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Spitfire Audio : Abbey Road 1 Modular Orchestra - Speculation Thread.

Aitcpiano said:
Seems weird having just a whole library released just as violins 1 and this is probably going to be priced at prices you can get whole string libraries for. It's going to really have to be something way above the competition and a massive step up.
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Remember, it's a Modular Orchestral Library release.

I think the fact that Spitfire Audio is hinting that they are using a new tech. for this library, (not used before ), and the extensive, detailed sampling it is supposed to offer, makes this library very special, and their next generation line of libraries recorded at AR1.

So, my expectations are going to be very high with regards to their upcoming Vlns 1 release. and imho, Vlsn 1 section is one of the most important sections of the orchestra. So, Vlns 1 is a very important/critical release, I would love it if the Vlns 1 demos put a big smile on my face once they post some demos of it, be it pre-release, or when it is finally released.

In summery, I'm very optimistic about the upcoming Vlns 1 release. :)

Exciting times ahead !
 
Aitcpiano said:
Seems weird having just a whole library released just as violins 1 and this is probably going to be priced at prices you can get whole string libraries for. It's going to really have to be something way above the competition and a massive step up.
Click to expand...
This is more or less how Sable and Muriel were released back in the old BML days. I mean that was a different era and all, but there is a certain amount of sense to it, especially if the full set is going to be very expensive and/or it requires a very high end system to run the whole library.

Whether it needs to be orders more advanced than libraries that cost roughly the same for a whole string section as these violin 1, that too is hard to say, and there are lots of dimensions on which incremental improvements might be made from more articulations to increased timbral coherence across dynamic layers to more options for legato, vibrato etc, to being easier to program to being able to handle common figures like back and forth playing in a way other libraries struggle, and so forth. As @NoamL noted, just a decent legato, the ordinary shorts, with a symphonic sized ensemble in a top 5 room would likely be sufficient to sell this to working pros, and presumably it is priced such that selling to that subset is what SF figures they need to make this library financially viable for the ROI but also the return on prestige and goodwill that’s needed for the company’s longer term prospects.
 
muziksculp said:
Remember, it's a Modular Orchestral Library release.

I think the fact that Spitfire Audio is hinting that they are using a new tech. for this library, (not used before ), and the extensive, detailed sampling it is supposed to offer, makes this library very special, and their next generation line of libraries recorded at AR1.
Click to expand...
Yeah but this new tech is going to really have to make this something way better beyond what we already have and see from other developers for this modular approach to really be worth it. Hopefully that is the case.
 
muziksculp said:
So, my expectations are going to be very high with regards to their upcoming Vlns 1 release. and imho, Vlsn 1 section is one of the most important sections of the orchestra. So, Vlns 1 is a very important/critical release, I would love it if the Vlns 1 demos put a big smile on my face once they post some demos of it, be it pre-release, or when it is finally released.

In summery, I'm very optimistic about the upcoming Vlns 1 release. :)

Exciting times ahead !
Click to expand...
Same here, I also have very high expectations considering it's high price and modular releases, especially considering the competition and what we already have available. Hopefully it really is a stop up and offers something more than what we already have available.
 
jbuhler said:
This is more or less how Sable and Muriel were released back in the old BML days. I mean that was a different era and all, but there is a certain amount of sense to it, especially if the full set is going to be very expensive and/or it requires a very high end system to run the whole library.
Click to expand...
There is sense to it if it really is something more special than the competition and a real step up in sampling depth and programming. It just feels odd having an expensive v1 only release when we have things like VSL duality strings being released at a similar time at a price that I could currently get for around £230 on best service (45% student discount) which is a huge library, with tons of articulations, performance type legatos, mic install options, a brilliant player and two section size recordings! For me this just has to do something that really goes beyond what we already have available and really sets it apart from the competition in a big way.
 
jbuhler said:
This is more or less how Sable and Muriel were released back in the old BML days. I mean that was a different era and all, but there is a certain amount of sense to it, especially if the full set is going to be very expensive and/or it requires a very high end system to run the whole library.

