Piano Sample Recommendations

[TRUN]

Hello Keyboard Gurus: I am looking for some recommendations on key modules that have great piano samples on board or perhaps via expansion. Please direct me as to what units have the best on board piano patches.

 

Thanks,

 

TRUN

[Dave Horne]

Hi, I found out the hard way that you really can't get an acceptable piano sample unless you buy a sampler and a CD-ROM. The sample I use comes from Wm Coakley's Perfect Piano Vol 3 (makes you wonder why he called Vol 1 and Vol 2 also 'perfect') and is about 60 megs.

 

You simply can not get that size of a sample in a typical module. I also own the Kurzweil MicroPiano and the Roland JV 2080 with the additional piano card - nothing compares to a sampler and a big sample ... period.

 

That's the long and short of it. All the best, Dave Horne - The Netherlands

 

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Dave Horne - The Netherlands

davehorne@home.nl

http://members.home.nl/davehorne/

[Guest]

'Great' can cost you a lot of money, between the sampler and the library. How much you are willing to spend? Are you doing solo piano or playing with other musicians? This is some of the pianos people have used in the past, many of which I consider between 'perfectly acceptable' and 'excellent':

 

Many sampler libraries for the kurz k series

the alesis piano (qsr, nanopiano)

Kurz micropiano

triton w/ piano expansion

roland xv with piano expansion

sample libraries for emu/akai (Holy grail piano is one I can think of)

 

there's a page with a 'piano sample shootoout'.. if I remember the link I'll post it.

 

I waiting for the hangover to go away so I can probably think of more later...

 

Dave's right, as far as the size. the roland is about 64 though, I think.

It all depends how 'good' you need it to be. My kurz pc88mx (similar sound to micropiano) gets a little annoyng for extensive solo work but sits really nicely in a mix.

 

Rod

[Steve44]

Everytime a thread like this comes around I go looking in my favorites folder for my link to the site with the big piano sample demos, and I never find it, and then as I walk away from my computer I remember the name of the site. Now I bookmarked it again.. but I'll probably forget where it is next time too..

 

Anyhow, this is a site with a fantastic shootout between digital piano modules, keyboards, and most of all, sample libraries for Gigasampler and Kurzweil formats. It's a complicated site, but it's the best there is. The guy who runs it also has a cool studio and posts here sometimes.

 

http://www.purgatorycreek.com/pianocompare.html