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  #1  
Old 06-15-2020, 06:13 AM
PatriotsBiker PatriotsBiker is offline
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Default Arturia - NI - IKM

I'm trying to decide upon the main VI platform to stick with. I have 3 main VI packages, though to different levels of being up-to-date. The stock key-lab set that came with the newest Arturia mkII 88-key keyboard I got late last year. NI Komplete Ultimate since version 8 through 11, and IKM Sample Tank from maybe 4-5 years ago. I do also have the AIR complete set and one Ivory piano (love it).

My music has changed over the past few years to a more traditional instrument set. Acoustic guitar (mostly mic'd), electric guitar and bass via Scuffham, UAD/PIA Ampeg and now a recent Kemper purchase (score!!!). I use drums with ToonTracks SD3, though am open for other thoughts. Otherwise, when I use VI, it is only for Piano, organ, and an occasional percussive element or a string pad. I've done 61 original songs in addition to a few covers. Music style all over the place. Talent ain't for crap, either, but let's not get into THAT topic right now.

All of that said, there is no reason to expect anything but another musical direction shift to more VI-centric things in the future. In fact, my current song is going to use more than I've used in a couple years. My next few songs afterwards are acoustic guitar based.

Arturia: I'm leaning towards the Arturia package (V Collection) as the one I update and continue along with, feed it, walk it and otherwise keep current. On that end, I have to wait on their next upgrade to the V package sale, which is no problem for me to do.
IKM: I'm the furthest behind on IKM, mainly due to their huge upgrade fees that have finally dipped below my purchase threshold. They've got too many packages since my Sample Tank purchase way back when. Total or Max or whatever it is. This is also the platform I am most hesitant of on the 3 mentioned. Issues in the past kind of thing. This would be the easiest to forget I ever had and free up space with.
NI Komplete Ultimate: They have their upgrade sale going on, too. I'm only one version behind, but am considering that new Collectors edition with the new expansions. To be honest, I can't tell if those are really nifty or if they are gimicky and time consuming to pick through.

I think now, as I type things out, expanding my Arturia platform might be the way to go. I guess I can/should also consider expanding and running with that new one Avid included last year.
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  #2  
Old 06-15-2020, 09:19 AM
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Stephen Bond Stephen Bond is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

I have fingers in each of the pies. In short.

PROS.
Arturia, great for synths. Easy installer and deinstaller.

NI, great for some acoustic bread and butter sounds, pianos, electric pianos, organs and such. Also, great for synths and guitar stuff. Good installer, although a bit of an arduous task with a new machine. No deinstaller but apparently not an issue for 'normal' use.

IK, great for guitar cabs, stomps and a smattering of plugins and various. Great value for money.


CONS.
Arturia, not liking the basic non sampled pianos, electric pianos and such so I generally turn to NI for these. I wish they would create some more bundles so I could upgrade to include say the EQ and preamps for example.

NI, are a bit slow to evolve and progress products wise compared with say Arturia.

IK, weak with the flexibility of the sampled keyboard sounds but if you find the right ones they could be better than those offered from their virtual cousins. The IK installers are messy and complex. Plus there is no deinstall function but still a limit of 10 installs. Apparently, if you need more they likely oblige but I would still prefer a proper deinstall function or else a USB key authorisation. Lastly you need to keep a copy of the install files as you have only 180 days to get them from IK



One other to consider is Waves. I like some of the keyboard products and many of the outboard plugins. The original guitar stuff is a bit dated although the new offerings are stellar like the PRS plugin.

Don't forget Plugin Alliance if you need some keys or especially guitar stuff.

Stephen
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  #3  
Old 06-17-2020, 04:19 AM
PatriotsBiker PatriotsBiker is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

Thanks for this, Stephen. Some further thoughts....

I understand most of your points. It doesn't seem like there is a one and done solution if I wanted to be selective with my sounds and tones, then.

I agree. A lot of NI is old. The nearest I can tell ATM, I would use the expansions very little, and their non-Maschine implementation looks a little hokey. Expanded strings, updated Massive-X and a couple of specialty instruments is about all I get for updating.

I think I'll dig into the Arturia V collection more and be ready to pounce (or not) when the next sale.

I've had similar experiences with the IKM. When I've found what I was searching for, it really worked well. Space management might eliminate or delay this one. Also, thinking outloud, I think tighter integration to my keyboard is a plus.
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Old 06-17-2020, 08:37 AM
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Stephen Bond Stephen Bond is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

It should be noted, if you have a Komplete Kontrol keyboard then that is a pretty elegant solution when paired with NI products and indeed, those form Arturia and others via the NKS standard. Even if you don't have the NI keyboard, Komplete Kontrol offers a good many advantages to hosting NKS compatible products in your DAW or stand alone.

