I could have brought in a real guy and he would have played it in one take for $20 but on this project I was absolutely damn set it was gonna be 100% solo, and sax was on the whole thing and I really wanted to see how far I could push programming it. Typically I'd say Fiverr is your friend though. Fake sax is rarely worth the effort when there's a thousand guys out there on the net that will record your stuff practically for free.

 

Love Sax. Love SWAM.
Sampling-wise; some nice sounding Kontakt Brass - especially colossus:
https://www.straightaheadsamples.com/

Peace

 

Sorry, I meant that it seemed like a true malware detection. I've never seen Windows Defender go that hysterical, and the reaction wasn't just to executable files, like an installer or a keygen, but to every single VST file. I remember reading that that release had an unusual packaging, which made it 'opaque', and this could be the cause of the supposed false positive. On the other hand, several users who faced the danger reported that this enclosing also made the release bloated and slower than a proper, lean release would.

Anyway, I vouch for their products not only because I tested (most of) them, but also because there are incredible demos of people really pushing it to the next level. I'd say the same about 8Dio's Fire Sax. If you want to use these instruments on a thick horn arrangement (like a brass section), you'll most likely get away with a lot. Unaccompanied solos, let's be honest, are way trickier.

 

Very good editing! Loving them chord changes

 

Thank you! The basic take went down pretty quick but I probably spent two weeks just getting away from it for a day or 2 and then listening to it and trying to tweak out little things that were annoying... it's not perfect and it never will be but I'm pretty happy with it!
(ironically I feel like this is maybe a low point of the entire album but hopefully that speaks well for the rest of the album!)

 

I am surprised no-one mentioned the Kenny G VST plugin or the Kontakt version from https://musicworkcenter.com. They probably switched to the plugin version due to Kontakt libraries getting shared so often....

 

Swam, Vhorn, and Straight Ahead solo saxes sound fantastic, the most realistic I've heard as of 2025. However, it's the creation of a jazz horn ensemble arrangement from these particular individual samples, or from a sampled group of these sounds, that's where these sample library sounds come up short.

I've yet to hear one jazz sample library ensemble demo on YouTube that sounds realistic overall, for not having a sampling or jazz arranging background, I don't understand why the layering of great individual sax samples or sampled ensembles makes them fall apart, because in the end, they all have that Kazoo-ish sound that gives them away.

The sole exception is the great, spot on "EastWest Hollywood Pop Brass" ensemble, with the caveat of them being sampled for loud dynamics only with no subtleties; now if they could come up with a version with softer dynamics as well, they'd corner the market!

 

Which controllers did you use? Live or post automation?

 

Last edited: Sep 18, 2025

I have a friend who has been playing Saxophone since he was a child and is insanely good, and he says he prefers Acoustic Samples VHorns Saxophone over SWAM. In fact he says he prefers all of the VHorn series over SWAM.
They use some kind of hybrid sampling/modeling approach for their libraries.

 

Audio Modeling SWAM

 

That one does soumd pretty nice indeed

 

Yes, it's pretty good, but how many really care to sound like Kenny G?

 

Granted I am not a sax player, but have played a lot with horn players, I also concur with the notion about SWAM. For the size/quality ratio, it cannot be beaten. But I am also a fan of NI Session Horns' own saxes. Third place would probably be Chris Hein. Mojo Horns from Vir2 used to be good, but nowadays I don't use them.

 

Damn, guys. I spent an hour last night playing SWAM Alto Sax and it blew me away. Took a bit to get used to using the expression pedal and the mod wheel and velocity to get really comfortable, but pretty quickly I was playing the most realistic-sounding sax lines I've ever played. I own NI Collector's Edition, all the Chris Hein stuff, and a bunch of others, but SWAM is great.

 

I had a look (Vhorn) and the examples provided sound impressive.
However they're not giving much infos about the ratio sampling/modeling and how this affects the real control you're feeding live.

I mean, can you control all nuances live with just a modulation wheel? It seems not much feasible.
Just see how many params influence a brass instrument, blow, toungue, air pressure, vibrato, harmonics, etc.
Drawing automation is post.

Yes it takes some time to get used, the better the controller, the more realistic will sound.
I guess you can get the best live controls with a seaboard.
If not, you can always use pedals, aftertouch, breath controller, and of course velocity.
I created an OSC panel with two XY controls giving 4 CCs with 2 fingers, they provide a sufficient control over nuances.

 

Last edited: Sep 20, 2025

I remember that. I had the same thing with ESET. I just deleted it. It's just not worth the risk. There was a new bundle released this year in July that seems to be OK. It contains all of these:
★ SWAM Cello v3.8.2
★ SWAM Clarinets v3.8.2
★ SWAM Double Bass v3.8.2
★ SWAM Double Reeds v3.8.2
★ SWAM Flutes v3.8.2
★ SWAM Horns and Tubas v3.8.2
★ SWAM Saxophones v3.8.2
★ SWAM String Sections v1.2.2
★ SWAM Trombones v3.8.2
★ SWAM Trumpets v3.8.2
★ SWAM Viola v3.8.2
★ SWAM Violin v3.8.2

 

I also like to use the Kontakt libraries: '8Dio - Studio Saxophones' and 'Fable Sounds - Broadway Big Band'. The last one is now on sale. From $2495 for now only $2295! So hurry up and don't miss it!

 

Last edited: Sep 20, 2025

That Fable Sounds is floating around internet, I would not buy it for that price

 

Samples, MIDI triggered, but I love Band-In-A-Box sax.