Good Kontakt library for jazzy brass?

[nOkbient]

Title. I need some good big band or jazzy brass for an Undertale remix I may or may not be working on? There's Broadway Big Band, but it's 100 gigs soooo...yeah. Any recommendations? 

[AngelCityOutlaw]

There is one that I believe is called session horns pro and it was pretty impressive and not too pricey. I'd link to it, but it's a real bitch on this phone.

[Nabeel Ansari]

EDIT: http://www.samplemodeling.com/en/products.php

Nothing better.

[ShadowRaz]

Edit. did not read properly  as AngelCityOutlaw pointed same but yeah, Session Horns from Native Instruments, not that big of an library and still maintains really good quality for more jazzy horns on my opinion

http://www.native-instruments.com/en/products/komplete/orchestral-cinematic/session-horns/

I love everything from Native Instruments

[djpretzel]

Just an FYI, there's Session Horns & Session Horns "Pro" - the first I think is included with Komplete whereas the second is an upgrade?

Anyhow, they're both good, and better than Vir2 Mojo Horns, imo. There's also Project SAM "Swing!" which is fun and has some other sounds as well, but for straight up jazz/pop horns, I feel like Session Horns / Pro are probably the best option.

Samplemodeling Trumpet is great but doesn't really get you a section...

[Nabeel Ansari]

27 minutes ago, djpretzel said:

Samplemodeling Trumpet is great but doesn't really get you a section...

Was referring to their whole line of brass.

[nOkbient]

Thanks for the feedback! Will def take a looksee at these

[djpretzel]

@Neblix My bad, I associate them more with that specific instrument... even so, isn't each library modeled solo, so you'd have to handle all the elements of voicing a section manually? One of the nice things Session Horns does is offer preset section variations... not as dynamic a sound, which is key for REALLY convincing & difficult parts, but it makes getting a certain sound considerably easier...

[lazygecko]

Session Horns might be in bundled with Komplete now, I dunno, but as a Komplete 8 owner I had to purchase it.

Brass sample libraries usually rack up an insane amount of gigabytes since these are some of the most wildly expressive instruments in existance, with a ton of different articulations you need to account for. That's why it probably makes more sense to approach virtual brass via physical modeling synthesis rather than sampling. I think there are a couple of those on the market.

[Nabeel Ansari]

First of all, to clear up since most people are too lazy to google before posting and are just saying "I think", Session Horns is in Komplete, and Session Horns Pro is in Komplete Ultimate.

4 hours ago, djpretzel said:

@Neblix My bad, I associate them more with that specific instrument... even so, isn't each library modeled solo, so you'd have to handle all the elements of voicing a section manually? One of the nice things Session Horns does is offer preset section variations... not as dynamic a sound, which is key for REALLY convincing & difficult parts, but it makes getting a certain sound considerably easier...

I wasn't actually directly comparing all brass libraries ever to Sample Modelling when I said "nothing better", but as far as Session Horns is concerned:

1) The samples don't have as good a quality and depth. They sound a bit too flatulent. xP

2) Yes, preset sections are nice. But despite this, I think the sound quality of Sample Modelling beats it out.

3) Lack of legato is always a deal breaker for me. Especially in instruments so expressive... no clever fades or wet cover-ups ever sound better than real transitions.

That being said, I do recommend Session Horns Pro and not Session Horns. It's a way better value and has much more to offer.

[Moseph]

If you're thinking of getting Session Horns, be aware that the non-Pro version doesn't have solo instruments -- it uses an ensemble set up where the instruments that play are determined by the range you play in. Great for fast sketching, not great for detailed arrangements.

[dannthr]

You can write section work with the Sample Modeling Brass--it really is an incredible library--but there will be some challenges involved with getting good placement/spatialization (at least to my satisfaction) and there's plenty of risk of phase issues with unison.

However, there's always risk of phase issues with unison brass--virtual or real.

There are, however, NO GOOD SAXOPHONE libraries out there, no matter what anyone tells you.  A saxophone is about as difficult to virtualize as a solo violin--Henry Mancini considered the saxophone to be the most versatile instrument in the entire wind section, and that wasn't just a lot of hot air.

My recommendation is Sample-Modeling MIXED with a good jazzy ensemble brass section library.  Remember that eras in big-band and swing were defined by their voicing, so make sure you have control over that. 

And since you're spending all that cold hard cash, I would reserve some of that for a couple of live musicians, they're cheaper than you think--no that didn't sound right... they're more valuable than you can imagine... yeah, that's better.

[Neifion]

10 hours ago, dannthr said:

There are, however, NO GOOD SAXOPHONE libraries out there, no matter what anyone tells you.  A saxophone is about as difficult to virtualize as a solo violin--Henry Mancini considered the saxophone to be the most versatile instrument in the entire wind section, and that wasn't just a lot of hot air.

Nothing is going to beat a great live player, but I think I got pretty good results from Embertone's Sensual Sax (sax begins at 1:13):
"Lost Level" - Tom Vs. The Armies of Hell OST

 

[dannthr]

The Embertone has a very NARROW usage, similarly, the VSL Saxophones are perfect for the rare classical saxophone sound--between all the libraries out there, there's probably most everything you'll want to do with a sax--likewise with the violin--but wants to mix and match that much?

[Neifion]

3 hours ago, dannthr said:

The Embertone has a very NARROW usage, similarly, the VSL Saxophones are perfect for the rare classical saxophone sound--between all the libraries out there, there's probably most everything you'll want to do with a sax--likewise with the violin--but wants to mix and match that much?

True, but I think most people pick a couple of styles they're comfortable with instead of attempting every possible style out there. It's not unreasonable to have two or three libraries that give you a good sound and workflow for the style you're currently working in. The best libraries are the ones designed toward a certain approach of writing instead of trying to be good at everything.

[dannthr]

Agreed, and many libraries are passable--but the best saxophone library is niche and passable.

For example, I would assert that the Sample Modeling saxes are fairly passable, despite the fact that the SM approach is basically about as good as it gets and results in a truly flexible and programmable instrument, their woodwinds sound like they were played with very hard, plastic reeds and this bugs me.

The same for the WIVI woodwinds.

Straight sampled saxes sound like one would expect, a stitching of multiple recordings, but because the instrument has so much flexibility, the timbral phrasing is either inconsistent from sample to sample (or sample group to sample group) so as to create an unnatural transition from timbre to timbre; or they only recorded one timbral feel and thus is usable for only one kind of thing and can not fluidly move through timbres (which sounds boring or unnatural depending on how the user has phrased/programmed the work).