Hi,

Just a line to remember how much the Synchronized Con Sordino Solo Strings are missing. It would be really nice to have them here with us!

Paolo

Uh-oh… thank you Dietz. I was focusing on the churches. While the recording stages were there, with the full surface available as a hotspot!

Paolo

Maybe Pernegg is another viable option. And with more room in the hotspots. The four corners are a bit far, but this might even emphasize the sense of depth and immersion.

Paolo

As i recollected, the Steinhofkirche does include some hotspots on each side. They are a bit small for the set of instruments I want to place there, but maybe it is workable.

Paolo

Hi,

I would like to make a quadraphonic/surround simulation, with instruments coming from all around the listener, who will be placed in the center.

Is there a MIR venue allowing for this?

Paolo

Originally Posted by: MMKA

how well Synchron Solo Strings can work, definitely!

Yep! Despite the unavoidable presence of the rest of the band, you can hear how the soloist can work. Curious to see if the can surpass the high quality and detail of the older Solo Strings.

Paolo

While I appreciate the Synchron libraries very much, for their sense of presence and the raw power they can espress, I also think they are not a replacement, but something different from the older libraries.

I must however say that I like Synchron Player more than Vienna Instruments, and use the former wherever possible. I use it without the included effects, because I think the real power of the VI instruments is in MIR.

Paolo

Hi,

I could finally devote some time to review this experiment. I remixed it a bit (the new Dorico dynamics is fantastic!), shortened the reverb tail and the pre-delay, added a bit of noise gate to soften the ambience.

All considered, I'm not totally convinced that it wouldn't work as a string quartet.

Ravel, Quatuor, 1er movement

Paolo

Originally Posted by: Bill

Open strings won't have vibrato

So, would using a non vibrato patch be the same as using an open string? Shouldn’t open strings resonate more freely?

Paolo

Hi,

Solo and Dimension Strings offered open string samples. I don't remember if other libraries included them, maybe in a hidden folder.

I feel these samples are sometimes necessary, for example when mocking up some classical piece making use of an alternation between fingered and open string notes.

Or, is using a fingered note the same with samples?

Paolo

Originally Posted by: vanceen

I'm curious, which library was the source for the sounds?

It's Elite Strings, Close mics only, artificial reverb added. As soon as I can devote some time to this test again, I'll try reducing the amount of reverb.

In any case, there is some room in the Close mics. But the real problem is how far apart they sound in my mix. Otherwise, I suspect they might even work as sort-of-solo instruments.

The goal of this test was that of trying how solo strings could sound, when recorded in the Synchron Stage.

Paolo

Hi,

One of the most annoying operations, when initially setting the mics, is to leave on only the Main mics in all the instruments. In a large orchestral setup, this takes forever and is a good way to get carpal tunnel.

I would find very useful a command, in Synchron Player, to immediately turn all the mics on or off. It could work this way:

- Shift-click on an active mic channel to turn all the mic channels off.

- Shift-click on an inactive mic channel to turn all the mics channels on.

Another feature that I would find very useful would be a way to turn on/off all the selected channels at once.

1. Select more channels, either by dragging around their lower border, or by Shift-clicking them in an empty part of the channel (for example, next to the volume slider).

2. Click one of the selected channels' on/off button, to turn all the selected channels on/off.

A global command in VEP to select the 'Default' MixPreset in all the Synchron Players in an instance (or all) would also be great. If batch-selecting MixPresets could then also be done on the selected VEP instrument channels, it would then be pure joy!

Paolo

Hi,

Just a raw mockup to try the sounds. Does it work as a strings quartet? Is the rest of the chamber orchestra still too evident? Maybe, mostly for the exaggerated distance between the soloists?

Ravel, Quatuor, 1er movement

Paolo

Hi,

Currently, VSL Helper only reports logs like this one:

[2022-05-26 17:07:31] [Local] Cache hit: 1604 bytes

It would be useful if the log was a bit more verbose, and explained what has been translated. This way, one could easily locate any preset that has remained unsaved during the iLok conversion.

