# Best pipe organ?



## Mike Fox (Aug 21, 2020)

Looking for a pipe organ that has a classic horror/Addams Family vibe going on. I do have Soundiron's Lakeside organ, which is great, but I'm curious as to what else is out there. 

Thanks!


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## CT (Aug 21, 2020)

Already a number of threads about organs. Pretty much any one will give you that vibe if you typecast it that way.


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## cuttime (Aug 21, 2020)

The Garritan GPO organs are really nice. Especially GPO5.


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## Mike Fox (Aug 21, 2020)

cuttime said:


> The Garritan GPO organs are really nice. Especially GPO5.


Awesome, thanks! I'll check them out!


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## Fleer (Aug 21, 2020)

I kinda like Toontrack’s pipe organ. Quite expressive animal.


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## giwro (Aug 21, 2020)

If money is no object (and you have a fast processor and plenty of memory) Hauptwerk is the gold standard... http://www.hauptwerk.com

I’m an organist, and I’ve spent far too much money on sample sets for Hauptwerk  not to mention the console I put together to run it...


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## CT (Aug 21, 2020)

I know I've plugged this on here before, but if you want some incredible stuff for Hauptwerk (or GrandOrgue) for free, check it out....









Home - Piotr Grabowski – Virtual Pipe Organ Sample Sets







piotrgrabowski.pl


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## giwro (Aug 21, 2020)

Mike T said:


> I know I've plugged this on here before, but if you want some incredible stuff for Hauptwerk (or GrandOrgue) for free, check it out....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Absolutely. Piotr does top-notch sampling, and he only recently began to charge for his sets. I produce and sell HW sets myself, and IMHO his are of very high quality.


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## dzilizzi (Aug 21, 2020)

Pianoteq recently came out with an organ. I haven't tried it, but if it's anything like their pianos, they probably have a "worn" option. I also like SonicCouture's Estey organ. If I remember correctly, it has all the pump sounds.


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## drews (Aug 21, 2020)

Hauptwerk is definitely the gold standard and imo is the only one that even comes close to a real pipe organ feel. I'd buy it myself but i dont have space for a whole organ setup and for whatever reason my midi controllers just wouldnt work at all in the VST when i tried the demo.


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## CT (Aug 21, 2020)

I would _not_ recommend Organteq....


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## Lee Blaske (Aug 21, 2020)

As others have said, Hauptwerk is the gold standard, but that's a complete universe of expensive player software and even MORE expensive libraries. And, you'll also probably want to get a multi-manual keyboard setup and foot pedals to really make it work. It's a heavy investment and commitment, and something you'll only do if you're REALLY interested and involved with pipe organ music.

I've got a number of pipe organ libraries (not Hauptwerk, yet, but I'm thinking about it). The one I've purchased that I've gotten the most use from, and keep coming back to is the VSL Konzerthaus Organ. The VSL Konzerthaus Organ can be big, it can be subtle, and anywhere in between. Very flexible. It's not dirt cheap, but it's worth every penny.

Here's a composition I realized on it recently...



Here's another piece I did using it with a lot of bombast...


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## CT (Aug 21, 2020)

Much better than I usually hear from the VSL organ....


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## heisenberg (Aug 21, 2020)

That is awesome Lee!

Edit:

Just listened to your second piece. That is a hoot with the Flamenco stuff going on!


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## shropshirelad (Aug 21, 2020)

Leeds Town Hall Organ from Samplephonics. Looks great, sounds good and is free!


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## Locks (Aug 21, 2020)

Mike T said:


> I know I've plugged this on here before, but if you want some incredible stuff for Hauptwerk (or GrandOrgue) for free, check it out....
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Have you ever run these with GrandOrgue? I'm having a pretty difficult time trying to get it to accept incoming midi messages.


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## CT (Aug 22, 2020)

Yeah I've done it. It isn't the smoothest operation, unfortunately, and there isn't much (any?) documentation. I can't recall exactly what went into setting it up off the top of my head, I'm sorry to say.

It's really too bad that Hauptwerk has changed their whole model to subscription only for the "basic" version. I have to say that I'm repeatedly a bit put off by them as a business, despite their monopoly on all this.


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## Locks (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> Yeah I've done it. It isn't the smoothest operation, unfortunately, and there isn't much (any?) documentation. I can't recall exactly what went into setting it up off the top of my head, I'm sorry to say.
> 
> It's really too bad that Hauptwerk has changed their whole model to subscription only for the "basic" version. I have to say that I'm repeatedly a bit put off by them as a business, despite their monopoly on all this.



Yeah, it's a bit of a struggle to get it to behave. I've managed to route the midi in from my DAW using a virtual port and it's coming up in GrandOrgue's logs but still not triggering any samples.

Hauptwerk looks like great software. But yeah their business model isn't very accessible. I don't think I could justify a subscription for a few organs. Does Hauptwerk work as a Plugin or just as a standalone application like GrandOrgue?


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## Jkist (Aug 22, 2020)

I've gotten a lot of mileage out of Lakeside Organ! Its unbeatable for the price. Recently re-created the Davy Jones Theme from Pirates, and it just sounded so good!



The next organ on my list was actually Union Chapel Organ by Spitfire Audio. Sounds really good in the demos...









Spitfire Audio — Union Chapel Organ







www.spitfireaudio.com


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## CT (Aug 22, 2020)

Locks said:


> Yeah, it's a bit of a struggle to get it to behave. I've managed to route the midi in from my DAW using a virtual port and it's coming up in GrandOrgue's logs but still not triggering any samples.
> 
> Hauptwerk looks like great software. But yeah their business model isn't very accessible. I don't think I could justify a subscription for a few organs. Does Hauptwerk work as a Plugin or just as a standalone application like GrandOrgue?



The Advanced edition of Hauptwerk at least has a DAW link, yes.

I've just been reading through the GrandOrgue forum and maybe you'll find something useful there. I'd be interested to know how you've got that set up, if it ends up working. I'd gladly reinstall it and use some of those free sample sets if I could actually use it in tandem with Logic.



Jkist said:


> The next organ on my list was actually Union Chapel Organ by Spitfire Audio. Sounds really good in the demos...



The Spitfire ones are very good. Probably the best Kontakt options.


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## Locks (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> The Advanced edition of Hauptwerk at least has a DAW link, yes.
> 
> I've just been reading through the GrandOrgue forum and maybe you'll find something useful there. I'd be interested to know how you've got that set up, if it ends up working. I'd gladly reinstall it and use some of those free sample sets if I could actually use it in tandem with Logic.



Yeah, the goal was to be able to use it within my DAW (Live in my case). To be honest, I'm pretty close to giving up, it's just too buggy and I just keep running into issues. Basically I've run my midi keyboard through a MIDI track in Live that output into a virtual midi port called the "IAC Driver" (on a Mac you can set this up in the "Audio MIDI Setup" app). Then I set GrandOrgue to accept midi messages from the virtual port.

The idea was then to run the audio back to Live by using Soundflower (an audio routing utility). But I've run into two issues that have held me back. 

*1)* I cannot get GrandOrgue to respond to any midi messages even though it's logging all the input. I believe need to edit the "Initial MIDI settings" tab to get this working but every time I change the settings it crashes the entire application. I'm guessing the software is a bit out of date (I'm running Mojave).

*2)* The audio being routed back into Live is incredibly quiet (I have to turn it up around 30 dB to even hear it) and any audio that comes through is incredibly glitchy. I think there's some mismatch in the audio sampling going on even though I have matched the sample rate and buffer settings.

I'll try a bit longer but I'm about ready to admit defeat I think. I'll let you know if I work it out.


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## Locks (Aug 22, 2020)

Just a heads up @Mike T that I solved the issues and have it nicely integrated with my DAW. I'll send you a DM instead of spamming this thread further.


