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Hi all,
I wondered if people had recommendations for saxophone samples/samplers.
My own main interest will be jazz-ish, but commendations for other genres would likely also be of interest.
Gordon.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
Kawai MP6, Korg M50, Ui24R, Saffire Pro 40.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11; Win8.1: Scarletts
BIAB2022 UltraPAK, Reaper, a bunch of stuff.
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The best sax sounding VST I have found is the Swam Saxes: https://audiomodeling.com/swam-engine/solo-woodwinds/swam-saxophones/Not cheap but IMHO the best sounding and the easiest to add nuances that make the sax sound real. The following are good but not great and also less expensive: https://www.garritan.com/products/jazz-big-band-3/If you have the full version of Kontakt then this one: https://vgtrumpet.com/product/vg-jazz-alto-saxophone/These are the only three sax programs that actually sound like a sax. I'm sure there are others but these are the ones that I have kept in my tool box.
Me, it's not about how many times you fail, it's about how many times you get back up.
Cop, that's not how field sobriety tests work.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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These are the only three sax programs that actually sound like a sax.
We have a jazz trumpeter who mentors us and he sometimes, very mischievously, refers to saxophones as kazoos. With some sampled instruments I kind of agree with him. I was at first disappointed that SWAM had so little sound demo on their site, but YouTube searches turned up stuff pretty quickly. It took a while to find one with a MIDI wind controller, but when I did, it's very close to real-sounding. Impressive. What I might not have spotted without someone commenting on it was the absence of transitions between samples, but I think that's important. The portamento control is neat. From an EWI it was quite hard to confidently tell it from the real thing. I do have the full Kontakt, so VG are a possible. I listened to most of the sax libraries and they were all pretty good. Quite a lot lower cost than SWAM, but... The Garritan library offers quite a few other instruments that would be nice to have, though I already have good instruments for quite a few. Blue Street Brass, Pianoteq acoustics and electrics, Various jazz & world percussion, so it would be duplicating really. Thanks Mario; most useful. Gordon.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
Kawai MP6, Korg M50, Ui24R, Saffire Pro 40.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11; Win8.1: Scarletts
BIAB2022 UltraPAK, Reaper, a bunch of stuff.
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Gordon, do you have an EWI?
I use an EWI USB wind controller for horns myself.
Me, it's not about how many times you fail, it's about how many times you get back up.
Cop, that's not how field sobriety tests work.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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I don't. I've wondered.
My only wind instrument practice has been a little with recorders and harmonica from years and years ago. I still pick up the fingering fairly quickly, though, so I have wondered if I could manage an EWI.
Sometimes I wonder whether learning another instrument would help my wider understanding and abilities, or just confuse the whatever out of me.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
Kawai MP6, Korg M50, Ui24R, Saffire Pro 40.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11; Win8.1: Scarletts
BIAB2022 UltraPAK, Reaper, a bunch of stuff.
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I am a guitarist first, bassist second, EWI third, and a keyboardist fourth. I view music differently for each instrument so yes using a wind controller can help but it is not a necessity.
For instance with the Swam saxes you can use an expression pedal for volume, mod wheel for vibrato, and the pitch bend wheel for, wait for it, pitch bends. If you have a MIDI keyboard controller with assignable sliders and knobs they could be assigned to different nuances like growl, over blow, etc. You can do more simultaneously with your keyboards, especially if you have a MIDI keyboard controller, than I can do with my EWI. I have to do overdubs with my MIDI keyboard controller to get what you can get in one setting.
Note that Garritan and VG saxophones uses the mod wheel for expression so you loose the vibrato ability. You may be able to change that but it has been a long time since I have used them.
Last edited by MarioD; 01/10/22 04:45 AM.
Me, it's not about how many times you fail, it's about how many times you get back up.
Cop, that's not how field sobriety tests work.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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There's always the option to add some of those expressions later. I doubt I'd cope with more than two live anyway, certainly in the shorter term.
Where an EWI appeals is that it's often possible to play notes more quickly than on a piano, partly because there's less movement, partly because I have weighted keys that simply won't respond quite as quickly as the EWI would. I suspect that's rather less true with larger instruments playing lower registers ... Tenor maybe, Baritone almost certainly.
I have plenty of MIDI controller keyboards, so that bit's easy.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
Kawai MP6, Korg M50, Ui24R, Saffire Pro 40.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11; Win8.1: Scarletts
BIAB2022 UltraPAK, Reaper, a bunch of stuff.
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OK I see your point. If I were you I would purchase an EWI USB. You can play it very fast, been there done that.
Note that you are not limited to horns or wood winds. Any MIDI patch can be played with it.
Good luck.
Me, it's not about how many times you fail, it's about how many times you get back up.
Cop, that's not how field sobriety tests work.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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I use an EWI USB wind controller for horns myself. I continue to be curious about those things. Do you even need to blow into it to play a note? There's a MIDI soprano recorder out there you can play by just tapping the holes.
Last edited by Mark Hayes; 01/10/22 07:17 AM.
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I use an EWI USB wind controller for horns myself. I continue to be curious about those things. Do you even need to blow into it to play a note? There's a MIDI soprano recorder out there you can play by just tapping the holes. Yes, you have to blow into it, that controls the volume. Thus the harder you blow the louder your sound will be. You also have to finger it. It comes with a number of possible finger configurations. Since I used to play the trumpet I use the trumpet like fingerings. I know there are sax and flute fingerings and possible more, check on their web site. It has plates and bite control that you can configure to control just about an parameter available in your sound source. I use the bite control for vibrato and the plates for pitch bends. Since it looks like a clarinet think of it like a clarinet where you have to blow into it as well as finger it. I hope this helps.
Me, it's not about how many times you fail, it's about how many times you get back up.
Cop, that's not how field sobriety tests work.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jun 2021
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Expert
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I use an EWI USB wind controller for horns myself. I continue to be curious about those things. Do you even need to blow into it to play a note? There's a MIDI soprano recorder out there you can play by just tapping the holes. Yes, you have to blow into it, that controls the volume. Thus the harder you blow the louder your sound will be. You also have to finger it. It comes with a number of possible finger configurations. Since I used to play the trumpet I use the trumpet like fingerings. I know there are sax and flute fingerings and possible more, check on their web site. It has plates and bite control that you can configure to control just about an parameter available in your sound source. I use the bite control for vibrato and the plates for pitch bends. Since it looks like a clarinet think of it like a clarinet where you have to blow into it as well as finger it. I hope this helps. Thanks for the info, Mario. I had this idea of using a pedal to handle the breath control, then you could sing and accompany yourself on clarinet or whatever. Trying to imagine how that would look onstage.
Last edited by Mark Hayes; 01/10/22 09:20 AM.
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