Steinway ARIA Engine: So Far So Good says the Maytag Repairman

[Garritan]

We were discussing this on chat recently and you may have heard of him: the Maytag Repairman. For years this sad-faced Maytag Repairmen has appeared in countless TV ads, complaining of loneliness and nothing to do because nobody ever called them to fix a Maytag appliance (presumably because they were so well made).

Since the release of the Authorized Steinway virtual Piano, I am beginning to feel like the Maytag repairman myself.

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:-2fJ1onGPk6EOM:http://bp2.blogger.com/_EjMqqsegLDU/Rs4GGg0YanI/AAAAAAAAAKc/Z9m_nBNgnf0/s400/Maytag_repairman.jpg


I must admit, with the release of version 1.0 of the ARIA player, I had some doubts. All version 1.0 releases are supposed to be replete with bugs - right? After all other engines had their expected share of problems when first released. With many different systems, formats and configurations - it is reasonable that things may just blow up - or at least break.

So I sent the Steinway out to customers and distributors and waited.... and waited.... and waited...

It was installed on Macs and on PCS, in 32bit and 64 bit operating systems, in all manner of sequencers, as standalone... and I waited...

Maybe my phone line is dead. No - not the phone as I just got a sales call.

Perhaps email was down. No - that's can't be it....I did get some emails and maybe time to duck. But the comments like: "This is by far the best piano library on the market", "the easiest registration I ever experienced", "you nailed the Steinway sound" - just kept coming!

Very few support issues. In fact, far fewer than any other product we've produced so far.

Then I headed over to the Listening Room. User demos keep coming and coming and they are fantastic! No longer lonely but embraced with music made with the Steinway virtual piano.

Maybe I am just dreaming. I am sheltered on this island and it could be some strange "Lost" occurrence happening. I'm not sure what has happen.... but one thing I am certain...

David and the team at Plogue, as well as Jeff and Tom, did a stunning job with the Steinway. This is a testament to these geniuses.

This is not to say we don't have some things that need improving or fixing. We certainly do and some things have already been fixed and updates are in the works. Things are going much better than I imagined and I am confident as we go forward with new libraries.

Being the Maytag repairman is not as lonely as I thought. Good engine, good product, good people who worked on it, good music from good users.

Life is good.... :)

Gary Garritan

[jjloving]

It really is an awesome library! )(~

As one of the few who ran across a little bug, I want to say (again;)) that the customer support was second to none. After determining the problem, the answer wasn't "well we'll have an update sometime in the future that may or may not fix this. you'll have to wait and see". David went and did his thing and sent me a fixed build in a just a couple days. You just can't beat that.

Good people. Good piano. Good music.

Now I just have to learn how to play...do you think the Maytag dude teaches piano with all that spare time;):D

Jon

[etLux]

ROFL! The Maytag Repairman Syndrome, indeed!

And I'm not in the least surprised, even if Gary is.

I was on the beta test team for the Garritan Authorized Steinway.
My self-appointed duties included "stress testing" the GAS. Well,
lemme tell ya... I jumped up and down on it, I trounced it, I beat it
with a stick, I stuck it on old behemoths that had no business
even being able to run it, I clobbered it with high-speed MIDI
junk that would choke anything else on the market. And then?
Then I really tried to break it, bust it, bounce it, bury it, and
bash into the ground with every evil programmer's assault I could
muster.

And ARIA and the Garritan Authorized Steinway played happily
along without a backward glance.

When you take world-class talent like David, Jeff, Tom and the
Garritan team?

That's just what I expect. Not done quick, but probably a first
for this industry... done right!

Congratulations, Gary.

Best,



David
www.DavidSosnowski.com

[AlanPerkins]

This is so good to hear, and it augurs well for the release of the other libraries!

[DarwinKopp]

Well, now that you brought it up, I can't get Aria to play my trademark full-sustain, 40-note tone clusters without breaking up, dropping notes, and/or reducing the resonance parameters, but I wasn't going to say anything. :) I'm guessing 2Gb memory at 3.2 GHz just doesn't cut it anymore. ;)

[Pingu]

My candelabra was missing, and the rug was the wrong colour!

Actually I have to admit that I haven't installed the Steinway yet - other circumstances seem to have got in the way - but it's great to know that, when I do, it seems to be running so well. With some packages I seem to spend more time keeping track of the patches than I do making music. Really looking forward to that being the other way round.

[KeithW]

It 'twas I who mentioned the "Maytag Repairman..." The most important (and probably overlooked) part of this equation is that the developers can concentrate on working on the new (Aria) products and not trying to fix bugs (K2) in older products (see Gary's Update thread...)

This is good for the entire Community!

Keith Walls

[Kyle Ashley]

I also love the new authorization method. SOOOO easy and unobtrusive!!!
Thanks for that.)(~

[henrymorris]

Ah, good, I was wondering where to put my vote of thanks!

What an amazing piece of software! I no longer have access to the real thing, but playing the virtual Steinway is a real joy. The interface is really straightforward, and the handsomely presented manual perfectly reflects the quality of the instrument.

Many thanks to all involved.

[Garritan]

Well, now that you brought it up, I can't get Aria to play my trademark full-sustain, 40-note tone clusters without breaking up, dropping notes, and/or reducing the resonance parameters, but I wasn't going to say anything. :) I'm guessing 2Gb memory at 3.2 GHz just doesn't cut it anymore. ;) Darwin,

There is a limitation in this regard. GASP has been optimized for only 39-fingered players. We have our team actively working on a 40 fingered solution. ;):p:D

Gary

[DarwinKopp]

There is a limitation in this regard. GASP has been optimized for only 39-fingered players. We have our team actively working on a 40 fingered solution. ;):p:D

Who said anything about using fingers? Forearms forever!! :D

[Garritan]

Who said anything about using fingers? Forearms forever!! :DOK. Noted. Forewarned is forearmed! ;)

[Haydn]

The Maytag commercials are fake. The Maytag guy is sad looking because he has too many repair calls fixing those front loading washing machines!

From reading many internet sites checking out washing machines, the Maytag's had high failure rates and were not recommended.

Jim

[JonFairhurst]

From reading many internet sites checking out washing machines, the Maytag's had high failure rates and were not recommended.Similarly, Michelin tires (with the babies in the tires) and Volvo cars (flipping over and driving away) weren't necessarily all that safe.

There are two views of advertising: 1) promote your strengths, and 2) tell people over and over that you are strong where you are actually weak and hope that the hype overshadows the reality. ("I am a uniter, not a divider...")

Anyway, congrats on a solid release, Gary!

[etLux]

OK. Noted. Forewarned is forearmed! ;)

Oy...........

[Haydn]

I've been a beta tester for the ARIA engine prior to it even being used for the Steinway piano. Not once has it crashed or crashed my computer in either Windows XP 32 or 64 bit versions. This is pretty amazing since I have many other programs that have been around for quite a few years that still crash.

Jim