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## Joe_D (Aug 22, 2020)

Locks said:


> Just a heads up @Mike T that I solved the issues and have it nicely integrated with my DAW. I'll send you a DM instead of spamming this thread further.


I'd be interested in the answer, and I suspect that others might be interested as well, so if you care to post the info to this thread (or another thread), I'd welcome that.

Thanks,
Joe


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## Locks (Aug 22, 2020)

Joe_D said:


> I'd be interested in the answer, and I suspect that others might be interested as well, so if you care to post the info to this thread (or another thread), I'd welcome that.
> 
> Thanks,
> Joe



Good point Joe! I personally find it pretty frustrating when I'm searching forums for a solution and someone details the exact problem I've been having, but then they just leave a little message later to say they've solved it and provide no solution. And I was almost that person .

Here's a little document I mocked up that details all the settings and routing etc I used to get GrandOrgue to link with Live. Hope it's useful to someone.


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## Rory (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> The Advanced edition of Hauptwerk at least has a DAW link, yes.
> 
> I've just been reading through the GrandOrgue forum and maybe you'll find something useful there. I'd be interested to know how you've got that set up, if it ends up working. I'd gladly reinstall it and use some of those free sample sets if I could actually use it in tandem with Logic.
> 
> ...



A few questions about the Spitfire libraries...

I have no background in playing an organ. I'm just curious about these libraries. How big a hindrance is lack of organ-playing experience? Is any special setup needed? Are the Spitfire libraries easier to use than Hauptwerk?

To reduce this to one question: Should people with no background in organ playing just stay away?

Thanks for any comments.


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## Sean J (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> I know I've plugged this on here before, but if you want some incredible stuff for Hauptwerk (or GrandOrgue) for free, check it out....
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Agreed. I have VSL's. It's not bad. Hauptwerk has the best options, but lacks simplicity for a simple composing tool. Once you've played real pipes or even a common electronic church organ, I just don't see how one could really like Spitfire's. It's not bad. But even for a simple organ library it could have been much more.


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## CT (Aug 22, 2020)

scoredfilms said:


> Agreed. I have VSL's. It's not bad. Hauptwerk has the best options, but lacks simplicity for a simple composing tool. Once you've played real pipes or even a common electronic church organ, I just don't see how one could really like Spitfire's. It's not bad. But even for a simple organ library it could have been much more.



I've played a lot of "real pipes." Spitfire's two are the only Kontakt ones** that really feel right to me. VSL's seems to be hit or miss (odd releases) despite its completeness.

**Inspired Acoustics' Notre Dame de Budapest is worth investigating too.


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## CT (Aug 22, 2020)

Locks said:


> Good point Joe! I personally find it pretty frustrating when I'm searching forums for a solution and someone details the exact problem I've been having, but then they just leave a little message later to say they've solved it and provide no solution. And I was almost that person .
> 
> Here's a little document I mocked up that details all the settings and routing etc I used to get GrandOrgue to link with Live. Hope it's useful to someone.



Thanks for the even more detailed instructions. Is Soundflower behaving for you? It seems like people have a lot of trouble with it.


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## vitocorleone123 (Aug 22, 2020)

Don’t forget to check out the Sound Iron Alpha Organ, too.


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## Locks (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> Thanks for the even more detailed instructions. Is Soundflower behaving for you? It seems like people have a lot of trouble with it.



No problem. Soundflower has always worked pretty well for me. This is the first time I've ever had an issue with it. Not sure what might be causing it.


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## Sean J (Aug 22, 2020)

Mike T said:


> I've played a lot of "real pipes." Spitfire's two are the only Kontakt ones that really feel right to me. VSL's seems to be hit or miss (odd releases) despite its completeness.



But I'm prejudiced...

I live minutes from the Salt Lake Tabernacle Organ and several more pipe organs from small to massive within a 2 block radius. I'm just used to a lot more diversity.

VSL release issues are the big issue. Told them years back. Is what it is. I agree about Spitfire. There's just not enough organ for me. I neglected the Symphonic Organ, but it was a nice addition.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Aug 22, 2020)

Lee Blaske said:


> Here's a composition I realized on it recently...



Both are awesome, Lee.

What's the shouting etc. in the background of the second one?


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## CT (Aug 22, 2020)

scoredfilms said:


> I live minutes from the Salt Lake Tabernacle Organ and several more pipe organs from small to massive within a 2 block radius. I'm just used to a lot more diversity.



I've played everything from tiny basement practice instruments to the Wanamaker itself. Spent years with a lovely Möller, and as many years hearing the great ones around NYC as often as possible. I am probably pickier about these than any other virtual instrument. Or, developers just aren't as good at capturing them as other stuff. 

Spitfire's offerings only fall short in my view in terms of comprehensiveness. UCO for individual stops, SO for a bigger sound, but I do wish they had one *complete* instrument. I'm sorry to say that pretty much everything else out there which isn't Hauptwerk (except the Inspired Acoustics one I mentioned above) has much more severe issues. Maybe eventually I'll have the money for a Hauptwerk setup, but it seems to amount to basically buying a car in cost.


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## Joe_D (Aug 22, 2020)

Thanks for the detailed GrandOrgue instructions, Locks! Saved!


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## Lee Blaske (Aug 22, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> Both are awesome, Lee.
> 
> What's the shouting etc. in the background of the second one?



Thanks, Nick.

The sound you're hearing might be the vintage wind machine (for the "Vortex" effect).


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## Nick Batzdorf (Aug 22, 2020)

Lee Blaske said:


> Thanks, Nick.
> 
> The sound you're hearing might be the vintage wind machine (for the "Vortex" effect).



Ah.

It actually sounded human on the TV speakers I heard it on! Some of it sounded like a crowd in the background and some like a man shouting.


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## Mike Fox (Aug 22, 2020)

scoredfilms said:


> I live minutes from the Salt Lake Tabernacle Organ


Small world! I live in Sandy.


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## Lee Blaske (Aug 22, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> Ah.
> 
> It actually sounded human on the TV speakers I heard it on! Some of it sounded like a crowd in the background and some like a man shouting.



Maybe it's a haunted track.


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## Jkist (Aug 23, 2020)

Mike Fox said:


> Small world! I live in Sandy.


Also a Utahn


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## Mike Fox (Aug 23, 2020)

Jkist said:


> Also a Utahn


Awesome! What part?


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## gallantknight (Aug 23, 2020)

Hauptwerk has some great organs sample libraries for it, but it is a pain to setup to work in a DAW. It is easy to forget all the steps to get it working using the vst plugin to talk to the standalone app. I typically just play the free version through the standalone app directly and don't bother with the DAW. It did take me a bit to figure out how to change the mapping of my midi controller to the different registers.

Speaking of the organs in Utah, it would be amazing if sample libraries were available of the organs at the Tabernacle at Temple Square and at the Conference Center across the street or the several other smaller pipe organs there in Utah. I have never played them, but it would be fun to play them virtually using a sample library. I have listened to them many times during the 20 years I lived in the Salt Lake Valley and Utah Valley. I moved to Austin, Texas five years ago and haven't had a chance to listen to a pipe organ in person since then.


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## gallantknight (Aug 23, 2020)

I have recently been enjoying playing the free Paramount 310 theatre organ sample set for Hauptwerk. It is fun trying to recreate the theatre organ music from the silent films era, but I don't have the skill or the willingness to devote the time and practice to truly sound anywhere close to those skilled players of old. 

