Hi all,
I’m just about to update to HALion 4, but I am also interested in the wonderful Orchestral sounds of HSO. 
I assume that HSO has samples that even H4 doesn’t have, so would be a worthwhile addition, but can I use the HSO samples within H4???
Any advice appreciated. 
Cheers,
Neil.
Hi Neil,
You certainly can use the HSO VST Sound Instrument Set in HALion 4 - you get the added advantage of being able to “look under the bonnet” to see how the different instruments are made up. HAL 4 is still a little bit raw but it’s very usable as it is, and I think it has a great future. I agree about the sound of HSO, one of the great, if underrated, orchestral libraries, and it’s very powerful with VST 2.
Chris
Hi Chris,
Thanks for the info.
I’ll get H4 first and see how that goes, before I get HSO. I’m running C6, so I can get the HSO at a good price which if it works with H4, makes sense!
Fabulous.
Neil.
Hi Neil,
Don’t forget you get a trial version of HSO with Cubase 6.
Chris
Yes! Thank you. I guess I should just try it out once my H4 arrives!! 
Yes, the trial is fully functional and I think you get something like 60 days to try it out, so nothing to lose really.
I’ll be interested to hear how you get on. I must admit that for most uses, I tend to use Halion Sonic SE to load the instruments, as it’s a bit less CPU intensive than H4 (though still a bit of a hog) - but it’s good to have the option to edit the instruments and to see how they work in detail.
Chris
That was another question I had actually; H4 is “just another” plug-in then? Halion Sonic SE that came with Cubase 6 will still run?
Neil.
Yes, they’re both VSTis, so will sit happily together.
Chris
Chris,
I see you have a more up to date machine than I have. In your opinion would my Q6600 quad-core with 2Gb DDR2 RAM work OK, if I have “normal” sized projects? I read that the graphical demands of H4 are quite high when you start resizing windows and again, I only have an old nVidia 6600 card.
I am thinking of an upgrade, but if I don’t need it right now, perhaps I could delay things for a year or so?
Any thoughts?
Cheers,
Neil
Hi Neil,
You could have a problem with only 2 Gb of RAM. If I was you, I’d use the trial of HSO in Sonic to see if you can load as many instruments as you typically use, and see how that goes. I think H4 performance will improve, but at present Sonic SE seems less CPU hungry for playing back HSO. My system is about 3 years old and I’m starting to feel that it’s about the minimum you can get away with for an average sized orchestra.
Chris
Oooooh!!!
Time to upgrade then maybe!!!
Neil et al,
If you uprgade make sure you look into 64 bit. Win 32 bit has a limit on ram (about 3.5 gig with a lot reserved for the system). When you go 64 bit the limit is ridicoulosuly high at 192 gig. Make sure your sound drivers are 64 bit capable and if you have any ‘lgeacy’ 32 bit stuuf you might need Jbridge which is very cheap and is better than the disasterous VSTbridge. Otherwise all is blissfully stable here vfor a couple of years now.
Nice!
I’m going to cut back on my VSTi’s to HALion 4 and Zeta+ v2. (Plus one or two others)
Zeta runs in 64 bit as does H4 of course, so all good for the next upgrade!!!
Cheers,
Neil.