VILabs / Modern D

[Piet De Ridder]

VILabs have released the Modern D, a sampled Steinway for the UVI Workstation.
Best sampled Steinway I've ever heard and/or played. By some distance. And thanks to its well-chosen, musical choice of recording perspectives, also very, very versatile.
There will arrive better sampled/modelled/virtualized grand pianos in the future, I'm sure, but until then, this is, for my money, the absolute number 1.

(14 gig download, but if you delete, like I did, all the second-rate sampled Steinways we had to make do with until today, you might actually gain a few gigabytes of hd space.)





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[Luke]

Yes, just heard the demos on this and I'm floored by the dynamic range. The way the top range sings and the softest of soft fills the space. Seems really good, and now with your endorsement, Piet, I fear impossible to resist.

[tack]

I keep buying VI Steinways (and others), and I keep going back to Vintage D. Probably by now a couple thousand dollars worth of pianos collected in my VI graveyard, and I'm sure that's light compared to many here.

As Luke said, your endorsement counts for a lot here, Piet. I may yet buckle before the weekend.

How does the pedaling feel, Piet? This is always my number one irritation with sampled pianos -- catch-pedaling often dodgy if it exists at all, full-to-half-then-back-to-full pedaling as a way to blend is typically all kinds of wrong. In the walkthrough, catch-pedaling is clearly demonstrated, but although full-to-half transition wasn't shown, he did say that was possible, so I have some hope.

Vintage D is by no means perfect, but for a VI coming up on nearly 15 years old now, it still manages to run circles around new offerings.

[Piet De Ridder]

I keep buying VI Steinways (and others), and I keep going back to Vintage D. Probably by now a couple thousand dollars worth of pianos collected in my VI graveyard, and I'm sure that's light compared to many here.

As Luke said, your endorsement counts for a lot here, Piet. I may yet buckle before the weekend.

How does the pedaling feel, Piet? This is always my number one irritation with sampled pianos -- catch-pedaling often dodgy if it exists at all, full-to-half-then-back-to-full pedaling as a way to blend is typically all kinds of wrong. In the walkthrough, catch-pedaling is clearly demonstrated, but although full-to-half transition wasn't shown, he did say that was possible, so I have some hope.

Vintage D is by no means perfect, but for a VI coming up on nearly 15 years old now, it still manages to run circles around new offerings.

I think so too. In fact, I wrote much the same thing on VI-C in the Modern D thread: “The only sampled Steinway I enjoyed playing, prior to yesterday [= the day the Modern D was released ], is the Galaxy Vintage D. (…) The nice thing about it — at least, the thing which always used to make it my first choice, even after much more deeply sampled and far more sophisticated libraries had come along — is that it never stands in the way of you and your music, the way so many other virtual pianos do (and which I dislike immensely). Within its limitations (and there are quite a few), the Vintage D doesn’t distract from where you wanna go and what you want to communicate as a player or composer. Which is really a rare quality in a virtual piano. It’s a humble, self-effacing instrument, in that honest “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”- sort of way which I’ve always rather liked.”

(...) How does the pedaling feel, Piet? (...)

I’m probably not as sensitive about any shortcomings in the pedalling action of virtual pianos as you are, Jason, which may be why I can say I haven’t experienced anything yet in the Modern D’s pedalling behaviour which I’d consider distracting or problematic. Everything feels nice and right, I find. (That said, the actual pedal plays its part in this too. My current pedal is a Kawai F-10H and I quickly discovered, soon after changing from an older Roland pedal to this Kawai pedal, that I'm getting a different result, or different pedal response, with some virtual pianos. Not a big difference of course, but things do feel just different enough to notice it. Could be a (MIDI-)calibration thing, I don't know.)

Some more info on the Moder D's pedalling implementation from the VILabs website:

Full control of all pedal function is available on the main interface. All three typical piano pedals are supported with our special True Pedal Action plus sampled Half Pedal available for the sustain pedal. Sostenuto, sampled Una Corda, and Muted Strikes can be used with other pedals. Repedal action is smooth and True Pedal Action creates highly realistic damper pedal resonance which also works well with Half-Pedal. Pedal Noise volume can be adjusted and velocity sensitivity can set to Fixed or Variable.