Paramount Organ Works


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## giwro (Aug 23, 2020)

gallantknight said:


> Hauptwerk has some great organs sample libraries for it, but it is a pain to setup to work in a DAW. It is easy to forget all the steps to get it working using the vst plugin to talk to the standalone app. I typically just play the free version through the standalone app directly and don't bother with the DAW. It did take me a bit to figure out how to change the mapping of my midi controller to the different registers.
> 
> Speaking of the organs in Utah, it would be amazing if sample libraries were available of the organs at the Tabernacle at Temple Square and at the Conference Center across the street or the several other smaller pipe organs there in Utah. I have never played them, but it would be fun to play them virtually using a sample library. I have listened to them many times during the 20 years I lived in the Salt Lake Valley and Utah Valley. I moved to Austin, Texas five years ago and haven't had a chance to listen to a pipe organ in person since then.


Unfortunately, the LDS authorities have decided against allowing these instruments to be sampled. It is understandable, since they are very famous and high-profile venues - such restrictions are actually quite common. (I know, I have sampled a number of organs for HW)


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## Jkist (Aug 23, 2020)

Mike Fox said:


> Awesome! What part?


South part of the valley, near point of the mountain!

And yes, it would be pretty cool to have a virtual instrument version of the Tabernacle Organ, so thats too bad they dont allow it to be sampled.


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## jaketanner (Aug 23, 2020)

I use Garritan Pipe Organ and it's pretty nice. Not too expensive, and sounds great. Can mix and match almost any sound you need.


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## evilantal (Aug 24, 2020)

I'd say Hauptwerk but it is pretty expensive, a giant resource hog and the free version can't be used for commercial purposes.
So I'll vote for Modartt's excellent OrganTeq


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## giwro (Aug 24, 2020)

evilantal said:


> I'd say Hauptwerk but it is pretty expensive, a giant resource hog and the free version can't be used for commercial purposes.
> So I'll vote for Modartt's excellent OrganTeq


Just a couple clarifications - Hauptwerk no longer offers a free version, but there is a low-cost subscription of the basic version available. Also, it’s only a resource hog if you get the huge monster instruments and/or load multiple mic perspectives... if you were wanting to integrate it with a mix, you’d probably want to load a pretty dry instrument, and those take less memory and cpu resources, as the more reverberant instruments require multiple releases and often have the option to load multiple loops for repeated notes realism.

The problem with most of the organ VSTi out there is that they simply fall far short in the realism department... most sample producers incorrectly trim the samples, which damages the start and finish of the notes.

Now, if you’re hiding it in the mix, it won’t show as much and probably doesn’t matter... but heaven help you if you do anything solo or exposed.

I have hundreds of hours of samples I’ve prepared for Hauptwerk, I really should do a Kontakt VSTi from them... I just don’t have the time to learn that part of the platform well enough to do so...

EDIT: after reading this, it sounds kind of pretentious and pompous... it’s not meant that way... I’m just very passionate about realism in organ samples, and after many hours recording, editing, and listening (in addition to being an organist myself) I’m very critical about it... sorry if I came across badly.


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## decredis (Aug 24, 2020)

I'm curious to know, given strong (but brief) positive and negative views of OrganTeq have been given in this thread, what are the pros and cons of it, or the source of disagreement in its evaluation?

I don't have much experience with actual organs so I'm no judge of it, I'm just curious, as someone who loves PianoTeq (although I almost always have to tweak it from its built-in presets to be satisfied with it in any context).


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## giwro (Aug 24, 2020)

decredis said:


> I'm curious to know, given strong (but brief) positive and negative views of OrganTeq have been given in this thread, what are the pros and cons of it, or the source of disagreement in its evaluation?
> 
> I don't have much experience with actual organs so I'm no judge of it, I'm just curious, as someone who loves PianoTeq (although I almost always have to tweak it from its built-in presets to be satisfied with it in any context).


I think the disagreement is probably because some folks aren’t as picky about the organ sound... I’d say from listening to the demos and playing around with the demo version a bit that Organteq would be fine for something hidden in a mix, but as an organist, I’d instantly spot it as an emulation in something solo.

I expect as time goes on the emulation will get better - the latest incarnation of Pianoteq is certainly far ahead of the first offering.


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## CT (Aug 24, 2020)

Yes that's pretty much it. Exposed, it sounds nowhere near real. Some stops are better than others. Foundations are ok. Mixtures are terrible....


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## evilantal (Aug 24, 2020)

giwro said:


> Just a couple clarifications - Hauptwerk no longer offers a free version, but there is a low-cost subscription of the basic version available. Also, it’s only a resource hog if you get the huge monster instruments and/or load multiple mic perspectives... if you were wanting to integrate it with a mix, you’d probably want to load a pretty dry instrument, and those take less memory and cpu resources, as the more reverberant instruments require multiple releases and often have the option to load multiple loops for repeated notes realism.



Thanks! I learned something... Seems I've been out of the Hauptwerk loop too long


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## TGV (Aug 24, 2020)

I have a few sampled pipe organs, but one that hasn't been mentioned are the free ones by "bigcat": https://bigcatinstruments.blogspot.com/2014/04/saint-augustines-organ.html and https://bigcatinstruments.blogspot.com/2014/06/bureu-organ.html. To me, they sound really good.


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## Lode_Runner (Aug 25, 2020)

Mike Fox said:


> Looking for a pipe organ that has a classic horror/Addams Family vibe going on. I do have Soundiron's Lakeside organ, which is great, but I'm curious as to what else is out there.
> 
> Thanks!


I think Spitfire's Symphonic Organ does the sound you're looking for better than most. Union Chapel Organ is also great, and can probably get you there with a bit more work.

Samplephonics Leeds Town Hall is a great free organ, definately worth getting, but it's not that classic horror sound at all.

If the all stops out, big and ominous, rattle the floorboards sound is more important than period and space authenticity, you could maybe try beefing the Lakeside organ up with a bit of analogue synth layering.


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## giwro (Aug 25, 2020)

Stephen Limbaugh said:


> @giwro which Hauptwerk samples are yours?


Stephen, you can find them here: http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=155

Regards,


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## szurcio (Sep 8, 2020)

I'm sorry about reviving this thread. What do you think about XSample Concert Organ? Has anyone tried it?





xsample_concert_organ







www.xsample.de


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## CT (Sep 8, 2020)

Listening now, and it actually sounds really nice. Decent selection of stops too.


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## doctoremmet (Sep 8, 2020)

szurcio said:


> I'm sorry about reviving this thread. What do you think about XSample Concert Organ? Has anyone tried it?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have it and quite like it. Warning: NOT an organ expert!


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## soniccouture (Sep 22, 2020)

For some reason our All Saints Organ doesn't seem to have been mentioned here:

http://www.soniccouture.com/en/products/g67-all-saints-organ/


James


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## Reid Rosefelt (Sep 22, 2020)

Any thoughts on the pipe organ in Sonuscore's The Horns of Hell?


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## bvaughn0402 (Sep 22, 2020)

soniccouture said:


> For some reason our All Saints Organ doesn't seem to have been mentioned here:
> 
> http://www.soniccouture.com/en/products/g67-all-saints-organ/
> 
> ...



I was SO upset I missed the initial buy-in sale on this. I'll so be picking this up next time it is on sale!


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## Mark Schmieder (Sep 23, 2020)

All Saints Organ is my current favourite in terms of the sound, the recording, and how easily it blends with anything in any musical context.

As I was overwhelmed with the job search for a few months, I haven't really had a chance yet to compare back to VSL's Konzerthaus Organ to see if there is rough parity of stops and registers. But it doesn't really matter if there is, as it's a very different organ sound, and one generally needs more than one.


