Yeah, I know what the general opinions on Sonivox are around here, but I'm not concerned about all that.
I just saw that Eighty Eight was on sale $15 over at PiB (not that I need another piano), but the demos sounded pretty impressive !
Anybody using it ?
Seems to be a good deal for that price, but was hoping to hear from somebody who actually does use it.
Thanks.
- Jay
Any opinions on Sonivox Eighty Eight ?
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- KVRian
- 1077 posts since 21 Nov, 2005
Bought it and used it a few times, appeared to be a few dead keys but otherwise perfectly playable, but never used it after getting better libraries with Komplete 11 and elsewhere.
Worth a punt if you've not got other options but I'd suggest saving your money and buying better. Think that Waves have a piano that's regularly on sale for around $29 as an alternative to Kontakt and there may be some Sforzando pianos for free of similar quality.
Worth a punt if you've not got other options but I'd suggest saving your money and buying better. Think that Waves have a piano that's regularly on sale for around $29 as an alternative to Kontakt and there may be some Sforzando pianos for free of similar quality.
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- KVRAF
- 3735 posts since 17 Sep, 2016
The Addictive Keys Studio Grand demo version comes with 4 octaves (49 keys) for free. I think if I needed another piano, I would upgrade to their full version. https://www.xlnaudio.com/products/addic ... udio_grand
Although listed for $89 at the XLN site, Addictive Keys can be found for as low as $67 at online sellers like JRR Shop or Audio Deluxe with discount codes in the cart.
I have the Eighty Eight and it sounds OK, probably a bit better than the AIR Mini Grand. I think that Addictive sounds better than either of these.
But now that I have raised the bar closer to the $99 level, there will surely be some recommendations for the Native Instruments pianos that list for $99. https://www.native-instruments.com/en/p ... lete/keys/
Although listed for $89 at the XLN site, Addictive Keys can be found for as low as $67 at online sellers like JRR Shop or Audio Deluxe with discount codes in the cart.
I have the Eighty Eight and it sounds OK, probably a bit better than the AIR Mini Grand. I think that Addictive sounds better than either of these.
But now that I have raised the bar closer to the $99 level, there will surely be some recommendations for the Native Instruments pianos that list for $99. https://www.native-instruments.com/en/p ... lete/keys/
Windows 10 and too many plugins
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- KVRian
- 679 posts since 27 Nov, 2017 from CO, USA
There's a guy selling a license for 5 bucks
viewtopic.php?p=7206458#p7206458
viewtopic.php?p=7206458#p7206458
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- KVRist
- 275 posts since 11 May, 2010
I have Addictive Keys grand, upright and electric grand (got a great deal on a bundle). I like them, easy copy protection and very flexible.
I did end up "upgrading" the grand I use when CFX lite from Garritan was on sale. It is more dynamic and sounds a bit better than AK grand IMO (as you would hope with many more layers). I think I paid $59 for it, very very nice piano. It's a yamaha cfx vs the AK steinway iirc so a bit of a different sound anyway. I can't imagine I'll need to upgrade for a very long time...my playing is far worse than the plugin
I bought both of these when I was still using my older laptop so cpu usage was something I considered. The Garritan piano took quite a while to load at high quality from my old slow hard drive (2-3 minutes). On my newer machine with an ssd it's 1-2 seconds
I did end up "upgrading" the grand I use when CFX lite from Garritan was on sale. It is more dynamic and sounds a bit better than AK grand IMO (as you would hope with many more layers). I think I paid $59 for it, very very nice piano. It's a yamaha cfx vs the AK steinway iirc so a bit of a different sound anyway. I can't imagine I'll need to upgrade for a very long time...my playing is far worse than the plugin
I bought both of these when I was still using my older laptop so cpu usage was something I considered. The Garritan piano took quite a while to load at high quality from my old slow hard drive (2-3 minutes). On my newer machine with an ssd it's 1-2 seconds
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 168 posts since 7 Dec, 2004
Hey guys,
Thanks for the replies, I did download the demo of Eighty Eight and I've been playing around with it.
It sounds pretty good to me, I'm not really a piano player mainly guitar and bass, but I do tend to like the Steinway sound as far as piano tones go.
And yeah, MiniGrand was my go to piano before
, and this is definitely an improvement over that.
I did swear off the Waves stuff years ago, after many problems getting their stupid "shell" arrangement to work reliably in Cubase VST 5 (not Cubase5 the older "VST" version 5), maybe things are better now days so I might have to revisit Waves.
I'm downloading the Addictive Keys demo now, didn't realize the demo was a slimmed down lite version, thanks I will give that one a try too.
I'm thinking that Eighty Eight might definitely be worth the $15 to me, I probably wouldn't pay more than that though.
