Exact format / usage

[Andrew Aversa]

Just to be sure.. the full Garritan Orchestral Strings is in GIGA format, correct?

Also, if so, do I have to use it in GS2.5/GS3 in order to get the benefits of stuff like Maestro Tools, or can I use it in another sampler like Kontakt?

[mderrico]

As far as I know GOS is only available in Giga 2.5 format.

I use GOS with Halion and Cubase. The Maestro Tools program works just fine with Halion, so I would imagine it would work equally well with Kontakt.

There's some threads here in how to use Maestro Tools with Halion and Kontakt - I couldn't find them though (although I didn't look very hard!). I can explain it to you if you use Cubase SX.

[DPDAN]

I just recently installed GOS onto my sample PC with the newly loaded GS3 Orchestra, and everything is as smooth as glass.

dpDan

[FredProgGH]

I just recently installed GOS onto my sample PC with the newly loaded GS3 Orchestra, and everything is as smooth as glass.

dpDan

Ditto- no problems with GS3.

[Andrew Aversa]

Well, I figured it would work for the platform it was designed for :)

However, I have no intention of getting either GS2.5 or GS3 as I've heard almost nothing but bad things about it, and I have Kontakt anyway. That's why I was wondering how compatible GOS and its accessory programs/tools are. If MT does in fact work with Halion, then chances are it will work with Kontakt too, I suppose.. but it never hurts to be sure.

On a side note, I talked to a Sweetwater rep who said that everything but the keyswitches should work. He said that keyswitches were proprietary to Gigastudio, which was a little confusing - it is very easy to create a keyswitch in Kontakt, and I know for a fact libraries like GPO and QLSO use it. Perhaps he meant the sampled changes between different keys?

[mderrico]

On a side note, I talked to a Sweetwater rep who said that everything but the keyswitches should work. He said that keyswitches were proprietary to Gigastudio, which was a little confusing - it is very easy to create a keyswitch in Kontakt, and I know for a fact libraries like GPO and QLSO use it. Perhaps he meant the sampled changes between different keys?

I disagree with that. I've got both Kontakt and Halion and I've got libraries for both samplers that use keyswitches. The keyswitch patches for both samplers work just fine.

And that's my 2 cents! lol!

[Andrew Aversa]

Great!

Anyway, I'm trying to understand exactly how Maestro Tools works (perhaps I should just call Gary and ask, but I figured I'd ask here first). Does it work with Kontakt/Halion if the samplers are loaded as plugins into a sequencer like FLStudio, or must they run in standalone mode (as GS would)?

[mderrico]

I use GOS in Halion with Cubase SX2. Halion is a VST plug-in only.

With GOS, you get the Maestro Tool and the Maple MIDI program. The Maple MIDI tool is pretty much the same as Hubi's MIDI loop program (or whatever it's actually called! lol)

To use Maestro tools with a plugin sampler, you need two MIDI tracks in your DAW. The first track contains the MIDI note data. It's fed to the Maple Tools MIDI program. This then goes to the Maestro Tool.

The MIDI output of the Maestro Tool goes back to the Maple Tools MIDI program then into the second MIDI track in your DAW.

It's really straight-forward actually.

[rikp]

I am using it with Giga 3, no problems. I have also loaded it into Mach 5. All works great except for the key switches. Maybe this will be addressed in Mach5 version 2?

Peace

Rik

[Andrew Aversa]

Well, I would HOPE it works in GS3, as that's what it was programmed for.

Now that Kontakt 2 has GS3 import though.. might be interesting.

[Tom Hopkins]

Well, I would HOPE it works in GS3, as that's what it was programmed for.Actually, it was programmed for GS2 to GS2.5. We're happy that people seem to be using it successfully with GS3 but we still haven't received copies of the software from Tascam to enable us to check it.

Tom

[DPDAN]

Actually, it was programmed for GS2 to GS2.5. We're happy that people seem to be using it successfully with GS3 but we still haven't received copies of the software from Tascam to enable us to check it.

Tom
It is so hard to understand why Tascam has not sent you and Gary the GS3 software so that you can continue to make updates, upgrades and new products with GS3. My only guess is they are jealous of the fact that Gary has chosen to work with Native Instruments instead , well duh,,,,.
Not a very nice thing for Tascam to do to Gary since Gary was one of, if not the first to provide a GIGA library, "Giga Harp".

It's sad because I really like GS3 Orchestra.
Thank you Tom for continuing to support us Giga users with responses to these questions that we have all the time. Certainly you don't have to "care" anymore, but it's evident that you, Gary and all the folks with Garritan products do in fact "still care". :)

dpDan

[mixolydian]

Hello,

just another question about Kontakt and GOS: are there any known restrictions when using GOS in Kontakt? Probably any MIDI-functions...

Thanks in advance.

cheers

[Tom Hopkins]

just another question about Kontakt and GOS: are there any known restrictions when using GOS in Kontakt? Probably any MIDI-functions...Whenever one format is converted to another there are architectural differences that can lead to feature/performance discrepancies. It's always a little bit like jamming a square peg into a round hole but . . . most features either translate approximately (filters, envelopes, etc.) or can be massaged into functioning in a similar manner. The Giga dimensional crossfades is one area that can create difficulties but Kontakt is fully capable of doing similar crossfades - they are just constructed differently and don't always translate automatically. In fact, in most areas Kontakt has more tools available than Giga 2.5. Some separate conversion programs, like Chicken Systems' Translator, may do a better job than Kontakt's native conversion for configuring the more problematic features, but there are no guarantees. In many cases a knowledgeable, advanced user will be able to further improve the accuracy of a conversion by tweaking construction and settings.

Now, getting MaestroTools to work within your system can be a real challenge. It was designed to set in front of GigaStudio, intercepting the MIDI data flow and changing it to our purposes before passing the data onto the sampler. Perhaps others have found workable ways to incorporate MaestroTools in their Kontakt-based systems and they will chime in here with their solutions (if any.) I have not explored this in any detail.

Tom

[mixolydian]

Thank you, Tom!