• Half Pedal: Special samples and scripting create the effect of variable damper control, so as a note is played and the damper pedal is pressed slowly, the release trail gets longer until full sustain is reached. Min and Max CC ranges for your continuous sustain pedal set the range of this effect so you can customize to your pedal and style.

• Pedal Noise Type: Allows pedal noises to be triggered at a fixed velocity or set to variable for velocity-sensitive noise. The Variable setting only works with continuous style pedals and will respond to different pedals in different ways, so we've added this option to bypass the velocity sensitivity so it responds like a typical on/off pedal. Note that Half Pedal can still be used regardless of this setting.

• Repedal: Allows the note to continue if the sustain pedal is lifted then pressed down again quickly. A crucial feature to most pianists, this enables subtle blurring mostly in the bass and responds like a real piano without the sound fully stopping when the pedal is lifted.

• Una Corda: The soft (or shift) pedal on a grand piano making the hammers shift over not only to play one less string on most keys, but a softer part of the hammer meets the strings which results in a mellow tone with a different character. Load this separate sample set to use with your soft pedal or solo it with the 'S' solo button.

• True Pedal Action: Emulates the way an acoustic piano's pedal down resonance responds along with the sustain pedal being used. A chord played with the pedal down will cause other strings to resonate, but if the sustain pedal is lifted but pressed again quickly, all strings will resonate but with lower volume. In a real piano, the resonance occurs if the pedal is down when a chord is played but also if a chord is played followed by the pedal going down. The Pedal Resonance comes on when the sustain pedal is pressed and is muted when the pedal is lifted, exactly like the real piano.

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[Lawrence]

I heard a pianissimo demo on VI-C that just knocked me out. Damnit.

[Linos]

Lots of praise for this library. I was very curious, clicked on the first demo, and was disappointed. Is this library really the best virtual representation of the marvel that is a Steinway concert D? Not much of the marvel left here, I find. To me, the demos sound stiff. Like a shirt that has been treated with way too much starch.

Listen here:



And compare it to this:



Now I know that sample libraries are not capable of reproducing a great recording. But these are worlds apart. And I am speaking about the sound only.

The other demos are the same for me. When I click on them, I am disappointed. A few seconds in I seem to get used to the inflexible sound. It doesn't bother me that much then. But the first reaction is always 'This sounds wrong'.

I am the only one with this reaction?

[Piet De Ridder]

You shouldn’t do that, Linos. Compare it to the real thing, I mean. Guy (and, I’m sure, lots of other people too) always protests incredulously when I say that a sampled piano — even a very good one — can only give us 5-10% of what a real instrument can give, but I stick with that percentage. (I’m even inclined to lower it rather than raise it.)

The VILabs Modern D is a very good sampled piano. (I refrain from adding ‘in my opinion’, because I do think the previous sentence is an objective fact.) Is it a Steinway-in-the-box? Absolutely not. Nowhere near. But the reason it jumped so effortlessly to the top of my list of favourite sampled Steinways, is because it gives me that 5-10% quicker and better than most others. (The Galaxy Vintage D still beats it, to my ears, when it comes to mezzoforte pointillistic staccato.) On top of that, it’s an amazingly versatile library that can summon, with great ease, a very close or semi-distant ‘pianoïd presence’ in a mix remarkably convincingly.

But I wouldn’t do a solo recital with it, no.

- - -

Informative video:




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[Guy Rowland]

Linos - I listened to the two pieces, I was surprised at the difference. The VI labs sounds like mush, there's no definition. But I wouldn't automatically put it down to sampled vs real necessarily - it feels like different pianos, differently mic'd. Tonally The Grandeur sounds like a closer match to the real recording (from the v-pianos I own). There may well be a sampled vs real component too, but it's not one I can isolate compared with all the other factors on that example.

Piet is quite right - I do think the low 5-10% estimate is hyperbole. Always have. Just on pure mechanics, how a piano makes sound is far simpler and more predictable than, say, a guitar, violin or a flute even allowing for sympathetic resonances etc. And of course it is played on a keyboard, not plucked or bowed strings, or blown. Anything percussive will get you closer to the real thing imo. But I'm a stuck record with this.

