Piano sampled sounds are always quiet

[JamelaBanderson]

Any idea why sampled piano VSTs are so darned quiet?

I've tried them with multiple sets of speakers and headphones, but I always have to dial the dB way up on piano tracks vs almost any other instruments just to get a basic volume.

All of the pianos included with Kontakt, the Addictive Keys, Sampletron, etc are all super quiet compared with their other sampled repertoire. The only ones I don't have to blast are modelled sounds like Pianoteq, AAS, or anything made with a synth.

Anyone experiencing the same? Am I doing something wrong?

[PieBerger]

Even at full velocity?

[Halonmusic]

Yes prob a velocity thing. But have you checked your levels inside the plugin? Could be you accidentally set your volume level low. Just a thought.

[sjm]

Kontakt has an option to boost the output in its settings somewhere, take a look at the options, or check Google. It's always way too quiet here too (not just for pianos). Can't comment on the others, but bear in mind that the creators will be working on the assumption that you might be playing big chords on piano, so they need to make sure that the individual notes aren't too loud, as they can soon add up. If you are playing 6 notes at once, you don't want that clipping just so that individual notes are "loud".

[Halonmusic]

Yes Kontakt has atleast two options for volume boosting. Preset volume and Main volume. Think there is a third option aswell but can't remember. You should ask EvilDragon. He works for Native Instruments and knows everything about Kontakt.

[beely]

Polyphonic instruments generally have a lower volume than things like one-shot drum samples etc as multiple-voices will be added together.

If your one piano sample hit 0dBFS when you pressed one key at max velocity, then when you played a 10-finger chord you'd blow the bloody doors off..!

[JamelaBanderson]

Kontakt has an option to boost the output in its settings somewhere, take a look at the options, or check Google. It's always way too quiet here too (not just for pianos). Can't comment on the others, but bear in mind that the creators will be working on the assumption that you might be playing big chords on piano, so they need to make sure that the individual notes aren't too loud, as they can soon add up. If you are playing 6 notes at once, you don't want that clipping just so that individual notes are "loud".

That makes sense. Though I'm surprised sampled drums and guitar are generally loud enough given those are played on a polyphonic basis too.

[beely]

Though I'm surprised sampled drums and guitar are generally loud enough given those are played on a polyphonic basis too.

With ten fingers and a sustain pedal, you can easily generate 60+ overlapping voices in a short time on a piano, which doesn't tend to happen with things like drums, which are relatively short, or guitars, which are inherently limited to 6 notes of polyphony.

So pianos often have more headroom, especially ones that are more classical in nature, where people aren't slamming their mixes to 0dBFS...

(If anything, instruments are often too loud on an individual track basis, eating up mix headroom and forcing you to turn everything down...)

[Kinh]

wha-tha-hell yo talkin' bout?

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

Any idea why sampled piano VSTs are so darned quiet?

They're playing back at the same volume they were recorded at. Pianos are classical type instruments and not meant to be normalized to 0dbfs.

but I always have to dial the dB way up on piano tracks vs almost any other instruments just to get a basic volume.

Maybe ask why most instruments are way too loud? Not a joke. What you probably consider a "basic volume" is probably way hotter than any analog gear was meant to take level-wise, and applies for analog modeled plugins too. VST synths frequently go for "get as close to 0dbfs as possible" with preset levels, but that's not a basic level. That's actually a crazy loud level. The old adage of "monitor loud, mix quiet" is a good one too learn. Turn your speakers up and keep your levels lower in the system. And I mean that at the instrument output.

One thing I try to shoot for is create a decent sounding rough mix using just the output levels of VSTi's with faders at unity. So things will be peaking with plenty of headroom. It makes it very easy to add an instrument into the mix late-on and you get very good range from your faders, which makes visual sense to me.

Anyone experiencing the same? Am I doing something wrong?

The pianos are at a good level for recording pianos. If anything, I argue all the time that synths just ship with presets that are way too loud. Ideally you'd have plenty of headroom built into all instruments and pianos wouldn't be so quiet in comparison.

But good news: the volume knob in Kontakt works both ways.

[jancivil]

just set Kontakt to max 0dB rather than -6 or whatever, in Options.

Spitfire libraries, or this used to be true anyway, aren't normalized so they were telling the user to boost some 4dB to match the rest of the world, basically.

I used the pianos back from Kontakt 2, eg., the August Foerster, for years. (not stellar but serviceable)
Piano should be more dynamic than some things, yo.

[JamelaBanderson]

Lots of valid points on this thread. Glad I asked!