@JimmyHellfire said:

I think it's odd what people are making out of this. Almost a quasi-religious discussion. Even more so considering the fact that the Synchron series so far has been still very much in line with VSLs "philosophy". Some people act as if the Synchron Strings were swimming in a sea of reverb and had this totally distinct, immutable sound, like it came straight out of a Hollywood movie.

Quite the opposite is true. SyS might be the driest "wet" library out there. It's not at all comparable to the Spitfire stuff or whatever. It has 100% VSL character - pristine, flexible, more "classical" - and has such a subtle reverb tail that would hardly get in the way of anything you might want to do. And the multi-mic setup is exactly what you need for the same flexibility you always had with VSL. If you need a closer, drier sound - what's the problem? Dial in the mics accordingly! It's easier and faster done than previously.

 The most notable change is that due to the realistic spatial depth, the samples simply sound more natural and "real" than the older libraries.

 It seems to me that some of the notions expressed here have more to do with tribal instincts and "choosing sides" than with using one's ears.

Jimmy,

I'm not sure if this was in response to my previous post or if you were just making a general statement about the direction the thread was heading but maybe the point I made became diluted from the irrelevant rambling that I started so I'll try to make it again.

For the record, I've heard the SyS demos and I've seen the videos.  I really like what I saw and heard👍  I'm especially attracted to the details in the samples😊

But I was trying to make the point that there is an artistic process in creating a sonic environment all your own whether you're using MIR, Vienna Suite, or some 3rd party plug ins.  This process can be just as involved and require just as much passion as stringing notes together to create a composition and that is why I don't want to see the Silent Stage retired.  Now if this is a "tribal" instinct then I guess I'm a proud card carrying member of the Silent Stage Tribe but that doesn't mean I'm taking sides against the SyS Tribe.

I think VSL has recognized a market trend here and SyS is their answer to it.  Working composers are under more pressure to create more product faster than before and SyS can be used to that end.  Everything sounds bueatiful right out of the box which saves time.

There's an old saying," I don't know what the secret to happiness is but the secret to failure is trying to make everybody happy" 

Well, I think maybe VSL has figured out a way to "make everybody happy" by creating the Synchron series.  If you want the spatial reverbed samples go with Synchron but if you like to create your own sonic environments stay with the Silent Stage samples.  But!!!  Give us the choice.  And I propose we call the Silent Stage samples just that "Silent Stage" not Classic, not Legacy not the old stuff, etc.

@jasensmith said:

Give us the choice.  And I propose we call the Silent Stage samples just that "Silent Stage" not Classic, not Legacy not the old stuff, etc.

I concur, but saying it more to VSL... if VSL does not put out new products (soon enough) for the Silent Stage soon enough, the series will get stale anyhow.

What was the last product for the Silent Stage? Wasn't it "Roompack. 6: Synchron Stage Vienna"?? And what was one before that???

I empathize decisions are often market-driven, but IMHO, if they rely too much on the market, there will be no vision, or the vision might not be that unique.

With the release of Synchron Piano and Synchron FX Strings, VSL has proven that they have maintained their standard of excellence. If they could be slightly more transparent with their roadmap, I think many of us will be a lot less anxious... and more than happy to embrace new products in either series.

Hopefully, VSL understands that we are investing in not just their libraries but also their vision. Edit: Probably VSL understands that aspect too well... 😄

...

@jasensmith said:

But I was trying to make the point that there is an artistic process in creating a sonic environment all your own whether you're using MIR, Vienna Suite, or some 3rd party plug ins.  This process can be just as involved and require just as much passion as stringing notes together to create a composition and that is why I don't want to see the Silent Stage retired.

That makes a lot of sense. I wasn't looking at it that way. You're right of course that conceiving and sculpting the sonics are a substantial aspect - especially if one uses things like MIR and has fully incorporated it into their process - and I can absolutely see that working on those aspects is enjoyable, important and part of the journey.

From that perspective, it's a legitimate concern that VSL is seemingly contradicting their whole ecosystem so far. On the other side, time is such a problematic factor - it most certainly is for me - and anything that does away with another step of this already often very tedious journey is welcome.

The thing I couldn't relate to as much  is the "slippery slope" kind of thinking that seems to imply that VSL is doing "out of the box", idiot composer libraries now because that's what sells today. But there's still a huge difference between a library that simply comes with some already baked-in ambience and offers several mic positions to help you shape the desired sound, and sonic "readymades" that make promises like "sound like XY in under 30 seconds!", box the user into one certain sonic environment, or emit complete phrases by holding down a key.

