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Orchestral Tools up to 63% off - which one

Now back to the decision-making. I only own BWW that I got on BF and Time Macro - why didn't they do a $1,000 takes it all deal?

I don't need Sphere or the pianos. I probably don't need string runs - I have SonoKinetic's ostinado strings. I'm sure I have runs somewhere. I do have 8Dio's Caged that covers some of the Ark 3 stuff. And I recently picked up VS's Smart Orchestra for pretty cheap as I bought the SE 1 bundle in a prior sale. So I may not need Inspire. Well, I don't NEED any of it. But I see why people like the Arks.

Okay, more videos....

I think the Arks are some of the most universally beloved libs out there. If you don't have them and you compose orchestral/soundtrack/epic music IMO they're a no-brainer.
 
Wrong. Pros do use VSL but it's not like OT isn't in most film composers' arsenals in some way, shape or form.
Actually, I am still correct. I didn't say that VSL is the only one professionals use, obviously. VSL has the most extensive list of advanced articulations for their libraries and is also the lightest on space and resources...no argument there. It is highly efficient and realistic given its small footprint. And also, professionals have very little time to spare, so it is a very useful, efficient and functional library. No library is perfect on every category.
 
I will say that it was a poor move by OT to ever imply that they won't run sales and that it is understandably a bit of a sour taste for some because of that, but here's the deal.

Company perspective - a company wants to make money. You release a product, and as soon as you feel like you have sold to enough of the people who are willing to buy your product at full price, you do a sale to bring in money from those who aren't. Makes sense.

Consumer perspective - you want to buy that product. If you buy it, you are making the statement that you believe the product is worth the amount of money you paid for it. At that point, you should logically have 0 investment in the future price of the product. You might feel worse if you lost out on a sale, but that's purely by contrast and wishful thinking, and nothing about your personal situation has changed - you still decided to value the product at the price you paid, and had the sale not happened, you'd be perfectly happy.
 
Actually, I am still correct. I didn't say that VSL is the only one professionals use, obviously. VSL has the most extensive list of advanced articulations for their libraries and is also the lightest on space and resources...no argument there. It is highly efficient and realistic given its small footprint. And also, professionals have very little time to spare, so it is a very useful, efficient and functional library. No library is perfect on every category.
You said VSL is where the "real" professionals go. Hence why I responded with my post.

VSL is good but I don't think their current line up is anything revolutionary and if anything, is a step behind the rest of the pack (this coming from someone who has spent thousands of $$$ on their products). How many people are using Syncron Strings in finished product recordings? Look at John Powell's LPX screenshots and you won't find much if any VSL in there amidst Spitfire Audio, Orchestral Tools, EW and other developers stuff.
 
I can see if someone just spent $$$ on OT stuff last month and is confronted with this new sale. Fair enough. But for people who were early adopters to complain is a little much. Did you make money using the libraries you bought 2-3 years ago from OT? I have and I'm sure plenty of others have too. That's the cost of jumping in early. I spent over $1200 on EWHS Diamond and now you get the whole orchestra for $400 or something crazy like that. This stuff just happens.
 
Consumer perspective - you want to buy that product. If you buy it, you are making the statement that you believe the product is worth the amount of money you paid for it. At that point, you should logically have 0 investment in the future price of the product.

Mostly agreed, but...

You might have some investment if you believe a high price helps keep the samples from becoming the "next EWQLSO," where everyone gets that sound and it's no longer special.
 
@charlieclouser Hey Charlie, I would imagine that the Spitfire products would have much of your orchestral needs taken care of well and assume you have a lot of their products since you were featured on some of their programs. What makes the OT libraries stand out to you compared to the similar Spitfire offerings, or is it just have more sonic palettes in your never-ending arsenal? Lol.
 
You said VSL is where the "real" professionals go. Hence why I responded with my post.