Besides, I've got some virtual cash at Plugin Boutique burning a hole in my pocket, enough to cover most of the price.
Thanks again !
- Jay
Thanks for the replies, I did download the demo of Eighty Eight and I've been playing around with it.
It sounds pretty good to me, I'm not really a piano player mainly guitar and bass, but I do tend to like the Steinway sound as far as piano tones go.
And yeah, MiniGrand was my go to piano before
, and this is definitely an improvement over that.I did swear off the Waves stuff years ago, after many problems getting their stupid "shell" arrangement to work reliably in Cubase VST 5 (not Cubase5 the older "VST" version 5), maybe things are better now days so I might have to revisit Waves.
I'm downloading the Addictive Keys demo now, didn't realize the demo was a slimmed down lite version, thanks I will give that one a try too.
I'm thinking that Eighty Eight might definitely be worth the $15 to me, I probably wouldn't pay more than that though.
Besides, I've got some virtual cash at Plugin Boutique burning a hole in my pocket, enough to cover most of the price.
Thanks again !
- Jay
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- KVRer
- 1 posts since 26 Jan, 2019
I have it too. But Pedal and Release are not working, everything sounds short. to me that's just not it.
Did a support request (multiple) 2 month ago at Sonivox but never got feedback.
Did a support request (multiple) 2 month ago at Sonivox but never got feedback.
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- KVRian
- 1090 posts since 24 Jul, 2018
How are you liking the AK Electric Grand? I got the full version of they're Studio Grand and love it and have been eying the Electric Grand or Mark since. I narrowed it down to the Electric Grand because I haven't been able to find too many other alternatives whereas there are many Rhodes emulations.
Stokely wrote: ↑Sat Dec 08, 2018 11:52 pm I have Addictive Keys grand, upright and electric grand (got a great deal on a bundle). I like them, easy copy protection and very flexible.
I did end up "upgrading" the grand I use when CFX lite from Garritan was on sale. It is more dynamic and sounds a bit better than AK grand IMO (as you would hope with many more layers). I think I paid $59 for it, very very nice piano. It's a yamaha cfx vs the AK steinway iirc so a bit of a different sound anyway. I can't imagine I'll need to upgrade for a very long time...my playing is far worse than the plugin
I bought both of these when I was still using my older laptop so cpu usage was something I considered. The Garritan piano took quite a while to load at high quality from my old slow hard drive (2-3 minutes). On my newer machine with an ssd it's 1-2 seconds
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- KVRian
- 1030 posts since 26 Feb, 2018
For a render of non-advanced pieces, 88 Ensemble is a very nice library. The sound is rich and detailed and well recorded. It does suffer of some odd key sounds (which can make it annoying to play), and I usually avoid using the built-in FX and set up my own, but the sound is there if you want a library to use for render.
People have opinions on Sonivox, and you look at the price and everyone expects it to be bad. It's not. For the record, I think 88 Ensemble SOUNDS better than Addictive Keys (I have both), and for most projects I would prefer the sound of 88 Ensemble to Pianoteq. Again, I'm talking about rendering your piece, not performing.
88 Ensemble has a beautiful tone. I usually don't favor Steinways for the obvious reasons: muddy mids and uninspiring highs. But there's a lot in how you record the piano, and the crew did a great job on 88 Ensemble. There's a nice attack across the board, the highs are shimmery and have enough crispness to tell the story of a beautiful melody or crossover to some rock. For someone like me that doesn't love Steinways, few Steinways sound this good in library or in person.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXl5jAwhz1o
The Cons: The obvious: not a lot of settings, you can't choose or blend perspectives. However, the only perspective provided is spot on for most music.
People have opinions on Sonivox, and you look at the price and everyone expects it to be bad. It's not. For the record, I think 88 Ensemble SOUNDS better than Addictive Keys (I have both), and for most projects I would prefer the sound of 88 Ensemble to Pianoteq. Again, I'm talking about rendering your piece, not performing.
88 Ensemble has a beautiful tone. I usually don't favor Steinways for the obvious reasons: muddy mids and uninspiring highs. But there's a lot in how you record the piano, and the crew did a great job on 88 Ensemble. There's a nice attack across the board, the highs are shimmery and have enough crispness to tell the story of a beautiful melody or crossover to some rock. For someone like me that doesn't love Steinways, few Steinways sound this good in library or in person.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXl5jAwhz1o
The Cons: The obvious: not a lot of settings, you can't choose or blend perspectives. However, the only perspective provided is spot on for most music.
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- KVRAF
- 2797 posts since 26 Jul, 2015 from Philadelphia
The Sonivox 88 comes bundled with a few midi keyboards which is why you will usually find it dirt cheap in the KVR buy and sell forum.
