A while back Fran (I think it was Fran) had posted regarding Acoustica and its products such as Mixcraft and Pianissimo.

Not long ago I downloaded the free trial version of Mixcraft 6 from Acoustica's website. The Trial version is actually the full featured version you'd get if you purchased the software. The only difference is after the trial period you have to purchase a registration code from them.

I have to say that Mixcraft 6 is one hell of a DAW. The best way to describe it IMO is saying that Mixcraft 6 is essentially GarageBand for Windows.., but MUCH better. The software is designed for low CPU usage too. I'm not running a super fast computer and Mixcraft 6 runs smooth as silk on my Gateway (2.60 GHz processor, Windows 7 Home Premium, 64 bit operating system with 4 gigs of RAM). I've run some heavy projects processing a good number of effects, and have yet to see Mixcraft bog my system down.

This DAW is insanely easy to use, and you get one hell of a VST package right out of the box. Those of you who like a Rhodes piano will love the Lounge Lizard Session VST that's included with Mixcraft. If you like organs (draw bars, AND emulations of the old greats such as VOX and Farfisa.., well Mixcraft has you covered there too).

If you're into heavier genres there are included VST's such as the MiniMogue, Messiah, and Impulse. These are VA modeling VST's too that recreate some classics. If you like that old Roland 303 sound, well Mixcraft has you covered there too with the Alien 303.

The Acoustica Studio drums included with Mixcraft are VERY good. The studio kit is unlike the kits we find on our arrangers too. There are chokable cymbals via the mod wheel, partial opening of the hi-hat via mod wheel, the list just goes on in the drum department. They're very good, and the "Studio Kit" by itself is just amazing.

For your "bread and butter" sounds Mixcraft includes their own sound set which is essentially their version of GM sounds. However.., the GM sounds are really good and NOT what you'd expect from a GM set. Plus with the huge number of effects that come with Mixcraft you can add so much flavor to the GM sounds.

Another product of theirs that was suggested by Fran is Pianissimo. This is a Piano VST. Holy freakin cow is it good! It's an amazing piano for solo play and adding to a mix. You get control over hammer noise, symp reso, 3 band EQ, opening and closing of the lid, when press and release the sustain pedal you'll even hear the transfer bar. It also has it's own dedicated effects. The only downside I've found for this VST is the price. Yes.., it's a wonderful sounding piano, BUT it costs $68.95 for the download copy and nearly 80 bucks for the boxed copy. The download version is almost as much as Mixcraft 6 (and that's a complete package).

Anyways.., I would highly recommend this DAW to any member here who is looking for a low cost, no frills, DAW. It's really worth every penny. I started with Mixcraft 6 "Home Studio".., and it didn't take me long to upgrade to the Mixcraft 6 (which adds more VST's as well as other very useful features.

Ohhh almost forgot. One of the biggest things that makes Mixcraft such a bargain is the loop library. My goodness.., you get access to THOUSANDS of audio loops covering a wide range of music styles. When I say thousands I'm saying over 6,500 of them!

Another BIGGIE is mixing down your work. After you've finished your project you can mix the entire thing down to a WAV file or even an MP3.., or even just burn right to CD.

This software IS really worth a look. Thanks Fran for suggesting this to us.

Very Impressive, I would love to have the acoustic piano sample, I do not care about the price, but am a complete novice in this area. Will I need the Mixcraft as well or does the sample suffice ? and how do I get it to play via my Korg PA800 and/or Yamaha PSR750. Any advice is more than welcome. Either here or in PM.

regards,
John Smies

Now you know why I used purely software in the 90s (Still do) with the only downside being you need wires all over the place which rules it out for the lounge.

When Wersi introduced the OAS system organ/arrangers I 2000 all the problems receded as you could use VST instruments on-board so it could now be put in the lounge. (You can have pretty much any sounds you want on-board and play it as if it was part of the factory sounds)

The above is the reason I could never go back to the limited capabilities of a hardware organ/arranger.

Back to the question:

You don’t need a DAW to use VST Sounds, you just need a computer with a quality audio and Midi interface, and you can then control the sounds via your keyboard using Midi and feed the sound from the computer into your keyboard.

Do a quick search on SZ and you will find quite a few of my posts that explain how to do it all, and suggestions for various VST?

For Piano sounds also try Pianoteq and the industry standard Ivory

For a GM Sound Set try Goliath

For general purpose Komplete 9

and for a free one Komplete Players

There are also many more out there.

Hope this helps

Bill

I am not surprised Fran & I have been using MIXCRAFT for many years ..best bang for the buck by far!!1 There is also many You Tube instructional videos to help you also if needed too.I have recorded entire CD projects using MIXCRAFT,......EXCELLENT!!

http://www.acoustica.com/mixcraft/download.htm