Your thoughts on Kontakt 5

[stratatonic]

I am looking at buying Kontakt 5. It's possible that I would buy it for the upgrade path to Komplete or Ultimate sometime in the future. I can buy it this month for 124.50, which seems like a good deal from 399.

In the meantime, I'd love to hear the good and the bad about Kontakt. Do you feel that Kontakt 5 (or even a lesser version) is worth it over the Kontakt Player? I'm not sure what the extra value is exactly. Is it just the demo content and the included FX?

What do you think of the included content? It appears that much of the content is quite old.
If I am understanding correctly, there is a legacy Vienna Orchestra and an updated one, still using the same samples, but with more advanced scripting.

How does it compare with the NN-XT? Or even the ESX24 if you are familiar with that sampler. Have you found it to be a resource hog?

It looks like Kontakt 5 is a few years old as well (2012?)...Do you suppose that there will be a Kontakt 6 soon?

My impressions of the demo so far is that the interface is tiny - I can barely read the text. Any way to expand?

[QVprod]

The library it comes with is ok. I use the orchestral stuff sometimes but not much else. The selling point of Kontakt is more the libraries it gives you access to which are not all available for the free player version. I bought Komplete 10 standard which made it even better because it came with other libraries.

As a sampler (no sampler functions in the player versions) it's leagues ahead of NNXT and most samplers in general. No comparison. How resource heavy it is depends on the libraries you use.

[Hauser+Quaid]

Been a Kontakt user since v2. The included libraries are very usable, the orchestral stuff is solid, even the "band" libraries are very usable.

As a sampler it's leagues ahead of NNXT or EXS as far as flexibility and features. Personally I prefer NNXT for a lot of sampling duties because it's very simple and all the controls are right on the front. In Kontakt there are a lot of hidden menus and things you have to click around to access.

I don't have any experience in the difference between Kontakt & the Player since I've always had the full version. Hope that all helps.

[swamptooth]

Kontakt is a great addition to any arsenal. Pick up K5 and save for the crossgrade to Komplete. Along the way add some of the Spitfire audio labs titles for cheap so you can see how libraries are built in an accessible way. If you can, though, pick up komplete ultimate... just kinetic metals, damage and the giant are worth the price... plus you get all the vsts like absynth, massive and fm8.

[gak]

HATE

WITH

PASSION

However, most people seem to like it. Infinite (though they all sound the same) options.

[esselfortium]

Infinite (though they all sound the same) options.

[SA Studio]

Kontact is brilliant.

There's things like Evolved 2 and Damage that are unlike anything ever offered in Reason by light years. These are loop banks that people who score movies and TV shows rely on.

I see ya, Gak

No disrespect, but on a very real level, it's probably not wise listen to anyone who can't detail many of the modules in Kontact. I can. Thoroughly.

Evolved 2, Damage, the Grand Piano, Alicia's Keys, Session Horns, Sessions Strings, are all industry leading sample banks. By a significant margin. And that's just the surface.

Here's one very real way to look at this: Do you think Pixar studios is reaching for a string patch in Reason or from a Reason ReFill...or are they using the best sample bank currently available with multiple articulations built into to the samples and the keyboard?

The answer is the latter and the reason for that is Kontact. Just get it. NN-XT's is incredible. I can use the heck out of NN-XT cuz it's still programmable and manageable for me. I just "play" Kontact. I think NN-XT has it's awesome aspects as well, without doubt. There's just certain sample banks that are just really good in Kontact is all

[Rectro]

Hope the OP dont mind, and that its not derailing this thread, but I am also looking at Kontakt, but am slightly confused as to the differences between the version, is Kontakt the best value for money?

Thanks, Dan

[QVprod]

Hope the OP dont mind, and that its not derailing this thread, but I am also looking at Kontakt, but am slightly confused as to the differences between the version, is Kontakt the best value for money?

Thanks, Dan

Answered this earlier in the thread viewtopic.php?p=337389#p337329

[Audiotic]

I share the impressions mentioned above, in that the sound of some of the libraries (for me especially the cinemtic ones) is incredible and in no way comperable to anything NNXT (Not even the SOFTPHONICS stuff, which imho is about the best you can get for Reason w/o VST).

The only "downside" is the price tag. The factory content is ok, but as soon as you want to expand your choices considerably and you don't want to wait for special offers, you'll hit the 1000€/$ mark in no time (for let's say Kontakt, plus 2 or 3 AAA Libraries). Even if you only use the player, which can't play quite a few libraries out there, the content alone will make your wallet bleed...

I also can't comment on the "configuring" libraries part, since I've only ever used it as a player... (and LOVING it!)

[stratatonic]

The library it comes with is ok.

IThe factory content is ok

How would the included content compare to what is in Reason. Or Logic? Better? Worse? About the same?

[stratatonic]

HATE

WITH

PASSION

However, most people seem to like it. Infinite (though they all sound the same) options.

WHY

DO

YOU

HATE?

[stratatonic]

...the sound of some of the libraries (for me especially the cinemtic ones) is incredible ...

Do you mean the ones included within Komplete?

[stratatonic]

Been a Kontakt user since v2. The included libraries are very usable, the orchestral stuff is solid, even the "band" libraries are very usable.

