Also checkout violin comparing thread: http://audiosex.pro/index.php?/topic/11381-comparing-some-violin-ensembles/

Comparing some orchestral elements, demonstration videos:

Eb Clarinet
1. Westgate studios
2. VSL Native instruments legacy
3. East West QL Platinum Close mic
Westgate studio sample library is very close to VSL library and it's recorder very dry, which is not case with EWQL where we here a lot of room even in close mic. But that's not deflate quality of EWQL sound.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxpLke17smA&feature=youtu.be

English horn
1. Westgate studios
2. VSL Native instruments legacy
3. East West QL Platinum Close mic (sus+vib)
4. East West QL Platinum Close mic (sus)
5. VSL Giga
Same thing like with Eb clarinet... Westgate and VSL are very close, even with articulations. Also, Native Instruments is here just for short comparing VSL Giga and legacy NI edition, it's the same samples.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjiryUdJW3I&feature=youtu.be

Trumpet
1. East West QL Platinum Close mic
2. VSL Native Instruments legacy
3. VSL Native Instruments legacy (with filter)
4. VSL Giga
5. Cinesamples CineBrass PRO
Here we have a dramatic change in Cinebrass library over the other libraries... Even if CineBrass PRO is sound for 10 and it's really impressive and it feel's like real instrument I must say this is just because of lot and strong EQ on high and included room in sound. I turn off reverb on Cinebrass but it there is a lot recorded room with close mic position. All in all, it's very close to VSL patch if we ignore all of numbered facts.
So, if I put some reverb on VSL patch sound will be very very close.
There is a two different patches in VSL section without filter and with filter on trumpet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0O7iSY34TA&feature=youtu.be

Solo violin
1. AudioBro LASS 2 First chair
2. East West QL Platinum Close mic
3 & 4. VSL Giga solo violin
5. Spitfire LLP Solo
... here we have a very different sounds at all
In my opinion LASS and VSL are best sounding, if we say this is demonstrating without effects and EQ, just pure sound.
LASS is great because of divisi sections which is hard to setup with VSL in this situation. At the other side East West and Spitfire has a lot of room.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSodp0n64mA&feature=youtu.be

First violins (V1)
1. AudioBro LASS 2
2. East West QL Platinum 11 violins
3. VSL Giga 1st violins
4. Spitfire Mural
5. Spitfire Sable 1
6. Spitfire Albion 1
7. Spitfire Albion 2
8. Sonivox - Sonic Implants - Symphonic Strings
Here we have a different situation then the solo section. Some of patches are sensitive on velocity so what I manualy play there is a drasticaly changes in velocity (my midi controler has a very strange velo control on keys ).
Again, LASS, VSL and Sonivox libraries has best sound for me... if we look at the dry side.
Spirtfire has a lot of room and a very very long release on samples and it's great for slow and long legato or sustain lines...
Sable and Albion sounding like Cinesamples Cinestrings, violins sound brassy for my taste.
LASS, VSL and Sonivox are pure orchestral - symphonic violins.
EWQL is great too, I forgot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSs3CV_nSjE&feature=youtu.be

... I set divisi for LASS library
In this video I set divisi A/B/C for LASS and then again compare with others.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqO7GYTqB2A&feature=youtu.be

Some quick conclusion
VSL sound is leading even is from the 2003 and is in GIG format. It's stil best dry library on planet.
If we look at memory assigment of VSL patches and the patches from cinebrass or others there is a big difference.
Per example, LASS will occupied around 3Gb of RAM with only chunked samples for full set of instruments (Violin, Viola, Cello, Bass).
At the other side, if we compare sound quality, other libraries are full of bugs and junks. I notice lot of bugs in EWQL and Sonivox libraries with pitches and noises and common errors, which is not the case with the VSL. Technicaly probably the best library out there.

All in all, this is all my quotes... and you decide what is for you

 

This is very cool and an awesome guide. Thank you!

 

Wow. Awesome guide. Thanks a ton.

