THE PREMIUM GUITAR SOUNDFONT COLLECTION

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www.chevinsounds.com

THE CHEVIN SOUNDS PREMIUM SAMPL= ED GUITAR COLLECTION

Thank you for purchas= ing this collection of high quality sampled guitars. These multi-sampled instruments= go way beyond the thousands of free sampled sounds (mostly soundfonts) available on the internet, most of which are not good enough for serious mu= sic production. You also have the satisfaction of knowing that you have purchas= ed a complete set of professional-quality sounds for substantially less than the price of a single instrument from one of the big name studios!

In Soundfont (SF2) format, these guitars will import into the vast majority of modern software samplers. However, they are now also available in Sampletank and Gigasampler format. I use these sampled gui= tars to create realistic backing tracks from MIDI files - I use Band-in-a-Box, <= span class=3DSpellE>Jammer and Keyfax sequenc= es to create the MIDI tracks and then patch the sounds using software samplers. However, you can also play the guitars live using a MIDI keyboard (or even a MIDI= guitar!) if your sampler supports this option.<= o:p>

Most free soundfonts compromise in terms of the number of samples and use sample looping in orde= r to remain small enough to import into Soundblaster. However, the guitar presents particular problems because each string sounds different and the tone also changes as you go up the f= retboard. This means that stretching notes more than a tone or so does not create an authentic sound. Also, the note decays slowly over time - something which cannot be reproduced convincingly using looped samples.

These multi-sampled g= uitars have been produced to professional standards with the above in mind. The guitars were sampled at the rate of 8 notes per octave (in most cases) acro= ss the entire instrument range, recorded with full decay at 48kHz/24bit. The samples were then converted to 32bit for editing. There are 3 velocity layers to produce a more dynamic sound. Also, very importantly, the guitars were sampled completely dry with little or no processing of the sound. This means that you can add whatever sound-shaping and effec= ts you choose to suit your music project. To produce the final presets, the samples were professionally “dithered” down to standard CD qual= ity (44.1kHz/16bit). This makes a substantial saving= on computer resources in use and makes little or no perceptible difference to = the sound quality. However, I would still recommend that you render your guitar tracks to audio at 24 or 32 bit if you intend to do any further audio processing.

Please note that the = electric and bass guitars will require the addition of an amp simulation or other to= ne shaping to be at their best, whilst the acoustic instruments may benefit fr= om the use of plugins which simulate valve warmth.= I personally use IKMultimedia Amplitube and TRacks for this purpose, but there are other equally good plugins available. You will find l= inks to download some excellent free plugins on my w= ebsite (www.chevinsounds.com). The fr= ee SimulAnalog guitar suite of plug= ins works outstandingly well for electric guitar. You will also need some decent stereo effects (reverb, chorus, delay etc.) and a compressor, but most sequencers come with these as standard nowadays.

If you have purchased= the Sampletank version of the collection, you will quickl= y come to realise that the sampler’s excellent on-board effects perfectly complement the guitars. The “Preamp” and “Speaker” effects have come straight out of the Amplitube= plugin and will bring out the best in the electric gu= itars. The tube-emulated “Tone” effect works especially well with the acoustic guitars, but can also be used with the bass guitars (with or witho= ut speaker simulation).

THE INSTRUMENTS

Aria Pro II Electr= ic Guitar

Aria may not have a f= amous name, but the Aria Pro II is a high quality, solid hardwood bodied, electric guitar with excellent sustain. Made in the mid-1980R= 17;s, this model was a favourite of Andy Summers (ex. The Pol= ice). It is a very versatile guitar because it is possible to switch its pickups between single coil and humbucker, meaning that= it can produce both clear, bright tones reminiscent of a Fender and the more “meaty” sound of a Gibson. The guitar was recorded by DI to preserve the unprocessed sound. This ensures that the presets play correctly through proprietary amp/speaker simulations.

There are 6 presets, = making full use of the pickup switching:

Aria Pro II A (96MB) - single coil, neck pickup.

Aria Pro II B (92MB) - single coil neck and bridge pickups.

Aria Pro II C (82MB) – single coil bridge pickup.

Aria Pro II D (97MB) - humbucker neck pickup.=

Aria Pro II E (88MB) - humbucker neck and bridge pickups.

Aria Pro II F (88MB) - humbucker bridge pickup.

