KVR Audio

Jafo · Post by **Jafo** » Mon May 02, 2005 12:22 pm

Anybody have good free ones? I've tried the Campbell (too sitarish in the high end), Fluid (too lifeless), German 8 (a touch too sitarish, with too few samples), Hubbe (too aggressive, with a low end sounds like a square wave, or possibly a Slayer sample), and MT Clavicembalo 884 (the best yet -- once you remove or dampen the release sample, but the sampling rate is too low and the samples have way too much reverb/ambience and are looped badly).

I've heard good things about the SampleTekk, but even at $12, that's a bit more than I can spend.

Jace-BeOS · Post by **Jace-BeOS** » Mon May 02, 2005 12:34 pm

If you're that specific about what you need, $12 isn't such a problem, I'd suggest. That about the cost of a music CD.

Hell, I wish I could find Symphony of Voices for less than $500, legally.

Jace-BeOS · Post by **Jace-BeOS** » Mon May 02, 2005 12:38 pm

Hey, what about Leonhard at hammersound.net?

EDIT: eh, nevermind... tiny download, probably not worth it.

Jafo · Post by **Jafo** » Mon May 02, 2005 2:37 pm

Jace-BeOS wrote:If you're that specific about what you need, $12 isn't such a problem, I'd suggest. That about the cost of a music CD.

Hell, I wish I could find Symphony of Voices for less than $500, legally.

Not to argue with somebody with evident good taste in OSes, but yeah, money is that tight; being under-employed in a recession tends to do that.

Hmm, I could probably talk the local university into loaning me their harpsichord to sample -- hey, I might even be able to get a small stipend out of it.

Jace-BeOS · Post by **Jace-BeOS** » Mon May 02, 2005 3:11 pm

Sorry to hear you're unemployed. Definitely a problem. I've been there myself.

Hey, if you do get to borrow the university's harpsichord, maybe you could make "the definitive SoundFont for Harpsichord" from it and make a few bucks that way

winegums100 · Post by **winegums100** » Wed May 04, 2005 4:42 pm

Try over at http://www.sf2midi.com/ ...just posted a harpsichord SF from the Emu sample library which isn't too bad...

Winegums100

Jace-BeOS · Post by **Jace-BeOS** » Wed May 04, 2005 4:56 pm

Not making any accusations, but is it freeware?
Also, that site's registration has me stumped. Says I'm already there, but says I'm not.

Jafo · Post by **Jafo** » Wed May 04, 2005 5:32 pm

winegums100 wrote:Try over at http://www.sf2midi.com/ ...just posted a harpsichord SF from the Emu sample library which isn't too bad...

Winegums100

I hate to criticize, but the bottom notes sound more like distorted power chords with a delayed thump than like a harpsichord, and the top has a little too much sitarish ring for my tastes. But the middle is kind of cool -- a really aggressive sound which'll cut through mixes nicely.

Hmm, I may have unrealistic expectations; I want to hear an almost lutish warmth and roundness underlying the basic zwang of the harpsichord. A softness, one might say. A sound born more of leaves rustling in the golden autumn wind, than of a factory.

Btw, sf2midi is indeed a weird place to login to. Gigfiles.com is another.

winegums100 · Post by **winegums100** » Wed May 04, 2005 5:40 pm

I'm assuming that if you have an Emu sampler then using Emu samples should be freeware... otherwise whats the point in a sample library for use with that sampler?!

Using it for your own music shouldn't be a problem, but if it is being used commerically then I would suggest contacting Emu. Same can be said for any keyboard or synth... how many time have you heard the Korg M1 piano in a dance track for instance?

ANYWAY, I'm not going to stand on my soapbox or open up a very sour can of worms here. As for the sound itself... well, thats Emu's fault!

Winegums100

Jafo · Post by **Jafo** » Wed May 04, 2005 9:12 pm

I finally found a good one at http://www.worrasplace.com/ -- the lowest bass samples are messed up, but otherwise...

Voidoid Surrealist · Post by **Voidoid Surrealist** » Thu May 05, 2005 4:16 am

The "Haunted Harpsichord" sf2 over at sf2midi sounds pretty good, too.

Jafo wrote: Hmm, I may have unrealistic expectations; I want to hear an almost lutish warmth and roundness underlying the basic zwang of the harpsichord. A softness, one might say. A sound born more of leaves rustling in the golden autumn wind, than of a factory.

Sounds like what you REALLY need is a Lautenwerk soundfont

Here is a great midi to test stuff out on:
Girolamo Frescobaldi's Missa della Domenica from "I Fiori musicali" as played by Alessandro Simonetto, in Werkmeister III temperment
(central A=415Hz)
http://digilander.iol.it/alegreen/Fr-MD_w.mid

Jafo · Post by **Jafo** » Sat May 07, 2005 2:10 pm

My spies inform me that Voidoid Surrealist wrote:The "Haunted Harpsichord" sf2 over at sf2midi sounds pretty good, too.

Yeah, it does indeed. Thanks for the tip!

My spies inform me that later, Voidoid Surrealist wrote:
Jafo wrote:Hmm, I may have unrealistic expectations; I want to hear an almost lutish warmth and roundness underlying the basic zwang of the harpsichord. A softness, one might say. A sound born more of leaves rustling in the golden autumn wind, than of a factory.
Sounds like what you REALLY need is a Lautenwerk soundfont

Yeah, I guess I do! Or maybe a mix of the two...

Voidoid Surrealist · Post by **Voidoid Surrealist** » Sat May 07, 2005 11:11 pm

Jafo wrote:
My spies inform me that Voidoid Surrealist wrote:The "Haunted Harpsichord" sf2 over at sf2midi sounds pretty good, too.
Yeah, it does indeed. Thanks for the tip!

My spies inform me that later, Voidoid Surrealist wrote:
Jafo wrote:Hmm, I may have unrealistic expectations; I want to hear an almost lutish warmth and roundness underlying the basic zwang of the harpsichord. A softness, one might say. A sound born more of leaves rustling in the golden autumn wind, than of a factory.
Sounds like what you REALLY need is a Lautenwerk soundfont
Yeah, I guess I do! Or maybe a mix of the two...

If you mix in some of the keyclicks from Clavicembalo to the Haunted Harpsichord, it sounds even better, just make sure you dampen them a bit first. Harpsichords just don't sound right to me without a little noise.

Harpsichord Samples