# Review: Traveler Series – Gypsy Fiddle by Red Room Audio



## donbodin (Aug 20, 2020)

Sample Library Review contributor Pete Checkley reviews Traveler Series - Gypsy Fiddle by Red Room Audio 
"The Gypsy violin is the latest addition to Red Room Audio's Traveller Series which the developer pride themselves on authenticity and recording on location. Will the feature-packed Gypsy Fiddle live up to the reputation of the other instruments in the series?" 
Review page: https://bit.ly/2YjAo6f

Traveler Series - Gypsy Fiddle normally sells for $89 here: http://bit.ly/RedRoomAudio


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## muratkayi (Jan 14, 2021)

Hey thanks for the review (am a bit late to watch...) 

Just one question: while you were playing I noticed the instrument never triggered the legato samples (it always rebowed). Why is that and what do you think about its legato playability?


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## reutunes (Jan 15, 2021)

muratkayi said:


> Hey thanks for the review (am a bit late to watch...)
> 
> Just one question: while you were playing I noticed the instrument never triggered the legato samples (it always rebowed). Why is that and what do you think about its legato playability?


I did some testing on this library and have to say that I really like the legato playback. Bit odd that the video above didn't delve too much into the legato but I used it plenty in my demo with great success - you can hear it very clearly at the beginning of the track and throughout:


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## muratkayi (Jan 15, 2021)

Hi,
Thanks for the reply!
I checked more sources and found a few examples of legato (I like your track very much, btw. It nicely hijacks the instrument into different regions).

Edit: and because I liked what I heard, I bought this fiddle yesterday

I think of the three traveller series fiddles this is the most versatile one and its handling of legato playing is really really useful, so much so that you can use this instrument quite a bit without even going for the idiomatic ornaments - something I wouldn't dream of trying with the celtic fiddle, e.g.

That one sounds downright ugly when you just play legato. It is completeley transformed once you sprinkle the irish folk rolls and fills over it.


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## reutunes (Jan 15, 2021)

muratkayi said:


> Hi,
> Thanks for the reply!
> I checked more sources and found a few examples of legato (I like your track very much, btw. It nicely hijacks the instrument into different regions).
> 
> ...


Actually I agree with you on many points there. The gypsy fiddle is by far the most versatile of the 3, so much so that I reckon it could serve as a passable concert violin with the right EQ and reverbs. I did play about with it in that context a few months ago... now I've inspired me to give it a second try.


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## muziksculp (Jan 17, 2021)

The Phrases are completely useless for me. I will never use them. 

The library sounds very nice.


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## Polkasound (Jan 17, 2021)

muratkayi said:


> I think of the three traveller series fiddles this is the most versatile one and its handling of legato playing is really really useful, so much so that you can use this instrument quite a bit without even going for the idiomatic ornaments - something I wouldn't dream of trying with the celtic fiddle, e.g.


This is good news. The legato style of the other two fiddles comes across sounding too much like a room reflection to me, and after going under the hood and making adjustments, I still couldn't get the fiddles to sound the way I wanted to. But the tone of their fiddles are really nice.


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## col (Jan 18, 2021)

Adding a few things. 
This is an instrument that really needs a lot of programming to really shine.
It uses over 5 gb in memory when the full instrument is loaded !
I don't find that it plays intuitively like say JB violin ( different thing really )
it requires attentative programming for decent results.
The TACT page allows you to choose what ever midi switching you like and
for me has speed controls on some of the ornaments that work very well in ways I have not seen elsewhere. 
For instance you can adjust the speed of slides up to a note and it sounds perfect anywhere on the dial - top programming there to Red Room. Only niggle is you cannot assign a cc to control those parameters in real time. 
As a " Gypsy " style instrument and only one dynamic layer it is best suited to lively and louder pieces although the Gypsy sustain is a bit more delicate but rebows a bit too quick
and I have not found an adjustment for that. 
Useful and worth having for folky stuff but be prepared to invest some time into this one.


