# TD vs BFC for solo violin



## mopsiflopsi (Jul 4, 2021)

I need a solo violin for a fiddle-like style. What is the best choice for this among SP libraries? I’ve read that TD can do the folk sound well, but BFC seems more versatile and has more instruments. Is there anything that TD can do that the solo violin from BFC can’t?


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## SoundsOfIvey (Jul 5, 2021)

Depending on what you're trying to write, I think BFC can pull off a fiddle-like sound pretty well. That said, it's important to know what sorts of things give the fiddle it's idiomatic sound, and then write for it with that in mind.

Here's a short excerpt of something I wrote with a folk-song fiddle vibe.

In case you're interested to hear this in context of the larger piece, here's a link to the entire piece.

Hope this helps inform your decision!


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## mopsiflopsi (Jul 6, 2021)

I bought it yesterday. I like the 1st Violin, but there are some huge volume discrepancies in 2nd Violin shorts. I think it's because of the adaptive stac/spic thing they are doing based on speed? My dotted 16ths at ppp are about as loud as 8ths at mf.


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## MadLad (Jul 6, 2021)

Yeah, that's a problem with all add-on string libraries in Staffpad. Also the woodwinds suffer the same fate. There basically is no real piano or pianissimo staccato for woodwinds. You have to manually adjust. Usually, it can be resolved with adding quieter dynamics but I tend to also use volume automation in Reaper after I exported the stems.


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## mopsiflopsi (Jul 6, 2021)

It doesn't sound like they were cutting corners with this one though, because all the other instruments in BFC have correct relative shorts volumes. V1, Cello, Viola, DB all play the same line of 16ths and 8ths just fine, V2 alone goes bananas on 16ths. I might file a report for this one. Speaking of which, are developers attentive enough to update/fix their SP libraries? Or am I wasting my time with this one?


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## SoundsOfIvey (Jul 6, 2021)

Agreed.
Everything from the woodwinds to the brass has dynamic issues in certain spots.

Like you said, it might be only a particular instrument, or a particular articulation. My approach is to write the dynamics as they should be, listen, and then adjust the dynamics envelope as necessary. My hope is that these weird cases get fixed in future releases.


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## SoundsOfIvey (Jul 6, 2021)

I would report it. In the past my experience with the devs has been that they’re very receptive to feedback. Might not get done quick, but they do make adjustments every so often to the libraries based on what people find.


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## mopsiflopsi (Jul 8, 2021)

Update: I reported this to StaffPad, and they were super responsive. The issue has been logged as a bug, and a workaround was suggested (i.e. using V1 in problematic passages until the issue is fixed). Great support!


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## MadLad (Jul 8, 2021)

Yeah, that's what I do with CineSamples. When I write for string quartet I use two violin 1s because violin 2 just doesn't sound that great and is kind of buggy. The staccati are never in sync with the other instruments.


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