Lee Blaske
Senior Member
Virtuoso looks really interesting. Personally, I find recent VSL libraries are quite amazing when it comes to playing in an agile manner. They've really figured out how to make their libraries responsive.
If Duality didn't exist, I believe these add-ons would have gone to SSP. Each time a new toy for Duality comes out it irks me a little more being reminded of SSP being abandoned. That's why I brought it up again today. If you don't see that as abandonware...that's your opinion. I do see SSP as abandonware as do many others here. And unfortunately, I don't find SSP to blend very well with Duality libraries....so that isn't an option either....really? Are we still riding that dead horse?
So they gave you the knowledge that solo strings are finally coming and you just magically scrounged up the next thing you can not stop ranting about?
At this point I am pretty sure there's a diagnosis for that.
SSP is certainly not unusable or unfunctional. I'm not saying that at all. SS1 didn't work out, but SSP was widely loved and understood to be VSL Flagship ensemble string library. So one would think that there would be add-ons (Sordinos, etc) in the future. I think a lot of people would have not bought SSP knowing that a very near future Synchron string library (Duality) would be a quick replacement as the flagship library for VSL.How is it abandonware if it's a fully functioning product equivalent in many ways to, for example, CSS or SSS or MSB or BSS or HZS or LASS or Pacific Strings or NSS or CineStrings or or or or...?
By all means, it certainly is. Nothing comes close.I’m calling it: the Duality range is now one of the most comprehensive and useful string library series there is. That Guy Bacos video…. Amazing.
I'm not personally bothered by Duality series (which I own, including Virtuoso, alongside SSP and Elite) but I see you point. A person spends hundreds of dollars on a lib expecting it to be the anchor for a series, but then expansions get made for a newer lib.SSP is certainly not unusable or unfunctional. I'm not saying that at all. SS1 didn't work out, but SSP was widely loved and understood to be VSL Flagship ensemble string library. So one would think that there would be add-ons (Sordinos, etc) in the future. I think a lot of people would have not bought SSP knowing that a very near future Synchron string library (Duality) would be a quick replacement as the flagship library for VSL.
Does SSP do what it is supposed to do? Yes. Is it fully functional? Yes. Did it get ditched to the point that another library (and very similar) would get all the future love? Yes to that too.
If people can't see why some of us are upset over that, then I don't know what else to say, other than I would have never bought SSP, and instead waited for Duality.
They sound quite different. SSP recorded in 1 room. Duality recorded in 2 rooms is tough right off the bat for compatibility.I'm not personally bothered by Duality series (which I own, including Virtuoso, alongside SSP and Elite) but I see you point. A person spends hundreds of dollars on a lib expecting it to be the anchor for a series, but then expansions get made for a newer lib.
But is it really that hard to combine these expansions with SSP? I might try it out here, like an SSP followed by Duality Virtuoso arpeggios. I'm guessing it's fine.
Turn the second room mics off and you have something that's closer to SSP.They sound quite different. SSP recorded in 1 room. Duality recorded in 2 rooms is tough right off the bat for compatibility.
They don't have a 2, but they have a Duality!It's a little weird though how they had Synchron Strings 1 and not a Synchron Strings 2
Yeah, actually Duality's Ambiance presets has only stage mics activated by default, at least in Sur to Stereo Mixpresets. Also SSP has EQs which can be turned off - might get the sound closer to Duality which usually don't have EQs on mics though the sound is different indeed, but it can be dealt with.Turn the second room mics off and you have something that's closer to SSP.
I do agree however, they don't sound exactly the same. The stereo field is a bit different, too so it needs some finaggling.
But turning off the small room mics first should be obvious if you want to match them without the added detail of the small room recordings (which you could add to either one really).
Oh and turn off the compressors that every SDS mixer preset has turned on by default.
To my knowledge Duality recordings got more mastering treatment compared to most of our other libraries. This was necassary so Stage A and B recordings can be used together out og the box.Yeah, actually Duality's Ambiance presets has only stage mics activated by default, at least in Sur to Stereo Mixpresets. Also SSP has EQs which can be turned off - might get the sound closer to Duality which usually don't have EQs on mics though the sound is different indeed, but it can be dealt with.
I haven't found this information anywhere regarding glissandos: Is there any further choice or control offered over the interval (beyond octave, fifth or second?). Speed variations seem to have increased, but are we still at the mercy of micro-adjusting note duration to control intervals other than the original recordings?Thanks Ben to notify me, so now we have dual Glissandos and Runs doing the same in almost everything. There isn't any tonal difference between them, when they are doing the same?
No, the very slow and very fast glissandi in Duality Virtuoso seem to be fixed to the octave and do not provide other options. But for the very slow, you can stop playing the gliss midway, so you could probably do a very slow gliss over any interval you wanted smaller than an octave if you were to combine cutting off the note early with time stretching. The very slow glissando is very slow as the name implies - it takes about 6 seconds to reach the octave.I haven't found this information anywhere regarding glissandos: Is there any further choice or control offered over the interval (beyond octave, fifth or second?). Speed variations seem to have increased, but are we still at the mercy of micro-adjusting note duration to control intervals other than the original recordings?
Thanks. That's what I was beginning to suspect from the flash of the screen showing glissando variations. The library does sound otherwise extremely capable but I will live with the other components in the collection for now - maybe pick this up after the next voucher offer.No, the very slow and very fast glissandi in Duality Virtuoso seem to be fixed to the octave and do not provide other options. But for the very slow, you can stop playing the gliss midway, so you could probably do a very slow gliss over any interval you wanted smaller than an octave if you were to combine cutting off the note early with time stretching. The very slow glissando is very slow as the name implies - it takes about 6 seconds to reach the octave.
As far as runs, this provides chromatic runs as an alternative to the diatonic runs included in the original.
Juuust waiting for Best Service to finish fulfilling my order from yesterday afternoon!