A little while ago, I was asked to be as a beta tester for the upcoming PAB (Palace of Arts Budapest) sample set. I have been very busy since working on demos and putting the organ through its paces. Since a lot of people are asking questions about this organ, I made it a point to get permission to write up my impressions about it so far.
Before I go into too much detail, let me just say that my final verdict on this organ is very positive. When I heard the first demos, I was concerned by the rather dry acoustics. That didn't change when I first loaded it, either. After playing so much of the Metz and Hinsz, I had become used to the huge acoustic. I've spent a lot of time lately working on some of my pieces, and I've been surprised at how quickly my ears have adjusted. The sample set is not a "dry set." All the samples have been recorded in stereo with the hall acoustics intact; however, because of non-cathedral nature of the hall, the acoustics are much more subdued than some wetter sample sets.
Over the last few days, I have come to greatly appreciate the clarity and richness of tone that this sample set delivers. All of this is not to say that it's not nice to have a lush acoustic. Fortunately, with this sample set, you don't necessarily have to compromise the lush acoustic for all the other goodies this sample set has to offer. I'll touch on that a bit later.
The thing I like most about this sample set is the massive tonal palette at the organist's disposal. I recently recorded a piece that called for 8' Strings, 8', 4' Flutes accompanying an 8' Harmonic Flute and an 8' Bourdon. Both the Great and Swell have an 8' Harmonic Flute and an 8' Bourdon. The solo division also has the tonal resources to render a similar combination beautifully. There was no shortage of soft string / celeste combinations for solo accompaniment. That amounts to 3 distinctly different yet still completely accurate ensembles I could have used to interpret this piece. I also recorded Fox's "Nun Danket" which starts relatively light and works up to full organ in the end. Anyone who has seen the score knows that this piece is incredibly demanding in terms of registration. Even on the largest sample sets currently available, multiple significant compromises have to be made in the registration of this piece. In contrast, the PAB had everything this piece called for with some headroom for creative additions. I can't tell you how nice it is to actually have stops like a 10 2/3' in the pedal when a piece calls for it! One mark of a world-class organ is not only to be able to register a wide range of pieces with little to no compromise, but also to be able to do so in slightly different ways. From what I've experienced, that would accurately describe this sample set.
The second item which I believe deserves mention is the many features on this organ, and the level of detail with which these features have been implemented. This organ has two enclosed divisions which accurately replicate the original organ's unusually dynamic swell boxes. A welcome change from the current status-quo is the availability of so many flexible couplers. The solo, swell, and positive have unison sub and super couplers, and there are even more options for sub and super coupling between manuals. The PAB organ also has 2 configurable crescendos, which are surprisingly useful due to its large tonal resources. On some smaller instruments, the crescendo is less useful because the changes in registration are about as subtle as a shovel to the face. With the PAB, the crescendo produces a subtle buildup that one could actually consider using in a performance. The highly professional console, stop jamb, and crescendo pages also deserve mention. The PAB sets the bar a few notches higher for virtual organ graphics. The entire console was modeled in 3D, and the appropriate views were rendered using this model. The end result is an amazing virtual console and stop jamb pages that are a pleasure to use. The indicator lights on stops are also very practical without looking too "digital."
The quality of the samples is top notch. The samples are clear, colorful, and convincing. The organ is also very well balanced. I was particularly impressed with the 32' stops in the pedal. The Soubasse is perfect for the final chord of a soft piece. It is subtle yet crystal clear. The 32' Bombarde sounds just right. I'm also thrilled to have a full compass for a change (time to start learning Lemare's transcription of "Ride of the Valkyries"!)
Price
This sample set screams quality from top to bottom, and that brings me to one of the most important points: price. Currently, sample sets range from about $5 - $25 / stop. From what I've heard, you generally get what you pay for, but that is certainly not always the case. In terms of sound and "look-and-feel", the PAB seems like a very high-end sample set, yet it weighs in at less than $10/stop! Some have suggested that the price of this sample set should be brought down even further. To this I would respectfully disagree. Though we'd all like super cheap sample sets, our colleagues in Hungary have to eat, too. We all have to make a living, and I'd say that the price of the PAB is a steal as it is.