VSL is good but I don't think their current line up is anything revolutionary and if anything, is a step behind the rest of the pack (this coming from someone who has spent thousands of $$$ on their products). How many people are using Syncron Strings in finished product recordings? Look at John Powell's LPX screenshots and you won't find much if any VSL in there amidst Spitfire Audio, Orchestral Tools, EW and other developers stuff.

Just because it doesn't show up in the final recording does not mean it is not a professional library or professional tool. Those are two different things. And real industry professionals prefer not to use sample libraries in their finished product recordings unless they are after a slightly synthetic hyper real sound or something that the orchestra cannot physically do. They need fast, efficient libraries and tools for their orchestral mock ups. HZ uses samples because it has unique qualities he likes and can tweak. For someone like John Williams, not many libraries can keep up with him with his use of articulations like VSL can. This is where VSL shines and why industry people use it. The real orchestra can never be replaced by VI which is why they always choose to record the real thing and VSL matches and catches up with all their articulation needs. Other libraries can limit you due to their limited articulations while VSL covers in detail (in regards to the orchestra).
 
I don't really think of Ark 3 as a percussion library, though it has a lot of percussion in it (but I seldom use it). I think of it more in terms of the moniker, "beating orchestra," that is, for quickly mocking up repeated orchestra hits and ostinati, and especially for atonal effects and sharp clusters.

Its Full Orchestra Marcato multis are also very fun for right out of the box completely over-the-top epic blasts. Watch Daniel James's walkthrough to get a good feel for this side of it.



THX @ jbuhler ….. your text comments get straight to my post and really changed my perspective on ArkK3 …. but not in any negative way whatsoever. Just shifted focus away from perc.

( I appreciate the video reference, but 3 hours + of that is far beyond my tolerances ) Likely some can distill relevant points in several minutes. I was unaware of that Video and may cut into (12-14) bite-size chunks. )
 
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@charlieclouser Hey Charlie, I would imagine that the Spitfire products would have much of your orchestral needs taken care of well and assume you have a lot of their products since you were featured on some of their programs. What makes the OT libraries stand out to you compared to the similar Spitfire offerings, or is it just have more sonic palettes in your never-ending arsenal? Lol.

Never enough! Actually, I am always on the search for more / better / different versions of my favorite articulations - sul ponticello tremolo, flautando, harmonics, and all the shorts you can throw at me. They all seem to "speak" differently, and when I'm in the middle of a cue I wind up scrolling through them all going, "no... no...no...no... oooh, there we go!" Especially with the spiccato / short articulations - I love some of the things that 8dio does like Feathered Spiccato and their new Century Ostinato library. When I'm trying to get a good chunk-chunk going I wind up layering a bunch of different libraries, going all the way back to Sonic Implants which has a great scraping attack on the spiccatos, alongside mid-era stuff like LASS, all the way up to current stuff. To me the various libraries are sort of like guitar pedals - each one is just a bit different to the next and you don't know which ones to use until you're in the middle of the cue.

Of course, I also will buy just about anything that has the words Aleatoric, Ligeti, Clusters, or Dissonant in the description!

I love orchestral effects samples, even if they're not "playable" and are just a grab bag of one-shot samples. I've gotten so much mileage out of the Symphobia one-shots, but I hear them on everything from South Park to Adult Swim, so I feel a little hesitant to keep relying on them. Hence the endless purchasing of Orch FX.
 
From a very different place …… NI Marketing seems to be in minor cannibalizing mode …. :eek:
Strong value ( pour moi ) for Updating from K11U to K12U ? K12U Collection …. at $599.
Today ( surprise ) Arks Bundle @ $500.
Which 'one' am I gonna EAT ? :sick:
 
Never enough! Actually, I am always on the search for more / better / different versions of my favorite articulations - sul ponticello tremolo, flautando, harmonics, and all the shorts you can throw at me. They all seem to "speak" differently, and when I'm in the middle of a cue I wind up scrolling through them all going, "no... no...no...no... oooh, there we go!" Especially with the spiccato / short articulations - I love some of the things that 8dio does like Feathered Spiccato and their new Century Ostinato library. When I'm trying to get a good chunk-chunk going I wind up layering a bunch of different libraries, going all the way back to Sonic Implants which has a great scraping attack on the spiccatos, alongside mid-era stuff like LASS, all the way up to current stuff. To me the various libraries are sort of like guitar pedals - each one is just a bit different to the next and you don't know which ones to use until you're in the middle of the cue.

