Thanks, Michael; no it’s Prime or ‘nothing’ 
Thanks, Mike!
I have EastWest Hollywood, VSL SYNCHRON, and others.
In terms of strings, VSL’s duality strings are fabulous.
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Thanks, Norman! There seems to be a trend here, doesn’t there. Not to mention a… consensus .
+1 for Synchron Prime. It’s true it lacks solo strings, but it sounds quite good and is easier on system resources. I can run a full orchestra playback either with NPPE, or from within Dorico with the PRIME templates I create in the VSL’s ‘Dorico Wizard.’ I only have a Ryzen 5 2.10 GHz processor and 32GB of RAM and don’t have any hiccups with PRIME. While I have and like BBC SO Core & SSO 2024, due to their huge system resource demands, I can only use a few of their instruments in any given work at a time.
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Thanks, Gary!
After @sjanssens pointed out that Prime lacks solo strings, I dug out my old VI/Studio files to see how easy it would be to experiment with them. (In the end I actually decided to re-download them in VA to eliminate variables.)
Would you advise trying Dorico Wizard (in VA) to create Playback Templates, or getting the relevant Symphonic Riot/Articulate package, please?
I bought the Articulate template some years ago. While it’s possible it may have been updated since, it’s no better than the Vienna generated one. And IMO, neither are as good as Prime with any version of with an NPPE.
Great. Thanks, Scott!
I am also sceptical that it has been updated - perhaps unfairly: this link on this page is broken (404).
That’ll give me a chance to get my hands dirty with both Dorico Wizard and this corner of NP5.
Prime is now very firmly on the cards.
Appreciated… .
I haven’t used Symphonic Riot or Articulate, but I suspect those specifically-made templates would work better for you than those created by the Dorico Wizard-which are rather generic. But it seems that PRIME isn’t one of the libraries Dorico Articulate Map can use as of now-I didn’t see it listed on the website.
I use the ‘Wizard’ because of cost concerns; not because it’s so great (although it’s not bad). It does, however, allow me to use a full orchestra setup of PRIME instruments outside of NP.
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Thanks, Gary. I intend to try both .
Just taken my first foray into the Vienna Assistant’s Dorico Wizard.
Not so straightforward as I had hoped. In the first place this video doesn’t really make it clear that the naming, description and Save dialogue is at the bottom of the screen - really before you begin.
Secondly, it took some time to find what I assume is the template (.dorico_pt) it creates.
Other posts suggests it’s in the System library Application Support hierarchy. In fact I found what I think is a skeleton xml file here, in my user library:
~/Library/Application Support/Steinberg/Dorico 6/PlaybackTemplateSpecs/VSL Solo Strings Template
But that won’t load into Dorico 6; and really doesn’t seem to have many parameters/settings.
I’m obviously doing something wrong. I will forever be in the debt of anyone who’s familiar with this process and Dorico Pro 6 on macOS 15.4, please, and has a little time to put me right.
PS Could I be trying to do the impossible, because Dorico Wizard doesn’t work with the old VI/Studio libraries?
In which case I have no alternative but to get the Symphonic Riot templates… not the end of the world; they’re quite reasonably priced.
TIA… !
You don’t have to find the Playback Template - it adds it directly where Dorico can find it, so it should immediately appear in your Play menu under Playback Templates without you having to import it.
The Wizard does support some of the Studio libraries - just not the VI libraries. You should be able to crossgrade your solo strings to the Studio version.
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Michael,
Thank you - yet again!
I was obviously trying to do the impossible.
But it was just to have Solo Strings.
I’m clear: Symphonic Riot in the immediate future. Cross grade eventually.
Appreciated 
I believe the crossgrade for the VI libraries is on sale right now, so you might compare the price just in case.
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Michael,
The only place I could find that was here. With the redesign of the VSL site and apparently no redirects, I’m still getting to know it.
Anything closer/from VSL directly please?
When you’re logged in with the same VSL account the library is registered under, your pricing in the VSL will automatically factor in the current sale price and crossgrade discount from the VI library. But sometimes I find you have to add it to your cart before it will show properly due to occasional glitches with the site.
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Michael, thanks!
The link you kindly posted is to the Studio (ie not Synchron) solo strings, bundle, isn’t it.
I already have the old VI Solo Strings (SOLO STRINGS I Standard Library and SOLO STRINGS II Standard Library) - for String Quartets etc. It’s crossgrading to the Synchron equivalent that I want.
If I’m not mistaken, there only seem to be Violin and Cello in the Synchron series?
I can’t find that here:
Again, I may be misunderstanding and/or just looking in the wrong place.
Probably simpler to contact VSL and ask what they recommend.
There’s no crossgrade to the Synchron Solo Strings library at the moment. The Synchron libraries are all new recordings, not related at all to the VI stuff that you own from before, so there is no crossgrade discount. They haven’t finished the Synchron Solo Strings yet, the Violin 2 and Viola are coming out later this year. But even after they’ve finished, there isn’t going to be a crossgrade, because all the recordings are new. They only give crossgrade discounts in cases where some of the same recordings are used, and with one small exception, everything in all of Synchron is new and doesn’t use anything from VI.
The crossgrade I’m talking about is for the Studio Solo Strings, which are supported by the VSL Dorico Wizard and have official maps for Dorico. Since you own the VI versions of that library, it should hopefully be inexpensive. The samples are the same as in your VI version.
What I mean is, if the Symphonic Riot map were to cost say 50 euro (I don’t know the cost), and it would also cost you 50 euro to crossgrade from VI Solo Strings to Studio Solo Strings (which have the free map provided by VSL via the Dorico Wizard), you might just want to crossgrade from VI Solo Strings to Studio Solo Strings so that you can get the new programming and the official Dorico Wizard expression map in one shot, instead of just getting the expression map and being stuck with the old player.
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Michael - thanks again for your patience!
Got it. That explains why I couldn’t find what doesn’t exist ; I think I’ve been conflating cross grading with Synchron-izing - and so making too close a connection between the two product lines.
I really wish I’d kept up with VSL more… I first started using their libraries over 15 years ago: ars longa… .
Which suggests that - in preference to waiting:
- I’d be better either to try and get the VI Solo Strings working with the Symphonic Riot map (only €14) and wrestle with Vienna Instruments/Ensemble *, or
- investigate one of the other VSL Synchron libraries for 4tets.
Good point. I’ve always struggled a bit with its complexity 
* May I ask, please: why do I get so many apparent duplicates in the VST dropdown:
Is it because this Setting isn’t correct:
?
Yeah, I think the reason you’re seeing double is that you’ve unnecessarily whitelisted the VST2 versions of those plugins. VSL has VST3 versions of everything, so no need to whitelist the VST2 variants.
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