Posted by: "MusicGearfanatic@aol.com" MusicGearfanatic@aol.com helferjason Thu Oct 5, 2006 12:21 pm (PST) << Well Nick, that's a fairly strong endorsement, but one of the joys of life, and music, is that it is subjective.>> > Above- Colin writes about a review given reg. EWQLSC. Firstly I'd > like to > comment that I agree completely with Colins assesment regarding > that product. > Symphony of voices wins hands down. That's a different question and a subjective call. My objection is that Colin said a lot of things publicly that are totally unfair - such as that it sounds like it's in a cardboard box and is going onto his pile of useless software. You don't have to love a product to recognize that it doesn't deserve sneering at like that. Just out of interest, do you own either library? > I am noticing a trend in new music gear reviews that seem to be always > pumping up the good and glossing over the 'bad'. I guess that is a > state of > reality since ad space must be purchased in said magazines. However > I really feel > that this is an injustice to musicians and engin You figured me out! Yes, the reason I undertook the huge investment in money and especially time to launch a magazine was because it's my life's ambition to do fellow musicians a disservice and line my pockets at their expense. Please don't tell anyone that I have no ethics - I try to keep that hidden. > As a case in point I read a > stellar review from one magazine about the new A.I.R. from Sample > Logic. Actually I > BOUGHT A.I.R. BEFORE reading any reviews! However, I REALLY tried > to LIKE > A.I.R. but just didnt. And the reviews did NOTHING to mention its > weaknesses. > Perhaps if more reviews were written by composers this might be > solved. > For example, A.I.R. is laid out NOTHING like StormDrum or > Percussive Adventure > 2 where composers can BUILD layers within the same loop for > consistency > purposes - instead with A.I.R. we are stuck with ONE loop per loop > and well-that > gets OLD! Yes you can LAYER loops but having a loop where the > manufacturer has > PURPOSELY built in progressive build ups to that loop WITH one loop > patch is > FANTASTIC! This is thinking from a compositional stand point. Of > course it > may be interesting to note that StormDrum WAS built by musicians > and A.I.R. was > built by more of the 'techy' crowd. Have you read my review? It's in our latest issue. I do happen to like A.I.R. quite a bit, but I pointed out what I felt were its strengths and weaknesses. However, your objections weren't among them. It's not trying to be StormDrum or PA, in fact those libraries would make an excellent complement to it because they're so hard- hiting. A.I.R.'s strength is that it has a lot off excellent material all in one place; they really have that sound nailed. As to your theory, A.I.R. started life as a graduate project by two composers. (Note that they're not schoolboys - this was a graduate project.) I also happen to be a composer, by the way. > Perhaps less emphasis on 'state of the art' and more on musicality and > musicianship capabilities may serve better in many MUSIC gear > products that > ultimatley are usually if not mostly performed by musicians. Yes, yes, all writers and developers are sleazy greaseballs. Nick Batzdorf, editor/publisher Virtual Instruments magazine - the world of softsynths and samplers www.Virtualinstrumentsmag.com 1-877 VImagzn (846-2496) 818/905-9101, cell 590-9101