(03-25-2018, 02:59 PM)Lee B. James Wrote: Well I just like the idea of having the most efficient files possible, and if I "oversample" the files might be three times bigger than necessary. (And possibly far more if I "oversample" the velocities too.)
I'm not saying it would be easy, but I'm sure it must be possible for software to detect where the original samples lie. Just a matter of comparing the waveforms, although I'm sure there's more to it than that in practice.
That's what makes it impossible. You see, different samplers and ROMplers map samples differently. Imagine one where the samples are recorded every C and G. There are some where they simply stretch the note up to the note below the next sample (lazy, but saves a little space/time). There are also some that do the opposite. Then there are some which stretch it both ways to the halfway point, and round that position up. Then there are some that do that, but round the position down. Then there are people that just "do it by feel" and may stretch one note more than usual and another less because that note isn't as good and they don't want it to appear as much.
Every simple way you could do it in software would be wrong in one of those cases. The only way to know which is right (unless you have whoever engineered the sampler/ROMpler on hand) is to sample them all, and then pick what sounds best. Alternately, you can just pick any one of the 'identical' (just repitched) sounds at random, then stretch it to fill that whole area, but technically that is not correct, as if the sampler/ROMpler has a very bad converter, it could be introducing unwanted artifacts.
I'm going to give a 95% prediction the piano doesn't actually have sampled velocity layers but instead puts a lowpass filter on the loudest sound to make it sound softer when played softly. These are easy to set up in the software sampler of choice, and to tie them to the velocity of the note.
(03-25-2018, 02:59 PM)Lee B. James Wrote: First of all, thanks for the sound card recommendations.
Bearing in mind I know nothing about sound cards... When you say that even entry-level "professional devices" are leagues ahead of consumer sound cards, are you talking specifically about brands like Focusrite, Behringer, Presonus, Steinberg, Tascam, Mackie, and M-Audio? Truth be told, I wouldn't know any of these brand names apart from a consumer-grade one.
You mention recording. But that isn't something I do. I don't sing or play an instrument. All my music is on the keyboard, and now in the DAW. So who knows, maybe a consumer-grade sound card would suffice? I'm definitely looking for low-budget options.
Yes, any one of those brands will produce decent hardware- some better than others, or so folks say.
Consumer sound brands (Creative, Asus, etc.) and consumer sound offerings from those companies have poorer tolerances, lower performance in all areas, poorer conversion, lack quality preamps, do not support ASIO (the thing which gives very low latency), and are not built to last. There is a noticeable difference- I started out using a top-of-the-line Prosumer card from Creative and even the Focusrite Scarlett absolutely smashed the performance of that. Furthermore, Consumer cards almost universally don't have MIDI input and output, which means they would never work if you want to use keyboards from your computer (unless you want to buy a MIDI interface- MOTU makes a few small ones). If you ever decide to get decent headphones, professional devices have good amplifiers designed to handle better headphones. Lastly, consumer cards are generally designed to "modify" and "tweak" the sound going in and coming out of your system, while professional cards are generally designed to be as 'transparent' as possible, that is, to not affect the sound in any way.
Most consumer cards now are for gamers. They tend to go into a PCIe slot and have 1/8" headphone jack-style plugs on the back, occasionally some RCA jacks (the red and white round ones with the single pin in the middle). Professional cards are almost always external, USB-type devices which you can put on your desk (rather than buried behind your computer), which have 1/4" headphone jack-style connectors for headphones and outputs, and combination XLR-1/4" connectors for the mic preamplifier/inputs, so you can plug both microphones and other equipment into them. Almost all of them have MIDI capability (always look at pictures of the back to check for the MIDI ports). For what you get out of the box, a consumer card is over-priced and under-performing 99.9% of the time, while the professional devices tend to be a bit closer to their equipment cost.
My rule of thumb is- if it isn't on Sweetwater, it's probably not a piece of pro audio equipment. Granted, they don't carry everything on there (especially some of the more boutique brands), they for the most part don't carry any consumer products.
I strongly believe that if you want to do a decent sampling of anything, you will need a decent interface. I'm not advocating you go out there and spend $700, but any one of those interfaces in the $100-200 range I mentioned (or didn't mention) would suffice.
Regarding recording, you never know where music will take you. If you want to score games/films or write for clients, you will need to have a skype call at some point. If you want to make a youtube video tutorial some day when you know a lot and might wish to share some of that knowledge, you will need a decent mic and a low-latency interface. Maybe you might get a physical piano or inherit a fretless zither or psaltery from someone and decide to sample that, or record it for a track. Maybe an old friend will mention their quartet needs someone to record them and you just happen to have your trusty interface. Six years ago I would have said the same exact thing as you, but now I own several thousand dollars in recording equipment and go around the country sampling things. Music is a game of opportunities which play out over time. The more you can capture, the more you can justify calling it your career to the IRS.
Sample library developer, composer, and amateur organologist at Versilian Studios.