I should mention that I am utterly hopeless when it comes to keyboard skills, so my opinion genuinely is pretty worthless here. Carry on everyone!

[tack]

I should mention that I am utterly hopeless when it comes to keyboard skills, so my opinion genuinely is pretty worthless here.

I'm with you on being hopeless on the keyboard: despite my interest and efforts (which I can't honestly claim are my best efforts), I remain subpar. But I think we crappy pianists are allowed to have an opinion on these things too, Guy.

I'm always nonplussed when I see posts from professional, concert pianists extolling the virtues of a VI piano I consider to be thoroughly unplayable, especially when it comes to pedal feel. Surely the highest skill levels would be the most demanding? Surely they finesse their playing far more than I ever could, such that the most subtle of deficiencies that all virtual pianos possess would be all the more frustrating to them than to me?

I may not be very good, but I find it unacceptable when the primary source of my irritation from what I hear isn't my fault, but some dodgy pedal algorithm's fault, or brutal noise build-up, or ...

So what I can say about the Modern D, having just bought last night, is that it passed the 60 second test (which most VI pianos fail), and even after playing for half an hour, it's earned my most important award: when I'm annoyed, it's because of my own tragic ability, not because of a deficiency of the product. That's truly the highest praise I could offer a sampled piano, I think.

The tonal range and overall sound control is broader than my beloved Vintage D, but I'm not sure if I'm fully won over by it. Vintage D has this luxurious, silky, buttery long note resonances that I love. But I'm also prepared to chalk this up to familiarity, and I'm looking forward to using the Modern D more to see if I might acquire a similar level of fondness for it. (And hopefully without the same bugs that affect the Vintage D.)

[Linos]

Even if we leave aside the comparison with a real recording, the demos sound off to me. Most of them sound really close, from a players perspective. While this might be useful for practising, it's not something I can use in a mix. Only the Mozart sonata and the two Debussy pieces do try to give the impression of a room. The first one failing to my ears. That reverb sounds unconvincing. And the Debussy pieces are still a lot closer than I would like.

Piet, is it possible for you to create a short improvisation with this library run through Spat? Only if it's no inconvenience to you. I would like to hear it in a more ambient setting. A concert grand in such a small room makes no sense to me.

Good point Guy. It's possible that I am just not of the fan how this Modern D was recorded. As said, a large concert D in a small studio - 'intimate', as the marketing blurb calls it - seems an odd choice to me.

That still leaves me with the stiffness that I perceive on all the demos. And that's without 'priming' my ears with real recordings first. Just clicking on any of the demos, immediately it does not sound right to me. I think that part is indeed down to samples.

[Linos]

Jason, not you too... This library must be great. Maybe the makers of the demos and I don't share the same taste.

Can anybody compare Modern D with Garritan CFX? The Garritan is my workhorse piano library. I am not opposed to complement it with a great library of a Steinway.

[playz123]

Well, I listened carefully to the demos, read the pros and cons and considered the opinions expressed, and my own conclusion is that this is simply not the piano for me. Having played numerous Steinways over my lifetime, for me this doesn’t even come close and, as Piet so eloquently suggested, perhaps we shouldn’t expect a sampled piano to do so….at least not yet. I note that many respondents on forums seem to feel differently though and, that overall, this release has been well received. But I simply have to rely on what I hear and feel when I listen, and this library, even though it has many positives, is not one I will be purchasing.

[tack]

Jason, not you too... This library must be great. Maybe the makers of the demos and I don't share the same taste.

In my case you have to realize just how truly low the bar is. I am so disillusioned by the number of VI pianos I've bought over the years that sounded great in demos and then after buying within a matter of seconds I realized it's unplayable and I'll never touch it again. Because of course with sample libraries there is never a try-before-you-buy capability and hardly ever even the possibility of resale. So when I find a virtual piano that sounds pretty good in walkthroughs and seems to tick all the playability boxes, I begin to get interested.

