Composed by the water lilies at The Angoria, San Angelo, TX. July 2026.
Konrad,
Another delight for the ears. What library(ies) did you use for this? Nicely done.
Thank you!
I mostly use VSL Synchron Special Editions. I used BBCSO for 2nd violins for a technical reason.
Thank you for listening!
I did not fully explain in my answer above. My VSL library I use with NPPE does not provide separate 2nd violins. Using the same library for 1sts and 2nds is fine–unless they play the same note or notes, in which case there is phase cancellation. I use BBCSO for 2nd violins to avoid this.
My personal view–which is no better than anyone else’s–is that VSL strings are very accurate and pristine, while BBCSO strings are more lush. For woodwinds and brass, both are good, but have their own sounds. I tend to use VSL more because I have a long history with it.
Also, I can use VSL on either my laptop or studio computer by moving the iLok, but I can’t get the BBCSO expression map working on the studio computer. I have a thread about that but with no solution.
Thanks for the additional info. I have 32g of memory, but my processor speed is sub-three. If I use the BBC Core pt, I get cutouts in the playback if I use more than 4 or 5 instruments. I also find that the BBC Core brass is less desirable tha VSL as a whole. Fortunately, I still have NP 5.0 and can use all of my BBC and VSL libraries for large works. I asked because I’ve always been very impressed with your mixes. Thanks again!
I really appreciate the kind feedback!
I have had sample libraries since there was such a thing, and have struggled with PC performance over the years. My current setup up seems to work well. In the early days, I could go out to dinner while Hollywood Strings loaded.
Here are my laptop (MS Surface specs):
1 TB hard drive.
My rack-mount studio computer was built by Sweetwater and has 128 GB memory. The processor is i7-147002100 mHz, but I have no idea how that compares. I sent them the laptop specs and said I wanted it to be at least as fast. Seems to work fine. I don’t remember how much hard drive I have in the rackmount, but I loaded it up–maybe 4-5 TB.
The reason I have two machines is I that wanted the laptop for travel and the other for making records; plus I am paranoid about being down and unable to work. Paying for the laptop, rackmount and monitor etc was very painful. I am not in John Williams’ income category.
Ha! Nor am I. Just to go to an equivalent Mac PC to replace my current windows machine would cost me over twice as much. Fortunately, with NP5.0 I can use my libraries without over-taxing my machine- even for large works. Not quite the same quality as using the libraries directly within Dorico, but they sound good. I’m jealous of your 128g, just so you know
One good thing about Windows is that in a rack-mount or desktop with a lot of room inside, even a non-hardware guy like me can pop in more memory. Apple is great, but not DIY-friendly.
And, Apple is expensive.