Follow me on Youtube for videos on spatial and immersive audio production.
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- KVRian
- 1030 posts since 26 Feb, 2018
About the Waves Grand Rhapsody Piano
IMO do not buy this thing, it should be fixed or free. If you are looking to get rid of $29 just send it to charity. The library is a recording of the Fazioli F228 at Metropolis Studios in London. It's the same piano sampled for the Mercury library. But Waves made a huge mistake with the Grand Rhapsody library, it is missing proper release samples. Depending on what you play you may not hear it at first, but once you slow down and play something clean all the notes sound lifeless because of the way they end. Once you hear it you can't unhear it and, with so many great libraries around, it's unusable to me.
If you want that Fazioli F228, the library to get is WavesFactory Mercury:
https://www.wavesfactory.com/mercury-piano/
They did a great job, that library is a joy to use.
But to this thread: if you are researching a full-concert Steinway D library, you are not going to be happy with a semi-concert Fazioli. It's like comparing a bear to a mountain lion. The full-concert has a weight to it that can't be reproduced without the added mass of size. The voice is deeper and notes seem to last longer and fill up the space better. The Fazioli is more expressive, it's passionate, versatile and rich, but feels smaller than full size and the highs are sharp (as in blade) - if you have a Steinway-lover's skin they'll cut you.
IMO do not buy this thing, it should be fixed or free. If you are looking to get rid of $29 just send it to charity. The library is a recording of the Fazioli F228 at Metropolis Studios in London. It's the same piano sampled for the Mercury library. But Waves made a huge mistake with the Grand Rhapsody library, it is missing proper release samples. Depending on what you play you may not hear it at first, but once you slow down and play something clean all the notes sound lifeless because of the way they end. Once you hear it you can't unhear it and, with so many great libraries around, it's unusable to me.
If you want that Fazioli F228, the library to get is WavesFactory Mercury:
https://www.wavesfactory.com/mercury-piano/
They did a great job, that library is a joy to use.
But to this thread: if you are researching a full-concert Steinway D library, you are not going to be happy with a semi-concert Fazioli. It's like comparing a bear to a mountain lion. The full-concert has a weight to it that can't be reproduced without the added mass of size. The voice is deeper and notes seem to last longer and fill up the space better. The Fazioli is more expressive, it's passionate, versatile and rich, but feels smaller than full size and the highs are sharp (as in blade) - if you have a Steinway-lover's skin they'll cut you.
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- KVRAF
- 3735 posts since 17 Sep, 2016
Windows 10 and too many plugins
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- KVRAF
- 2185 posts since 10 Jul, 2006 from Tampa
I'd avoid the Waves $29 pianos if I were you (or anyone else, frankly). They're just not that good. The ones in the more expensive bundles may be worth it, but the cheaper ones they sell individually aren't worth what they're charging.
The free Addictive Keys is okay (though rather limited, as you see), but I have the full version, and I've only used it on a couple of pieces. It's a step up from UVI's "Steinway D" (which I also have), but I've found NI's pianos and Arturia's Piano V2 to be quite a bit better. I'd probably place Addictive Keys right behind NI and Arturia, and before UVI.
The Sonivox one is okay, and for $15, it might be worth it. But you might also consider grabbing SampleTank 3 Free and the free version of Magix's Independence. Both come with free--and fairly decent--acoustic pianos...and several other instruments.
If you'd like, I can post short examples of each, including some from a Sound Magic sample library I developed some piano demos for a few months ago.
Steve
The free Addictive Keys is okay (though rather limited, as you see), but I have the full version, and I've only used it on a couple of pieces. It's a step up from UVI's "Steinway D" (which I also have), but I've found NI's pianos and Arturia's Piano V2 to be quite a bit better. I'd probably place Addictive Keys right behind NI and Arturia, and before UVI.
The Sonivox one is okay, and for $15, it might be worth it. But you might also consider grabbing SampleTank 3 Free and the free version of Magix's Independence. Both come with free--and fairly decent--acoustic pianos...and several other instruments.
If you'd like, I can post short examples of each, including some from a Sound Magic sample library I developed some piano demos for a few months ago.
Steve
Last edited by planetearth on Sun Apr 28, 2019 12:59 am, edited 1 time in total.
Here's some of my stuff: https://soundcloud.com/shadowsoflife. If you hear something you like, I'm looking for collaborators.
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- KVRAF
- 2185 posts since 10 Jul, 2006 from Tampa
Double post.
Here's some of my stuff: https://soundcloud.com/shadowsoflife. If you hear something you like, I'm looking for collaborators.
