Topic: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Since there is a good deal to get Pro and a free Add-on Collection I'm trying to convince myself to go Pro

The main problem for me is that there's not enough information about what really can be done with it. Or is that cause the possibilities really are endless?

I'm not sure if I'm really a tweaker, I picked up Play a couple of months ago and its great! But since it's a great deal and this truly is my piano of choice I don't want to figure it out in six months when I could have got an Add-on pack for free.

Please chime in with some great stuff that YOU like about the Pro version. I've done a search but it's not convinced me cause the information is spares at best. And since there's no trial its hard to figure it out on my own.

Thanks in advance.

Last edited by Stefan (14-02-2011 20:07)

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

I'm pretty sure the standard version gives all of pianoteq modeling tweaks the pro has.The pro version lets you edit these parameters note by note, so there is plenty of tweaking at your finger tips with the standard version.

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

May favourite things about Pro is the "Random" button in Note edit.

You can select a dozen or so of the parameters in Note edit,
and I usually chose, for instance, Unison width, and click random and thus get a random amount of unsison-string detune along the keyboard, which I feel gives some nice authentic 'imperfection'.

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Hello Stefan,

There are about 23 parameters that may be edited note-by-note in the PRO version.  Here are some of the edits I regularly make on all of the different piano models offered by Pianoteq:

Tuning:  Instead of using a Stretch tuning slider, I make my own in the PRO.  Usually, in the bottom 1-1/2 octaves, I create a curved "line" of tuning individual notes made deliberately flat from -0 to about -10 cents.  Usually, in the upper 2-1/2 octaves, I create another curved-line note-by-note progression of tuning made sharp, ranging from +1 cent to about +22 cents.

Unison width:  As a piano tuner, I am familiar with ways that pianos go out of tune, and how comparatively difficult it is to tune the unison pitches of certain ranges of pianos.  So, in the PRO version, I regularly REDUCE the unison tuning in the lowest octaves (because there is only one string per note in this range), and I increase the unison tuning in an upward curve for the highest ~2 octaves (where it is more difficult to tune these notes by ear, in the first place).  Next, in the upper bass, "tenor" portions of the piano, where there are changes from one string to two strings per-note, and then where it changes to three strings per-note, I make a little "break" upward in unison tuning.  Finally, in the middle two octaves, I raise the level of unison tuning per-note, because this is where the piano is usually played the hardest -- therefore I slightly raise the overall unison tuning in this area.

(Still on Unison tuning) After these fine adjustments are made, I click on the unison tuning "random" button -- different in the PRO version than in the Standard version, the latter of which is much more coarse in its randomization amount.


Hammer Hardnesses:
I tend to increase the hardness in the range of the three octaves, because this is usually where the most wear normally occurs in a real piano.  I do this separately for the three individual hardness ranges.  Next, I randomize them slightly.  This helps to reduce some of the "excess perfection" in the piano.

I also perform other edits in PRO, but this gives you an idea of how I think and work on my pianos.  The results of these efforts often show up as that "something extra" in my demos.


Hope this helps,

Joe

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Joe, it sounds like a lot of your edits are about making the piano sound more "used". I also like to do this sort of thing with the pro version, although in a cruder way - just slightly randomizing tuning, unison width, and hammer hardness across the keyboard. One trick with the hammer hardness is to randomize the Forte setting first, then cut and paste this to the Mezzo and Piano settings, but scaling it down. This makes the relative hardness consistent over the velocity range. I love a sad, out-of-condition piano sound sometimes.

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Joe, as always - your elaborate posts are second to none :-) these are great - thanks!

M-Audio Profire 610 / Roland Fp-3 / Reaper / PianoTeq!
www.myspace.com/etalmor

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Thanks to all of you whom spent time to write your pov.

Im still not sure how Im about to do but its tempting, to say the least. I dont feel like I lack the extras atm, but Im afraid that I will do in the future and then its not with a free add-on collection

Still thinking...

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

...and a few months later (after buying the Standard version was a HUGE step upwards for me compared to all my sample-based pianos!) this thread is superb for me. I am deciding right now if I should upgrade from standard to pro

Re: Would like more detailed information about Pianoteq Pro

Hi Stefan,

I have PianoTeq 'Pro' AND 'Play' and I also used to own 'Standard'.

My favourite is Pro by far. I have been very happy with all the products I've bought from Modartt, but Pro takes first place. It is future proof in the sense that, if I wish to go deeper and deeper with it, I can. If I only had the standard version, there would be be more limitations, and of course, far more so with the play version. I never used to be a tweaker, but since buying the standard version back in 2008 I have become one. Play is great for 'Out-of the Box' instant piano sound, but if you want your favourite preset to be just that little bit brighter, or you want the dampers to hold off for longer, or even if you wish to use a surround sound setup for example, your going to require at least the standard version.

If it were me, I would go for the best you can afford, especially at this time of offer.

Sincerely,

Chris