Emu XL-7 & MP-7 User's Group

Well you've convinced me,
 I am going to have to install my vintage rom. SOunds like it has 
everything I feel I've been mising... but what to remove? Looks like 
it may be the Adv. Orch:(


--- In xl7@yahoogroups.com, "robotchas" <robotchas@y...> wrote:
> I almost didn't get this, since I have a Virus which admirably 
covers 
> most of the same bases and is more flexible than a sample player, 
but 
> I'm very glad I did. It's now sitting in the second slot on my 
XL7. 
> Some thoughts, very much filtered through the lens of my own 
personal 
> needs:
> 
> Electric Pianos
> The Yamaha CP70 was a revelation - if you want a realistic 
acoustic 
> grand for solo use this isn't it, but I just wanted a good, 
> recognizable piano sample, and this totally fits the bill. The 
CP70 
> isn't an electric piano so much as a small acoustic stage piano 
with 
> piezo pickups on each string, and I like the slightly lo-fi rock-n-
> roll quality. Very pleasant surprise. As for the other electric 
> pianos, I can't really comment, as I personally detest the sound 
of 
> EPs, other than to say that as has been pointed out elsewhere, the 
> volume levels in the presets are too low relative to other sounds. 
> There are lots of them though. Some of the instruments (including 
the 
> CP70) are recorded at different velocity levels, for improved 
> dynamics.
> 
> Organs and Clavs
> I'm not able to comment on authenticity, but there are plenty of 
them 
> and they sound fine (though some could use a volume boost as 
well). 
> Not something I have much use for, but the clavs could be handy 
for 
> some arpeggiated synth lines. My guess is that anyone who wants 
lots 
> of organ sounds is going to be more interested in the B3 ROM, and 
I 
> don't know how many of these were taken from there.
> 
> Electric Bass Guitar
> There are a couple of these - Fingers sounds like a Fender, and 
Pilot 
> is probably a Guild Pilot played with a pick. Their inclusion is a 
> little odd, considering the theme of the ROM, but they sound nice 
and 
> should cover the rare occasions when I want a sampled bass guitar. 
I 
> particularly like the Pilot sample.
> 
> Analog Synths
> These are very nice, covering many of the classics from Roland to 
> Sequential to Arp, Moog, and Oberheim. There are also some Yamaha 
DX 
> samples (ep and bass, of course); but the only Korg seems to be 
the 
> MS-20 drums. The sound of these samples is warm and rich, and 
there's 
> a good variety of waveforms. This territory is well-covered by any 
> decent VA, but textural variety is useful, particularly in a 
sample-
> based synth, and there's plenty of it here. In concert with the XL 
> ROM I now have a wide range of raw material for the Emu filters, 
and 
> the results both support and complement the Virus.
> 
> Analog Basses
> My Virus has this nailed, so I wasn't too concerned about the 
number 
> and quality of the bass samples. However, I couldn't help noticing 
> that there are several good sounding instruments in this category, 
> and I like the Vintage basses better, on the whole, than the XL 
> basses. If I want to leave my Virus at home at some point I can 
count 
> on the Vintage ROM to step in and take over the low end.
> 
> Pads/Strings
> This was a primary consideration in choosing this ROM. As much as 
I 
> love my Virus, it just doesn't have the high-end clarity of the 
XL, 
> and the Emu synthesis engine is well-suited to complex, layered 
pads. 
> The Vintage ROM provides lots of material for these, between the 
> rawer synth waves and some Elka, Solina and Matrix-12 samples 
> specifically intended for string pads. They sound warm and full, 
with 
> ample detail in the high end, and thanks to the filters and mod 
> matrix they can have as much animation as you like.
> 
> Vox
> There are some choir-ish samples, primarily from the Mellotron; 
this 
> is an area where the XL is a bit weak so it's nice to get some 
added 
> options. The Mellotron samples have a distinctive, rough quality 
to 
> them, but again, I can't speak as to authenticity. There's still 
no 
> realistic choir sound though - for that I guess you need one of 
the 
> pop ROMs, like the P2500 or ZR.
> 
> Drums
> I figured this category would be redundant in a box containing 
both 
> the XL and PX ROMs (more on that later), but there's less 
duplication 
> of samples than I expected. The focus, of course, is on analog 
> beatboxes - the 808 and 909, but also the MS-20, SP-1200, and even 
> the Casio SK-1 (they don't sound much like drums, but they're 
cool). 
> I do wish the sample names were more clear about their sources, 
and 
> there's room for a more exhaustive collection of analog beatbox 
> samples - the 505, 707, 606, DMX, Drumulator, LinnDrum, etc. don't 
> seem to be represented - but I guess we won't ever see that. 
There's 
> a decent variety here, the sound quality is good, and I'm pretty 
well 
> covered now, drum-wise.
> 
> In summary, the sound of the Vintage ROM is warmer and softer, on 
the 
> whole, than the XL ROM, which has a cold, hard, modern techno 
sound 
> to my ears. It's a good choice if you want to expand your sonic 
> palette, since it complements the XL without much overlap. There 
> aren't as many samples as on the XL, but there are still a good 
> number and the quality is generally very high. It also may be a 
good 
> choice even if you have a VA - it can augment the sonic range of 
the 
> VA and take some of the polyphony load off as well. I'm very happy 
> with it. Thanks to everyone who gave input on my decision, and to 
> Matt Picone, a fellow Virus owner who argued in favor of the 
Vintage.
> 
> I also picked up a Protean Drums ROM from a list member (thanks, 
Tom) 
> and will be posting a review of that once I've had some more time 
> with it.