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## muziksculp (Jan 18, 2021)

Hi,

imho. this type of libraries are not the most suitable if you enjoy playing everything in real time, and get a wonderful performance, i.e. JB Violin can do that, I view the Gypsy Violin more of a tweak after play type of instrument, it requires multiple edits, and passes to achieve realistic, and good results when using it.

It's not an instant gratification experience if you are looking for a playable virtual solo violin.

I feel that having too many key-switches is the reason for this, and in general I dislike using them. They transform playing a musical instrument into playing a Jigsaw puzzle. So, it depends which of these two experiences you prefer. I'm surely not a Jigsaw puzzle fan.

The choice for me when it comes to using sophisticated, and complex virtual Musical Instruments like a solo violin is *Physically Modeled Instruments*.


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## Polkasound (Jan 18, 2021)

muziksculp said:


> The choice for me when it comes to using sophisticated, and complex virtual Musical Instruments like a solo violin is *Physically Modeled Instruments*.


That's my choice as well. Exposed solo instruments like jazz saxophones and country fiddles are so limitless in sound that trying to reproduce them with samples is, in my opinion, not worth the effort.

Comprehensive, well-scripted sample libraries can get closer than others. JB Violin and Birth of the Trumpet are two I can think of offhand. But for any expressive instrument driven by bow or wind, I really enjoy the flexibility of modeled instruments.

Two advantages to Red Room's fiddles are the superior fiddle sound and the sampled articulations. Audio Modeling's SWAM violin arguably wasn't built with Bluegrass or Irish folk songs in mind, and no played phrase or faked articulation is going to sound as good as a sampled one.

If I could fit a sampled fiddle articulation into a performance, I would at every opportunity, but it wouldn't matter if I couldn't finely control the rest of the performance. That's why I still choose the SWAM violin for fiddle parts. I need to be able to sculpt out a performance with scoops, bends, varied attacks, varied legato and glisses... a fundamental ability a VI fiddle must have.

A hybrid sampled/modeled fiddle library between Red Room and Audio Modeling would be a dream come true.


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## muziksculp (Jan 18, 2021)

Polkasound said:


> That's my choice as well. Exposed solo instruments like jazz saxophones and country fiddles are so limitless in sound that trying to reproduce them with samples is, in my opinion, not worth the effort.
> 
> Comprehensive, well-scripted sample libraries can get closer than others. JB Violin and Birth of the Trumpet are two I can think of offhand. But for any expressive instrument driven by bow or wind, I really enjoy the flexibility of modeled instruments.
> 
> ...


Have you checked Sample Modeling's Solo & Ensemble Strings ?


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## Polkasound (Jan 18, 2021)

muziksculp said:


> Have you checked Sample Modeling's Solo & Ensemble Strings ?


It's a library I'd love to have, but since I already have several string libraries, I haven't been able to justify buying it.


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## muziksculp (Jan 18, 2021)

Polkasound said:


> It's a library I'd love to have, but since I already have several string libraries, I haven't been able to justify buying it.


I see. It is has a very small sample set, but mostly uses physical modeling technology, I think it's a very unique and versatile strings library, also great to perform, and play, rather than program/perform key-switches.


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## Cathbad (Jan 18, 2021)

col said:


> Adding a few things.
> This is an instrument that really needs a lot of programming to really shine.
> It uses over 5 gb in memory when the full instrument is loaded !
> I don't find that it plays intuitively like say JB violin ( different thing really )
> ...



This is very similar to my impression of the Celtic Fiddle I picked up recently. The instrument doesn't give you much help, in the way that various Embertone and Performance Samples VIs, or even some of the ethnic instruments and voices from Strezov do. 

So I was a bit disappointed with how it sounded on a quick run up and down the keyboard. But there's lots of customisation and articulation stuff to dig into and I imagine with some time spent on programming the results will be much more pleasing. Trouble is, that needs some knowledge of Celtic (or Gypsy or Bluegrass...) fiddle styles to get the right inflections on the right notes. Plus, I'm not a string player so I'm at even more of a disadvantage. Perhaps it will fall into place a bit better with some more use.


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