What sampler for Sonar?

tombuur

tombuur

New member
The only sampler I have tried out a little is VSampler that came with Sonar. As far as I can tell it is okay for my needs. But before I invest a lot of time in learning all the tricks it can do ... is there a better sampler out there?

My perceived needs:

1. I want samples for rock music, so techno stuff is not necessary.

2. Should read and preferably write SF2

3. Stand alone capability, so I can use it for any midi program, even Windows Media Player. And possible redirection of midi channels to other devices would be great.

If VSampler is the way to go, great. My only hessitation is if VSampler will last. Maybe Cakewalk includes something else in the next Sonar version, maybe VSampler is discontinued? In which case I would rather invest in a more established sampler.
 
I haven't mucked around with VSampler much though I know it's pretty powerful. It's main problem is that it's got a fairly high learning curve and its interface is hard to understand at first. But there are a lot of SONAR users getting good results with it.

It's always hard to know how a product will fair in the future. VSampler is on version 3, but who knows? The same could be said of other products as well though you would probably be safe with Giga or other products out there for a while. If a sampler has the features you need now and can handle the formats you use then future support might not be all that critical, at least for a while.

VSampler doesn't come as a standalone with SONAR, you have to pay a little more for that but it is available.

Ted
 
I use Native Instruments Kompakt (not Kontakt). It plays well with Sonar, has stand alone capability, and is compatible with most formats, including Soundfont. I don't know if it can write SF2 though. It's very affordable at $140 (B&H Photo), especially if you consider the great sound library that's included.

Of course there are many other options, especially if you're prepared to spend more (Kontakt, Giga, etc.) There's also a free sampler DS-404 that comes with each Computer Music Magazine.

You can do a search here http://www.kvr-vst.com/get.php and read reviews.
 
Kontakt is top of the heap for samples in almost any format, kompakt where you don't need loads of shaping tools and Intakt for slicing/loops. ;)
 
Exactly as Paul said.I'd add that the samples that come with Kompakt are woth the price alone.You can get plenty of freebies and cheapies but the Kompakt library is a great hit the ground running type of library.
 
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