Whether it needs to be orders more advanced than libraries that cost roughly the same for a whole string section as these violin 1, that too is hard to say, and there are lots of dimensions on which incremental improvements might be made from more articulations to increased timbral coherence across dynamic layers to more options for legato, vibrato etc, to being easier to program to being able to handle common figures like back and forth playing in a way other libraries struggle, and so forth. As @NoamL noted, just a decent legato, the ordinary shorts, with a symphonic sized ensemble in a top 5 room would likely be sufficient to sell this to working pros, and presumably it is priced such that selling to that subset is what SF figures they need to make this library financially viable for the ROI but also the return on prestige and goodwill that’s needed for the company’s longer term prospects.
Click to expand...
I’ll add that I expect SF to struggle most with managing the complexity of these sprawling libraries, especially as more modules become available, and the whole taxes even very high end systems. No company that has tried this sort of thing (VSL, East West) has succeeded very well in managing the complexity. Which doesn’t mean, obviously, that the libraries have proved impossible to use or anything. But there’s always this sense that the library has much more potential than what can be got at because complexity overwhelms.

I’m most curious to see if SF has had to significantly rework their player for this, and if one reason so many player issues have gone unaddressed over the past year or so has to do with the player undergoing a major code rewrite. I have doubts about that since I see no reason they wouldn’t have hinted at that. But I also don’t really see how they manage AR1 modular effectively with the current player.
 
Anyone’s sees the teaser for pre order Abbey Strings on Instagram?? The.Website still doesn’t have any info
 
jbuhler said:
As @NoamL noted, just a decent legato, the ordinary shorts, with a symphonic sized ensemble in a top 5 room would likely be sufficient to sell this to working pros, and presumably it is priced such that selling to that subset is what SF figures they need to make this library financially viable for the ROI but also the return on prestige and goodwill that’s needed for the company’s longer term prospects.
Click to expand...
That's partly what I think this may end up being. Suppose we will all find out soon on Thursday.
 
jbuhler said:
I’ll add that I expect SF to struggle most with managing the complexity of these sprawling libraries, especially as more modules become available, and the whole taxes even very high end systems. No company that has tried this sort of thing (VSL, East West) has succeeded very well in managing the complexity. Which doesn’t mean, obviously, that the libraries have proved impossible to use or anything. But there’s always this sense that the library has much more potential than what can be got at because complexity overwhelms.

I’m most curious to see if SF has had to significantly rework their player for this, and if one reason so many player issues have gone unaddressed over the past year or so has to do with the player undergoing a major code rewrite. I have doubts about that since I see no reason they wouldn’t have hinted at that. But I also don’t really see how they manage AR1 modular effectively with the current player.
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I feel the same as this. I doubt we will see any major re-working of the player any time soon though.
 
Aitcpiano said:
There is sense to it if it really is something more special than the competition and a real step up in sampling depth and programming. It just feels odd having an expensive v1 only release when we have things like VSL duality strings being released at a similar time at a price that I could currently get for around £230 on best service (45% student discount) which is a huge library, with tons of articulations, performance type legatos, mic install options, a brilliant player and two section size recordings! For me this just has to do something that really goes beyond what we already have available and really sets it apart from the competition in a big way.
Click to expand...
You have to consider that you might not be the target audience, and so whether or not it is an attractive library for you may have little bearing on if it is a successful release for SF. I’m pretty sure SF doesn’t need to sell these libraries to me, for instance, for it to be an utter success for them. Then too the financials are not straightforward because as the new flagship the important thing for SF is that it improves significantly on SSS/SCS, not that it sets a completely new industry standard or that it makes the company boatloads of cash. I imagine that they also will seek to set a new industry standard, but that’s not crucial to the success SF needs from it, which is simply to not fall short of the industry standard. That’s very crucial to their brand.
 
jbuhler said:
You have to consider that you might not be the target audience, and so whether or not it is an attractive library for you may have little bearing on if it is a successful release for SF. I’m pretty sure SF doesn’t need to sell these libraries to me, for instance, for it to be an utter success for them. Then too the financials are not straightforward because as the new flagship the important thing for SF is that it improves significantly on SSS/SCS, not that it sets a completely new industry standard or that it makes the company boatloads of cash. I imagine that they also will seek to set a new industry standard, but that’s not crucial to the success SF needs from it, which is simply to not fall short of the industry standard. That’s very crucial to their brand.
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Good points, I'm certainly not their current target audience for this, but I suppose I am hoping it does set a new industry standard, perhaps it will.
 
