Also, Paradisi is one of the top quality producers.
Yes it is, and he generally produces very good sample-sets. It was not my intention to criticize Sonus Paradisi. I just wanted to draw a parallel between two sample-sets of very similar organs, whose realization comes from two very different philosophies. I wonder if the current trend to impose surround as a standard is, or not, real progress and that justifies a big price difference, for equipments that are often not able to take advantage of it.
commercial sample sets are generally much much better than free ones
Generally, may be, but not always. The 2 last Piotr Grabowski sample-sets (Giubiasco and Azzio) are free and much better than some expensive sample-sets that I would not want to quote to avoid controversy. And yes over the years, average quality seems to increase. But do not throw the baby with the bathwater.
I guess the audiophiles among us would like to know exactly under what conditions the comparison has been made.
As I wrote in my post, my comparison is based only on the elements I have and is therefore only an approximation. I own the Leens sample-set, but not yet the Midwolda. So I can not be very objective, just give a first impression based on what is available. And over all add some personal reflections on the idea I have of a really useful sample-set.
A crucial question is: what is the weakest link in the chain?
It's perfectly correct and I agree. But even if I'm joking about my "old ears", I think I still have a well exercised hearing and audio material that I have at home is rather high-end.