VI advice

[heydenkm]

I admit to being overwhelmed by the wealth information here and elsewhere, so I figured I'd cut to the chase and ask for some advice for my specific situation. I'd like to add some capability to use virtual instruments in my recordings. I'm a total nooB to this stuff so please be kind. I have acoustic and electric guitars and some mics and my trusty Eleven Rack to get all of my required guitar sounds. I have EZDrummer 2 and Superior Drummer to get anything I need for rock drum sounds and beats. I have A bass so I can get much of my bass requirements, though an occasional fretless sound or other variety may be useful. I also have EZMix 2 to cover most of the effects and mixing/mastering stuff that I'd want. I run it all through PT10 on an iMac.

What I would like is strings/orchestra/brass/woodwinds/concert percussion/etc. I'd also like some piano varieties. I wouldn't mind some choir stuff. If there is such a thing, marching percussion and some emulation of marching instruments might be cool. What I don't need is electronic pianos, vintage organs, the aforementioned drums, groove production, amp models, or synth stuff. I don't need preset patterns or loops or anything--I have a keyboard to input the notes and phrases I want. I also don't want to drop a ton of money if I don't need to or pay for things I don't need.

I've considered options like Komplete Elements and IK Multimedia's Total Workstation XL or SampleTank 2.5XL. They all seem to include a lot of stuff I don't need. I like that the IK stuff looks to have very complete orchestral stuff but I could get that with just the Miroslav package for half the price. I'm sure there are lots of options I haven't considered yet. I'd prefer to stick under $200 and like the idea of a bundle just for simplicity. I've read underwhelming reviews of IK stuff and realize you get what you pay for but can't justify spending a ton for some additional flourishes on my hobby recordings. Any advice you can provide is appreciated.

[DonaldM]

Well, don't overlook what you've already got. If you're running PT, then you also have Xpand2 and Structure Free. There are some decent sounding orchestral stuff in both of those. You can use Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra in Structure. There are some decent sounds there.

There's also the free Kontakt Player and the free Total Composure Library, which isn't bad either.

These are all freebies that might get a long way to what you're looking for.

There's probably others out there as well. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any decent VI that focuses on orchestral sounds for the price range you're looking at. Maybe there is.

[heydenkm]

Thanks for the reply. I have played around with what was in there and thought that I had tried everything but I honestly didn't come across anything like what you're describing. Not sure if I just missed seeing those or if I somehow failed to install them. I'll have to look into that. I should have mentioned that I did download the free versions of Komplete and SampleTank and will be attempting to run them through their paces but they look to be pretty limited in what they offer. The Kontakt Player was included, though.

Thanks again.

[nst7]

The free instruments that come with Protools are a separate download in your account. You may have overlooked that.

[heydenkm]

Thanks for that reply. I bought my Eleven Rack and PT10 used and had a heck of a time getting the license transferred and finding downloaders and stuff to get everything installed and set up. I've also learned a lot about it all since that first effort to get into it so I should probably go back and look to see what I may have missed. Thanks again for the head up.

[DonaldM]

Originally Posted by heydenkm

Thanks for that reply. I bought my Eleven Rack and PT10 used and had a heck of a time getting the license transferred and finding downloaders and stuff to get everything installed and set up. I've also learned a lot about it all since that first effort to get into it so I should probably go back and look to see what I may have missed. Thanks again for the head up.

What your looking for is the Pro Tools Creative Collection. It comes with Pro Tools. It includes 5 VIs: Structure Free, Xpand2, Boom, Vacuum and DB33. If you don't have the file to install those, and if your license has been properly transferred, you should have an account registered with Avid and can download what you need from your Avid account on the Avid website.

Good luck!

[Kinh]

Id recommend paying an extra 200 for Kontakt full. 40gigs of samples, most of which are orchestral, lots of orchestral percussion too. That way you have the option of expanding your libraries.

[Seafoam_Green]

Sampletank 2 sucks compare to version 3 and its not 64 bit either like version 3 is ..., check out Sampletank version 3 .

The other advice for Kontakt full version was good advice , as there are lots of dedicated V.Is that use it as a host ....,

too bad you didnt ask these questions a week ago while all the black friday discounts were in full swing