Stephen
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  #5  
Old 06-17-2020, 11:40 AM
musicman691 musicman691 is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

Here's my thoughts:
For vintage synths - Arturia all the way. Their acoustic piano - not good. B3 tonewheel - way better than Vintage Organs in Kontakt. A couple of their synths are cpu hogs though (Moog Mini for one). Resizable gui's. Get the latest VCollection next time it comes up for sale.



Acoustic pianos - Kontakt 6 and the pianos NI has along with some great third party pianos. The acoustic pianos for UVI Falcon are decent as well. Their Steinway is inexpensive and quite good. There are some third party pianos for Falcon that are nothing to sneeze at. Gui not all that resizable.



IKMM - I'd stay away from them if at all possible. The sound isn't all that great no matter what instrument you want.


As far as NI as a whole - just get Kontakt as some of the other stuff hasn't been updated in a while like FM8 and Absynth. Never been a big fan of Reaktor.


Stay away from Plugin Alliance synths. I've demoed every one and have found major problems/issues that their developers aren't inclined to fix. Their fx and amp sims are nice and better sounding than anything IKMM puts out (except for IKMM's Echoplex emulation). Pricey though - they must be one of the highest-priced vendors out there. If you can latch on to a sale good on ya bro.


Tech support - NI's is clueless. Hell they don't even know what Audio Suite is in PT
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  #6  
Old 06-19-2020, 07:03 PM
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Eric Lambert Eric Lambert is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

I also have bundles from all 3. I don't use IK. NI is tough to beat for the depth of what is included and their quality ranges from decent to very good. Arturia wins on sound, imo, though they can be a bit buggy and fixes don't come swiftly. On the other hand, we've had similar issues with Kontakt so NI doesn't win that battle.

Factoring in your type of music (organic), I'd probably go after NI. Though Arturia may by my favorite overall, they do slant toward electronic, and I have to agree with the person above that their acoustic and electro/acoustic instruments are not the best available. They're arguably very good, but I don't use them for organic sessions.
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Old 06-20-2020, 03:04 AM
musicman691 musicman691 is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

For the NI users responding here do you really use anything other than Kontakt? Not slagging on anyone for going either way but going more from the point of view of why buy a Komplete bundle (and have all the other stuff just taking up space) when all one uses just Kontakt?
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  #8  
Old 06-20-2020, 03:24 AM
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

Agree with Musicman691 reg NI and we have the KU12 but use Kontakt and a few of the other VI in there like MassiveX but we got all the guitar expansions and IMO (not a Yngwie guitarist) I tend to use all the guitar bundle for writing ideas and usefull when I want to tell the qualified guitarists how I see the guitar parts going and then all improvements from there.

The old drum exp and bass etc and some weird ass VI in the KU12 bundle is pretty useless but even if you only use Kontakt and a few others you have got up the ladder of cost for the whole KU12 bundle anyway so just wait for the $399 sales or 50% off and get the latest bundle version.

Arturia is a Staple here as they blend perfeclty in with our hardware synths and we had one VI and upgraded for under 150 Dollars to the Arturia 7 bundle which was a no brainer and Pigments new version at $49. Great Deal!
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  #9  
Old 06-20-2020, 05:09 AM
musicman691 musicman691 is offline
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Southsidemusic View Post
Agree with Musicman691 reg NI and we have the KU12 but use Kontakt and a few of the other VI in there like MassiveX but we got all the guitar expansions and IMO (not a Yngwie guitarist) I tend to use all the guitar bundle for writing ideas and usefull when I want to tell the qualified guitarists how I see the guitar parts going and then all improvements from there.

The old drum exp and bass etc and some weird ass VI in the KU12 bundle is pretty useless but even if you only use Kontakt and a few others you have got up the ladder of cost for the whole KU12 bundle anyway so just wait for the $399 sales or 50% off and get the latest bundle version.

Arturia is a Staple here as they blend perfeclty in with our hardware synths and we had one VI and upgraded for under 150 Dollars to the Arturia 7 bundle which was a no brainer and Pigments new version at $49. Great Deal!
Would love to be able to use Massive X but NI made it so it won't run on cheesegrater Macs or some iMacs
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  #10  
Old 06-20-2020, 01:09 PM
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Default Re: Arturia - NI - IKM

Quote:
Originally Posted by musicman691 View Post
Would love to be able to use Massive X but NI made it so it won't run on cheesegrater Macs or some iMacs
Yeah I forgot about that ... Well in all honesty we use way more outboards and Pigments 2 and Arturia V7 than MassiveX these days as it is soso to program and it is a bit messy with the GUI updates and various features so I dont think you are missing out on that much.
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