Quote:

Mac is right, you have them a little mixed up

Coyote is the maker, Forte is their GM synth that they sell, which uses samples, and can be upgraded by importing your own samples in the Giga format. It comes in both VSTi and DXi format.

Coyote's Wavetable synth which is included in Biab 2010, is different from the Forte product, and is a similar product to the old Microsoft synth GS, and neither is as clear sounding as the forte synth. This synth is a wavetable version of the other product much like Microsoft synth GS is a wavetable of some other synth from long ago. made for basic midi replay. ..



It is no secret who made the Microsoft GS Synth. It is clearly licensed from Roland, and is labeled as such. The GS in the title even gives that away. In a way then, it is a stripped down VSC. (VSC can also be installed as a systemwide synth, replacing the Microsoft Synth.)

The only thing about that is-- VSC has not been developed further in several years. I don't know if the Microsoft Synth has been developed further, with new versions of Windows. (I haven't tried it in a while, don't know.) So it is not inconceivable that the MS-Roland-GS synth in 2010, might possible be better than VSC, which is very old. I don't know.

I don't know either about the two Coyote synths. It would be surprising to me, that Coyote would use a synth that is no different than the Microsoft synth. For one thing, I am sure that the Microsoft synth comes with Win 64 versions. So, why not just use that then--already installed in the OS? Also, I would think that Coyote would have to pay Microsoft and/or Roland to get the GS synth. Why would they do that?

The Coyote Forte DXI synth, stopped development years ago, AFAIK, at version 1.6. Therefore, I thought that perhaps as a discontinued software, they license it cheaply to PGMusic as Coyote WT.

(Note--I am not implying that what I wrote about the two Coyote synths are fact. As I wrote, I don't know. Just sharing some thoughts.)


By the way, yet another idea for a GM softsynth.


Papelmedia makes an excellent very large soundfont that includes a full GM synth. You can now buy it and download it for less than 20 euros. (Not sure of the exchange rate now, but I would guess less than US $30.)

You would then need a Soundfont player to use it with BIAB. It comes with one, Synthfont, I think, but I think that that is shareware, and eventually won't work any more without payment. SFZ is a good soundfont player that is totally free. In fact, now from the Cakewalk store, one can download SFZ+ for free. (The plus version used to cost, but is now free as well.) (If you have a Soundblaster card, that has some kind of built-in Soundfont capability, but I don't think suitable to load a large soundfont like Papelmedia.

I recently bought and downloaded the papelmedia GM Soundfont, although I haven't yet tried it. Two versions of the full GM soundfont come in the package-- on one the size is reported as being 266,291 KB (not sure of the exact MB translation--250?), the other (with XXL added to the name) as 1,263,738 KB. (In other words, more than a GB.) I am not sure what is different about the XXL soundfont--more sounds, better sounds, or both? Besides those two large multi-soundfonts containing full GM sets, an individual soundfont for each instrument is also included, both in regular and XXL versions. (For use with BIAB though, use the full GM set soundfont, either regular or XXL.)

I am really quite OK with using TTS (I have Sonar) with BIAB, but for the low price, including so much, I thought I would try the Papelmedia soundfont as well. I'll do a review when I try it. (I have seen very good reviews of it.) (If anyone else here tries it before I do, please review.)

I looked in the program folder of Coyote WT, and as some have said, there are no samples there, so perhaps correct, that it just turns the Microsoft GS Synth into a DXI. I am not sure how valuable that is. I have the coyote forte product as well (although I haven't been using it lately, but only TTS for GM), and that program folder includes about 170 MB of samples. So, my assumption about it was incorrect. (I think I will uninstall Coyote WT. I think too, that BIAB should not install it by default, as it does. Nice to have it available, for those that want it, but most people already have other GM synths, and all Windows users already have the Microsoft GS Synth. (And Apple users have the QuickTime synth, also by Roland.)