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## Thundercat (Dec 4, 2020)

Lee Blaske said:


> As others have said, Hauptwerk is the gold standard, but that's a complete universe of expensive player software and even MORE expensive libraries. And, you'll also probably want to get a multi-manual keyboard setup and foot pedals to really make it work. It's a heavy investment and commitment, and something you'll only do if you're REALLY interested and involved with pipe organ music.
> 
> I've got a number of pipe organ libraries (not Hauptwerk, yet, but I'm thinking about it). The one I've purchased that I've gotten the most use from, and keep coming back to is the VSL Konzerthaus Organ. The VSL Konzerthaus Organ can be big, it can be subtle, and anywhere in between. Very flexible. It's not dirt cheap, but it's worth every penny.
> 
> ...



FANTASTIC COMPOSITION!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Mark Schmieder (Dec 4, 2020)

Completely agree! I did recently buy the All Saints Organ from Soniccouture for a slightly different sound and collection of stops. Time will tell which one gets used more, but I can at least vouch from many years of experience that the VSL Konzerthaus Organ is very versatile and works in every genre.

I put a lot of time into making my own master presets, and I switch stops and combinations frequently in my pipe organ music, treating it like an orchestra with call/response, doubling, etc.


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## Thundercat (Dec 4, 2020)

Wonderful thread! Downloading Nils' freebie as we speak; in love with the VSL and also the All Saint's Organ! Both so incredible! Wasn't as thrilled with the Garritan but I only listened to a few demos.

Thanks for sharing everyone.

Mike


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## Robert_G (Dec 4, 2020)

Soundiron's pipe organ is fantastic and good price too.


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## Scalms (Dec 4, 2020)

Robert_G said:


> Soundiron's pipe organ is fantastic and good price too.


I concur


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## giwro (Dec 4, 2020)

We just released another organ for Hauptwerk: http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=3666

A playlist of some demos here:








Concert Hall Playlist: Pasadena Presbyterian Aeolian-Skinner


Put together by giwro. Click to listen, or visit www.contrebombarde.com and create your own!



www.contrebombarde.com





Back under my rock to work on the next 3... de-noise, split, loop, code... no rest for the wicked.


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## heisenberg (Dec 4, 2020)

Realism is freaky good and great playing in the examples. Thank you!


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## Mark Schmieder (Dec 5, 2020)

Which Soundiron organ? Although Lakeside is well-recorded, it wasn't the sound I wanted (personal taste and all that). But I never bought Alpha Organ and have been curious about that one as I know the church and the organ as it was recorded at St. Paul's in San Francisco.


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## Henning (Dec 5, 2020)

For pure over-the-top sound the Orchestra 2 has a cool organ which is basically made of two different ones. Made a demo featuring it as I liked the sound so much.


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## Scalms (Dec 5, 2020)

Mark Schmieder said:


> Which Soundiron organ? Although Lakeside is well-recorded, it wasn't the sound I wanted (personal taste and all that). But I never bought Alpha Organ and have been curious about that one as I know the church and the organ as it was recorded at St. Paul's in San Francisco.


Sorry, was referring to Lakeside, which I like a lot, although I do use it to combine with other pipe organs to great effect. Curious about the Alpha Organ too, but don't know much about it


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## autlvz (Dec 5, 2020)

Mark Schmieder said:


> Which Soundiron organ? Although Lakeside is well-recorded, it wasn't the sound I wanted (personal taste and all that). But I never bought Alpha Organ and have been curious about that one as I know the church and the organ as it was recorded at St. Paul's in San Francisco.



I got alpha organ a few days ago on sale, haven't had a ton of time with it, but from the hour I spent playing around I really like it! Both the normal organ patches and the sound design/fx patches sound really good so far


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## doctoremmet (Feb 3, 2021)

Just noticed a new release, that may be of interest? Have not listened to it yet.

Demo sounds promising.

24 days intro sale 25% off, making it $38.50 at the moment

https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ


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## AudioLoco (Feb 3, 2021)

Project Organ is really lovely!! 
(and free...)


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## Scalms (Feb 3, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> Just noticed a new release, that may be of interest? Have not listened to it yet.
> 
> Demo sounds promising.
> 
> ...



sounds really nice so far from the video...recordings sound clear with a really pleasant room tone, great find!


----------



## doctoremmet (Feb 3, 2021)

So.... if this is just the preview @Simeon, I can’t WAIT for the review! Hoping it’s at least an hour’s worth of this cool instrument. Those reverb tails sound just amazing. Like I’m there with you in that Swedish church....




I am definitely getting this sample.


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## Paulogic (Feb 3, 2021)

I love church organs, but always look for the Tutti's. I love the basses destroy my room...
It's not my fault, it's the organist in the church I went to with my parents when I was little.
I now believe the Tutti setting was the only one still working on their organ but it felt
great. Full power, even the Jesus statue started to move. We called it shaking stevus..


----------



## dzilizzi (Feb 3, 2021)

Paulogic said:


> I love church organs, but always look for the Tutti's. I love the basses destroy my room...
> It's not my fault, it's the organist in the church I went to with my parents when I was little.
> I now believe the Tutti setting was the only one still working on their organ but it felt
> great. Full power, even the Jesus statue started to move. We called it shaking stevus..


We had an organ at home with a bunch of big speakers and reverb spring. My mom played the organ at church but didn't have time to go in and practice. When my grandmother died, they spent some of the money they got on an organ. 

Anyway, my dad loved to play Beethoven's Fifth on it. I remember one day he was making the whole house vibrate with the bass notes, but he suddenly stopped and everything was still shaking. I guess this time it was an actual earthquake and not his playing. I always remember that. I never could figure out why my dad hated rock music when he loved heavy bass so much.


----------



## Kirk1701 (Feb 4, 2021)

Here in Canada, the Casavant Freres company is another of our small pieces of national pride. As far as I know, Haupwerk is the only library that samples a Casavant Opus.

(I do love to hear a proper pipe organ in church. I'm a Protestant too. I feel, as did Bach, that the organ is uniquely appropriate for Sunday morning worship. There's no mistaking the purpose of congregational singing when framed by a good organist.)


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## giwro (Feb 4, 2021)

Kirk1701 said:


> Here in Canada, the Casavant Freres company is another of our small pieces of national pride. As far as I know, Haupwerk is the only library that samples a Casavant Opus.
> 
> (I do love to hear a proper pipe organ in church. I'm a Protestant too. I feel, as did Bach, that the organ is uniquely appropriate for Sunday morning worship. There's no mistaking the purpose of congregational singing when framed by a good organist.)


Yes, we've sampled 2 Casavants for Hauptwerk: http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=2521
and http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=2623

We have a verbal commitment to sample a 3rd, but that's on hold due to COVID.


----------



## Kirk1701 (Feb 4, 2021)

giwro said:


> Yes, we've sampled 2 Casavants for Hauptwerk: http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=2521
> and http://www.evensongmusic.net/?page_id=2623
> 
> We have a verbal commitment to sample a 3rd, but that's on hold due to COVID.


The two Mendelssohn selections on the Concordia Casavant are particularly well done.


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## giwro (Feb 4, 2021)

Kirk1701 said:


> The two Mendelssohn selections on the Concordia Casavant are particularly well done.


Thanks, Kirk - the demos are recorded by Dr. Tom Mueller, who is the University organ professor at Concordia (so, he plays the "real" instrument all the time). He loves having access to practice it at home.

We are working on our next release now... it's actually a church that has three (3!) pipe organs on campus, and we've sampled all of them. The 2 smaller instruments went together fast, but the large one in the main sanctuary has 3 mic perspectives (and is larger than the 2 smaller ones put together!) so, we are wading through tens of thousands of samples, doing noise reduction and checking loops, releases... oy.  

I have to chuckle when people gripe about missing release dates - I learned long ago to not give a firm date unless I actually had a RTM candidate and was simply waiting on my iLok codes {grin}

This brings up a question - do folks think there might be enough interest if I chose to do a Kontakt version of some of our stuff? I'd be willing to give it a try, but it would mean learning new programming... not something I want to do if it's not of interest....

