Regarding the new Synchron-ized Dimension Brass libraries, I must admit I'm not thrilled. Kind of starting to wonder if I like the Synchron studio sound much, at all (I own all the previous Synchron and Synchronized libraries). Seems we are being locked into less choice. And, we also now have less controllability (no iPad app for the Synchron plug-in, yet, and a lot of us relied on that).
The new Dimension Brass release rubs me the wrong way, too. Previously, there was only a "Standard" version, wasn't there? I own both the original Dimension Brass I and II libraries. So suddenly, there's now a new "Full" version of the old library that adds a few more articulations. The upgrade price differences are pretty dramatic. $41 per library to upgrade a "Full" library to the Synchron-ized version (but prior today, to my understanding, no one had the "Full" version, because there was only a standard version). To upgrade to Synchron-ized from the "Standard" version is $225 per library (and no option to upgrade an original Standard library to a Synchron Standard library for a nominal fee). So, they kind of got all of us previous owners over a barrel. So, for me, this would be a $450 upgrade, and really, all I'm getting is a few more articulations (which I don't know if I will use), and I'll lose the ability to have an iPad controller.
The only thing motivating me to do this cross grade is the concern that VSL will be dropping Vienna Instrument Pro support, since they're obviously intent to move toward the Synchron plug-in. I don't want to lose access to what I've already bought.
Also, shelling out this $450 for an upgrade doesn't mean I'm done with brass from VSL. VSL Dimension Brass is a nice library, but it is not a complete brass library with its "low brass" section played in octaves. There are times when you're not going to want that double.
Having been a loyal VSL customer for years, and having spent thousands and thousands of dollars, I am really not excited about what's happening at VSL these days, and these steep prices being charged to slather fake reverb on the samples we've previously purchased. VSL used to really be on the cutting edge, but they seem to have lost direction. They had been dormant for quite some time, and then we learned about the Synchron Studio acquisition, and that sparked hope for some new, ground-breaking content. But now, I kind of wonder why they wasted their money buying and refurbishing that studio. They could have rented a little time at that studio, taken the IR responses, and retreated to some other room to apply the convolution verb to their other libraries. No need to actually own that studio if they're not going to record new samples.