PreSonus Forums

As someone who grew up playing piano, I can honestly say that I do not like Waves Rhapsody as much as most of the others mentioned here. The only two mentioned here that I dislike even more are True Pianos and the Presence pianos.

The Waves one is too harsh...or something...I can't quite put my finger on it, but it really doesn't sound great for my use.

Michael_Brown wroteI have tried quite a few.
Miroslav Philharmonik 2 wins hands down. It is incredible.
https://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/philharmonik2/
But I guess it is all subjective.

I have the Philharmonic 2 CE version. I don’t know if it’s the same but I love the Dark Piano. I just don’t like the CPU hit so I use the Garritan instead. The new Sample Tank 4 is coming out so maybe this will be addressed.

shanabit wroteAddictive Keys here, no CPU hit IMO

I would check out Ivory Italian

As far as the sound goes, totally your pref there.

Wow 😮 really?
I have Addictive Keys but it’s just been sitting dormant in my inventory. I’m going to give it a listen today.
Thanks

Addictive Keys piano is pretty nice. It's not amazing, but it's a nice clean sound that's good enough to work even as a solo instrument.

Neiby wrote
For $499, it better be the best! Holy cats, that's pricey. I bet it's fantastic.

For another Alicia's Keys example, here is the track I just finished today.

viewtopic.php?f=206&t=33774

Jordan Rudess gives a pretty good demo of the whole package here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xwo04yDBhjQ

Many thanks to you all for recommendations! Good source of information for future! Happy mixing guys

eduardsgrieznis wroteMany thanks to you all for recommendations! Good source of information for future! Happy mixing guys

Cool. I learned some new sources here as well. A piano, like guitar, or any other stringed instrument (all instruments respectively), have their own sound, wood, tone, vibe. There's no " I played for blah blah years, and it's this or that". Even a upright, spinnaker, or baby grand can be wonderful for a feel, or cut through a mix, or duet, etc.

Not everything is a Bosendorfer concert grand or should be. Think I'd like to hear a few layered samples of a piano dropping from a 3rd story building.

sirmonkey wroteJust buy a piano!

I'm a piano player and my preferred option is to DI my stage piano for final takes.

However,

Neiby wroteAddictive Keys piano is pretty nice. It's not amazing, but it's a nice clean sound that's good enough to work even as a solo instrument.

If I'm not sure of the arrangement I'm working on, I will use my stage piano to trigger Addictive Keys to record a MIDI guide piano part that I can easily chop up and mess around with.

I think Addictive Keys, whilst maybe not being the best out there, does offer good cost-effective results IMO.

More than anything, it is all about context. Every one of these choices have a unique sound. Find the library that works best in the context of your music, especially in a mix. The broader your tastes are, the more likely you'll need more than one.

Dan

dcumpian wroteMore than anything, it is all about context. Every one of these choices have a unique sound. Find the library that works best in the context of your music, especially in a mix. The broader your tastes are, the more likely you'll need more than one.

Dan

This is absolutely true. As an example I think True Pianos doesn't sound that great by itself, but I think their Diamond piano sounds really good in a mix with a band.