konradh
To each his own and I won't keep plugging Ivory

You don't need to Yorolpal is raving about it on the software forum.

In case anyone's interested cclarry posted this earlier, a good deal if you can use it.
 
Addictive Keys Studio Collection No Brainer
On sale today at Musicians Friend for $29....

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/stupid/?icid=200510
 
*be aware it's boxed the version, not a dl so there's shipping. Free ground in the u.s. though...

To me Dimensions Pro pianos sound awesome, not shure if they came with X1....or I got them with Dimension upgrade pack..
 

I kept the Akoustik Piano sample libraries from my Komplete 5, and added them into my Kontakt 5 libraries when I upgraded to Komplete 6 and then Komplete 8 Ultimate.
 
These are 24-bit samples where they sampled every note on the piano keyboard at 17 velocities, for 30 seconds each.  The result is as real harmonics as I have ever heard from ANY real piano I have ever played on.
 
There are some decent sounding pianos in Kontakt 5's factory libraries, but they do not come close to what they had with the Akoustic Piano libraries from Komplete 5.
 
There are a bunch of other good sounding pianos out there, however, as noted by the above posters, so listen to demos and give one or more a try.
 
One thing that is VERY important for pianos is looking at EQ for keeping the piano frequencies from interfering with other instrument or vocal frequencies, and this is true for ANY piano sounds you end up using.  Get yourself a good quality frequency chart, and tailor your sounds as needed for each project, and that will fix a BUNCH of issues with any piano sounds.
 
Bob Bone
 

I like Alicia Keys best and for uprights the Sampletekk ones. But I've never tried Ivory and they are supposed to be better again.

I promised not to say any more...

Do yourself a favor and check out SAMPLETEKK... they have a few different models and a few times a year, do a 50% off sale.
 
WORRA has been making samples for musicians every since the late 90s... a musician making samples for musicians.  Once you purchase one product from him, the bi annual sale pricing drop to 60% off. 
 
I am talking about paying less the $50 for some beautifully sampled instruments during the sale periods. The BLACK GRAND is regularly $140 and is the best sounding piano for solo piano pieces but he has a STEINY D for $39 regular price, which works nice in mixes (less than $20 during the 50% off sale).  The white grand piano is also great for "In the MIX" pianos but it lists for $119.
 
Check them out though, they all sound good. I have alot of piano sample programs and the ones that are $300 plus are really sampled too good for my work.  I don't create solo piano pieces and as KONRAD says, the modelled pianos sound well, modelled, and are missing a little ingredient compared to real sampled pianos (can't explain why, they just don't sound as good to me).
 
Jim

jscomposer
EastWest also has a great Steinway and Bosendorfer in their Goliath VST, which I what I use for all of my piano sounds.

 
I just love the Bosendorfer in Goliath.  That's easily my favorite piano in my library, so far.   I layered it with strings and a little bass on the lower octave for a particular song, and the result is gorgeous.   I liked it so much, I actually loaded it up on my laptop and took it to a live gig...and was completely disappointed.  Sounds fantastic in the studio, but it really didn't work in a live setting.  Oh well, it's still wonderful for recording, which is really what it's for.

I caught that Addictive Keys deal on Musician's Friend's "Stupid Deal of the Day" for $29 (normally about $150)...so I'm eagerly awaiting that box in the mail.  It can also run stand-alone, so I'm hoping it will work live, as well as give me more solid options in the studio.  The package looks great, the demos impress and the reviews are largely positive.  I'll let you all know how it goes.
 
I find the quest for the "perfect piano" to be more or less never-ending.   Generally, you get what you pay for (stupid deals not withstanding).  But with the rising state of technology, even the "cheap" libraries can trump what everyone thought was the "best" just a few years ago.  I think the top packages win out, however, not only with the size and quality of samples, but with the flexibility of the engines that drive them.  
 
~ Heather

The thing that put me off EastWest is the size. I bought Quantum Leap pianos but haven't installed it yet because it came on about 30 dvd's.

backwoods
The thing that put me off EastWest is the size. I bought Quantum Leap pianos but haven't installed it yet because it came on about 30 dvd's.

The reason for that size is that they recorded a lot of samples, which usually means a better sounding virtual instrument. I don't have that particular library, but another that is also sampled is fairly large but sounds excellent... True Keys: Pianos (https://vilabsaudio.com/) - not to be confused with TruePianos (which is not in the same league in terms of sound).
 
Scott

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Scott R. Garrigus - http://garrigus.com - SONAR X2 Power! - http://garrigus.com/?SonarX2Power
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