deranged Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 So, is this the piano sound we've all been waiting for? I see very few topics about it, one in fact, and I was wondering if that is an indication of its failings, or is everyone just so busy playing with it that they can't share their delight? I mostly use the P250 to great satisfaction. I have SampleTank2 as well, but I find the piano sounds truly wanting. So what's the feedback? I'm curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave The Rave Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 I have had Ivory from the first shipment. It's WONDERFUL I can thoroughly recommend it. I only have a collection of 64MB sampled pianos to compare it with (i.e. not a fair comparison at all), but to me, playing it as a VSTi in Cubase SX or as an AU plug-in in DP4 using my Kurzweil K2600XS 88-note weighted keyboard, it sounds exactly like playing the real thing. Think about it - I can play a half-million dollars worth of Bosendorfer, Steinway or Yamaha grand pianos any time I want on my K2600XS for $330 one-time payment!! That's what I call value for money!! My favorite piano in Ivory is the Yamaha C7. It is a bit brighter than the other two pianos and more suited to my music. There is one small buggette that I have found. The labels in the selection boxes do not clear the old contents properly sometimes, so you see two labels superimposed on each other. This is easy to clear though, just by clicking the selection twice. I'm sure this will be fixed in a future update. Hope this helps. IMO, Ivory is one of the best $330 you will ever spend. :DTR Cambrian Guitars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 I'm having trouble justifying the cost. Sure you get three pianos, but I don't really need three pianos. No one mentions the copy protection system. And I would like to know how it compares to the new GigaStudio 3 piano. Robert This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Song80s Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Dave, I have been thinking about the Ivory. But I am not sure my Behringer Truths will do it justice. What is your audio set up ? Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ? My Soundcloud with many originals: [70's Songwriter] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steadyb Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Ivory is the best sounding sampled piano(s) I've ever heard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeke Smith. Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 It is pretty great. I can certainly justify the cost because I feel like I don't need to go mic up a piano for most tracks now, except in instances where the track will be very exposed. Ivory has simply made it not worth the effort to use anything else for those occasions. What's it weak at? Well, the same things any sampled piano or VI is weak at. There's a tactile disconnect for someone who's used to playing the real thing, and the only conceivable thing I'd like is a more thorough model of the damper action, i.e., with the sounds and interaction that the actual physical felts make on a real piano. Since they're not using loops and since they're already using release samples, this seems doable, at least to me. I'd gladly give up one of the three piano samples for it. But it's great. Really great. It's the first time I've considered an electronic subsitute as being a workable stand-in for the real thing for some music. I use the Steinway for most solo music, because I've always played Steinways for that sort of thing. I like the Yamaha in denser tracks. Current live rig: Roland RD700SX, Hammond XK-3 with Leslie System 21, and Muse Receptor. Also a Nord Stage 76 other times instead. And a Roland FP-7 for jazz gigs. HOME: Kawai MP8 + a bunch of VI's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Originally posted by steadyb: Ivory is the best sounding sampled piano(s) I've ever heard. I agree completely. I own it, and I love it. My favorite is the Steinway, with the C7 right behind it. The Bosie is a bit tame for my taste, but I can see how some would prefer that over the more dynamic other two. Me, I like a piano that purrs when you play it softly and roars when you lay into it. Until I heard Ivory, not one of the big streaming pianos did anything for me. Ivory is the first one I've heard that made me want to play it for more than a minute - a lot more. I always felt that a 2, 3, 4 GB piano should kill an 8 - 16MB stock wave ROM piano, and (IMO) none of them did. Ivory does. I've spent hours just playing it, forgetting about listening to it critically and just enjoying it. Incredible depth, invisible keymaps, transparent velocity crossfades, and the one of the most comprehensive and sensible UIs that I've seen in a software (or hardware!) based instrument. IMO, it's a steal for the price. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fisheye Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Argh. What's that PC version waiting for! I agree with Dave: I have been disappointed with the current big sampled piano's too; with that much money they should crush my P80 and they don't. I'm so hoping Ivory will change that, since I'm forced to play digital sometimes. 'Bestservice' in germany has it now for 230 Euros.Other big ones are about 200 Euros for only one piano without a sampler. Really, it's very, very cheap, considering a standalone sampler by itself is 200-400 Euros. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c4 Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 you still have to have a "host" for ivory dont you? I was under the impression it isnt a stand alone instrument. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by c4: you still have to have a "host" for ivory dont you? I was under the impression it isnt a stand alone instrument.Correct, but it'll work in anything that uses AUs. I understand it even opens in Garage Band... dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricG Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 I have to agree, Ivory is the best sampled grand piano I have played. I just wonder how much better than this can it be...? Using these pianos, would easily give a better recording result, than setting up mices and try to get an avarage grand piano sound good. I love the string resonance, and key off samples. All this nuances makes it so real. RAX is a cheap AU player. It is actually free if you don't need all it features. More about RAX: http://www.grantedsw.com/rax/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave The Rave Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by GregC: Dave, I have been thinking about the Ivory. But I am not sure my Behringer Truths will do it justice. What is your audio set up ?GregC - I have a MOTU 828MkII interface feeding a Presonus Central Station (transparent) which feeds a pair of Mackie HR824 monitor speakers. I particularly like playing the Ivory pianos using the "performer" mode (as opposed to "audience"). It feels like I'm right there sitting at the real thing....awesome!! Your Behringer Truth monitors should be fine with Ivory. You can always upgrade your audio chain later, right? :DTR Cambrian Guitars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Analogaddict Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by Dave, the Rave: I particularly like playing the Ivory pianos using the "performer" mode (as opposed to "audience"). It feels like I'm right there sitting at the real thing....awesome!! Wow... what a great idea - the experience of playing a piano is pretty far from hearing one from a distance. Now I´m getting GAS again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergievsky Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Would you people gig with this? Not just a club gig, but a major concert. Raul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Song80s Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by Dave, the Rave: Originally posted by GregC: Dave, I have been thinking about the Ivory. But I am not sure my Behringer Truths will do it justice. What is your audio set up ?GregC - I have a MOTU 828MkII interface feeding a Presonus Central Station (transparent) which feeds a pair of Mackie HR824 monitor speakers. I particularly like playing the Ivory pianos using the "performer" mode (as opposed to "audience"). It feels like I'm right there sitting at the real thing....awesome!! Your Behringer Truth monitors should be fine with Ivory. You can always upgrade your audio chain later, right? :DTRDave, that is a top rung set up. I have a M-audio FW 410 with my Mac . ( I need to confirm Ivory supports OSX). I have a new contract job with a software co . If all goes well, I have my eyes on a pair of Event ASP8's Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ? My Soundcloud with many originals: [70's Songwriter] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by Sergievsky: Would you people gig with this? Not just a club gig, but a major concert.Absolutely. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave The Rave Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 GregC - Ivory is only available for Mac (Classic and OSX) at this time, so you are all set. I don't know if/when they are planning to have a Windows PC version. Anyone know? :DTR Cambrian Guitars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergievsky Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Thanks dB, looks like I'm gonna pick it up when I fly into town. I listened to the audio demos and they sound pretty damn good, even for mp3s. Are the low end, well, like a low end of a piano (not like others that are...hmm, sounds like low eq was just boosted). Would love to hear this on the ADAMs. I guess what scares me is what about the part of the concert where it's just the voice and only piano playing. If the computer crashes...although, the last concert I did I had a sequence playing with digital audio AND digital video (blown up on the center screen) and I did no kind of optimization at all (no time), and it didn't crash, both nights (Mac dualG5 ). But I gotta tell ya, I was NOT a happy, secure camper throughout the show. Nervous as shit. Someone told me my old piano sounds were good enough, that through the P.A. and non-trained ears (screaming fans listening to the singer not the pianist) can't tell the difference. But though I'm not a great keyboard player, I find that I play much much better when the piano sound I use is a good one. So I really hope I don't get disappointed in this. Demos are one thing...it's another when it's under your fingers. Raul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c4 Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 the website indicates the pc version will be available in 2005.. I wonder if it would work well on a mac mini? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fisheye Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 A German site indicates the pc version will be available in March 2005. Only time can tell... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by c4: I wonder if it would work well on a mac mini?You'd definitely want to bump the RAM to 1GB... dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steadyb Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Originally posted by Dave Bryce: Originally posted by c4: I wonder if it would work well on a mac mini?You'd definitely want to bump the RAM to 1GB... dByep, Ivory likes RAM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deranged Posted January 12, 2005 Author Share Posted January 12, 2005 I envy all the enthusiasm for IVORY here. But now DB suggests bumping the RAM up to 1GB. When I run SampleTank2 (with piano sounds that lack realism by the way), if I dont lower the buffer size in DP4.5 when recording, it will max out the CPU performance and break up. So, I'm wondering what exactly are IVORYs demands? Will it still plow along with 512MB, as the specs state (no doubt with lowering the buffer size again), or does it really demand more to perform? And how much of the HD is truly sacrificed? CT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by deranged: Will it still plow along with 512MB, as the specs state (no doubt with lowering the buffer size again), or does it really demand more to perform? And how much of the HD is truly sacrificed?I run DP too (on a G5), and I set the buffer at 256. It works fine. From what I understand, 512 would be less than ideal; however, if you have to run it at 512, there are some things you can turn off in Ivory that'll help with that. As far as HD space, the thing takes up ~30GB, but that's only if you install all three pianos. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BP3 Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I can't wait for the PC release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deranged Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 Thanks, I appreciate that info DB. Now the question is, for those of us that don't have the new G5 yet with a 160GB HD, is the quality of IVORY really worth clearing a 30GB space in a 60GB HD, and adding RAM? Which is no doubt a good idea anyway. Or even more extreme, is it worth upgrading to a G5? I do most of my work on the Yamaha P250, which I'm fairly satisfied with, though it's still not the end all sound I'm looking for, cause as we know , we're always searching for that quintessential acoustic grand sound. So, how does IVORY compare with other digital piano sounds, like Triton, Motif, Fantom, Steinberg plug-ins, etc.? I guess that's the determining factor to consider. Does the sound quality justify upgrading your CPU? Is it really that close to the real thing? CT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by deranged: Is it really that close to the real thing? CTWhat I am prepared to say is that I believe it is by far the best recreation of an acoustic piano that I have heard to date. I still prefer the real thing - there's just something about several tons of resonating metal and wood... If you do decide to go with it using your G4, I suggest you consider buying a 40GB external drive rather than putting it on your 60GB drive. I believe you'll have better results if you do that. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deranged Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 DB, I have a 120GB external HD, but I've always found that running some programs from it either dragged the process or failed to work at all. For example, running a MOTU file from the ext HD doesn't function properly. Do you run IVORY from an external HD? That would be sweet. Thanks, CT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fisheye Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by Dave Bryce: If you do decide to go with it using your G4, I suggest you consider buying a 40GB external drive rather than putting it on your 60GB drive. I believe you'll have better results if you do that. Or put your daily stuff on an external drive and put Ivory on the internal one. That's my plan for the future. That way, I don't need to lug arround with the external one. And its adapter. One place I play every week has a sound limiter, that is, the power is interupted for 30 seconds when we play too loud. I don't like the idea of the external drive being plugged off every ten minutes or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by deranged: DB, I have a 120GB external HD, but I've always found that running some programs from it either dragged the process or failed to work at all. For example, running a MOTU file from the ext HD doesn't function properly. Do you run IVORY from an external HD?No, I don't - it's on my internal HD...but I do run all of my DP files from an external FW drive, and that works fine. The reason I put it on the internal drive is that I don't have enough room on my external drive (which is mostly filled with DP projects), or I'd probably have tried that... dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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