 

Solo cello

1. VSL Giga Solo cello sustain
2. VSL Giga Solo cello sustain + exp
3. EWQL SO Platinum Solo Cello QLeg
4. LASS FC Cello
5. Aria Cellist
6. Spitfire LLP solo cello
7. Spitfire Albion III Iceni Cello
8. Embertone Solo Cello
9. Garritan Gofriller Solo cello

A variety of sounds VSL standard clean sound... while at the other side we have very thin EWQL sound of cello.
For the good test I spice up set with some new libraries and some old, like new Aria Cellist or Embertone and Garritan at the old side
As always spitfire is full of included room sound, and personaly I don't get it why Iceni library is at the left side of stereo room ?!????
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrA0_5BL31A&feature=youtu.be


Cello ensembles

1. VSL Giga Cello ensemble 8
2. VSL Giga Cello ensemble 3
3. EWQL SO Platinum XP 11 cellos
4. EWQL SO Platinum XP 3 cellos
5. LASS 2 cellos divisi A/B/C
6. Spitfire Sable Cello legato
7. Spitfire Sable Cello long CS
8. Spitfire Mural Cello legato
9. Spitfire Mural Cello long CS
10. Spitfire Albion III Iceni
11. Sonivox Sonic Implants Cello ensembles

At the moment I must say Sonivox has great sound but per example there is a error on A2 note, and sonivox is full of errors in patches.
In this set Sable and Mural library is brilliant as the VSL with included berlin convolution.
Again, I don't get it why Iceni is on the "left" side ?!???? It's very strange, all set I hear nice on right side and when it comes to Iceni... logic's changed
EWQL as VSL comes with 2 sets, 11 cellos and 3 cellos ensembles, EWQL cello ensemble is better then solo one.
LASS standard sound...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEMk-MVfsiM&feature=youtu.be

 

Kirk Hunter Diamond library Violins and Cellos

Old Kirk Hunter Diamond library is surprisely good but as all others there is some bugs and errors...
Violin divisi is great as the super-legato mode too.
In cello patch there is some problems, just not work correctly.
Overal sound is great as we speak about orchestral and symphonic stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-6gRFQEqFA&feature=youtu.be

Kirk Hunter Spotlight strings and Dan Dean Solo Violin

Spotlight has an character in sound if we compare with Diamond but is very close in solo section.
Dan Dean is not so excited... but anyway takes a small amount of RAM and sound not bad. Reverb section is tricky.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3d7BbaLj_E&feature=youtu.be

 

Westgate flutes vs VSL legacy flutes (legato)

All pathes are run through kontakt's convolution berlin hall IR. VSL patches are scripted with SIPS legato.

Sound is very close for both sample libraries and sometimes I think westgate take VSL library and make own library based on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wxv0T35Sgcc&feature=youtu.be

London solo strings (cello & violin) vs VSL legacy solo cello & violin

Old best service kontakt library has a great character compared to VSL patches.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jav1QjSFMTA&feature=youtu.be

 

Don't sleep on 8dio! My personal favorite for life.

 

I will be pleased if you put some video here...

 

Flutes, Oboes, Clarinets (some woodwinds)

Here we have

- Orchestral Tools Berlin Woodwinds
- Westgate Studios Woodwinds (runing through kontakt's convolution berlin hall IR)
- VSL (only oboes) + same IR as above
- EWQLSO Platinum XP (there is no need for IR, and actualy no true legato, but just for comparing)

These libraries just can make headaches from time to time Some patches are better in Westgate, some in Berlin, some in EWQL etc
Per example Berlin Clarinet Eb sound like mouth accordion and westgate's clarinet has character and deepness. At the other hand, Berlin oboe is great.
Truely mess.
Berlin woodwinds are 100Gb library, westgate is around 20Gb in total. VSL and EWQL are the part of complete orchestral instruments.
EWQL oboe ensemble is comedy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPB0hsqzFkY&feature=youtu.be

 

Great Hands on review Nikon

If i may can i request you also test the velocity layers of some of these libraries.... that has my most interest but no sweat, your doing great can't wait for more specially for more brass

 

Wow nikon this is excellent, thanks so much for making these.

