Topic: Computer
Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
- Panicking Ant
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- Pianistically
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Re: Computer
Panicking Ant wrote:
Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
it depends how you use Piatoteq. There two distinct use cases
1) live playing
2) rendering of pre - recorded midi files via export
In scenario 1 , more computing power allows you to run with more microphones , reverb and FX effects, multiple EQ , delay, minimal latency with sample rates and small buffer size , and maximum polyphony (=256) . With slow computers , in live playing you have reduce some of the effects and modelled parameters mentioned above to avoid sound glitches .
In scenario 2 , computing power is not really relevant when it comes to quality of sound being produced . With identical presets with same parameters, the final rendition of a midi file will be the same independently of your computing power , the only difference will the time needed to export the final sound file ( mp3 or wav) depending on available computing power.
So to cut a long story short , for live playing YES , for offline rendering NO
- dv
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Re: Computer
Pianistically wrote:
Panicking Ant wrote:Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
So to cut a long story short , for live playing YES , for offline rendering NO
Correct, but even for live playing "it depends". Most decent computers are more than sufficient for "basic" usage with one of the pre-made presets, the faster computer becomes important if you want to do "fancy" things with microphones, layers and so on, which arguably do not make a "better" sound from a pure-piano perspective but a more sophisticated one from a production perspective.
Much more important than the computer speed is having a great sound interface for real-time playing (irrelevant for offline rendering) and excellent speakers, subwoofer (IMHO, some people may disagree) and amplification.
Where do I find a list of all posts I upvoted? :(
- stamkorg
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Re: Computer
Panicking Ant wrote:
Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
At the same sampling frequency, no.
- Pianistically
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Re: Computer
dv wrote:
Pianistically wrote:Panicking Ant wrote:Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
So to cut a long story short , for live playing YES , for offline rendering NO
Correct, but even for live playing "it depends". Most decent computers are more than sufficient for "basic" usage with one of the pre-made presets, the faster computer becomes important if you want to do "fancy" things with microphones, layers and so on, which arguably do not make a "better" sound from a pure-piano perspective but a more sophisticated one from a production perspective.
Much more important than the computer speed is having a great sound interface for real-time playing (irrelevant for offline rendering) and excellent speakers, subwoofer (IMHO, some people may disagree) and amplification.
multiple microphones in PTQ allow to render a live sound which is more natural ( better ? ) than just a pair of close mics . I think this is a difference between sampling technology , as in sampling closed mics only capture some of the natural reverb of the room , whereby closed mics with pianoteq modelling are very dry and adding ambient mics produce a richer sound in live situations . Now whether you call that more sophisticated or better is a different story .
- bm
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Re: Computer
stamkorg wrote:
Panicking Ant wrote:Does a faster computer produce a better Pianoteq sound?
At the same sampling frequency, no.
... and with a sampling frequency higher than 48k, a better sound mainly for bats and maybe ? for some human individuals under 25 years old ... (the high frequency response of the human ear decreases in an objectively measurable way from the age of 15 to 20 years (HFA/PEATC/OEA/High Frequency Ultrasound ...)
Bruno
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Re: Computer
I might agree to what people say above…but I’m not sure….Because I am not sure what the need is for best quality on computer and sound interface.(myself have Mac mini -14 and Scarlett). I think the most important is the modelled piano preset. Most sound interface sound the same to your human ear. The differences are small compared to the source itself. Pianoteq.
So, I have learned that I have to spend money on very good monitors, very good headphones, a very good keyboard and to update Pianoteq every time it comes an update. - The rest is number 2 important. Hope this might help someone....
Well, this is what i think about it, what I have learned.
Best wishes,
Stig
- Key Fumbler
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Re: Computer
Other than settings for the optional amount of simultaneous voices and sample rate settings one computer will render the sound exactly the same as another.
Playback devices make a bigger difference, these are room acoustics dependent in the case of the loudspeaker system.
The quality of your headphones will make a difference.
Hardware requirements for a system that can run a single instance of Pianoteq 8 is pretty low end.
Being able to set 44.1khz or 48khz and 128-256 voices then your system is pretty much unlimited - at least for playing a single instance of one instrument. It's nice to be able to have three instruments that you can play on three different keyboards.
For Intel machines if you want to be able to record multiple takes without freezing tracks combined with multiple other virtual instruments within a DAW program then you will want one of the more powerful i5 or i7 processors and 16GB or more memory.
I could probably find a used system that will run Pianoteq 8 for under £/$100 easily.
Raspberry pi for the adventurous - who don't mind making concessions.
- bm
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Re: Computer
Key Fumbler wrote:
Other than settings for the optional amount of simultaneous voices and sample rate settings one computer will render the sound exactly the same as another.
Playback devices make a bigger difference, these are room acoustics dependent in the case of the loudspeaker system.
The quality of your headphones will make a difference.Hardware requirements for a system that can run a single instance of Pianoteq 8 is pretty low end.
Being able to set 44.1khz or 48khz and 128-256 voices then your system is pretty much unlimited - at least for playing a single instance of one instrument. It's nice to be able to have three instruments that you can play on three different keyboards.For Intel machines if you want to be able to record multiple takes without freezing tracks combined with multiple other virtual instruments within a DAW program then you will want one of the more powerful i5 or i7 processors and 16GB or more memory.
I could probably find a used system that will run Pianoteq 8 for under £/$100 easily.
Raspberry pi for the adventurous - who don't mind making concessions.
That's true,
You don't need a particularly powerful (well-configured) computer to play live using Pianoteq 8 with a sampling of 48 khz with a maximum polyphony of 256 without using multiple layers or multiplying the virtual microphones beyond what is offered as standard.
It becomes different if you use a DAW with several Pianoteq tracks used simultaneously. If necessary, indeed, in the absence of a computer with 16 to 64 GB of RAM and a CPU with many cores, the sound quality will be very degraded, unless you reduce the sampling (24 or 32 khz), the polyphony (32 to 128 for example) and limit yourself to a limited number of tracks which will in this case be of generally lower audio quality ...
Last edited by bm (29-09-2024 17:47)