MachFive vs Reason - or maybe something else?

[dkrz]

I’d like to get some feedback on these two products by people that use them professionally.

Major considerations are:

*How do the orchestral samples compare between these two products as far as realism?
*Ease of library expansion and the pricing structure of sample purchases.
*What types of samples are bundled with them. (loads of useless garbage mixed in with just a few usable samples, or lots of “good” stuff)
*And lastly, how well it interfaces with PT.

I’m tying to make an informed purchase decision about a soft sampler solution based on my writing and production style. I’m using the host based version of PT (6.2.2 - Panther) and do all my sequencing with it and want to remain within the PT environment during the entire creative process.

I compose instrumental music (cues) used mostly for TV documentaries and inde productions. I try to produce organic and realistic orchestral arrangements with some sound design elements mixed in. I currently do this by using my E-mu E-synth rack sampler and have produced some good material with it in the past several years. However, I’m getting tired of my sample library and rather than spending hundreds of dollars to upgrade my current sample library, I figure I should just go soft sampler. It’s just time...

I have DL’d the reason demo and it seems pretty cool but also appears to be ideal for loop based hip-hop or pop music, (something that I absolutely never create). I think it probably has too many “gismos” that I simply would never need and also does not seem too intuitive when interfaced as a plug-in with PT. As far as MachFive, I can’t find a downloadable demo version of MachFive (which makes it pretty tough to see how it interfaces with PT) but it seems to be maybe more suited to my type of work. Would this be an accurate assessment?

Sorry for the long winded post but I appreciate any feedback.

dk
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Dual 1.25GHz FW800 / 512MB ram
OS10.3.2
PTLE 6.2.2
100GB OWC Firewire Audio HD
DigTranslator 2
McDSP Analog Channel
Waves Native Power Pack - v4

[dubaifox]

...the reason demo and it seems pretty cool but also appears to be ideal for loop based hip-hop or pop music, (something that I absolutely never create). I think it probably has too many “gismos” that I simply would never need and also does not seem too intuitive when interfaced as a plug-in with PT.

I think your assesment it pretty accurate, though have never tried Mach 5 myself. Reason is definitely geared up and ready to go for House/Dance/Hip Hop, however it can sound quite excellent in other styles as well, and also give you a plethora of new sounds that can be incorporated into any style of music. You can also buy refill libraries that are more suited to your needs.

It may not be your first choice for the style you compose in, but I don't think there is anything out there for $400 that offers SO MUCH! You would use it I am sure.

[Dutchmuzik]

If you are looking for orchestral libraries you can't go wrong with GPO or Symphonic Orchestra Silver. Both are about $300 and complement each other nicely.

[jimlongo]

However, I’m getting tired of my sample library and rather than spending hundreds of dollars to upgrade my current sample library, I figure I should just go soft sampler. It’s just time...+

I find MachFive very easy to use, and very useable, but you're going to need to buy the sample libraries anyway to be happy.
You can convert most libraries with UVI-Xtract (comes with MachFive).

I can work with one full instantiation (16 tracks with effects) of MachFive on a dual 867. The less you use the MachFive's effects the better the performance. MOTU has forever promised streaming which will help in the performance regard, but it is still RAM based, so probably not too useable with lots of huge instruments.

[Spin Girl]

I finally broke down and went for Mach Five after checking out Kontakt and Sample Tank II. It's really a cool interface, once you get used to it, and the fact that it is compatable with many formats and has a built in convertor which works great for my Sample Cell Library made it a no-brainer.

It will support streaming (hopefully in the near future) and MOTU is a solid Company.

The main problem is the PT/RTAS limitation of only 2 outputs into PT. If you Mix in PT, a drum kit takes at least 5 instances of the plug which is tedious, but once you have your templates made- not terrible.

I'd certainly prefer an OSX SampleCell with some solution similar to Direct Connect!

-SG

[Nick Batzdorf]

Hate to say it, but if you're doing this professionally, you need to take a look at what's happened to sampling over the past few years. It's now miles beyond Soft SampleCell, etc., which is why Digidesign is right not to waste time porting it over to OS X. GPO and Silver are both excellent, but they're not being oversold - Garritan and East West only market them for education and scratchpad applications.

The libraries now stream from hard drives. Some of the ones to look at (do an internet search):

Vienna Symphonic Library
East West Quantum Leap Symphony Orchestra
Sonic Implants Symphonic Strings
Garritan Orchestral Strings
Dan Dean Woodwinds
SAM Horns
SAM Trombones

The bigger libraries have light versions.

You won't be able to compete with what people are producing with these libraries if you're still using old technology. The sampler doesn't matter; it's the libraries you're buying.

Reason is great - I use it all the time - but it's a different beast.

[gives]

Nick is absolutly right.. Reason would not be a choice for Orch work.. vsl Horizon with ESX24 is the way to go.. for a start Logic .

I also have Mach 5 and DP and it's great. A lot of people I know that used Logic in UK now use DP with it for the real hardcore studio work on records with great results.. It's like a toolbox..you find what works and use it. I have done some great work with only an E4 and a D550! I am dumping my XV 5080 for the simple reason that I never used it all that much after I start using soft synth. I can play so it's easy to use in any environment for me whether I am scoring movies, spots or producing records or whatever..

Hope this helps you..
g

[DC11]

I love MachFive. I've got a lot of friends that have tons of samples in just about every format possible, so I just borrowed their samples and saved them onto a Firewire drive. Between all of us, we've got just about everything. Gigistudio has tons and tons of great samples, but since it's PC only, MachFive is a godsend.

[dkrz]

Thanks for all the great info. So it looks like it’s gonna be MachFive for me along with a high end library. EXS24 looks good but I don’t want to move to a new platform. I know PT so I’m sticking with it. If I were to switch to DP or Logic and get a soft sampler and get a decent library and max out my ram... It would just be way too much money plus the time lost in learning a whole new platform. So PT and MachFive it is. Thanks again!

dk

[davip]

I've got a lot of friends that have tons of samples in just about every format possible, so I just borrowed their samples and saved them onto a Firewire drive. Between all of us, we've got just about everything.

Of course, those are all samples that you and your friends made. I know that you aren't stealing commercially available samples. If that is what you were suggesting, i imagine your post will be removed soon!