Software sampler preference?

buzzcock · Post by **buzzcock** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 3:05 am

Here's another opportunity for y'all to voice your opinion.

For everyone using a Kontakt, Halion, Machfive, Sampletank type sampler plugin, what do you like most (or least) about it? Is there any really good reason to buy one over another? Is one better for something and another better for something else? Purely personal preference?

Posting here to get feedback from like-minded (Ableton Live using) people. I'm personally strictly OSX, but I'll hear from anyone...

Go nuts.

conny · Post by **conny** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 8:31 am

I've become sort of beta tester for the free Paax sampler and it's gonna be good!
And free.

// C

Boulderdash · Post by **Boulderdash** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 9:04 am

I use Kontakt and I hate it.

- when I move a virtual knob in the MicroModular Editor, Kontakt sometimes becomes unregistered and I have to paste my response-code in the Registration-Tool
- the GUI is a PITA, small, fiddly, the browser is crappy, you can't simply resize the window, the gui is somehow "hard", don't know how to describe: Stylus RMX or XPhraze or esp. MicroTonic are "round" GUIs, you find a knob and hit it! In Kontakt it takes a little time for the buttons to react when you press one, they are all very small, when you have to remap a samle you have to hit exactly the right pixel in the mapping window. you can't quick replace a sample, you have to delete the old one first and drag in the new one, I miss a way of switching through samplefolders like in REDRUM or the reason samplers.
- on the plus side, the TIME- and BEAT-Modes are great, but why the heck can't I modulate a loop scanning through the waveform like in SIMPLER?
- visual feedback from the envelopes is great though
- you always have to start an external editor for simple things like normalize or trim
- I can say that a sample (drumloop in particular) takes maybe four beats to complete. this plays drumloops in perfect tempo, you can sync all modulations to the actual songtempo, which is very great. but why is the start- and endpoint defined by the samplelenght and not by the actual start- and end markers? again, I have to open an editor, trim the sample, save, and go on. doesn't sound like a big deal, but you have to open another program which again doesn't output audio because all channels are used, fiddling in preferences, blablabla.... further, the loop-points hook on zero-crossings, the start-end-markers don't, you have to zoom in and search for the zero-crossing yourself.
-I had often complete crashes of the vst, especially when deleting an instrument. but this got better.
- on the other hand, kontakt gives you a great tool for sounddesign, a semimodular structure and features you will not find in any other sampler. I tried VSampler, the GUI looked much better, but this program was more illogical than Kontakt. It's maybe a hate-love-thingy, I thought about selling more than one time, but even it has its crappy sides, there is no replacement for me and I will sure update on 2.0

Christian

krushing · Post by **krushing** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 1:12 pm

I'm starting to fall a bit in love (bit-love, that is) with ShortCircuit.

buzzcock · Post by **buzzcock** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 1:41 pm

Thanks for the replies.

Boulderdash,

I feel you pain. Crappy GUI is a real turn-off. Don't these people realize you have to LOOK at this thing for hours? Crashes? Yuck!

conny & krushing,

Those look like cool alternatives-- have to wait for mac versions though...

Thought about Halion, but I just can't bear the idea of going back to Dongleworld

divonic · Post by **divonic** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 5:33 pm

buzzcock wrote:Thanks for the replies.

Thought about Halion, but I just can't bear the idea of going back to Dongleworld

I've never had to deal with a dongle but my PCI USB card has 4 ports on the outside and one on the inside for connecting a front USB port (I think) couldn't you just plug the dongle into the inside usb port and forget about it.

Also I don't know if that will work for Macs do they have PCI slots, they must cause some PCI sound cards are Mac/PC.

bonsak · Post by **bonsak** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:17 pm

conny wrote:I've become sort of beta tester for the free Paax sampler and it's gonna be good!
And free.

Is Paax coming to the Mac anytime soon

Ive been looking for a straight forward and cheap sampler,
but havent found any i like yet.
Tried Kontakt but its too much for my needs, cant find a demo for either
Halion or Machfive but they seem to be as complex as Kontakt.
Any suggestions?

Regards
Bonsak

Orbit-50 · Post by **Orbit-50** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 5:16 am

Kontakt 2!

conny · Post by **conny** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:44 am

Bonsak

Is Paax coming to the Mac anytime soon icon_smile.gif

-
Not to my knowing. I have asked the developer right now.

Is there maybe some Sondfont editors for Mac, like sfZed that I have (PC), kind of sampelplayer too.

// C

noisetonepause · Post by **noisetonepause** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 11:01 am

If you're interested in seeing a Short Circuit OSX PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE go to the web site and e-mail Claes. I know him from other fora and have met him a few times and I ask him for it a couple of times a day (keeping some of his gear hostage here, even), but porting the GUI is apparently "boring" and he'd rather work on his up-coming synth. Please help me in applying some pressure!

info@vemberaudio.com

-Paws