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Real Talk On Sample Modeling Brass

Disclaimer: I'm testing SM Brass and was provided a copy by the developer for an unbiased review. Some think this disqualifies my opinion. I don't.

Bottom line: SM Brass is pretty terrific, not only in tone but it terms of playability. My only complaint is the lack of dedicated ensemble patches like they have for their strings (although you can build your own pretty easily) and the lack of polyphony (the patches are legato only). If there is a polyphony mode I'm missing, please let me know. I've only just started playing with the library (and have yet to take a close look at the manual).

One way around the polyphony issue is to use the Multi-Divisi multiscript for Kontakt that's available elsewhere on this forum. It works pretty well. But this is easily the best brass library *I've* used.

All that said, my full review will be online once I've cleared my desk of a dozen other projects I've been neglecting in the wake of Covid-19.
 
Oh, and another review that I'm hoping to get done this coming week is for @d.healey's SORDINA, which is a dedicated VST for brass mutes that can be added on the track for any brass library. A ton of mutes in the package for a myriad of brass instruments. Really indispensable.
 
Oh, and another review that I'm hoping to get done this coming week is for @d.healey's SORDINA, which is a dedicated VST for brass mutes that can be added on the track for any brass library. A ton of mutes in the package for a myriad of brass instruments. Really indispensable.
WHAAATTTTT!!!!! Is it convolution based? I'm curious
 
Sounds good. I noticed the examples on the site use close mic'd instruments recorded in a small studio. How well does it work with samples recorded in a large studio or hall?
 
Sounds good. I noticed the examples on the site use close mic'd instruments recorded in a small studio. How well does it work with samples recorded in a large studio or hall?
I'll check that out for the review. I'll try it on Albion One brass and see what I get.
 
Does anyone know if the SM Brass can be used fully with the Roli Rise? I'm not experienced with a breath controller but I am buying one of those for other MPE instruments so I thought I might be able to get some of the expressiveness that way. I'm more a player than endless editor.

I'm still a little confused as to the realities and update of the two companies but it's my understanding that the higher quality Brass is the one from Sample Modeling NOT Audio Modeling??
 
its a little weird with it because of the pitch bend range being only +/- 2 on SM. That's the biggest issue for me, especially since if you hit two notes too close together it can try to bend the note instead (like hitting E and F in rapid succession)
 
Does anyone know if the SM Brass can be used fully with the Roli Rise? I'm not experienced with a breath controller but I am buying one of those for other MPE instruments so I thought I might be able to get some of the expressiveness that way. I'm more a player than endless editor.

I'm still a little confused as to the realities and update of the two companies but it's my understanding that the higher quality Brass is the one from Sample Modeling NOT Audio Modeling??
The concensus seems to be SM brass > AM brass. I think you can use the Roli nicely. I just got a Seaboard block, and have tried it with Infinite Brass and Woodwinds and I quite like the way I can play, bend and aftertouch stuff into total oblivion. My guess is, with some CC tweaking SM can do the same.
 
The concensus seems to be SM brass > AM brass. I think you can use the Roli nicely. I just got a Seaboard block, and have tried it with Infinite Brass and Woodwinds and I quite like the way I can play, bend and aftertouch stuff into total oblivion. My guess is, with some CC tweaking SM can do the same.

the issue is, like I said - the pitch bend range can't be altered beyond +/-2 with SM - and this simply isn't optimal for the seaboard because of the way it can misread incoming notes.

Chris hein, audio modelling(although brass didn't exist then, i had woods and strings) and even play worked bettter than SM with the roli seaboard.

you don't need the +/- 48 pitch bend range, but 12 makes things work much smoother.

for instance, if you were to play E >F >G connected with the +/-2, it had a tendency to play E, bend to F, then bend to F# and fall short of the G because it was actually just bending E the whole time.

I originally got the seaboard when I was more into the SM style instruments but SM was ironically my biggest disappointment when actually using the seaboard. Everything else worked well... like I said - I had better luck using hollywood brass XD.
 
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