Got a new car!

This post isn't really about our new car...although we did get the Prius as mentioned in my previous post!  Feeling a little smug at getting 40+ mpg ;)  I think it's going to be a lyric for a song, too.  Stay tuned!

More importantly, I went through the throes of finding a new virtual piano module.  Can't afford the real thing & even if I could, I'd still need the midi thing so I could correct all my mistakes.  I've had the East/West Bosendorfer 290 module for quite a while now & although I got it to work for me in my last few albums, I was never really truly happy with it.  It continually got in the way of the creative process as I'd try to EQ the sound or whatever so I could enjoy the 'playability' of it as much as possible while writing.

Anyway, in my research over the last few weeks, I tried the TruePianos module and eventually purchased The Big One (not happy with the name) by Sampletekk.  It's 19 GB worth of samples, thus the name.  My good friend & music consultant, Peter Wilder discovered it after I'd mentioned my frustrations & after spending quite a while comparing piano sounds & samples, decided to buy it.  Of course, once you buy software, usually, you're stuck with it.  Only TruePianos allowed a demo download for 40 days which was very appreciated even though I didn't wind up buying the software.  I also learned that the Sampletekk module didn't come as a standalone interface, so I was forced to purchase the Halion Player, as well.  I was not happy...total outlay was around $300.  My wife implied that this would be my birthday present, so don't ask for anything else...Yes, dear...

Anyway, I finally got it going & the piano module really wasn't as impressive in my studio as it sounded when auditioning it online.  Peter will be coming over this weekend to help see if there are any adjustments we can make.  It just sounds a bit thin to me.  I think the electronic emulation of a piano's resonance is what's bothering my ears.  The Big One (TBO) sounds better to me than the Bosendorfer module, but still not as good as a real acoustic piano.  So, needless to say, it's been a learning experience.  It also takes about 21/2 minutes to load all the samples.  I have to do that each time I open a song to work on.  Good things are worth waiting for?

The TBO piano module does sit much better in the mix, which is important, but by itself, I still feel unsatisfied, although a bit better than what I had.

So, you'll all be hearing it on the new tunes.  I hope you enjoy it!

See ya's