Of course, I also will buy just about anything that has the words Aleatoric, Ligeti, Clusters, or Dissonant in the description!

I love orchestral effects samples, even if they're not "playable" and are just a grab bag of one-shot samples. I've gotten so much mileage out of the Symphobia one-shots, but I hear them on everything from South Park to Adult Swim, so I feel a little hesitant to keep relying on them. Hence the endless purchasing of Orch FX.

@charlieclouser I hear ya and understand that completely. The aleatoric libraries can be great if it also allows you some some flexibility to be creative and tweak it so not just to play the same phrases over and over which can start to sound identical in your tracks as well as others using the same libraries. I agree.

I do remember we both decided to go through with the Private Labs Scream aleatoric libraries a while back. The developer for that said the same similar spiel and promised that the libraries are exclusive, limited to 25 licenses only and will never be resold. Then he bumped it to around over 100 licenses, and made a bundle offer for all the strings, brass, and woodwinds for $300.00-$350.00. He then shutdown the business, sold the libraries to 8dio to be repackaged, and disappeared. Then I just saw it go on sale recently for around $35.00 (another 10% off w/ coupon) for the entire bundle that was originally sold for $300/$350. That don't seem right. Not just about the pricing, but he did not keep his word to people who invested in his company and vision.
 
@charlieclouser I hear ya and understand that completely. The aleatoric libraries can be great if it also allows you some some flexibility to be creative and tweak it so not just to play the same phrases over and over which can start to sound identical in your tracks as well as others using the same libraries. I agree.

I do remember we both decided to go through with the Private Labs Scream aleatoric libraries a while back. The developer for that said the same similar spiel and promised that the libraries are exclusive, limited to 25 licenses only and will never be resold. Then he bumped it to around over 100 licenses, and made a bundle offer for all the strings, brass, and woodwinds for $300.00-$350.00. He then shutdown the business, sold the libraries to 8dio to be repackaged, and disappeared. Then I just saw it go on sale recently for around $35.00 (another 10% off w/ coupon) for the entire bundle that was originally sold for $300/$350. That don't seem right. Not just about the pricing, but he did not keep his word to people who invested in his company and vision.

Yeah, but what are ya gonna do? It is what it is. I try to think of all these library purchases NOT as "investments", but rather as "consumables" - like how a builder would think of a new jackhammer as an investment, but thirty tubes of caulk are consumables. I know this analogy is not quite accurate, as the caulk would be billed back to the client while the jackhammer wouldn't, but thinking of it this way helps ease my pain when I look at my PayPal statements!
 
Pretty remarkable pricing for OT. It's probably facilitated by Native Instruments pushing NKS and possibly forgoing some of their licensing fees. I feel the sirens singing...
 
Pretty remarkable pricing for OT. It's probably facilitated by Native Instruments pushing NKS and possibly forgoing some of their licensing fees. I feel the sirens singing...
I hear a different kind of siren for those early birds rolling over on the floor in agony right now. Lol.
 
How is Orchestral Grands? I have Galaxy D and True Keys bundle (nice for solo work), but nothing recorded in a room with orchestral positioning, and I don't seem to obtain that "sound" just by throwing a reverb at it. Nearly all the rest of my template is in Teldex.
basically its for orchestral work not really stand alone, plus only sustain pedal very basic adjustments
 
All 3 Arks for $825 :shocked:

Deal of the year right here!

There's no reason, other than really needing a specific sound for a job, to be an early adopter. All libraries, no exception, will eventually be sold for peanuts. It's not like we don't have enough tools to keep us busy while waiting.

That was my reasoning when Afflatus was announced and I'm glad I saved $800 (tax incl.) for better deals like this one now ;)
 
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