Hello guys, this is a message from team reviewer: The piano samples you used sound relatively outdated and/or artificial for this kind of production. You need to replace them with better, more natural sounding samples. If you’re able to do so, we’ll be happy to consider it again.
So i try to change sample. I used alicia keys piano first time , Now i change with Grandeur ad I try a better mix and better mastering. I have only Kontakt 11 ultimate pianos. Here the soundcloud file.
(0,0)First track the original, (2,00) second resampled)
Thank you!!
Love the composition! The second version is surely better, Alicia’s Keys has so much harshness and nagging frequencies in the 1k-3k area it’s almost impossible to make use of it.
The rule of thumb is to to stay away from NI as much as you can (my personal rule)
Interesting feedback. Personally, I like the Grandeur samples better, but I prefer the mix of the first one. I like the warmer reverb because the second one is a bit too ‘spaced out’ for the style of music. Perhaps play with the tempo a little bit to make it sound more like a human performance. I think the rigid tempo makes it sound a little bit computerised. Also, try it with The Gentleman too and see if you prefer it… I think a nice upright would suit this style more than a big Steinway grand.
I must agree a smaller piano would be a better fit for this kind of music. But I always struggle endlessly with EQ when I use Alicia’s Keys, Maverick or Gentleman. Maybe that is what the reviewer meant with “outdated samples” since they are not as “clean” sounding as we’re used to hear in corporate genre for example.
Maybe these pianos just don’t fit my production style or I don’t know… I would love to hear from others how you all use your pianos to make them more suitable for AJ and pleasant to ears… I am certainly one of those who attack every tone of the piano with the narrowest Q in my eq plugin and try to eliminate the painful stuff while trying to preserve life of the sound.
I hear you! I just spent the best part of 5 months making a solo piano album and it’s been a hair-tearing experience! But I must admit, I’ve never actually used any of the NI pianos in a project. I suggested The Gentleman because I know Ugo has it and I thought a small intimate sound might work better for the track, but perhaps that intimate sound can be achieved by using a larger piano with a tighter reverb and eq though if The Gentleman samples sound poor. Perhaps The Giant might be worth a try? I’ve read better reviews about it…
(my personal rule)