My musical adventures are only for myself, for my own pleasure in the moment, I don't record much, so how a VI piano sits in the mix isn't top on my list. Foremostly, it must feel passable. Those are the table stakes, though disqualifying most entrants. Then it needs to sound better than Pianoteq. With samples, that's usually not too difficult.

The pendulum swung for me years back with Hans Zimmer Piano. I was so enamored by what I heard from HZP in demos that I immediately forked over the $500 CAD needed to buy it. For a few months I was in a state of cognitive dissonance where I convinced myself that it was a brilliantly sampled instrument and a marvel of technology and that I was totally for-sure-honest going to use this all the time. I don't think I touched it again since the winter of 2016.

Modern D plays well, at least so far. Soundwise, like I mentioned in my previous post, I'm not won over. I think I hear what you hear. There is a kind of muffled quality to the sound, like a veil has been thrown over the piano, rendering it somewhat flat, lacking the majesty of well-recorded Steinways (and, I think, including the Vintage D).

But there's also a lot of sonic potential I haven't explored yet, so I figured I'd go do that before passing harsher judgment. I'm just delighted that I didn't close the lid 60 seconds after striking the first note.

[Piet De Ridder]

I’m having some trouble with SPAT v3 since a few weeks. I’m not sure what started it, some update or other I guess — I have a strong feeling it’s Sonoma (the latest version of Logic + Sonoma is without a doubt the most bug-ridden, unreliable software contraption I’ve ever had to deal with) — but the thing is: SPAT v3 still loads (in NUGEN’s SigMod), but all its parameters are greyed out. Useless, in other words.

So, I fired up … SPAT Revolution. (Talk about contraptions.) It’s been months since I’ve visited it last, and it took some time (and a bit of reading) to get reacquainted, but — phew — I got it working in the end.

All this to say that there wasn’t much time left — between reading Linos’ request for a ModernD-in-SPAT demo, and posting this post (before going to bed) — to improvise and record some music. So please, take it as it comes and don’t be put off too much by the many weaknesses (pianistically, timbrally, sonically, whateverally).

Also keep in mind what I said earlier: I would NEVER do a solo recital with the Modern D. Or with any other virtual piano, for that matter. They’re not good enough for that and, as the audio example illustrates in places, they can’t withstand long solo exposure and sustained close scrutiny. And there are *always* a handful of notes sprinkled across the keyboard and the dynamic layers that aren't sampled as well as they should be.

That said: tomorrow morning, listening back to this hurried late-night effort, I might think very differently (and bury my head in my hands with embarrassment and shame), but right now, it seems to me that the good moments certainly equal the less successful ones. There are certain things that don’t come off very well with this piano (in this particular music and setting), absolutely, but at other times, I think it does rather well.

I can fully understand anyone, like Frank, who isn’t taken by the sound of this instrument. After all, that is a personal thing. Me, I deeply-deeply-deeply dislike the sound of the Synchrons, which so many people rave about.

Anyway, I’ve said it already quite a few times, but I’m going to say it again: I do think the Modern D is a very good virtualization of a certain vision of what a Steinway can be. (The important thing here, in my view, is to understand and accept what a virtual piano is and what it is not. And also understand that we’re talking about a single, inevitably narrow interpretation of that most complex of instrumental and acoustic realities: a grand piano. It is within that frame that things need to be judged, it seems to me.)
Sure, the Modern D is not perfect. Nor is it the best choice in every possible situation. (Yesterday, I replaced the Chocolate Audio C7 -- another favourite of mine -- with the Modern D in a piece I did earlier this week and it didn't work at all.) And yes, it's prone to causing ear-fatigue and to outstaying its welcome, like every other sampled instrument. All very true. But considering what it can do, what it’s good at, and already dreaming about what I will be using it for, I am enormously pleased with the purchase.

Oh, before I forget: there's no EQ or other processing on that audio example, except some limiting (TC MD4 HD) at the Stereo Out. I did raise the Tone-parameter (on the library's GUI) a bit though for increased clarity and definition.

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[Luke]

Wonderful example, Piet, quite liked it.

