Onto the Yamaha! I loaded up the C7 and opted to try out a patch with the ‘synth layer’ enabled. it comes with plenty of presets Ivory II Grand Pianos by Synthogy From pop/rock songwriting to electronic production to Passion Reflected in Every. I expected this instrument to decimate my RAM and CPU, but the engine of Ivory 2 is wonderfully efficient.
Ivory II I think would have ended up being my first choice regardless, but for further purchasing, Amazon doesnt seem to have Pianoteq 3. I don’t know how they optimized this engine so well to get it so that even at what I consider to be a mid to higher audio buffer range, I didn’t perceive any latency at all. I dont have experience with other piano VSTs, but I read many forums to arrive between Steinways East and West, Pianoteq 3, and Ivory II. I was also surprised to find that at a buffer setting of 256, I wasn’t unhappy and annoyed. Everything about Ivory 2 felt and sounded just so right. Those last 2 points are sore spots with me - piano instruments that get it wrong really overdo the resonance and pedal sounds. Their Ivory collection of three grands dates back to 2004, when its 30GB library would have been considered absolutely gargantuan. I was impressed with the sheer number of dynamic layers, the pedal sounds weren’t overwhelming, and the resonance didn’t feel ‘gimmicky’. Holy hell! The piano sound literally felt like it was jumping out of my monitors and at my face.