The good news is, of course, we have a cleaned and prepped sample pool, so a lot of the hard work is done....


----------



## Kirk1701 (Feb 4, 2021)

giwro said:


> Thanks, Kirk - the demos are recorded by Dr. Tom Mueller, who is the University organ professor at Concordia (so, he plays the "real" instrument all the time). He loves having access to practice it at home.
> 
> We are working on our next release now... it's actually a church that has three (3!) pipe organs on campus, and we've sampled all of them. The 2 smaller instruments went together fast, but the large one in the main sanctuary has 3 mic perspectives (and is larger than the 2 smaller ones put together!) so, we are wading through tens of thousands of samples, doing noise reduction and checking loops, releases... oy.
> 
> ...


I went to a small liberal arts university that had a specially Dutch-made organ affectionately named "Baal." Those of you who are church-goers should get the reference. It was made in the north German "singing" style, so it is a particularly lovely sound.

I would be interested in a Kontakt version of a Casavant, provided it wasn't exorbitantly expensive. I cannot speak for other fellows, though. I do not compose for organ presently, but a well-made instrument can be very inspirational.


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## CT (Feb 4, 2021)

I _hope_, sometime in the relatively near future (a year or two?), to be able to offer a well-recorded and comprehensive (M.P. Möller) organ in Kontakt format (and probably Hauptwerk too) as my first sampling venture. Can't promise anything at this point. But I will try.

If that proves to be in any way successful, I'll try to pull some strings with acquaintances around NYC to take a crack at one of the big instruments there. Obviously this is all up in the air and I may have to look back at this post in shame, but I'm excited by the idea at the moment and wanted to share. I guess we'll see.


----------



## doctoremmet (Feb 5, 2021)

Eternity Organ patches overview:


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## giwro (Feb 5, 2021)

Mike T said:


> I _hope_, sometime in the relatively near future (a year or two?), to be able to offer a well-recorded and comprehensive (M.P. Möller) organ in Kontakt format (and probably Hauptwerk too) as my first sampling venture. Can't promise anything at this point. But I will try.
> 
> If that proves to be in any way successful, I'll try to pull some strings with acquaintances around NYC to take a crack at one of the big instruments there. Obviously this is all up in the air and I may have to look back at this post in shame, but I'm excited by the idea at the moment and wanted to share. I guess we'll see.


That is exciting, Mike.

Recording for Hauptwerk is a daunting task, if you want to chat about it I’m happy to do so - shoot me a PM. 

I’m off to record another division on a local instrument here today...


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## Rmgatl (May 27, 2021)

I’m an advanced amateur classical pianist, with only the most basic knowledge and experience with pipe organs (played in church a couple times filling in, had no clue what I was doing but was ok). 

I want to get my first organ library and try composing some organ solo pieces. I imagine most of you ended up with several different libraries to get particular sounds or style. Who knows about style...but I play Franck’s prelude, choral, fugue on piano and have listened to his organ music, also Reger, Messiaen etc.

Anyway, trying to pick a first one...any suggestions please?

After listening around tonight, I liked the All Saints and SA Symphonic Organ demos best. My guess is I could start with either of these. 

Guess it might come down to easiest UI for a novice, most flexible. Thoughts?


----------



## Locks (May 27, 2021)

Rmgatl said:


> After listening around tonight, I liked the All Saints and SA Symphonic Organ demos best. My guess is I could start with either of these.
> 
> Guess it might come down to easiest UI for a novice, most flexible. Thoughts?


I don't really know my pipe organs but you could start with the free Spitfire Labs pipe organ (https://labs.spitfireaudio.com/pipe-organ). I'm pretty sure this one was adapted from a free release on Pianobook. Labs is usually pretty high quality. Definitely meets your requirement of a simple UI.


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## Thundercat (May 27, 2021)

Rmgatl said:


> I’m an advanced amateur classical pianist, with only the most basic knowledge and experience with pipe organs (played in church a couple times filling in, had no clue what I was doing but was ok).
> 
> I want to get my first organ library and try composing some organ solo pieces. I imagine most of you ended up with several different libraries to get particular sounds or style. Who knows about style...but I play Franck’s prelude, choral, fugue on piano and have listened to his organ music, also Reger, Messiaen etc.
> 
> ...


I just love the VSL Konzerhaus organ...never have I heard such a huge and full and beautiful sound.


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## doctoremmet (May 27, 2021)

Soundiron are running a sale IIRC. Their Alpha Organ is nice.

I also like this one:

https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ


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## Trash Panda (May 27, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> Soundiron are running a sale IIRC. Their Alpha Organ is nice.
> 
> I also like this one:
> 
> https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ


Alpha Organ is beyond nice. It’s amazing. The hardest part of using it is not getting too out of hand with stacking notes so that volume is clipping before it leaves Kontakt.


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## Fleer (May 27, 2021)

I have to admit that Organteq is getting more and more of my attention these days. Pretty amazing instrument with the feel of a real one.


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## dzilizzi (May 27, 2021)

I'm liking OT's organ in Tallinn. You can buy it separately. Sonokinetic's one sounds good but may be limited.


----------



## Scalms (May 28, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> Soundiron are running a sale IIRC. Their Alpha Organ is nice.
> 
> I also like this one:
> 
> https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ


I second the Eternity Church Organ, what an undiscovered gem this library is


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## doctoremmet (May 28, 2021)

Scalms said:


> I second the Eternity Church Organ, what an undiscovered gem this library is


Got it on sale a couple of months ago. Think I paid £15 for it. Fantastic library.


----------



## Rmgatl (May 28, 2021)

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.
SA has both their organs on sale...I have other Spitfire libraries, comfortable with their UI approach, so interesting.


----------



## Gunvor (Aug 15, 2021)

This just popped up on the radar too


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## oepion (Aug 15, 2021)

This one from CineSamples just came out: 

They're having a sale at the moment but this one is excluded. It might go on sale later this year?

I do love Spitfire's Symphonic Organ, it's got that really huge majestic sound, though it is not the most flexible organ available out there. It's also one of the most expensive one can buy but I still feel it is worth every dollar I paid for it (bearing in mind that's the sound I was going for).


----------



## Romy Schmidt (Aug 16, 2021)

Mike Fox said:


> Looking for a pipe organ that has a classic horror/Addams Family vibe going on. I do have Soundiron's Lakeside organ, which is great, but I'm curious as to what else is out there.
> 
> Thanks!


Don't know about the vibe, but for classical music I use Knutby Organ.


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## Peter Williams (Aug 16, 2021)

jaketanner said:


> I use Garritan Pipe Organ and it's pretty nice. Not too expensive, and sounds great. Can mix and match almost any sound you need.


Yes, if you are on a budget and simply looking for patches that can give you a variety of pleasing results, Garritan has some nice ones. You also can use some of the Kontakt library patches. The new Orchestral Tools freebie has some very useful sounds also.


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## bill45 (Aug 16, 2021)

Cinesamples Forbes organ just came out too.


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## Elian Music (Aug 17, 2021)

Hi guys, newbie to this forum and to this thread --

Is Spitfire Symphonic Organ the more bass heavy, earth shattering, huge one, or union chapel? Im after a more customisable sound that is definitely able to pull off that larger than life - speaker about to explode - building is shaking effect in the bass register.


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## Elian Music (Aug 17, 2021)

Elian Music said:


> Hi guys, newbie to this forum and to this thread --
> 
> Is Spitfire Symphonic Organ the more bass heavy, earth shattering, huge one, or union chapel? Im after a more customisable sound that is definitely able to pull off that larger than life - speaker about to explode - building is shaking effect in the bass register.