Only one thing is for certain when this drops. People that have far too many sample libraries (many of which are not even installed), write 2 bars of music once every 3 months, and who primarily listen to Tiesto will start chiming in on the flaws of the library, how Paul should be embarrassed for his excitement, and how they can uniquely hear that the legato programming is off by 3 milliseconds on the D#5 to G5 transition. It is written.
 
I think there's some validity to it being important that this library becomes a new quality watermark for the industry - especially if it becomes a new PRICE watermark.

As much as libraries (and especially string libraries) have become almost akin to collectables, where we all want to have all of them and we believe that we'll use that one library we bought last year in a black friday sale if only the right project came along.... the truth is they are tools, and some tools just do the job better than others.

Almost every pro composer that I know sticks to their guns because they get the job done efficiently and effortlessly. And they swap libraries rarely because it requires downtime, and a lot of these folks don't have a ton of downtime to spare. Especially if they are not AAA composers with techs / assistants to help them update their templates. These complications get turned up another notch when dealing with an entirely new plug-in, like SFA has been doing with their new ARO releases.

So for pros to switch, you need something quite special. And if this library is priced with pros in mind, most hobbyists are going to think twice before take the plunge. So this library will have to be extremely good, in my opinion, to turn any heads. But more amazing string libraries is better than less, so I'm hopeful SFA will pull it off. Looking forward to the first demos and walkthroughs.
 
If pre orders are on Thursday, maybe they will reveal the Core specs then too? Or perhaps they'd be taking pre-orders solely for Pro?
 
I think we already know what this is. There’s a lot of hype but I think the basic colours are complete?

Paul has already demoed a “hero patch” for the violins. Legato, portamento, speed triggers etc. So we have a good idea at what level the programming is at. (And very nice it is too.)

We know what the mics are going to be. Articulations? A lot. Dynamic layers? Enough for detailed playing.

Perhaps there’s some more features around memory management or a new engine for certain techniques we’ve yet to see.

Are folk expecting something else? I think I’m “just” expecting to see a very highly polished, easy to use, great sounding library. That would be enough for me.

More interesting is what core brings.
 
Aitcpiano said:
Good points, I'm certainly not their current target audience for this, but I suppose I am hoping it does set a new industry standard, perhaps it will.
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As far as it goes, I have the same hope.

So far though it’s been hard to figure with only the percussion partially done and hints that are contained in AROOF, the scoring selections, and Appassionata. The depth of sampling and round robins is better if you compare AROOF to SSO and Albion 1, and the editing on the whole is generally more consistent across sections. The legato and number of dynamic layers is improved in Appassionata over SSS and SCS. The legatos in the scoring selections have imho been more of a mixed bag, and the selections don’t have the number of dynamic layers as the main AROOF patches. I’m uncertain what to make of that, since the scoring selections are designed to be inexpensive. But I rather expect the high strings have been withheld because SF didn’t want them to give people the wrong impression about the string legatos in the modular library, whether that’s because the high strings had to be redone after the impulse legato techniques were developed or because they simply won’t be near the same quality given that they are designed for a relatively inexpensive line. In any case given the very high stakes I think it was a perfectly reasonable business decision not to release the high strings yet and one that would be hard to talk about at all until at least the violin 1 library was out, so folks can make up their own minds.
 
Given the timing, quite close to BF season, I suspect SA by offering preorder price for not yet existing product tries to grab the money before they are spent elsewhere, on existing, other devs' products. I'd assume AROV1 won't be ready before BF.
 
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