EastWest Quantum Leap Symphonic Orchestra Gold Edition

I was about to start a project that required orchestral samples and I got advice to use Quantum Leap: it turns out that this was great, because it spared me from going through hundreds of mediocre plugins.

The installing process is as simple as any other plugin of the sort: install it and load it from your DAW. I never had any compatibility issues, and the software is clear enough that it does not require a manual for basic use: all the modelling tools are visible from start. I only did resort to the manual when I came to use Keyswitch samples and other advanced options, and not only the instructions were clear but also it provided me with means of making my music more realistic and full of subtleties.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I run this in an I5 and I usually don't experience any performances issues or crashes. That is, when I don't overload my DAW. Running two or three instances of this particular sofware may hinder your performance significantly, especially if you are using keyswitched patches. I've used this software for at least 3 years now and to be fair I'd be totally lost without it, as it has turned out to be the most versatile tool you may be able to find in the market.

OVERALL OPINION

As I said before, the best thing about this piece of software is its awesome versatility. The sheer number of articulations and dynamics you can get from every instrument (together with subtle timbre changes based on dynamic), combined with the possibility of loading more than one sample on a single instance, modelling timbre, and effect variables (chorus, delay, reverb) make for a must-have tool in the modern musician's arsenal. To be totally fair, the sounds are a bit dated now (specially some strings sections and brasses), you can bet much better particular samples if you resort to 8DIO tools, but those take up a great deal of space, while Quantum Leap offers a whole orchestral library, full with percussions and effects for a moderate amount of memory. I think this is an indispensable tool for any aspiring orchestral composer or arranger, as it makes for excellent mockups or even professional work (as long as the orchestra isn't the main dish on the music).

Quantum leap by East West is great orchestra software vst plug in for your daw or whatever you use to make your music in. When it comes to plug ins, most people go through tons of them before they can actually find some there are satisfied with , but I can tell you that the East West Quantum Leap Symphonic is one of the best orchestra sounds that I have every heard. You think that your orchestra sounds are good and you can just use them? Wait till you get your hands on this vst. Unfortunately, the price of this instrument is ridiculous. No one that I know would ever pay almost 1000 dollars for a piece of software. But if you have the money this will be one of the best investments that you have every made into soundb anks and patches for your production program.


SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Performance is high, it doesn’t crash and it better not for that price. You wont need a manual and most of the presets will be all that you need. You wont need to do much effects or EQ processing.


OVERALL OPINION

Overall, it is the best orchestral sounds on the market and has been for years. Bad thing is the price, they price makes is an eye sore to anyone that’s looking around online. For 1000 dollars you can get a brand new keyboard with some good orchestra sounds and a ton of other sounds that will fit your style. I don’t think this is good, they have put the price for this software way to high. There is no reason for a software to cost that much. I am very disappointed in the price, and due to money situations not many people will buy this. But by any means, if you have the cash laying around then go for it, you will thank me later.

This is a mid price mid optioned piece in the line. As a result you are limited in a couple of key areas ( mic placement...Bummer !!!! )The Platinum edition is nearly 3000.00 but you get a whole lot more of what you want with the full edition.

Price paid: 499.00 USD

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

The Sound Quality is excellent !

Very Easyu to use..not so easy to install !!!

OVERALL OPINION

Love it ??? I am glad I didn't spend 995.00 which is what it is still going for. The update is around the corner ( March 05..Gold upgrade ) which will give you all the articulations from the platinum Module..I bought this arouind the holidays when they had a special going ..so if I get the upgrade I will have a total of 1499.00 into it..which is half of what everyone that bought the platinum paid when it came out ( I'd be pissed ) But oh well that's how it goes with software....having said all of this ..I do love it. The sounds are very organic and no one is going to listen back and say " you need to get rid of that Casio-ish clarinet ".The vibe is realistic. It is geared toward film score with generous amounts of mic delay on everything..if you are looking for an intimate string sound then Vienna Symphony with Gigastudio is still the way to go...that is if you can spare the 5500.00....if you can't then there is no alternative ( I have tried/owned them all )no fear here. See if you can find it for less ( ebay etc.. ) Good Luck.

Originally posted on FutureProducers.com
Posted by: HardArtSystems ( 2-, 2005)

This program installed with no difficulty. I thought it was a little strange that you have to manually copy over the data files in Windows explorer if you are installing onto a PC, but apart from that it was pretty straightforward. I haven't had any trouble with compatibility. After getting it setup to run in your DAW host, you will have to do a little bit of MIDI configuration. If you are using a MIDI controller you need to let this program know which one controls which instrument. After this minor bit of setup you should be good to go.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I am running Cubase for this software on my Windows XP custom PC. It has pretty much top of the line CPU and RAM, so the performance is very good. I have seen this on slower computers though, and it does eat up some CPU if you don't have a dual core. Also the samples are loaded into RAM, so you will definitely want to have plenty of RAM to spare if you want to use more than a few instruments in this package at once (trust me, you will). It is a very stable program, I can't remember it ever causing any crashes.

OVERALL OPINION

I have been using this for 2 years as my main sample library for strings and woodwinds. The soloed instruments definitely sound kind of dodgy, and unless you spend some serious time tweaking your MIDI data, they unfortunately sound kind of fake when you try to put lines together. The ensemble patches definitely seem to fit together more realistically, although those are unfortunately drenched in reverb. The soloed patches are also drenched in reverb that you can't remove, but it's a bit less so for those particular samples. Other than the reverb and the somewhat fake sounding legato movements, these strings and woods do sound very good. It is not quite the Vienna Library, but this is pretty much the next best thing. It's a good value for the price, I would get it again.