In other words, im definitely looking for a more commercial "cinematic" sounding organ with lots of heft and power, more than i am an airy, classical sounding, ambient sounding pipe organ to play fast lines with


----------



## Trash Panda (Aug 17, 2021)

Elian Music said:


> In other words, im definitely looking for a more commercial "cinematic" sounding organ with lots of heft and power, more than i am an airy, classical sounding, ambient sounding pipe organ to play fast lines with


Soundiron’s Alpha Organ with the 8va knob turnt up to 10 definitely meets that criteria.


----------



## Gaffable (Aug 20, 2021)

The recently released Rathgar Pipe Organ by @EduPrado is astounding. I got goosebumps as soon as I heard the first few notes of the Bach Toccata demo. It felt like I had been instantly teleported into the Rathgar church.

Audio Plugin Deals is selling the library at a 63% discount for the next two weeks.


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## dzilizzi (Aug 20, 2021)

Gaffable said:


> The recently released Rathgar Pipe Organ by @EduPrado is astounding. I got goosebumps as soon as I heard the first few notes of the Bach Toccata demo. It felt like I had been instantly teleported into the Rathgar church.
> 
> Audio Plugin Deals is selling the library at a 63% discount for the next two weeks.


I'm listening to the watkthrough on this and really loving it. For $44, it seems like a great deal.


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## Seizh Avel (Aug 21, 2021)

Thank you for this thread which provides an overview of VST for this wonderful instrument.
After using Spitfire Symphonic Organ, which I find very good, I bought Organteq during the last summer sales and I find this instrument very good. It is only the first version and a lot of improvement is still to be made, essentially in terms of number of stops available, but it is very configurable and allows full control via midi.


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## Gaffable (Aug 21, 2021)

Some of the organ libraries in this thread are concert hall organs (e.g. the VSL and the Spitfire Symphonic the Cinesamples Forbes organ and the Impact Soundworks Fredonia organ) but most of them are church organs.

An organ with a slightly different acoustic is the Flentrop organ in Adolphus Busch Hall at Harvard. I'd love to see a sample developer make a recording of this instrument. It has a beautiful tone (YouTube examples here, here and here).


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## Emanu1674 (Aug 21, 2021)

I really like Sonokinetic Toccata, to me it has some of that classic organ feel that that most organ libraries miss out. Also it's fairly unexpensive for the sound


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## dzilizzi (Aug 21, 2021)

The problem I have with a lot of the organ VI's is they don't separate out the manuals and pedals. So you don't get a full set of keys and pedals. At least the ones I have. Obviously, I don't have the Hauptwerk, which I believe does have the full organ. I think the Tallin one also has it broken out.


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## CT (Aug 21, 2021)

Gaffable said:


> e.g. the VSL and the Spitfire Symphonic


Symphonic Organ was recorded in a chapel. Union Chapel Organ is... also from a chapel, big surprise, but it's been used as a secular concert space rather than a church for a long time now. The only non-Hauptwerk organs I can think of that are located in actual concert halls would be VSL's and the new Cinesamples and Impact Soundworks ones.


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## giwro (Aug 21, 2021)

Gaffable said:


> Some of the organ libraries in this thread are concert hall organs (e.g. the VSL and the Spitfire Symphonic) but most of them are church organs.
> 
> An organ with a slightly different acoustic is the Flentrop organ in Adolphus Busch Hall at Harvard. I'd love to see a sample developer make a recording of this instrument. It has a beautiful tone (YouTube examples here, here and here).


Often the biggest obstacle to sampling is getting permission from the venue. My company has sampled 10-15 pipe organs for Hauptwerk, and probably have tried to get access to three times that many (and not succeeded).


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## hag01 (Aug 22, 2021)

Hey, what about Aria Sounds Church Organ?


I guess it's not the best, but it's not expansive and the demo is impressive.
Actually, to my ears, it sounds very good.

Anyone has it?
If so what do you think about it?


----------



## EduPrado (Sep 2, 2021)

Gaffable said:


> The recently released Rathgar Pipe Organ by @EduPrado is astounding. I got goosebumps as soon as I heard the first few notes of the Bach Toccata demo. It felt like I had been instantly teleported into the Rathgar church.
> 
> Audio Plugin Deals is selling the library at a 63% discount for the next two weeks.


Thanks so much, that is the idea of the Rathgar Pipe Organ! Glad to hear you liked it


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## doctoremmet (Sep 2, 2021)

giwro said:


> Often the biggest obstacle to sampling is getting permission from the venue. My company has sampled 10-15 pipe organs for Hauptwerk, and probably have tried to get access to three times that many (and not succeeded).


I wish you could sample the beautiful organ in the Martinikerk, Groningen - The Netherlands. That would be awesome.


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## jaketanner (Sep 2, 2021)

Seizh Avel said:


> Thank you for this thread which provides an overview of VST for this wonderful instrument.
> After using Spitfire Symphonic Organ, which I find very good, I bought Organteq during the last summer sales and I find this instrument very good. It is only the first version and a lot of improvement is still to be made, essentially in terms of number of stops available, but it is very configurable and allows full control via midi.



This sounds nice. The two major issues I've found when listening to a LOT of organ pieces, versus the samples, is that the samples never get the huge bottom end captured, and the top end is too loud. Considering the pipe sizes, this makes sense that the bottom and mid pipes will sound louder, or at least more even...sample libraries tend to exaggerate the top a bit and is a clear giveaway that it's fake...even though the sound itself is quite good. It's more of a balance issue.


----------



## CT (Sep 2, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> I wish you could sample the beautiful organ in the Martinikerk, Groningen - The Netherlands. That would be awesome.


It's been done. 









Sonus Paradisi Groningen, St. Martini - Netherlands - Organs


Arp Schnitger and others<br /> 1450-1542-1692-1728-1740<br /> 53 stops (54 ext.)<br /> North German Baroque<br /> <strong>dry, wet, surround</strong><br /> Released: 12/2019




www.sonusparadisi.cz


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## giwro (Sep 2, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> I wish you could sample the beautiful organ in the Martinikerk, Groningen - The Netherlands. That would be awesome.


Already done by one of my colleagues: https://www.sonusparadisi.cz/en/organs/netherlands/groningen-st-martini.html


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## giwro (Sep 2, 2021)

jaketanner said:


> This sounds nice. The two major issues I've found when listening to a LOT of organ pieces, versus the samples, is that the samples never get the huge bottom end captured, and the top end is too loud. Considering the pipe sizes, this makes sense that the bottom and mid pipes will sound louder, or at least more even...sample libraries tend to exaggerate the top a bit and is a clear giveaway that it's fake...even though the sound itself is quite good. It's more of a balance issue.


A lot of that has to do with the fact that many recording engineers don't know how to record an organ...

It's taken me since 2004 to begin to get recordings I'm satisfied with.... and I'm picky about it since I'm an organist... 

Then, recording, editing and programming for sampling when it is a pipe organ is an even more arcane art. I've heard a lot of the stuff out there, and it simply doesn't sound right. For starters, most people don't correctly utilize the releases... there are characteristic sounds that happen when a pipe valve closes, and if you don't capture them, it sounds wrong.


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## widescreen (Sep 3, 2021)

Mike T said:


> It's been done.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice! But you need Hauptwerk. This ends up in four-digit amounts of money...  (not to mention the time to master it)

Not affordable for the usual hobbyist but a cool option if someone is really into it!


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## quickbrownf0x (Sep 3, 2021)

Elian Music said:


> In other words, im definitely looking for a more commercial "cinematic" sounding organ with lots of heft and power, more than i am an airy, classical sounding, ambient sounding pipe organ to play fast lines with


So I have both (in my template, snug as a bug btw) and I'd say in this case Symphonic Organ is the one you're looking for. It's a little more 'oomphey'. But what I do is I tend to mix and match. Add a bit of EQ and a splash of reverb with a nice tail and you're off to the races.

