elwoodblues1969
Kara-Moon Master
Posts: 4478
Studiophile,Audiophile & Synthophile.
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« on: August 31, 2012, 03:19:04 AM » |
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In order to streamline my studio & to increase my productivity,I had to make a difficult....but necessary choice; I sold the very last piece of my keyboard workstation arsenal(as it were),which is my Kurzweil PC3LE6.This keyboard has always been a burden to me,in terms of computer integration...as not only could I not sync it's onboard sequencer with my DAW,the program patches were not available to use as VST's.
There were many ways this keyboard was so out-dated and in fact,it was archaic....but there's no point in regurgitating all that drama again and I finally came to the inevitable conclusion that hardware workstations are dead and obsolete for me entirely. The upside to all of this,is that I finally pulled the trigger on a batch of software I had my eye on for years,which is Sonic Reality's Sonic Refill Gold collection....which is comprised of all 20 volumes from their library and contains 3.7GB...which translates to 8,000 sounds for $150!  Of course though-as you can imagine,this is not a top of the line sound library...as this compilation ranges from some hideous Casio-like sounds,to some very unique and awe-inspiring gems like Korg & Kurzeil-like sounds.Each volume purchased separately,is extortion....as each volume costs $40,which adds up to $1100 total,for the entire library!  The bundle pack though,is an entirely different prospect,as it's only $150....which is an incredible bargain(despite the fact that one has to scroll through an ocean of piss-poor sounds)...but I must stress that the selection is so vast,that the usable sounds(about 40% of the library),really get the creative juices flowing-so ultimately,it is a great buy.I originally had my heart set on the hyper-sampled Reason Drum Refill,but since this software is now only available as a download directly through Propellerhead's website,it's $30 more for the download(in contrast to the boxed version,which was $99).
To make matters worse,Propellerhead does not accept debit card transactions,so that was a deal-breaker for me.It all turned out to be a good omen however,because for another $20,I not only added a new drum arsenal,but also acquired new synths,keys,ethnic,world,ambient,effects,pianos,organs,basses,guitars and the list goes on...
Recently,I've also been combing through all of the free commercial software available for Reason and I discovered that there really isn't any sound that Reason cannot make,so I won't miss my Kurzweil's sounds all that much.
There are some really fascinatingly talented sound designers out there that make customized sounds for Reason and with Reason's various sample and synth engines,I have found some jaw-dropping additions for my arsenal,that were absolutely free of charge,with no compromise in quality.
-Thom
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