Acoustics
Coming back to where we started, one of the biggest concerns about this organ is the relatively dry acoustics. For me, it's taken a few days to adjust, but I've come to enjoy the out-of-the-box sound of the organ just fine. Having said that, a bigger acoustic is really not that hard to get. I recently tried micdev's tutorial on Sonar & Pristine Space using demo software. The results were very promising! Micdev's tutorial is very well written, and I'd say that anyone that is willing to take the time to go through his step-by-step tutorial would be able to get up and running easily. Also, now that Martin is able to dedicate more time to heads-down programming, I would imagine that the native convolver will be forthcoming sooner rather than later.
If you don't already think that this an absolute must-have sample set, I can't see how the ability to have effective reverb wouldn't make this set a no-brainer for the fence-sitters. I've determined that Sonar and Pristine Space would cost about $350 if you shop around. I'm planning on ordering the software soon. If you went this route, this organ would cost you $1,250 (though the reverb could be applied to any organ). That's still a steal. To get an idea of how effective convolution reverb is on this sample set, listen to Max Reger's Benedictus performed with truncated releases and convolved reverb.
Conclusion
The reason I decided to write this mini-review is because this set has grown on me so much in the time that I've been testing and preparing demos. I was one of the most skeptical earlier (just look at some of the other PAB threads). Now that I've had some hands on time, it's clear to me that this sample set is underrated, and not getting the credit it deserves. That is my only angle in writing these remarks. I am not being paid for my testing or demos.
I think that the folks at Inspired Acoustics will be the first ones to own up to the fact that the sample set's release could have been handled differently, but I think Hauptwerk users would be doing themselves a major disservice by passing on this sample set because of that. I do know that it's important for users to have as much information (demos and otherwise) at their disposal in order to make purchasing decisions. That is the sole aim of this review and any sound bytes that I may be able to produce.
All in all, the PAB is a fantastic sample set. The sounds are top-notch. The console and stop jamb graphics are way ahead of their time. The price is a steal. The semi-dry nature of this sample set makes it suitable for practice, installation in churches/concert halls, and the addition of convolution reverb. For anyone that's sitting on the fence about this organ due to acoustics or lack of demos, (though I'm sure more will be forthcoming), if my experience is any indicator, it would be hard to go wrong with this sample set.
Before I go into too much detail, let me just say that my final verdict on this organ is very positive. When I heard the first demos, I was concerned by the rather dry acoustics. That didn't change when I first loaded it, either. After playing so much of the Metz and Hinsz, I had become used to the huge acoustic. I've spent a lot of time lately working on some of my pieces, and I've been surprised at how quickly my ears have adjusted. The sample set is not a "dry set." All the samples have been recorded in stereo with the hall acoustics intact; however, because of non-cathedral nature of the hall, the acoustics are much more subdued than some wetter sample sets.
Over the last few days, I have come to greatly appreciate the clarity and richness of tone that this sample set delivers. All of this is not to say that it's not nice to have a lush acoustic. Fortunately, with this sample set, you don't necessarily have to compromise the lush acoustic for all the other goodies this sample set has to offer. I'll touch on that a bit later.
The thing I like most about this sample set is the massive tonal palette at the organist's disposal. I recently recorded a piece that called for 8' Strings, 8', 4' Flutes accompanying an 8' Harmonic Flute and an 8' Bourdon. Both the Great and Swell have an 8' Harmonic Flute and an 8' Bourdon. The solo division also has the tonal resources to render a similar combination beautifully. There was no shortage of soft string / celeste combinations for solo accompaniment. That amounts to 3 distinctly different yet still completely accurate ensembles I could have used to interpret this piece. I also recorded Fox's "Nun Danket" which starts relatively light and works up to full organ in the end. Anyone who has seen the score knows that this piece is incredibly demanding in terms of registration. Even on the largest sample sets currently available, multiple significant compromises have to be made in the registration of this piece. In contrast, the PAB had everything this piece called for with some headroom for creative additions. I can't tell you how nice it is to actually have stops like a 10 2/3' in the pedal when a piece calls for it! One mark of a world-class organ is not only to be able to register a wide range of pieces with little to no compromise, but also to be able to do so in slightly different ways. From what I've experienced, that would accurately describe this sample set.