Dean Classical Gui= tar

This is a high quality cutaway classical guitar with a solid cedar top. The sound is very balanced= and well suited to both classical and Latin style music. There is just one pres= et, recorded using a stereo XY coincidental pair of Rode microphones. This capt= ures the true acoustic tone of the instrument and also ensures mono compatibilit= y. The preset is:

Dean Classical Nylon Guitar (91.5MB) – stereo miked with no processing.<= /p>

Johnson JD-26 Dreadnought

This is a reproduction of a 1930’s Martin D18 dreadnought acoustic. Made f= rom high quality solid tonewoods and employing the traditional fully scalloped forward-X bracing system, this guitar really do= es deliver the vintage Martin tone, much sought after by Bluegrass and Country musicians, but just as useful in Folk, Pop and Rock. The bass registers are full and rich but these are perfectly balanced by a detailed top-end –= ; a superb guitar! I sampled the guitar in stereo, using a coincidental XY pair= of Rode microphones, reproducing the full and detailed acoustic tone but maintaining mono compatibility. The preset is:

Johnson Dreadnought (122MB) – stereo miked with no processin= g.

Tanglewood TW170-AS Acoustic Gui= tar

This excellent and very versatile all-solid tonewood acoustic guitar is my personal favourite and goes everywhere with me! It ha= s a slightly smaller body than a dreadnought (equivalent to a Martin 000) and as such has a more controlled bass response than the Johnson. Nevertheless, the tone is superb and perfectly balanced – well defined lows, warm mids and sparkling trebles. These attributes make thi= s the ideal acoustic guitar for studio work, equally at home for strumming or picking. This is probably the acoustic guitar to use if you really need something to cut through the mix. Again, I recorded this guitar with a ster= eo pair of Rode microphones. The preset is:

Tanglewood Acoustic Guitar (112M= B) – stereo miked with no processing.

Lag “Winter&= #8221; Dreadnought Acoustic (Free Bonus Preset!)

This is another favou= rite guitar of mine. It is a high quality cutaway dreadnought made in China<= span style=3D'font-size:14.0pt'> to a French design. This guitar has a slightly “darker” tone than the Johnson and Tanglew= ood with a bit of “attitude”. It is probably at its best when used = in Rock style music for picking or strumming. Again record= ed with stereo microphones.

Lag Acoustic (98MB= ) – stereo miked with no processing.

Yamaha FGX-413SC Acoustic Guitar (Free Bonus Preset!)

This is a dreadnought= cutaway electro-acoustic guitar with a piezo pickup und= er the saddle. However, to ensure a true acoustic sound, sampling was all done usi= ng a stereo XY coincidental pair of Rode microphones. The sound is well balanced= but with less warmth in the bass than the Johnson Dreadnought. The preset is: <= o:p>

Yamaha Acoustic Guitar (123MB) – stereo miked with no processing.

Yamaha 12 String A= coustic

I cheated with this o= ne - I don’t even own a 12 string! This preset was put together by blending = the appropriate samples from the Yamaha 6 string acoustic guitar, using a little offset and pitch shift. I hope you agree that the result is remarkably realistic! Once again, this is a mono compatible stereo preset. The preset = is:

Yamaha 12 String Acoustic (124MB)

Vintage 5 String F= ingered Bass

This is an excellent solid-bodied bass guitar, modelled on a Musicman Stingray. The double coil pickup delivers a big tone, perfect for Rock and = Pop music. The instrument was sampled by DI with no added processing and will therefore require the addition of either an amp simulation or other tone-shaping plugin to work correctly. I find t= hat both Amplitube and TRacks<= /span> work well with this preset. Tone control for this bass guitar is passive and takes the form of simple filters to remove the treble. Therefore, the preset was recorded with full treble response. It is an easy matter to emulate oth= er tone settings by applying a low pass filter immediately after your sampler/player (although some samplers have one built in). The preset uses a fingered playing style - the most common method of playing the bass in contemporary music:

Vintage 5 String Fingered Bass (133MB) - no processing, leaving the full frequency ran= ge and more attack.

Harley Benton Acou= stic Bass

This is a monster of = an acoustic bass with a tone to match. I recorded it using a stereo coincident= al XY pair of Rode microphones which results in a huge, expansive and detailed sound. This bass is close enough in sound to an upright bass to be used in = the same situations. However, it also has a bit of extra edge, so it’s wo= rth trying it in Rock and Pop as well. If you find the stereo sound overpowerin= g in the mix, simply render to audio in mono.

The preset is:

Harley Benton Acou= stic Bass (121MB) – stereo miked with no processing.

