Dimension Pro & Rapture ?

1. Does anyone know what the difference is between Dimension Pro & Rapture?

2. I'm a guitarist with very limited keyboard finesse and I would like to play basic backing chords & melodies with my midi controller thru SONAR....
Most importantly my midi-controller needs better sounds than what a PC and my sound card offers, which program would be better?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or answers!

First of all, there is a demo for rapture. I would highly suggest downloading it and seeing for yourself what is there.

Dimension Pro is basically a sampler that is also a very capable synth. But if your emphasis is on realistic piano patches, flutes, etc. this is the way to go.

Rapture is a very very capable synth that can also do sampling. But the factory content emphasizes the synth end of things, not orchestral scoring, etc. It can do things like step generators in the envelopes that Dimension Pro cannot.

Snouter, listening to that mp3, I would suggest rapture is probably the better choice in your case. But do check out the demo.

@ Snouter: yeah I enjoy Progressive Rock (ie: Symphony X, Dream Theater, Evergrey, Pagan's Mind, Neal Morse, Anubis Gate, etc. etc..) and 99% of them have keyboards in the band, as I do as well. Your mp3 is basically what I want Dimension Pro or Rapture for.. so when I'm writing at home I can play my own keyboard background and improv over it with Guitar to create melodies and/or songs to bring to rehersals.

@madratter: I've downloaded Rapture & will give it a whirl, as far as sampling, I basically want to use presets initially and not really interested in sampling/ creating new presets (at least not yet) so I can quickly pick a sound, lay down some keyboard rythyms, kinda like "Snouter's" mp3 and play guitar with it.

I would like realistic acoustical sounds but also some really good synth sounds, for some guitar/keyboard solos and stuff, but without too much tweaking and fiddling with the program (user friendly preferably) so that I can get straight to playing/writing.

so which one would you recommend to me?
(btw I Really like "A Pleasant Land") that's basically where I want to end up with using SONAR, Smart Loops-Drum Kit & Keyboard sounds from ??

@AT : after searching these forums earlier today I could not really find my answer, so for some nice sounds, ease of use, for a guitarist to put down basic (nice sounding) keyboard rythyms so I can start jamming more and less tweaking without having to go buy a keyboard with it's own built-in sounds?
what would you recommend?

Thanks Again everyone for the your responses thus far!

ORIGINAL: Reckert

@madratter: I've downloaded Rapture & will give it a whirl, as far as sampling, I basically want to use presets initially and not really interested in sampling/ creating new presets (at least not yet) so I can quickly pick a sound, lay down some keyboard rythyms, kinda like "Snouter's" mp3 and play guitar with it.

I would like realistic acoustical sounds but also some really good synth sounds, for some guitar/keyboard solos and stuff, but without too much tweaking and fiddling with the program (user friendly preferably) so that I can get straight to playing/writing.

so which one would you recommend to me?
(btw I Really like "A Pleasant Land") that's basically where I want to end up with using SONAR, Smart Loops-Drum Kit & Keyboard sounds from ??

Both Rapture and Dimension Pro have a boatload of presets. I own Dim Pro so I know its content reasonably well. I have only tried the Rapture Demo so I have a feel for what it is capable of but I don't know the range of its presets.

Dim Pro has a bunch of synth like sounds in it. What it does not have that Rapture does have is the step generator envelopes. Rapture also has 6 elements instead of 4 for Dim Pro (basically oscillators). I would strongly suggest you play with the step generators in the rapture demo and see if you can live without them. What Dim Pro is definitely going to have in its presets is more realistic strings, piano, woodwinds, etc.

It is a tough call. I'm sure either one would be quite usable for what you want.

REckert,

yea, I second Dimension. If you need acoustic/natural and SOS (Sample and Synthesis) like a keyboard workstation would provide Dimension would be the way to go. You'll find it very easy to plug in various sounds to make beds for your other instruments.

Rapture is more synthetic for more synth based music. IF you are looking to do R&R or pop etc. et all Dimension will allow you to plug and play easier.

@

I think based on more general sounds need and excellent included Strings you will be happy with your choice to go with DP.
Congratulations on your purchase!