There's a 2-dimensionality to the sound that I didn't notice before, but have now. Still, the way it feels under my clumsy fingers is enough to elicit a resilient smile, and I'm certain it will find good use in both projects, and day-to-day practice.

[Guy Rowland]

It sounds gorgeous to me Piet (for whatever that is worth).

What strikes me very powerfully with this, and the whole discussion, is perception. It blows my mind the sheer amount of effort it took you, Piet, to create something that clearly for you teeters right on the edge of achieving mere acceptability, a piece knocked out very quickly after a full day of technical hell which would drive me to the polar opposite of inspiration. You feel the end result has some passable moments and others that just don't make the grade. But that IS you, it is the essence of you. Your senses are so finely tuned, every nuance threatening to either render the piece worthless or elevate it to... well, acceptability I guess. You are a true artist.

I would lay good money that you could play that example blind to a thousand people, all people who do not make but broadly appreciate music, and maybe only a handful would find anything to criticize regarding artificiality. Your 10% is most mortals' 99%.

My perception of music is clearly nowhere near as finely tuned as yours. I don't think I'm a total philistine, but I'm not blessed / cursed with this. It reminds me of my teens, reading the audiophile discussions in magazines of the lengths people would go to to achieve ever higher fidelity, when Hi-Fi was never Hi enough. People would solder gold speaker wire to the circuit board of the amplifier to stop the interconnects wrecking the purity. Whereas for me - and for the overwhelming majority - all that threatened to distract from the appreciation of music itself. (And back then I really CARED about quality, much more than now, I think. Getting merely good quality was fairly hard and expensive then. It's ubiquitous now and my hearing is worse).

I know that's not true of you Piet, I know your appreciation of music and enthusiasm for it is boundless. But for me, I think "ignorance is bliss".

[srkrishnan]

I’m having some trouble with SPAT v3 since a few weeks. I’m not sure what started it, some update or other I guess — I have a strong feeling it’s Sonoma (the latest version of Logic + Sonoma is without a doubt the most bug-ridden, unreliable software contraption I’ve ever had to deal with) — but the thing is: SPAT v3 still loads (in NUGEN’s SigMod), but all its parameters are greyed out. Useless, in other words.

So, I fired up … SPAT Revolution. (Talk about contraptions.) It’s been months since I’ve visited it last, and it took some time (and a bit of reading) to get reacquainted, but — phew — I got it working in the end.

All this to say that there wasn’t much time left — between reading Linos’ request for a ModernD-in-SPAT demo, and posting this post (before going to bed) — to improvise and record some music. So please, take it as it comes and don’t be put off too much by the many weaknesses (pianistically, timbrally, sonically, whateverally).

Also keep in mind what I said earlier: I would NEVER do a solo recital with the Modern D. Or with any other virtual piano, for that matter. They’re not good enough for that and, as the audio example illustrates in places, they can’t withstand long solo exposure and sustained close scrutiny. And there are *always* a handful of notes sprinkled across the keyboard and the dynamic layers that aren't sampled as well as they should be.

That said: tomorrow morning, listening back to this hurried late-night effort, I might think very differently (and bury my head in my hands with embarrassment and shame), but right now, it seems to me that the good moments certainly equal the less successful ones. There are certain things that don’t come off very well with this piano (in this particular music and setting), absolutely, but at other times, I think it does rather well.

I can fully understand anyone, like Frank, who isn’t taken by the sound of this instrument. After all, that is a personal thing. Me, I deeply-deeply-deeply dislike the sound of the Synchrons, which so many people rave about.

Anyway, I’ve said it already quite a few times, but I’m going to say it again: I do think the Modern D is a very good virtualization of a certain vision of what a Steinway can be. (The important thing here, in my view, is to understand and accept what a virtual piano is and what it is not. And also understand that we’re talking about a single, inevitably narrow interpretation of that most complex of instrumental and acoustic realities: a grand piano. It is within that frame that things need to be judged, it seems to me.)
Sure, the Modern D is not perfect. Nor is it the best choice in every possible situation. (Yesterday, I replaced the Chocolate Audio C7 -- another favourite of mine -- with the Modern D in a piece I did earlier this week and it didn't work at all.) And yes, it's prone to causing ear-fatigue and to outstaying its welcome, like every other sampled instrument. All very true. But considering what it can do, what it’s good at, and already dreaming about what I will be using it for, I am enormously pleased with the purchase.

