VSL is Upping Their Game

FYI, please, note that the information on VSL page regarding the new resized versions availability for new buyers during this period is NOT TRUE

I opened a ticket with support and here you have their answer:

Hi Jose,

The Updates for existing users (= previously purchased) pianos will be rolled out over the next weeks.

Purchasing one piano does not put you in the front of that queue. But the Concert D-274 is of course delivered in the new, lossless format right now.

That is not compatible with what they say on their WEB:

The updates to libraries with smaller footprints will be available in stages, like boarding a plane in groups, to prevent congestion. If you purchase a Synchron Piano now, you can immediately update your entire Synchron Pianos library content. Customers who’ve purchased a Synchron Piano in the previous months will follow. You will see in the Vienna Assistant when your update is available. Once available, updates will overwrite your previous library content. You don’t have to update all Synchron Pianos at once.

So, well, someone has goofed!

Jose EB5AGV

Welp, There was I feeling all excited. I guess I'll stop refreshing the assistant in the hope that it'll tell me I'm next in line!

QuasiUnaFantasia Incidentally, why isn't Paul from VSL active here on PianoClack? VSL ought to be doing their own (free) advertising here rather than rely on members sharing such information.

Some VSL people have a history of becoming defensive. They probably wouldn't like us. 🤣

Paul is always very nice though.

I am just downloading all the reduced size versions… But have one doubt. What would you do if the price is exactly the same, get Concert D-274 Full or Concert D-274 Standard and Yamaha CFX Standard?. I own already Bosendorfer Imperial, 280-VC and Upright and also Fazioli F-308

UPDATE: 666GB have been reduced to 290GB 😃

Jose EB5AGV well, I only have the standard version. I have to say it’s one of the libraries I really regret having, because the sound is very harsh on the condenser mic, and you already know that there is no una corda samples. That said, the mid position might be something worthy of investigation.

Sorry, typos may exist as I’m typing on my phone.

David Lai Thanks David. Do you mean the D-274 or the CFX?

Jose EB5AGV sorry, re-reading I see you meant the Concert D-274

I’ve just dowloaded the 30-day demo full version of VSL Steinway D-274 and I immediately got the reduced file size version.

It sounds really good through the internal speaker of my N1X even with just the default mic settings, especially the concert surround to stereo setting.

I am new to this virtual intruments and only have the Garritan CFX that I purchased couple months ago, and I am amaze with the experience that you feel like you are playing in a big concert hall.

Now, I want to record my playing, and I wonder if there is an in-built record function in VSL (hopefully similar to Garritan that you can convert your midi recording to wav audio file).

Just found a free DAW, called Cakewalk by BandLab, to supplement VSL’s limitation. With Cakewalk, I managed to convert my midi file recorded in N1X to WAV audio using the VSL Steinway D-274 VST.

I can’t help but share my excitement with this great VSL product which I will probably purchase before their special offer ends. Thank you so much for sharing @David B .

https://youtu.be/ult8-JTyY1g?si=Xo0ZbPS1Or7ab4K9

jenpal could you share your D-274 setup? (a mixer window capture would be great)

@jenpal Thank you for sharing that lovely song. I was not familiar with it, but it was beautifully played. I see you went for the bigger concert hall sound with the D274. As I was listening to it I envisioned you being far away. You might want to try some of the player settings to contrast the intimate feel with the big concert sound.

Love your playing and very nice setup, too. Looks like a very welcoming space to be in. Thanks for sharing.

God Bless,
David

Jose EB5AGV

they're pretty similar actually, although the cfx has a brighter and sharper tone to it (not in a bad way) and the d-274 has more depth and presence with more metallic shimmer in high_mids but both of them are very bright and articulate instruments IMO

if you're not looking for that type of sound, i'd say you should look elsewhere - i mean every other synchron would give you that warm piano tone except these two - i really hope someday vsl sample a vintage steinway (like embertone or the NI grandeur)

David Lai the d274 standard edition is a disappointment for sure, the condenser mic is never enough, i love the ribbon and tube though (especially the tube - it has a lot of warmth and body to it)

but of course part of its harshness is because of the linier velocity mapping, lowering the vel,curve and the dynamic knob would definitely help (it helped me alot)

Jose EB5AGV Actually, I only used the default Concert Surround to Stereo setting in VSL Steinway D-274.

What I did is that after exporting my midi recording file from the N1X, I loaded the midi file into the Cakewalk software. Then, added the VST instrument in Cakewalk with the following settings, which is just one of the VSL defaults. I don’t have experience with DAW, so I am not sure if there is something extra enhancement done within Cakewalk after exporting it to an audio WAV file. Finally, I converted the exported WAV to flac using Audacity and applied normalisation of -3.

Thank you David B . 😊

Yes, that is the default concert surround to stereo setting which is very nice to listen from the internal N1X speakers. I will definitely try the other settings you suggested. Perhaps I will download the other demo VSL pianos as well to have a comparison before I make a purchase.

A Beautiful Thing

Downloaded all my VSL compressed files. 6 full libraries = barely more than the VSL F308 before lossless compression. 🥳

God Bless,
David

Thank you for the additional 10% promo code David B . I’ve just purchased the VSL Concert D-274 today. 😊

jenpal inquiring minds want to know… Standard or Full? 🤔

Jose EB5AGV I bought the full version to have all the mic settings.

Jose EB5AGV inquiring minds want to know

😋