It's funny. I've been following this thread for ages, reading every page since around november while sipping my morning coffee, giggling at some of the quick-witted answers from some, and often shocked by the complete lack of social skills emanating from others. Which is strange as music is in great part the expression of impressions and feelings turned into sound, I dread to hear the music of individuals whose sole purpose is egotistical self-satisfaction at the expense of respect and civility. Hurting others won't bring you better sounding samples. It is ok if you made a mistake. Just try to sell your library back. There is no need to avenge your pride because you bought something that doesn't suit you.
You bought that hat, you were so happy you thought everyone would say how cool you look, but after a few days, you noticed you just look dumb with it? Don't put it on. Or bring it back, and tell the hatter you're not satisfied, maybe. But don't just go to the shop whinning, threatening, then slamming your fists on the counter while insulting the clients around laughing at how ridiculous they look, hoping the hatter will comply with your every demand and bring you the perfect new hat for free. If you think that way, you must be immensly disatisfied with almost everything life is made of. The hatter did his best to create a pretty hat, and now he is being scolded for that. The hat is pretty, Maybe you're just not as pretty as you thought you were. Yeah I know, you could have bought two new roompacks with the money, or half the dimension collection you where hesitant to get because somehow, the sound seemed a bit metallic to your precious ears. Samples are expensive because they are hard and painstaking to create. They aren't good enough for your music? Try pencil and paper. Try screenwritting! You're good at creating a scene drived by conflict, and visibly a prolific writer.
At the bottom of everyhting, I really think people working at developping sample libraries wish to make others happy and help them create beautiful music, while on the other hand, one cannot dismiss the pecuniary dimension of it all either. They all try to sell. Everyone needs to eat. But, be it toward the music of composers brave and generous enough to risk posting excerpts of their work in here only to see themselves ridiculed, or toward the VSL team, such lack of respect is untolerable in my opinion, as empathy and respect are basic notions anyone should learn before pretending to interact as an adult. You won't get the best out of people while whipping them. They'll ditch you on the side of the road on the first occasion with a bump on the forehead. Healthy emulation comes from positive criticism. Do you seriously think the dedicated people from VSL, who spent months planning and adjusting microphones, joking with the musicians, sweating over thousands of samples to combine and hoping for the best are gonna come in front of you here, laugh sadly and watch their feet saying: "Yeah, you're right, we suck." Would you? Haha, no.
I have bought loads of libraries during the past years, the full VSL Cube, plus the organ, the piano, the saxophones, then Hollywood Strings, Hollywood Brass, Spitfire S.O. and Chamber Strings, Embertone strings, CSS, CSSS, VSS2, QL Spaces, MIR Pro, etc. I am of no Party, I love them all, I hate them all. My neck hurts at the end of the day, I don't sleep well. Jeez, it was so much easier with some scoring paper in front of the piano 20 years ago! Everything sounded right inside my head. All of these are amazing products, but most of the time, you give your score to real musicians, hear it and tell yourself : "Wow! Did I really compose that??" You give the same score to your beloved template and think: "I am shit." and after three weeks of CC editing and tweaking, you get half the quarter of the real guys' result. Of course you want the perfect strings, woodwinds, brass. You cry when you listen to better John Williams mock-ups than yours, it's always featuring the library you don't own yet.
I don't have the Synchron Strings. Because I am the same as you, human, always wishing for better, I hesitate, I crave, carry ever greater expectations and then yield to temptation and am disappointed more often than not. Then I am broke and have to wait before the next big thing. And in November I could never have afforded these new instruments. But I've listened to every demo I could find and, well, my verdict is that it's a VSL library in every respect. VSL always try to be innovative. And then the others around see that idea and do it differently, sometimes better for "this" or "that". Others wanna be innovative and they sample 500 cellos so that the next trailer music will break new ground, enriched by the glorious swimming pool of 4/4, C minor, I-VI-IV-V triads of 1500 virtual cellos under three fingers! I am fine with that, if that makes one happy, it's fine. It sure is silky.