Oh, before I forget: there's no EQ or other processing on that audio example, except some limiting (TC MD4 HD) at the Stereo Out. I did raise the Tone-parameter (on the library's GUI) a bit though for increased clarity and definition.

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What a beautiful piece of music Peit! Shows how versatile this piano really is and how talented you really are! Looking forward to grabbing this soon. Would you suggest me getting galaxy D as well if I purchase this? Thanks.

[Linos]

Thank you Piet, I'm grateful. What a wonderful demo I got for just asking. I really appreciate it. There is not one nanosecond in this music to be embarrassed about. I wish I could improvise like that!

It's also the first demo where I hear the qualities people are praising in this library. For the first time there's a natural, unobtrusive spatial presence around the sound that all the other demos lack. There is the presence, definition and brilliance in the sound that Steinways have. The other demos now sound even more muffled and wrong to me.

I mean, listen to Piet's demo:

https://mega.nz/file/Q8dUgJ6b#q5sW2P3F7 ... rHvYQzeYg4

And now click on this and listen:



In the first one I hear the sound of a Steinway. The second just sounds dull, muffled, lifeless. I find it hard to believe that both sounds came from the same sample library.

This explains why you increased the tone parameter, Piet. But it seems to be a balancing act. Because I do experience the ear fatigue you mention when I listen to your piece several times. It teeters on the edge of being too bright. Not a sound for everything, then. But one that would be useful to have at hand.

[Piet De Ridder]

Thanks very, very much, Luke, Guy, srkrishnan and Linos!
Glad it’s been informative.
(After breakfast, I listened to it again with fresh ears, and it all sounds pretty much like it did sound yesterday evening, so that’s good.)

srkrishnan, if I had to start all over again, from scratch, one of the first libraries I would certainly buy again is the Galaxy Vintage D. It’s got its problems (see below), it does pose challenges (which increase substantially when you want to use it orchestrally, because it’s got a very dry and close-up sound), but it can also be one of the loveliest and nicest-sounding virtual pianos to play — when I think of the Vintage D, the first word that always comes to mind is ‘gentle’ — and it has a couple of qualities which I have never heard bettered, not even in much more recent and much bigger libraries which are far more deeply sampled and have a far more sophisticated engine. The way it has captured the impact of the hammers on the strings, to give just one example, is, to my ears, unparalleled, and its sustains at low and medium dynamics can also be quite gorgeous.
Less appealing: at high velocities, it will get a bit clangy, spikey and harsh, there’s occasionally a hint of a sort of glassy/plastic-y quality in the sound at levels above mezzoforte, and also: things tend to become a bit boomy (or at least: quite bulky in the low mids) when the left hand gets busy, and it’s got a few notes which begin to jump out (in a distracting way) when played repeatedly. Most of this emerges at higher dynamics though, at lower and medium dynamics the instrument acts and sounds simply wonderfully. All of that — both the good and the bad — is, I hope, demonstrated here.

Most importantly though: I happen to find it a very inspiring instrument to play. Much of what I composed and recorded in the past 10-15 years wouldn’t have happened in quite the same way if it wasn’t for the VintageD and several of my favourite pieces were born while playing that instrument. (Playing Pianoteq and the Ivory AmericanD also trigger nice things, I’ve found — I do dislike the new Ivory III though — and, in sharp contrast, I’ve never ever ended up with anything worth keeping playing any of the Synchrons. Strange how these things — connecting with an instrument, or not — work, isn't it?)