I'm also thinking of getting Lakeside, because I think it has a really nice colour and it'll mix well with the Spitfire ones. And it's dirt-cheap.

Hauptwerk of course is the bees knees, but waaay too much for my needs (and a total CPU hog the last time I used it).

Anyway, I think listening to a bit of Symphonic Organ sometimes reminds me of the hours spent, a little QBF running around behind this giant church organ, larking about, while my dad was playing his socks off during the service (and yelling at me to knock it off back there). Especially if I route it out to Quad.1 - it's like being in that amazing hall again.


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## rroc (Oct 2, 2021)

I totally love the _character _of *Crucible*! Is there anything out there that sounds similar but offers much more flexibility?

I've got _Rathgar_, which is great, but a bit more plain.
_Leeds Town Hall_ is nice, not too different from the one in the _Kontakt Factory Library_.
I found a Cathedral Organ in _Miroslav Philharmonik 1_ - it's soso.
Not a big fan of the one in the _Sonivox Essential Keyboard Collection_.
Then I found Cathedral Organ 1 EM in the _Tracktion Collective_ - it's alright but if you put it back to back with Rathgar, then Rathgar beats it quite easily.
The Pipe Organ in LABS didn't impress me, uninstalled it right away.
And I found one more in my collection: Large Cathedral Organ in Sample Tank 4 - it's not all bad.

From those I've tried personally I'd say Crucible > Rathgar > Leeds > Miroslav > Kontakt > Sample Tank > Essential Keyboard Collection - in case anyone asks


----------



## Gaffable (Oct 2, 2021)

rroc said:


> I totally love the _character _of *Crucible*! Is there anything out there that sounds similar but offers much more flexibility?



What about the Eternity Church Organ by Marcos Ciscar?
https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ

It's a Baroque era organ (like Crucible) and has 14 organ stops plus another 10 combinations curated by the developer, for a total of 24 presets. It's not super expensive and often goes on sale for 50% off.

There's also a long list of pipe organs in another recent discussion thread:
So, All These New Organ VSTs, which is your favorite?


----------



## doctoremmet (Oct 2, 2021)

Gaffable said:


> What about the https://www.lootaudio.com/category/kontakt-instruments/marcos-ciscar-sampled-instruments/eternity-church-organ (Eternity Church Organ) by Marcos Ciscar? It's a Baroque era organ (like Crucible) and has 14 organ stops plus another 10 combinations curated by the developer, for a total of 24 presets. It's not super expensive and often goes on sale for 50% off.
> 
> There's also a long list of pipe organs in another recent discussion thread:
> So, All These New Organ VSTs, which is your favorite?


Marcos Ciskar’s organ has been mentioned I’m sure. By me. Because it is indeed a great one (and very affordable)!


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## rroc (Oct 2, 2021)

Just re-watched the _Eternity Church Organ_ videos @doctoremmet posted and that does sound pretty good!
_Fredonia Grand Organ_ also looks pretty interesting and has 39 individually sampled stops!
_Toccata _is an equally tempting option with 20 registers for a pretty reasonable price.
And then there's the _Great Rieger Organ_. It's in an entirely different price range, not in a church, but based on the largest concert organ in continental Europe, located in the Vienna Konzerthaus - a place often mentioned as having the world's best acoustic properties. Looking at the screenshots it seems like they sampled pretty much all of its 116 stops, so there should be plenty of flexibility. (Do I really need to buy a dongle to try the demo?!)

But overall I have a really hard time comparing the sound based on youtube videos. Which one of those do you think could get closest to the sound characteristics of Crucible?


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## bill45 (Oct 2, 2021)

The _Fredonia Grand Organ is $99 for a couple of weeks_


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## muziksculp (Oct 2, 2021)

VSL :  Great Rieger Organ


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## hag01 (Oct 3, 2021)

I don't have a serious pipe organ library yet, and I want to have one.
I did research about pipe organ libraries lately, it seems like VSL Great Rieger Organ is the best(aside from Hauptwerk of course, which should be great but above my budget and aimed toward heavy users who are mainly live players).
I really wish there will be a discount on VSL Great Rieger Organ in the shortly coming Black Friday.


----------



## decredis (Oct 3, 2021)

hag01 said:


> I really wish there will be a discount on VSL Great Rieger Organ in the shortly coming Black Friday.


It does seem an amazing instrument, I'm loving the free demo. Such richness, sonority, flexibility, and ease of use. 

I'm guessing unlikely to be discounted on BF as it's quite new? I'm not sure though, what is typical VSL practice around Black Friday?


----------



## hag01 (Oct 3, 2021)

decredis said:


> what is typical VSL practice around Black Friday?


Good question, I don't know either, would be glad if someone can tell.


----------



## rroc (Oct 7, 2021)

Okay, I did _a bit_ more research, tried a few more things... 

I bough a used copy of the *EZKeys Pipe Organ*, mostly because I wanted to give the EZKeys ecosystem a try. It's quite nice, but not super-flexible (you just get a limited set of presets) and not entirely the sound I'm looking for.

I had low expectations for *Organteq *after some of the comments here, but gave the demo a try and found it surprisingly nice - especially when running through IR-1 - but I won't get it at full price.

*GrandOrgue* - free and open source, super flexible, but oh boy is this one ugly and difficult to use! Doesn't run in a DAW, needs endless resources - but you can toggle every stop and it even gives you the physical sounds of operating the organ. Also there is a surprising amount of (huge) sample packs (many even free) out there from organs all around the world. Great in principle, but bordering on unusable in everyday life.

*O: Forbes Pipe Organ *looks nice and got a 10/10 in the last issue of Computer Music. I watched the videos on their site and it seems to be fairly flexible with their system of layers, etc. But I missed the launch discount, so will have to keep an eye open for future discounts.

*Tallinn:* The main organ examples sound nice and you can buy it individually (though the full Tallinn comes with instruments for Organ (combines Manuals and Pedals, spread out over the Keyboard), as well as individual instruments for Manual and Pedal. And only the combined version can be purchased separately). But it's not very flexible. The available presets sound quite nice though! There's a second organ instrument in Tallinn as well: Choir Organ, meant to be in the background of the Tallinn choir I presume.

*Fredonia Grand Organ *looks quite flexible (they have great explainer videos on the website), plus I like it's character a lot. And it's on sale!

*All Saints Organ* offers some flexibility and is also on sale (at NI), but I don't think I like its sound as much. Hard to say from comparing videos.

*Garritan Classic Pipe Organs Collection* is somewhat flexible and contains multiple organs, but the Aria player looks pretty dated - how is this thing holding up?

Spitfire's *Union Chapel Organ *might actually also be a good option! I completely overlooked this one at first, but it offers lots of flexibility and sounds pretty good.

So in total, I'm still no closer to deciding what would be the next step to take on my organ-playing journey. *Fredonia*? *Union Chapel*? Wait for *O* to go on sale again? Save for *Rieger*?


----------



## rroc (Oct 7, 2021)

Oh! VSL's *Konzerthaus Organ* is on sale! And there's an upgrade path to *Great Rieger Organ *(currently cheaper than buying Rieger straight away) - maybe that's the way to go?


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## rroc (Oct 7, 2021)

Ok, I gave the* Hauptwerk VI* trial a bit of a shake. It sounds great and is incredibly configurable (too configurable, one could argue...), but totally not convenient for use in a DAW. I have to run the thing standalone and connect to it through *Hauptwerk VST Link*, which I put on a track in my DAW. Took me a while to figure out how to configure it through it's many floating windows and settings menus so that MIDI would travel from my DAW to Hauptwerk and audio would travel back, but I got there in the end. In any case: not quite as insane as GrandOrgue, but not far off. Nonetheless I'm tempted to try and see if I can run a few free sample-sets through it, but I will definitely not buy it at that price and would definitely not be tempted to try and use that in my normal workflow. I definitely prefer VIs that live directly in the DAW and save their settings with the rest of them...


