# Orchestral Tools:Berlin Inspire 1 & 2



## GingerMaestro

Has anyone had much experience with these libraries ? And would you recommend as a starter/first film scoring library to get me going in a "traditional" cinematic style ? Any other suggestions ? Albion 1 & Symphobia are both possibilities, but seem more expensive and maybe less user friendly ? Thanks as always Ginger


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## KallumS

I have both, I love them to bits but I would say they sound more classical than cinematic. Still can be used for that purpose though, plus they cover a lot of ground compared to the alternatives with solo instruments, split string sections (first chairs, violin 1, violin 2, etc), pianos, harps and less common instruments like the positif organ.


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## GingerMaestro

Thanks Kallum that's really helpful. Just to confirm, yes having the sections split down somewhat is a good selling point. Symphobia, sounds like it is more dramatic/cinematic out of the box. Unfortunately none of the big sample library makers seem to do a complete all in one sample library with Woodwinds,Brass,Strings & Perc all broken down. They all seem to be some kind of multis. I guess they want you to spend all your money on their other libraries ! Thanks again...


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## Ledwick

I think Sonuscore "The Orchestra" has individual instruments sections


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## dzilizzi

Ledwick said:


> I think Sonuscore "The Orchestra" has individual instruments sections


I got The Orchestra and was a little disappointed with the individual instrument sounds. It makes me think of Solid State Orchestra which sounds good, but is slightly synthy. Where it shines is preset phrase thing, which are amazing. 

If you want individual sections, your best bet is to get EW Hollywood Orchestra Gold. It should be on sale in a few months if not before. EW is always having a sale. I don’t have the Inspires, but if you like the sound, you really don’t need solo sections, but you may want to grab a few solo instruments like a violin or cello. And for film music, Albion One might be better because of the synth stuff that comes with it is geared towards film.


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## jbuhler

dzilizzi said:


> I got The Orchestra and was a little disappointed with the individual instrument sounds. It makes me think of Solid State Orchestra which sounds good, but is slightly synthy. Where it shines is preset phrase thing, which are amazing.
> 
> If you want individual sections, your best bet is to get EW Hollywood Orchestra Gold. It should be on sale in a few months if not before. EW is always having a sale. I don’t have the Inspires, but if you like the sound, you really don’t need solo sections, but you may want to grab a few solo instruments like a violin or cello. And for film music, Albion One might be better because of the synth stuff that comes with it is geared towards film.


Yes, The Orchestra is a nice idea generator, more flexible than a phrase library like the Sonokinetic stuff but also less detailed. But you can create your own patterns and you are not bound to triadic harmony. I've been very happy with The Orchestra's sound for such sketching, and for certain kinds of things I've even surprised myself when I've found myself keeping it as a layer. At the same, it can only be pushed so far. I think Steffen Brinkmann's wonderful little demo "Stealing the Medallion" is excellent for showing what the individual sounds in the library are capable of and what the library can't quite pull off. You will quickly get to the point, I think, where this library needs help to finish off a piece. Whereas something like Albion One, the Inspires, or EW Hollywood Orchestra Gold don't need the same sort of help, or in any event are capable of a wider expressive range on their own.

One big drawback with respect to The Orchestra as a sketching tool is that it is difficult to extract the midi in order to replace the The Orchestra's instruments. 

I find Albion One very user friendly, but it is limited by only being broken down to the section level (Strings, woodwinds high and low, brass high, mid, and low). The Symphobias allow you to get more detailed but it still tends to feature combinations. Another library to look at is the SF's Bernard Herrmann Composer Toolkit. Then there are the Metropolis Ark series (though it's pricey) and Jaeger. For me one drawback of both of the latter is they don't have upper woodwinds.

On the other hand, most of the big orchestral collections will also serve your basic purposes. Here you have lots of options and lots of price points. Beyond EWHO, which some find somewhat complicated, you can also pick up the core version of the SF Studio Orchestra for $549. That's likely to be on sale if SF runs its May wishlist again this year.


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## dzilizzi

The only problem with Spitfire Orchestras as a starter is that they don't come with percussion unless you buy one of the Albions. Or one of their percussion libraries. But the sound is great and it is relatively easy to work with in Kontakt. I haven't tried the new player yet.

Edit: Though if you have full Kontakt, the factory library has decent orchestral percussion. And really, the factory library is a decent starter library, as it is old VSL.


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## Akarin

GingerMaestro said:


> Thanks Kallum that's really helpful. Just to confirm, yes having the sections split down somewhat is a good selling point. Symphobia, sounds like it is more dramatic/cinematic out of the box. Unfortunately none of the big sample library makers seem to do a complete all in one sample library with Woodwinds,Brass,Strings & Perc all broken down. They all seem to be some kind of multis. I guess they want you to spend all your money on their other libraries ! Thanks again...



For sections split down and a lot of content, look into Steinberg Iconica. It was recorded by Orchestral Tools as well.


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## dzilizzi

Akarin said:


> For sections split down and a lot of content, look into Steinberg Iconica. It was recorded by Orchestral Tools as well.


Do you have to buy Halion for that? I have Cubase, so it isn't a problem for me. I just wasn't sure if you don't have Cubase whether the player is free or not.


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## Akarin

dzilizzi said:


> Do you have to buy Halion for that? I have Cubase, so it isn't a problem for me. I just wasn't sure if you don't have Cubase whether the player is free or not.



Yep, it runs in the free player and is compatible with the other DAWs. I use it in the light Halion that comes with Cubase Pro. Also, they have a full unrestricted trial, unlike Kontakt-based libraries. You only have to download the 250GB of content to try it


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## Reid Rosefelt

Be aware that the two Inspires are not as comprehensive as some other starter/sketching libraries. I suspect that they are the first two parts in what will be a continuing series.
For example, at this point, after 1 and 2, there are these solo instruments:
Violin, Cello
Horn, Trumpet
Flute, Clarinet, Oboe, Bassoon.

I figure that in Inspire 3, there are likely to be a solo Viola and Bass and some more brass instruments.


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## sostenuto

Have BO-Inspire 1 & 2. BO-I 3 is instant buy ! 
Kinda like eating the elephant one bite at a time …..


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