Thanks Dan! I can upgrade Komplete for $99 and get 3 things I've really wanted...Electric Mint, Prime Bass and Kontakt 7 plus a bunch of other things I don't even know what to do with (yet!) BTW, I think I read that Electric Mint allows exporting MIDI patterns (something I wanted to do with Picked Acoustic.)
Thanks Dan! I can upgrade Komplete for $99 and get 3 things I've really wanted...Electric Mint, Prime Bass and Kontakt 7 plus a bunch of other things I don't even know what to do with (yet!) BTW, I think I read that Electric Mint allows exporting MIDI patterns (something I wanted to do with Picked Acoustic.)
Ya, time for me to update also.
By the way, Electric Mint, Drag and Drop Midi - not exactly how I thought it would be done, but does provide new featured workflow.
Check out the video at 1:59 which walks throught the Midi Drag & Drop feature. This actually provides pre-arranged chord progressions versus having to input them from the DAW or Keyboard. This feature is new to the Session Guitarist Series.
Quote:
I have many ???s
Not surprizing. Kontakt is huge. Between YouTube, the NI website and VI-Control... All of your questions can be answered.
Here is the series as best I recall: 1. Strummed Acoustic (Both I and II) 2. Sunburst (Both Regular and Deluxe) 3. Picked Acoustic 4. Electric Vintage 5. Picked Nylon 6. Electric Mint
We had a chat about this a couple years back here in the forum when Picked Nylon came out. The consensus of BIAB users on this product at the time was very favorable. And that it works well with BIAB.
If it helps, first, I can tell you the price at $49.50 is right.
Otherwise, my decision process for any new VI is "...will I be able to use this in a compositon?" Having said that I have to admit, I have bought some packages simply because they are so cool and fun to play with. But I am happy to say I have used every one of my Session Guitars in my music. But I don't have them all.
I do remember the Electric Vintage and I passed on it at the time (Feb 2021). It is a Telecaster known for its twang country sound. I have owned over a dozen guitars and never bought or played a Tele. So maybe that explains why I passed on it?
I am currently sitting on the fence with the Mint. My current upgrade really only needs Kontakt 7 at $49.50. But I am a Strat guy so the Mint looks cool. But i have not been making much guitar music these days. ?? I will make the decision very soon.
Here is the series as best I recall: 1. Strummed Acoustic (Both I and II) 2. Sunburst (Both Regular and Deluxe) 3. Picked Acoustic 4. Electric Vintage 5. Picked Nylon 6. Electric Mint
We had a chat about this a couple years back here in the forum when Picked Nylon came out. The consensus of BIAB users on this product at the time was very favorable. And that it works well with BIAB.
If it helps, first, I can tell you the price at $49.50 is right.
Otherwise, my decision process for any new VI is "...will I be able to use this in a compositon?" Having said that I have to admit, I have bought some packages simply because they are so cool and fun to play with. But I am happy to say I have used every one of my Session Guitars in my music. But I don't have them all.
I do remember the Electric Vintage and I passed on it at the time (Feb 2021). It is a Telecaster known for its twang country sound. I have owned over a dozen guitars and never bought or played a Tele. So maybe that explains why I passed on it?
I am currently sitting on the fence with the Mint. My current upgrade really only needs Kontakt 7 at $49.50. But I am a Strat guy so the Mint looks cool. But i have not been making much guitar music these days. ?? I will make the decision very soon.
Dan
Thanks for that careful, considered advice. Pretty sure I'll buy it; I currently have a set with a missing piece! Maybe I'll wait a couple more days so I can feel like I didn't just splurge on everything in May.
JJJ, it probably won't hit the card until June if you do it after midnight tonight <grin>
My upgrade price is apparently $199; more than I wanted to spend on surprise notice (just paid a garage door guy a couple hundred tonight ..), and as usual the NI site is not really clear on what I would get for that. If I knew I got the new Kontakt Library (and *something else) I'd likely be thinking about it at work tomorrow.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome Make your sound your own!
My upgrade price is apparently $199; more than I wanted to spend on surprise notice (just paid a garage door guy a couple hundred tonight ..), and as usual the NI site is not really clear on what I would get for that. If I knew I got the new Kontakt Library (and *something else) I'd likely be thinking about it at work tomorrow.
I had mentioned it was a tough decision. But the Kontakt web page does provide much of the info needed. You need to log in. They will know who you are and what you already have. They will tell you exactly what packages you will get for the $199. You just have to push buttons. They will throw in way more than any one person will need or want. Keep in mind you don't have to download everything. The programs will be there for you at anytime in the future. If you see more than 3 or 4 gems you may decide the price is a bargin.
My upgrade price is apparently $199; more than I wanted to spend on surprise notice (just paid a garage door guy a couple hundred tonight ..), and as usual the NI site is not really clear on what I would get for that. If I knew I got the new Kontakt Library (and *something else) I'd likely be thinking about it at work tomorrow.
I had mentioned it was a tough decision. But the Kontakt web page does provide much of the info needed. You need to log in. They will know who you are and what you already have. They will tell you exactly what packages you will get for the $199. You just have to push buttons. They will throw in way more than any one person will need or want. Keep in mind you don't have to download everything. The programs will be there for you at anytime in the future. If you see more than 3 or 4 gems you may decide the price is a bargin.
Good luck. Dan
They do a poor job of showing what you'll get that is new vs. what you already have (probably intentionally!) So, what I did was go here, https://www.native-instruments.com/en/products/komplete/bundles/komplete-14-standard/compare/ and look down the text list of included items under Standard (I had KOMPLETE 13 Standard). I loaded Native Access and installed everything I own then made myself a text file of all the items listed on the webpage that I did not already have in Native Access. Then, I could quickly see that I was going to get 30+ new items including KONTAKT 7 and 3 Session instruments I've been wanting. My upgrade price was only $99.50+tax so it ended up being a no-brainer for me (very fortunate since lately I'm kind of a no-brain sort of fella!)
There is a link called "Whats New for Me?" which itemizes what is available in V14 Standard vrs what was in V13 Standard. I thought that was pretty well laid out showing me what I would get for the $99.50. That would get me Kontakt 7, Mint, Prime Bass plus a lots of additions stuff I have no intention of downloading at this time.
For $299 I could have updated from Standard 13 to Ultimate 14 - then I would have gotten a lot of stuff I would have downloaded: Nylon, Vintage, Alica Keys, Colors, Horns Pro 1 and 2, Damage, Action strikes 1 and 2, along with the whole orchestral esstential series of classical instruments. Would certainly be worth the money, but I could not say all would end up in my recordings since I have a lot of equivalent libraries.
By the way, I have been working with Mint and have an arrangement in the works.
Windows 10 (64bit) M-Audio Fast Track Pro, Band in a Box 2025, Cubase 14, Cakewalk and far too many VST plugins that I probably don't need or will ever use
Windows 10 (64bit) M-Audio Fast Track Pro, Band in a Box 2025, Cubase 14, Cakewalk and far too many VST plugins that I probably don't need or will ever use
Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Windows Special Offers End Tomorrow (January 15th, 2026) at 11:59 PM PST!
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In this video, we explore the updated Piano Roll, complete with a modernized look and exciting new features. You’ll see new filtering options that make it easy to focus on specific note groups, smoother and more intuitive note entry and editing, and enhanced options for zooming, looping, and more.
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe
This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.
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MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
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Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
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