Personally between the CFX and the Steinway I will always choose the CFX. The Steinway has a great and even tone, but I just can't get it to sound right with my controller (an MP11) - this really makes me wish for a velocity editor because I hear the samples at low to middle velocities and they are just so good and even. I have tried different approaches like decreasing the MIDI sensitivity, decreasing/increasing dynamic range, EQing microphones etc. but I find myself tweaking a lot more when I play the Steinway than playing (which is kind of counterproductive). With the CFX I didn't have to adjust dynamic range or MIDI velocity, it just worked out of the box and I feel like I am in control of the music I play.

The CFX didn't have a third close mic option (the tube mic was introduced with the Steinway) and the Bösendorfer Imperial has more than 88 keys (even though most of us don't have a controller that has more than 88 keys). I think that explains the difference in size. As for which one is the most realistic? I have bought both the Steinway Full and the CFX Full and I am testing the Bösendorfer Imperial now with the 30 day trial. 

Between the Steinway and the CFX, I prefer the CFX full stop. No matter what I do with velocity sensitivity and dynamic range and mixing I can't get the Steinway to become my Nr. 1 choice. And this is with a Kawai MP11 which isn't a bad controller. The CFX to me is much more dynamic and gives me real pleasure every time I use it. I cannot say enough about the new Imperial but I have enjoyed playing it yesterday. However I need more time to judge it :)

Obviously we all have different preferences so take what I say with a grain of salt but I hope it helped nonetheless :)

Personally, I find the sound of the pianos wonderful, the CFX more so than the Steinway (and I haven't tried the Imperial yet, I will probably buy it soon). However I think the reason why I like the CFX more than the Steinway is that the touch response just harmonizes way more with my MP11. This is why a velocity curve editor is highest on my wishlist. The Synchron pianos definitely take the crown of piano software but a velocity curve editor is a feature a lot of other libraries feature and I think it would really up the value one step further.

That being said, these are wishes. I am very happy piano VSTs on this level exist in this day and age :)

Best,

Mango

Hey,

I'm sorry to report that C5 seems to be out of tune, you can quite easily test this by pressing all Cs in a row or going through a scale touching C5. Any chance how this can be fixed? Anybody else hear this?

Best,

Mango

Hey guys,

I want to see what you did with the new Bösendorfer upright. I like it's mellow tone, however I am not a fan of the lowest octaves (as expected with an upright). I would like to see a preset that manages to really balances the sound nicely :) looking forward to it :)

Hello,

the preset you posted works now. I would like to know about the EQ you applied to get rid of the hammer noise. The Steinway D is noticeably harsher than the CFX, I don't know if getting rid of the hammer noise helps with that but I kind of wanted to try it. 

Best,

Mango

Hey Stephen,

I'd love to try your preset. Unfortunately it doesn't load for me (it says "Could not load "Steinway 1"). Does anyone else have this problem?

I sure hope we get a Synchron Imperial as well. Or a smaller Bösendorfer in the Studio B. 220 VC anyone? :D

Here is my favorite preset for the Steinway D (Ribbon mic and Mid 2 mic taking the pole position with the Condenser mic and the equalized Tube mic behind). Hope you enjoy!

Best,

Mango

Hey MMKA,

thank you for your reply. I was on the fence about the Full version but yes, they sound very beautiful. Both the close and the ambient version actually. It helped me a lot :)

I'm sure this will also help other people wanting to know more about the library and the sound you can achieve with it (because honestly, I haven't found another library with this sense of realism and directness of sound).

Best regards,

Mango

Hello,

basically, what I am asking is: is the full library worth it?

I already muted the Room Mix and Mid microphones but I like to keep the Reverb on (-10.3) with just the Condenser Mic. Disabling the reverb completely kind of makes it more direct but also more digital sounding (you always hear the room in which you play in as well, I might experiment with reducing the Reverb further). 

Your suggestion about the Body was right. I felt an improvement with that.

I am just asking to hear how the three close mics or even two sound together because on some forums that is considered to be the ultimate experience :)

Best,

Mango

Hello!

I currently have the standard Steinway D library and while it is good, I would like to have a closer sound which gives me the impression of actually sitting at the piano and also gives me the opportunity to tame the sometimes pingy impressions I get from the high octaves.

Can somebody who has the full library send some examples of how it sounds with a mix of close mics? 

I was wondering if I should upgrade given the current discount.

Best,

Mango

Yes those notes are bugging me as well. Something is not quite right. 

Best,

Mango

Wow, that really just fixed everything for me! Amazing! You're really on an entirely different level! 

No more harsh tones and weird velocity response, just perfect on my Kawai MP11! Makes you really feel like there's some kind of strings and hammers working at your fingertips.

What really impressed me is how you also achieved a good balance between the high and the low notes. The lows were not assertive enough before, now I think they are! 

Cudos to you guys!

Heya,

I'm kind of new to the VSL world. I have recently purchased the Steinway D but I have apparently no way to insert it into Reaper. The entire library (105 GB) is on my F drive (SSD), but normally, I would just find my VST files with Reaper but I can't in this case. I tried doing stuff with the Synchron Library Installer, but I have no idea where this package file could be (I downloaded the compressed Steinway files with the Vienna Download Manager). 

Any idea how I could fix this? I never had such a problem with any of my software.

Greetings,

Mango

Hi Michi,

thank you for the fast reply. 

I will write you an E - Mail.

Greetings,

Mango

Heya,

I'm new to the entire VSL business. I bought 4 vouchers with PayPal but it seems like there was a problem. I used my secure browser from my antivirus (meaning it does the transaction not in the same browser) and now the vouchers don't appear wherever they are supposed to appear. 

I'm kind of unnerved given the fact that I just spent 300 euros but didn't get anything.  

Can someone help me or do I just have to wait until Monday? (which would be kind of a bummer because I wanted to get the VSL Steinway at the intro price). 

Greetings,

Mango