You should give Lounge Lizard a look Torsten! AAS Instruments,
Lounge Lizard is very dominant in my setup, but so is Velvet, EP88, and the older Scarbees. I recently got e-instruments, and am starting to replace my Scarbees. E-Instruments has a feel about it that the others donāt.
Iāve had Lounge Lizard for ages - doesnāt really do it for me. Some nice sounds can be got out of it, but itās a finicky little beast. For me, Velvet beats it hands-down.
Cheers,
Torsten
Torsten, I remember reading in another post that you used Velvet without itās onboard effects. I am curious to hear more detail about how you process your electric piano sounds. I am always after that Chick Corea or George Duke sound.
- Paul
Hmmmm. I just went over to PlugInBoutique and Velvet 2 was US$19.95. For The WIN! US$99 everywhere else. (Yes I have Lounge Lizard and Arturia)
haha fair enough, but as Velvet is iLok required, itās a never ever thing for me!
Normally for me as well, but thereās no need for an iLok USB token; you can authorize a laptop / PC directly, and every license covers two machines. Since these AIR plugs are on sale so frequently, I just buy multiple licenses for my various machines. So with two licenses (I think I got them at 9,95 each some time ago), I cover all my needs.
Cheers,
Torsten
3 Likes
Right again @Torsten! I wait for the sale and buy 2, so 4 license installations. One for primary laptop, one for backup laptop, and one for the iLok key which lives in my studio machine. For emergencies, I have one more unused. And, I only have the iLok key because of my old Receptor.
Hey Paul,
I do use some of the internal effects of Velvet - switching presets on Velvet is not as problematic as it would be for Kontakt. But itās usually very little: a bit of chorus or flanging; sometimes a bit of touch wah. What I always keep outside my racks is reverb and delay - makes it easier to fine-tune my songs.
For Chick Corea or George Duke, itās mostly plain Rhodes with not a lot of FX on it. Chick Corea uses a modified Mark V, with wooden hammers starting with F# above middle C and the sound fed through a separate amp with custom EQ settings. Gives his upper range more clarity and bite. But for most CC material (Spain etc.), you can get by with a Mark I set with a bit more treble. I prefer the Mark I to the brighter Mark II - it has a bit more ākickā. Use Tremolo to taste, reduce the dynamics in Velvet and maybe use a reduced velocity curve (to avoid the āsplatā) - ready to go!
For George Duke, Iād go with a Mark I as well, but heās been known to hit the keys pretty hard, so a bit of āsplatā is absolutely OK - Iād keep the dynamics range full.
Cheers,
Torsten
2 Likes
Thanks Torsten. This is really helpful.
- Paul
Just want to second Torstens reply that software iLok works well. Never had the least problem with it online or offline.
Just listened to Velvet 2 - sounds great - will be watching for next sale
yeah I agree Velvet sounds okay - but Iāve been bitten twice by iLok. Iāll not make a third mistake!
So far it has, butā¦
Their big disclaimer that significant computer changes can screw you up unless you have deauthorised a license worries me.
As pointed out, most companies allow to licenses per purchase. I think three would be a better number: My DAW PC, my GIG PC, my backup GIG PCā¦
Given I have used a Steinberg eLicenser since Cubase SX (2004?) with no issues, I am probably going to shift my iLOK synths to a USB stick buried inside my gig rack. I can then plug the host hub into a laptop if the worst comes to the worst. ILOK also offer ZERO downtime, which allows you to quickly transfer licenses on an iLOK USB to another registered device.
Interested in the opinions of old stalwarts here on the pros and cons of soft iLOK as opposed to a hardware iLOK. Not so much when it is working, but when it goes wrong? the benefit of two good boards as well, mean I will also have a āreal shit hits the fanā contingency of dropping to Cantabile merely as a MIDI router/backing track player, with the boards doing all the sounds. Wonāt be as good as using the VSTs, but would get you through a gig. Yup. I am that paranoid! 
Soft iLok is mostly stable, but I still occasionally have to reboot computer to get it to reauthorize. Once I do that, it stays stable throughout the gig. I always test at venue before I play just in case.
All copy protection is a P.I.T.A., but I understand why developers do it. People expect developers (and musicians) to work for free. Free music, video, tuition ā¦ somebodyās gotta pay for it.
Be that as it may, with iLok I make sure I have enough licenses for primary laptop, backup laptop, and USB. Iāve got a little hub with eLicenser and iLok in plugged into my studio machine. I throw it in my gig bag just in case.
2 Likes
Thanks for sharing what issues can happen with software iLok. My upgrading has been retiring older laptops with newer ones. I havenāt reworked a machine to the point the authorization fails. A bunch of my iLok authorizations are for AIR Music products that Iāve bought multiple licenses for during sales (Hybrid, Vacuum etc)
1 Like