Topic: Pleye + C3???

I have a problem... I try to record only piano and song. and therefore I need a really good piano... The problem is that I really like the "fullness" (if you know what I mean) of the C3, but I think it sounds a bit synthetic, specially in the upper range... But I think the pleyel sounds much more natural, but it don't have enough "fullness" to really do the jobb, it's to nasal in a way... I've tried to combine the two in logic (and Mainstage) but I don't find what I want... Is there any of you who feel the same way and maybe even managed to solve the "problem"?
I really hope number 4 will give us the sound ;-) (and that it will arrive so we could hear it... ;-) )

Last edited by berghs.kedjan (10-04-2012 22:27)

Re: Pleye + C3???

berghs.kedjan wrote:

I have a problem... I try to record only piano and song. and therefore I need a really good piano... The problem is that I really like the "fullness" (if you know what I mean) of the C3, but I think it sounds a bit synthetic, specially in the upper range... But I think the pleyel sounds much more natural, but it don't have enough "fullness" to really do the jobb, it's to nasal in a way... I've tried to combine the two in logic (and Mainstage) but I don't find what I want... Is there any of you who feel the same way and maybe even managed to solve the "problem"?
I really hope number 4 will give us the sound ;-) (and that it will arrive so we could hear it... ;-) )

Have you tried combining a sampled piano to get what you need? Number 4 may give us the sound but it seems an agonising wait. I'm sure that it will be worth it though.

Re: Pleye + C3???

Pianotrancer wrote:

Have you tried combining a sampled piano to get what you need? Number 4 may give us the sound but it seems an agonising wait. I'm sure that it will be worth it though.

Thank You Pianotrancer!

No, I don't have a really good sampled piano (except for the ones that followed Logic...).

I'm not a sound engineer so I don't know the best way to combine two piano sound. I've tried to put a lowpass filter really low on one of the pianos and I've tried to soften the pianohammars to 0, just to not get a "double attack". But is there other ways that is much better?

Re: Pleye + C3???

berghs.kedjan wrote:
Pianotrancer wrote:

Have you tried combining a sampled piano to get what you need? Number 4 may give us the sound but it seems an agonising wait. I'm sure that it will be worth it though.

Thank You Pianotrancer!

No, I don't have a really good sampled piano (except for the ones that followed Logic...).

I'm not a sound engineer so I don't know the best way to combine two piano sound. I've tried to put a lowpass filter really low on one of the pianos and I've tried to soften the pianohammars to 0, just to not get a "double attack". But is there other ways that is much better?

Providing that the latency of 2 piano sounds are the same, the attacks may sound as one. What I have done in the past is to run K1 (for eg) with the Pianoteq rhodes. I use Cantabile light and have 2 instances of Pianoteq running. You can get some interesting sounds with some experimentation.

Re: Pleye + C3???

berghs.kedjan: If you want to make a recording with piano and song Im thinking that you are going for an acoustic sound and I sincerely think that combining 2 different piano sounds is not gonna make your life easier.

A good way to start could be to turn the limiter and the reverb off in Pianoteq, then get yourself a decent vst/rtas reverb, (whatever keeps your boat floating), then mix the song using the same reverb for the vocal parts and the piano (although they could bleed different amounts into the reverb according to taste and style and the sound you want to accomplish).

I dont think the C3 sounds "artificial", I think it sounds like a concert steinway. They tend to have less imperfections and give a more neutral tone then say a malmsjö grand, yamaha grand, or uprights. I would consider though that you use the K1 for a vocal/piano mix, but maybe thats just my taste. I mainly use the C3 for playing classical, usually modern classical.

The pleyel is very nice indeed, it has those small "imperfections" or how to put it ? that makes it special. Consider though that the c3 resembles that slick and less imperfect sound that you get when playing many steinway grands.

The reverb plays deep importance, and the spatial image of the recording. What kind of room do you want it to sounds like, were is the piano and vocalist positioned in the room and soforth.

Recording is sometimes fast, but mixing and mastering music usually takes much much more time and effort.

Im babbling now, well anyways, hope Ive said something meaningful. Good luck !