Paolo

Thank you for your answer, dbudde.

Originally Posted by: dbudde

To get the synchron stage preset, just open it in the old version and save it as a user preset.  Then move that preset file to where the presets for the integrated version in VE Pro are stored.  

I copied all the parameters as soon as I had opened the older version. Frankly, I don't know where the user presets are stored.

EDIT: Just found. It's inside ~/Library/Application Support/Vienna MIRacle Presets/Vienna MIRacle/ on the Mac.

Paolo

When trying to use MIRacle as an AU or VST plugin, I still get the older one. In VEP7, when using the integrated version, the new version of MIRacle appears.

How can I do to have the new version as a plug-in as well?

(I admit that having the older version is handy, at the moment, so that we can copy the setings for the missing Synchron Stage preset…).

Paolo

More extended techniques and orchestral textures for me, thank you! VSL have proved to know how to make them as playable tools, and not one-shot SFX, as with most other brands.

Paolo

Hi,

Some of the Synchron presets use the dedicated Reverb at the end of the Mix tab, while other use an Aux channel with a reverb effect in it.

I can't find a detailed description of these effects, and their recommended use. Which is the difference between the two reverb processors? When one is recommended over the other?

Paolo

Hi,

I'm not sure I understand the difference between Surround Balance and Surround Pan in VEP7.

Trying to guess it, I would say that the first one is for multichannel sources, while the second one is for mono or stereo sources.

Therefore, Balance should be used with Synchron instruments, and Pan with VI and SYzd instruments. Is this correct?

Paolo

Jerry, select everything and then press the "Tx" button to remove any formatting.

Paolo

I've always asked myself what it feels like to be a Tree microphone!

Paolo

Originally Posted by: Dietz

That's a misunderstanding. MIR works beautifully on its own.

I see. What I mean is that in an analogy with the aforementioned reverbs (that is, Bricasti class), it seems to me that MIR and MIRacle are specialized in two different tasks (emulating the early reflections in MIR, the tail in MIRacle). Just thinking to the Hybrid Reverb, where the convolution part is accessible from the same UI, and seems to replace the traditional ER part.

But I’m probably wrong right from the moment in which I try to compare different things, like the VSL reverbs and the traditional ones.

Paolo

Originally Posted by: Dewdman42

I don't see any reason why MIR with or without Miracle can't be used for ANY reverb scenario

MIR, when used alone, is limited to the early reflection part of the reverb. MIRacle has been added to give the modulation of an algorithmic reverb for this reason. So, they should always work together. In the end, and this is what I would like to understand, they should be equivalent to other reverbs, but with different ways of accessing the various parts of the reverb. Summing up, I wonder if MIR + MIRacle can be considered a very transparent reverb, with a particularly realistic early reflection part.

Originally Posted by: Dewdman42

The two reverbs you mentioned are highly programmable

MIRacle is highly programmable, so the tail part of any other reverb should be there. The fact that it is intended to work together with MIR makes the early reflection part particularly powerful, in a way the other reverbs aren't. One should be able to get the same results, but with different parameters.

I have other reverbs, but find MIRacle to be of a very attractive transparency. I might sometimes miss a Lexicony density, but I'll try to experiment more with the Density parameter, and see what happens.

Paolo

What is the functionally equivalent of something like FabFilter Pro-R or a Bricasti M7, in VSL's catalogue?

I wonder if MIRacle can be used stand-alone, when not coupling it with MIR, or if MIR is the essential early reflections part that is missing from MIRacle. If it is this latter, would MIR + MIRacle make a viable general use hybrid reverb, but with the added power of MIR?

Paolo

Originally Posted by: Pixelpoet1985

The mixes are not unified across the board

Another inconsistency is how CC are assigned to the different mic sets. When making my own presets, I take care to also unify them under a coherent CC map. This makes controlling the mix from a DAW much easier to track.

Yes, some more tutorials about mixing would be a great help for the geekiest among us. I'm learning from all the references I can find in my own library or online, but there are things specific to VSL that can't find answer elsewhere.

Paolo