USING THE GUITARS<= o:p>

The 14 presets (inclu= ding the free bonus guitars) are in the form of Winrar self-extracting archives. I recommend copying them to a new sub-folder with= in the folder where you store your sampled instruments. Double-click on each f= ile in turn to extract it to full size – follow the on-screen instruction= s. If you have downloaded the files, I also recommend making a back-up of the archived files on a CD – just in case!!

If you already own a compatible sampler/player, I will presume you know how to patch the sampler= to a MIDI track and import the guitars. If you do not own= a sampler and have purchased presets in the Soundfont (SF2) format, you can use the excellent free Sfz player (I have provided links to this at my website www.chevinsounds.com ). This is a= high quality and stable VST sample player. Its main drawback is the lack of ADSR (attack, decay, sustain, release) adjustments. However, the retail version = of the player, the Sfz+, does have adjustable ADSR= and retails at just $60, available for immediate download from Cakewalk’s website (www.cakewalk.com). Patch = the player in accordance with your sequencer’s requirements and import on= e of the guitars by clicking on the instrument window and browsing for the sound= you want.

Play the guitar and a= dd an amp/speaker simulation, EQ, compression, reverb and delay effects to create= the sound you want. Adjust these to suit your mix. Please note that most amp simulations require you to adjust the output from the sampler to an appropr= iate level for them to work optimally. In fact, using a compressor plugin prior to the amp simulation can normally achie= ve this if you adjust the compressor’s output – this also has the benefit of levelling out the signal somewhat. Indeed, some compression will generally benefit all of these sampled guitars and basses, although it is e= asy to overdo it! If using the free Sfz player, whi= ch has no amplifier, you may need to patch into the chain an additional plugin effect which can amplify the sound without col= ouring it - I use the TRacks EQ p= lugin or compressor as an amplifier.

Depending on the styl= e of playing on the MIDI track, you may also need to adjust the release setting for the preset to get best results - this is best done by ear. In general, strumming works better with shorter release times, whilst arpeggio and picking styles will work better with a longer release.<= /span> The basses seem to work best with a very short release time and should not require adjustment.

All of the acoustic g= uitar presets use stereo samples, as this approach delivers better detail than a = mono recording – it is particularly useful in situations where the guitar = is the main instrument in the mix. However, there may be instances where a mono guitar track will be more appropriate to your mix. In this case simply rend= er your guitar to audio in mono, as the samples are fully mono compatible.

Using a powerful comp= uter with plenty of memory, as well as a reasonable sampler/player, you should f= ind it possible to play quite a number of these sampled guitars at once, togeth= er with other instruments. Also, if your sampler allows layering of different sounds on a single MIDI<= /span> track, you can blend 2 presets together and eve= n pan the sounds - this can create some interesting effects. Alternatively, you c= an clone your MIDI track and patch a different preset to each.

Finally, I would stre= ss again that the electric and bass guitars do require an amp simulation or tone sha= ping to work correctly.

MIDI CONSIDERATIONS

The authenticity of t= he sound created with these sampled guitars is entirely dependent on the quality of = the MIDI information used to play the sounds.

With certain samplers= , you have the option to play sampled instruments via a MIDI keyboard. You can then use the pitch wheel to bend notes (although it takes some practice to get this right!). This is the only way to create realistic guitar solos with pitch bending, unless you have a MIDI guitar.

Both MIDI keyboards and note sequencing by mouse can create fairly realistic picked guitar sounds (eg. arpeggios). However, it is almost impossible to create convincing strummed sounds using a keyboard. In fact, only MIDI sequences recorded on a = MIDI guitar can properly recreate strumming. The Keyfax collections are probably the best for this (www.keyfax.com). However, Band-in-a-Box= (www.pgmusic.com) and Jammer Pro (www.soundtrek.com) also incl= ude MIDI guitar sequences produced in the same way and can create some very authentic sounds. All of my demo songs were created using combinations of these three products.

FURTHER INFORMATIO= N

Please check out the = links on my website (www.chevinsounds.com) to source some excellent free sounds and VST plugin effects. The plugins include 2 excellent FREE g= uitar amp simulation suites plus the “Classic” series of effects (EQ, compressor, reverb, chorus etc.).

If you have any comme= nts, suggestions or requests, please feel free to contact me by email at:

paul.chevin@virgin.net

I hope to develop add= itional multi-sampled sounds in the future and may be able to respond to special requests. Therefore, I hope you will visit my website periodically to check= for these.

I hope you enjoy the = guitars!