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[srkrishnan]

Thanks very, very much, Luke, Guy, srkrishnan and Linos!
Glad it’s been informative.
(After breakfast, I listened to it again with fresh ears, and it all sounds pretty much like it did sound yesterday evening, so that’s good.)

srkrishnan, if I had to start all over again, from scratch, one of the first libraries I would certainly buy again is the Galaxy Vintage D. It’s got its problems (see below), it does pose challenges (which increase substantially when you want to use it orchestrally, because it’s got a very dry and close-up sound), but it can also be one of the loveliest and nicest-sounding virtual pianos to play — when I think of the Vintage D, the first word that always comes to mind is ‘gentle’ — and it has a couple of qualities which I have never heard bettered, not even in much more recent and much bigger libraries which are far more deeply sampled and have a far more sophisticated engine. The way it has captured the impact of the hammers on the strings, to give just one example, is, to my ears, unparalled, and its sustains at low and medium dynamics can also be quite gorgeous.
Less appealing: at high velocities, it will get a bit clangy, spikey and harsh, there’s occasionally a hint of a sort of glassy/plastic-y quality in the sound at levels above mezzoforte, and also: things tend to become a bit boomy (or at least: quite bulky in the low mids) when the left hand gets busy, and it’s got a few notes which begin to jump out (in a distracting way) when played repeatedly. Most of this emerges at higher dynamics though, at lower and medium dynamics the instrument acts and sounds simply wonderfully. All of that — both the good and the bad — is, I hope, demonstrated here.

Most importantly though: I happen to find it a very inspiring instrument to play. Much of what I composed and recorded in the past 10-15 years wouldn’t have happened in quite the same way if it wasn’t for the VintageD and several of my favourite pieces were born while playing that instrument. (Playing Pianoteq and the Ivory AmericanD also trigger nice things, I’ve found — I do dislike the new Ivory III though — and, in sharp contrast, I’ve never ever ended up with anything worth keeping playing any of the Synchrons. Strange how these things — connecting with an instrument, or not — work, isn't it?)

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Beautifully played Piet! I can get why you are inclined towards this library. Thanks again for taking your time to do the demo. This has been really helpful for me to take a decision, which is I'll get them both soon!

[Lawrence]

Wow, Piet. Lovely demo but is it gone already?? Perhaps you decided to rework something? I was about to listen again on better speakers but it seems to.be missing.

[Piet De Ridder]

Ooh, Larry, so sorry. I did a 'Delete all' this morning, yes, obsessive deleter that I am.
I've uploaded both demos again. New links:
- Modern D
- Vintage D

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[Lawrence]

Thanks-going to listen now

[playz123]

In spite of its few flaws, and the fact that I am guessing most others will have dissenting opinions , my vote goes to...the Vintage D. I find it warmer and more soothing, especially in the lower registers, and certainly better suited, for example, for ballads or 'Midnight Jazz'. I would hazard a guess that the Modern D would better fit in the mix when used with classical music or orchestral arrangements though. In any case, just my opinion and overall preference. Both have merit though. Thank you so much Piet for your wonderful demos and superb playing. Covering the full keyboard and utilizing various playing techniques was very informative, and quite honestly your 'demos' are as good or better than most of the the others I've heard. Hope they help you too, Larry!

[Luke]

In spite of its few flaws, and the fact that I am guessing most others will have dissenting opinions , my vote goes to...the Vintage D. I find it warmer and more soothing, especially in the lower registers, and certainly better suited, for example, for ballads or 'Midnight Jazz'. I would hazard a guess that the Modern D would better fit in the mixr when used with classical music or orchestral arrangements though. In any case, just my opinion and overall preference. Both have merit though. Thank you so much Piet for your wonderful demos and superb playing. Covering the full keyboard and utilizing various playing techniques was very informative, and quite honestly your 'demos' are as good or better than most of the the others I've heard. Hope they help you too, Larry!

Yeah, I'm feeling this as pretty accurate for my taste.

Having spent a few days with it now and compared it in my playing and usage, the Modern D feels very good to play. Some of the included preset velocity curves are quite useful, too, in slightly altering the feel for my imperfect performances. But there's a rich resonance in the Vintage D that is hard to miss. Having said that, I've found it challenging in the past to fit the Vintage D into a mix that wasn't anything more than pretty bare bones (think Piano + String Ensemble) and I do think that the Modern D should fit this need a bit better. Hope to be able to do that soon.