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## decredis (Oct 7, 2021)

rroc said:


> Oh! VSL's *Konzerthaus Organ* is on sale! And there's an upgrade path to *Great Rieger Organ *(currently cheaper than buying Rieger straight away) - maybe that's the way to go?


Oh, good spot! I'm guessing this route is the cheapest the Rieger is going to be for some time, right? Not likely to substantially discount it this Black Friday, are they?


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## widescreen (Oct 7, 2021)

hag01 said:


> I don't have a serious pipe organ library yet, and I want to have one.
> I did research about pipe organ libraries lately, it seems like VSL Great Rieger Organ is the best(aside from Hauptwerk of course, which should be great but above my budget and aimed toward heavy users who are mainly live players).
> I really wish there will be a discount on VSL Great Rieger Organ in the shortly coming Black Friday.


I have bought it last week, absolutely wonderful instrument!

With EDU discount 25% off (was 40% in September, got it for 171€). So probably over upgrade path on the Konzerthaus Organ the cheapest track at the moment.


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## rroc (Oct 7, 2021)

decredis said:


> Oh, good spot! I'm guessing this route is the cheapest the Rieger is going to be for some time, right? Not likely to substantially discount it this Black Friday, are they?


Yeah, they probably won't discount a fairly new release, but you never know. Might get Konzerthaus now and wait with the upgrade until BF. Or how close are they really to switching to ilok? I might get just the license without dongle and save shipping costs...


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## rroc (Oct 9, 2021)

Ok, my question to VSL support - if there is a chance of the ilok switch happening before my Vienna Key arrives here at the other side of the globe - got a definite no.
So I went ahead and got Konzerthaus Organ + dongle. It's a digital product, I downloaded it right away, but now I have to sit here and wait 1 week+ until I can actually use it. Dongles are a great way to un-solve the last mile problem and to reintroduce all the downsides of physical products into software.
Might go off topic here, but imagine what the world would be like if every company's goal was not to make money, but to make our lives better...


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## rroc (Oct 18, 2021)

Alright! Vienna key arrived, *Konzerthaus Organ* and *Great Rieger* Demo installed! They sound the same (to little surprise, as they both use the same samples), but Great Rieger is the _ultimum in_ _flexibiliy_. Guess that's what I asked for.  

On the downside, my PC can't quite handle it if I pull out all stops at once, but since that's not something you will want to do a lot, it's alright. 
There's quite a bit of reverb baked into the samples it seems, but at least it's reverb from a great-sounding venue?
Now... while it all sounds great, it's a bit clean for my taste. Even the "Old-School Dirt & Noise" preset is still super-clean. Let's try some soft crunch on this...


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## Paulogic (Oct 28, 2021)

I just bought Impact Soundworks Fredonia Grand organ and got Furia Staccato Strings for free.
I'm amazed on how good this sounds and when pulling all stops, my computer doesn't even glitch.
Nice piece of Pipe organ VST, even when there is so much choice.


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## ALittleNightMusic (Nov 26, 2021)

Anybody compared Cinesamples Forbes Pipe Organ to VSL's Great Rieger? Both are on BF sale right now. Forbes seems to be more useful as a "scoring" organ given the sound design aspect?


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## decredis (Nov 26, 2021)

rroc said:


> Oh! VSL's *Konzerthaus Organ* is on sale! And there's an upgrade path to *Great Rieger Organ *(currently cheaper than buying Rieger straight away) - maybe that's the way to go?


Turns out that was a very good call. Having got the Konzerthaus on sale and waited for Black Friday, now the upgrade path to Great Rieger is also on substantial sale too!


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## Dietz (Nov 26, 2021)

rroc said:


> There's quite a bit of reverb baked into the samples it seems, but at least it's reverb from a great-sounding venue?


There is always the possibility to turn off the sampled releases (i.e. the natural reverb tails). This little trick will transform the Rieger Organ into a bone-dry studio instrument that will gladly work with (or even without) any kind of additional reverb.

_Fun fact: Reverb tails were sampled individually for short and long notes. 8-) The player takes care for that automatically._


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## chopin4525 (Nov 27, 2021)

Dietz said:


> There is always the possibility to turn off the sampled releases (i.e. the natural reverb tails). This little trick will transform the Rieger Organ into a bone-dry studio instrument that will gladly work with (or even without) any kind of additional reverb.
> 
> _Fun fact: Reverb tails were sampled individually for short and long notes. 8-) The player takes care for that automatically._


Wouldn't that require a revoicing according to the new "room" reverb to mantain balances between the different stops?


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## Dietz (Nov 28, 2021)

chopin4525 said:


> Wouldn't that require a revoicing according to the new "room" reverb to mantain balances between the different stops?


Well, it's a fake then anyway.  I wouldn't bother about the finer details sounding "real" in that highly artificial scenario. If it sounds right it is right! If you detect any show-stopping imbalances you can always adjust the volume of each stop manually.


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## hag01 (Nov 28, 2021)

ALittleNightMusic said:


> Anybody compared Cinesamples Forbes Pipe Organ to VSL's Great Rieger? Both are on BF sale right now. Forbes seems to be more useful as a "scoring" organ given the sound design aspect?


I purchased yesterday VSL Great Rieger Organ, and researched a bit about Cinesamples Forbes Pipe Organ today thanks to you, I didn't know about this organ before this message.
IMO the demos of Forbes sound impressive, I think it's more flexible for sound design and effects after reading about it and looking on pictures of the GUI in Cinesamples website.
But Great Rieger Organ also has options for effects.
I tried to play with Great Rieger Organ today, and do experiment with its effects, but the interface is complicated, so it didn't work out yet.
After this research, I almost had a GAS on Forbes because of its effects and sound design capabilities.
But I tried to add some external plugin effects to Great Rieger Organ\Vienna Organ Player in Cubase, and that experiment was more successful, I saw I can do things and design sounds easily that way, based on Great Rieger Organ samples, and that's hold me from GAS on Cinesamples Forbes. 
I also thought it would be crazy to buy another organ a day after I just got the Great Rieger Organ I yearned for for so long.


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## Paulogic (Nov 28, 2021)

The all sound very different and with effects you can make them even more so.
I bought Fredonia but also have a nice one in Falcon Orchestra and in Halion SE.
All usable if you ask me. The nicest thing is using swell with a reverb behind...


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## Emanuel Fróes (Nov 27, 2022)

Mike Fox said:


> Looking for a pipe organ that has a classic horror/Addams Family vibe going on. I do have Soundiron's Lakeside organ, which is great, but I'm curious as to what else is out there.
> 
> Thanks!


put a delay , then phantasms will come


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## Fleer (Nov 27, 2022)

I’m sure you could get there with Organteq.


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## Mike Fox (Nov 27, 2022)

Oh, wow! I totally forgot about this thread.


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## EduPrado (Nov 28, 2022)

Mike Fox said:


> Looking for a pipe organ that has a classic horror/Addams Family vibe going on. I do have Soundiron's Lakeside organ, which is great, but I'm curious as to what else is out there.
> 
> Thanks!


You should check out our organ!











Rathgar Pipe Organ


22 NKIs | 2 MIC POSITIONS | 100+ yrs Old Pipe Organ | FULL KONTAKT 5.8 or higher | Authentic Immersive Sound The Rathgar Pipe Organ is a beautifully sampled library that captures the authentic sound of the 100 plus years old organ from the Christ Chuch Rathgar, in the south of Dublin, Ireland...




sounds.eduprado.com


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