Do you use the included filters and FX in shaping the content? Or is it usable right out of the box?

[stratatonic]

Kontact is brilliant.

Evolved 2, Damage, the Grand Piano, Alicia's Keys, Session Horns, Sessions Strings, are all industry leading sample banks. By a significant margin. And that's just the surface.

As far as I can see, all of these libraries can be played in free Kontakt Player though. What is the advantage of having the full version of Kontakt for these?

[stratatonic]

...if you can, though, pick up komplete ultimate...

The only "downside" is the price tag. .. ... you'll hit the 1000€/$ mark in no time (for let's say Kontakt, plus 2 or 3 AAA Libraries). ......the content alone will make your wallet bleed...

I can see that this could end up being a big money suck...

[QVprod]

The library it comes with is ok.

IThe factory content is ok

How would the included content compare to what is in Reason. Or Logic? Better? Worse? About the same?

I would put it above simply because of 'real' instruments in Band, Choir, and Strings. Basically everything Reason lacks as far as sampled instruments go, the Kontakt Factory stuff is better, and I'd say better than Logic sampled stuff as well. The Exs24 sampler in Logic is not any better than the NNXT. The categories are Band (keys, bass, horns, guitar...etc...), Choir, Orchestral, Synth, Urban Beats (synthetic drums), Vintage (synths, mellotrons, electric pianos...etc...), and World (flutes, bagpipes, accordions, cultural instruments).

Definitely an improvement over the stock sampled instruments in Reason and Logic but the best specialized stuff comes from 3rd party libraries. For example, the horns are pretty decent, but Session Horns and Session Horns Pro (Included with Komplete and the Pro version with Komplete Ultimate) are considerably better.

[davidvilla]

Based on the sampler factory content alone, I would say Kontakt's is slightly better than Logic's. Definitely better than NNXT's.

Logic's Steinway Piano is better than any factory NNXT piano. Kontakt's VSL piano is good, but I still prefer Logic's.

The acoustic and electronic drumkits in EXS24 are fantastic.

EXS24 also has over 150 very solid orchestral patches but Kontakt wins here because they have a nice set of VSL instruments.

Logic's synth patches are better than Kontakt's. I'd say synth patches are the EXS24's strength. I prefer the NNXTs synth patches over Kontakt's.

Kontakt has a decent collection of world instruments (though rather limited). Logic has an impressive library of world/ethnic sounds and you also have access to all of garageband's jam packs which are of really high quality.

If I had to pick one it would be Kontakt, because its 3rd party instruments are where it shines. EXS24 is #2 because although there are many high quality expansions for it, they come nowhere close to Kontakt's. But stay tuned because they're going to do something special with the EXS24

NNXT - last place.

[esselfortium]

Unless you're developing your own sample libraries for Kontakt, the biggest benefit to owning the full version is that you can take advantage of tons of great free or very inexpensive third-party Kontakt instruments, which only work in the full version. The cost of entry is very high, but you can get a lot out of it.

Your best bet is probably to buy a Kontakt Player library that has a crossgrade offer with Kontakt. Crossgrades are currently on sale at NI's site, and so this is probably the cheapest way to get the full version of Kontakt.

[Hauser+Quaid]

Been a Kontakt user since v2. The included libraries are very usable, the orchestral stuff is solid, even the "band" libraries are very usable.

Do you use the included filters and FX in shaping the content? Or is it usable right out of the box?

Definitely usable right out of the box. The only time I dig under the hood really is when I'm trying to build my own patch from scratch (like a synth) or if there's an effect that's on in the stock patch that I wanna turn off. But even in the 2nd case they build most of the stock patches with custom interfaces where most of the needed controls are right on the front.

[gak]

Infinite (though they all sound the same) options.

I know I'm going to get the wack treatment, but everything sounds the same in kontakt (like my same comments about soundcloud)

Everything has this same thing, I can't put my finger on it. I can only say this: I feel better about the options I have than what I "had" with kontakt.

Yeah, that's why there is a picture of a fruitcake for avatar, I swear I can hear it.

[gak]

HATE

WITH

PASSION

However, most people seem to like it. Infinite (though they all sound the same) options.

WHY

DO

YOU

HATE?

Well, for one thing, it's so complex and convoluted it pisses me off. I got a good hold of it. Got multi timbre down, had a boat-load of soundsets. But it was NEVER satisfying. Add in some troubles with certain hosts, the fact that it's designed more for the designer and not-so much for the "musician" , add the money and time spent, and shazam! Hate.

Really, I mean really, I think the refill/reason options are FAR better. That's not bullshit, I'm straight up.

[esselfortium]

Ahh, the "Kontakt Sound"

[davidvilla]

Really, I mean really, I think the refill/reason options are FAR better. That's not bullshit, I'm straight up.

Lol, you really must not care about acoustic/orchestral instruments then, which is what Kontakt does outrageously better than Reason, with far more options, and immensley greater quality.

Kontakt is also insanely easy to use and that's without even touching the manual.

[gak]

Ok, well, I didn't know we were specifically talking about that.

To whomever asks: Just buy it yourself, this KVR/GS "you can't have a difference of opinion" crap is tiresome.