The second item which I believe deserves mention is the many features on this organ, and the level of detail with which these features have been implemented. This organ has two enclosed divisions which accurately replicate the original organ's unusually dynamic swell boxes. A welcome change from the current status-quo is the availability of so many flexible couplers. The solo, swell, and positive have unison sub and super couplers, and there are even more options for sub and super coupling between manuals. The PAB organ also has 2 configurable crescendos, which are surprisingly useful due to its large tonal resources. On some smaller instruments, the crescendo is less useful because the changes in registration are about as subtle as a shovel to the face. With the PAB, the crescendo produces a subtle buildup that one could actually consider using in a performance. The highly professional console, stop jamb, and crescendo pages also deserve mention. The PAB sets the bar a few notches higher for virtual organ graphics. The entire console was modeled in 3D, and the appropriate views were rendered using this model. The end result is an amazing virtual console and stop jamb pages that are a pleasure to use. The indicator lights on stops are also very practical without looking too "digital."
The quality of the samples is top notch. The samples are clear, colorful, and convincing. The organ is also very well balanced. I was particularly impressed with the 32' stops in the pedal. The Soubasse is perfect for the final chord of a soft piece. It is subtle yet crystal clear. The 32' Bombarde sounds just right. I'm also thrilled to have a full compass for a change (time to start learning Lemare's transcription of "Ride of the Valkyries"!)
Price
This sample set screams quality from top to bottom, and that brings me to one of the most important points: price. Currently, sample sets range from about $5 - $25 / stop. From what I've heard, you generally get what you pay for, but that is certainly not always the case. In terms of sound and "look-and-feel", the PAB seems like a very high-end sample set, yet it weighs in at less than $10/stop! Some have suggested that the price of this sample set should be brought down even further. To this I would respectfully disagree. Though we'd all like super cheap sample sets, our colleagues in Hungary have to eat, too. We all have to make a living, and I'd say that the price of the PAB is a steal as it is.
Acoustics
Coming back to where we started, one of the biggest concerns about this organ is the relatively dry acoustics. For me, it's taken a few days to adjust, but I've come to enjoy the out-of-the-box sound of the organ just fine. Having said that, a bigger acoustic is really not that hard to get. I recently tried micdev's tutorial on Sonar & Pristine Space using demo software. The results were very promising! Micdev's tutorial is very well written, and I'd say that anyone that is willing to take the time to go through his step-by-step tutorial would be able to get up and running easily. Also, now that Martin is able to dedicate more time to heads-down programming, I would imagine that the native convolver will be forthcoming sooner rather than later.
If you don't already think that this an absolute must-have sample set, I can't see how the ability to have effective reverb wouldn't make this set a no-brainer for the fence-sitters. I've determined that Sonar and Pristine Space would cost about $350 if you shop around. I'm planning on ordering the software soon. If you went this route, this organ would cost you $1,250 (though the reverb could be applied to any organ). That's still a steal. To get an idea of how effective convolution reverb is on this sample set, listen to Max Reger's Benedictus performed with truncated releases and convolved reverb.
Conclusion
The reason I decided to write this mini-review is because this set has grown on me so much in the time that I've been testing and preparing demos. I was one of the most skeptical earlier (just look at some of the other PAB threads). Now that I've had some hands on time, it's clear to me that this sample set is underrated, and not getting the credit it deserves. That is my only angle in writing these remarks. I am not being paid for my testing or demos.
I think that the folks at Inspired Acoustics will be the first ones to own up to the fact that the sample set's release could have been handled differently, but I think Hauptwerk users would be doing themselves a major disservice by passing on this sample set because of that. I do know that it's important for users to have as much information (demos and otherwise) at their disposal in order to make purchasing decisions. That is the sole aim of this review and any sound bytes that I may be able to produce.
All in all, the PAB is a fantastic sample set. The sounds are top-notch. The console and stop jamb graphics are way ahead of their time. The price is a steal. The semi-dry nature of this sample set makes it suitable for practice, installation in churches/concert halls, and the addition of convolution reverb. For anyone that's sitting on the fence about this organ due to acoustics or lack of demos, (though I'm sure more will be forthcoming), if my experience is any indicator, it would be hard to go wrong with this sample set.
Rob Stefanussen