve with it (because honestly, I haven't found another library with this sense of realism and directness of sound).

     

    Best regards,

    Mango