Modartt user forum - Recording and Post Processing

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-22T21:46:33Z

Hello again scorpio
I agree. It is not easy to get a good velocity curve for me either. I think some keyboards are difficult. Have M-Audio 88 es, and still working on it. Close, but not the best curve yet.

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-20T19:10:56Z

Thank you all for your comments. I have been having fun playing around with Pianoteq. Clearly the more I tweak the different settings and experiment, the more close I will get to the sound I desire.

Right now finding a suitable velocity curve will be a task. I have a Yamaha P-155. I am not convinced the calibrated curve is as good as some others I have tried; work in progress.

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-18T16:01:14Z

Reverb is special. Pianoteq has better reverb than the version of Logic I use. But I still use Logic's reverb rather than Pianoteq's because I think that reverb is something you apply to the whole project. Having a variety of reverbs on different instruments sounds unnatural to my ear.

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-18T15:38:32Z

I think in general the key is to get the source material as close to how you want it as possible and use post-processing to fix things / help them sit together in a mix etc. So with Pianoteq you should be able to tweak the raw signal to be as you want it.

To that end, it makes sense to record as midi so that you can still tweak the source sound at your leisure.

For example, it might be better to tweak the velocity response rather than apply a compressor in post. I'm not saying that compression is bad necessarily, but it is a rather unnatural process and if you just want a good pure piano sound that may be undesirable. It depends as well on the expected listening environment etc; if you want to make something that will come across clearly on a car stereo then you might have different needs than if it is meant only for a relatively controlled hifi type listening environment.

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-17T19:22:28Z

Hello scorpio!

I will share some thoughts. In my opinion, when you are looking for a good pianosound, it is always about personal taste. What do you want – thin or warm? Much reverb? Depend on what you are looking for. And what kind of loadspeakers you use. For me it is a joy to use Pianoteq, because of how you can tweak the sound.
Pianoteq is new to me,only 2 months,but I love it. But, about the ”processing”: I nearly always start with the D4 Daily practise-sound. Then I try 1)different velocitycurves 2) presetseffects 3) equalizer settings 4) some volume and dynamics settings 5) masterreverb in garageband(all this depending on what kind of music I am playing).
You also can download other users presets from fxp corner and try.
I am going to upgrade to Pianoteq standard, so I can change microphone settings – hope it will give more wideness to the sound.

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-17T18:41:15Z

I often use a little bit EQ, lowering around 1k, and often compressor. Sometime I use logics reverb... I use Logic Pro and on the master-channel I use a setting with a Apple-designed mastering plugin chain (I think it is some limiter, multiband compressor and some more...). But I am not a sound engineer....

Re: Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-17T17:49:58Z

Given all the (quality) tools already available in Pianoteq (EQ, compression, reverb...), I usually leave it "as is", except for the final touch of (multi-band) compression when it must blend with other instruments/voices in a general mix. My 2 cents.

Recording and Post Processing

2013-12-17T16:50:00Z

There are many wonderful Pianoteq recordings on this forum, Soundcloud, and YT. For anyone that has shared their recordings, how much post processing do you do with the Pianoteq raw file? I am just curious about the process and approach. Or is it just a record and upload?

I am just learning to play piano. But while I am learning to play, I am taking the time to learn about the recording process so that I can achieve a quality finished product. Most of what I keep hearing is "use your ears" or "it's trial and error". Maybe that is the case. I use Reaper to mess around but I am still not sure where to even start. In any case, if anyone was willing to share their thoughts, I would be grateful.