So far I found that SyS is still very much in line with what VSL was doing previously, in terms of sonics and character, and therefore thought that some of the fears or criticisms expressed in this thread were over the top and perhaps came with somewhat of an ideological background.

Dial in your mics  + some EQ if neccessary, and go - that's a new approach for VSL. One that I personally absolutely welcome, but whether it actually pans out is still to be seen (Have I already mentioned that this damn player really needs to be out now? 😊). The "older" approach on the other hand is already tried and tested and I of course understand that users are wondering if what they have become accomplished in using is considered "obsolete" now.

I was going to write more here but - I realized it is pointless.  And actually it is slightly repulsive to me to correspond this way.  It is an artificial and distorted way of conversing.  

Anyway I will sign off and let all the experts do what they do while I go and work on some music.

Funny, because I saw the post before you edited it out. Wise decision in any case.

Having read insightful posts here, like Bill's and Jasen's (I like the Adam Smith reference), and others', I am thankful I am not the only one having these thoughts about VSL's new direction. I have to admit that it is the last of the major 'Houses' that is moving to cater to the 'Inept' market, but I have to be thankful for all the wonderful products they have created thus far that literally changed our creative lives, and hope they don't stop!

But I can't help laughing silly at the ending of that Synchron FX video where the guy says "...so that you can create YOUR VERY OWN SIGNATURE sound..." 😃

@Errikos said:

...But I can't help laughing silly at the ending of that Synchron FX video where the guy says "...so that you can create YOUR VERY OWN SIGNATURE sound..." 😃

LOL 😃 this is a good one!

Well actually VSL published already the REAL tool for creating FX strings with YOUR VERY OWN SIGNATURE sound, and it was VI Pro 2 with Dimension strings: working with sequencing patterns, and individual player control, including detuning (e.g. "out of tune"  humanization envelopes) you had the fast way of creating building blocks for clusters and effects... YOUR OWN, not the pre-canned ones. 😛

But this new set of lybraries are for quick real-time manipulation on the keyboard, quick-arrangers on tight time schedule, more than accurate composers. What's wrong? ...the market demand... VSL offers... still we can make our choice.

Speaking of old/new Synchron, here is a piece mixed with MIR Synchron but using the Silent Stage Instruments. I recently tried out the MIR Synchron and it seems to fit this piece...

The Valiant

Thanks Dave! It is a very direct mix, just loading the instruments into the MIR Synchron with only a little adjustment of wet/dry ratios.  I am still not too familiar with this venue so am trying it out.  It seems spacious but very clear.  

Thank you Claude!  The mix is due to Synchron which gives a really good sound instantly.  Though I am still trying to figure out how to incorporate it in general.  It  has a clear sound and that makes one want to add more wet, so it is easy to go too far.  

While waiting for the Synchron Player which is obviously a hugely difficult and complex piece of software that needs to be worked on... I should distract from the real interest of the player.  

Putting it more positively I would actually like to hear those other pieces mentioned, not just as taunting, but seriously.  

Hi William, 

Everybody is welcome in this forum and we are happy about every contribution to this community. 

What we don't like are fights. Everybody has a right to his own opinion as long as it is not insulting to anybody else on the forum, especially on a personal level. 

We do hear and appreciate both criticism and praise and our response it to work even harder, in both cases.

Sp in short: Let's not fight. Please. 

Thanks, 
Paul 

Hi William, I love "The Valiant", the music, the sound. I don't hear any difference between the silent stage instruments and the synchron stage instruments, when it comes to the space, where they have been placed in. So I think, with this piece you show that the fear, that old libraries become legacy, is unjust and that VSL is making an even vaster pallet of thousands of colors of instruments. We are rich that we can have this beautiful source of instruments for our musical needs and we can congratulate each other for that, with a thanks to the guys in Vienna 😊

thanks MMKA. I agree on the sounds being very compatible also.  

Today, Spitfire Audio anounced their 'new' direction (which has been crafted for the last two years now...)

Spitfire Studio Strings!

Their poster reads as follows:

"An incredibly versatile pro-end dry stage sample library - giving you total control."

I hate to have been the prophet about this while back when this forum thread first started...

Cheers to all with much love!

Funny, they sell a "dry stage sample library" and therefor very little ambiance, with 7 Microphone-Positions. I am not sure if that RAM-Load will be that efficient.😶

Kontakt? Meanwhile their HZString-Player is not that much different, to stay with Kontakt does not seem to me that innovative. 😶

However Pro seem to be very cheap in respect to GB per €: 210 GB only 399€ = 526 Mb/€ 😛

(while the normal version with 13 GB makes 199€  = 65mb/€ 😔)