 

I have worst school casio keyboard with awful dynamic key, and that's can be heared on some VSL patches, one key velo is higher then another. I must bang on keys and my wife ask me every night, what the hell are you doing Actually I have 3 setups on keyboard, constant velocity but it's always around 90, VELO 1 and VELO 2, but I don't see any differences.
I must setup some midi in arrangement, and then do it with the same channel, but truely this way is easier
Complete idea is to compare this tons of Gigabyte's and everyone can decide what is for him. Also, don't need to dl all the libraries.

After all of these test's I'm really surprised by the London Solo Strings and Kirk Hunter's strings, strange because these libraries are gone in forever.

 

French Horn's solo & ensemble

In test I have:

1) VSL
2) Albion 1 brass hi + mid
3) ProjectSam Orchestral Brass
4) Cinesamples CineBrass Pro
5) EWQLSO Platinum Pro
6) Kirk Hunter's Diamond Brass

Midi file is from site: http://www.baldwinsmusic.com/tcms/midifhn.html. I just higher the overal velocity. Ofcourse, it would be great to setup midi for every library separately because not every library has the same behaviour, but this is just demonstration and now I have velocity (to Introninja)
We have again the planty of sound's. Every kind. In some libraries solo are great, at the other side in other ensembles sound great. What to say.
VSL is standard, and ensemble sounds great. I'm not impressed with solo, but that may be problem with the midi file.
Cinebrass sound like 20 century fox movie start, pure hollywood
Again, Kirk is a great surprise, library is great. It sound much symphonic then others, maybe VSL and Kirk is the best choice for symphonic type of sound.
Note: every patch is set to close mic, and the channels go through the mixbus with TODD-O IR.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YufKWhe0Sg&feature=youtu.be

In second part

1) VSL Epic horns
2) Westgate Studio's Horns (solo & ensemble)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TH3vMTlSuI&feature=youtu.be

Here we have separate midi tracks, four (quartet) of same midi part, and combination of libraries

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lINh1bpXouI&feature=youtu.be

 

Well if you want to bring them back to life give me a shout lol

 

Can't believe I've missed this thread. Good write ups, going to get deep in your comparisons a little bit later tonight. Thanks for this.

 

somebody mentioned 8Dio up there
I don't have screen recording set up, so I'll just share this walk through

8Dio is amazing for anything Adagio, anything sentimental basically ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wikbSS1cE3o

 

Personaly I don't like 8Dio Adagio violins. There is a lot of problems with legato patches. Sometimes sound very plastic and synth like.

 

I could never quite get my head around 8dio's solo strings library. I know it's just for articulation phrases, but I didn't find it very usable for me. I'm sure people could make some really complex stuff with it, but it seems like it would be an intense headache just getting everything to fit right.

 

I think you're going to run into the slightly wet/really wet sample thing no matter where you go. To a point, you're probably going to want some room on your close-mic instruments, just to keep it all in the same space as your full orchestra. Since I can't fathom having 192+ GBs of orchestra (or the talent to use it properly), I pretty much centered on the Symphobia/True Strike series and never looked back. I like the far mic sound so much, I don't think I've ever used the close mic'd or solo instruments (such as they are). For solo stuff, I usually turn to the Miroslav Philharmonik VI. Granted, Philharmonik is really limited, no keyswitches or fancy articulations and the sound quality kind of pales in comparison to the big boy libraries, but it sounds great mixed with Symphobia and the simplicity of both libraries gels with my limited arranging skills. From there, I tie it all together by bussing reverbs to an instance of Altiverb, decent concert hall or recording stage with the early reflections turned off. Symphobia sounds really big, and most of the Philharmonik sounds have enough room on them that that's all I need. I use Voices of the Apocalypse as my main choir, though Philharmonik's choir is actually really decent and I have yet to take Lumina's choirs for a test drive, but since Voices of the Apocalypse are actually really dry, I just buss those to an instance of Altiverb, same concert hall setting, with the early reflections turned on.

I guess my point is, it's nice to be able to mix and match libraries and VIs to suit your particular needs and tastes, and you can still get a "big" sound, even if you don't have terabytes of hard drive to play with. I'd still like to find a decent solo violin and a viola -- something with decent articulations and noises really does make a difference, even if there's a whole orchestra behind it.