In
this tutorial I'll go through the steps I recommend when converting
computer-based sample libraries to the Kronos.
THREE WAYS TO GET LIBRARIES INTO THE KRONOS
1) If the sample library is in
SoundFont2 (SF2) format, you can of course directly import it. As a side note, there are a lot of funky SF
files out there and it’s not unusual to run into issues when converting
them. Just be aware of this, it can be hit
and miss.
2) If you have soft synths like
Synthogy Ivory, East West Quantum Leap, or products for Kontakt that run in the
Kontakt player or show up in the library tab in the full version of Kontakt,
you can bring these into the Kronos only if you re-sample them. Because you don’t have access to the actual
WAV samples, you cannot simply convert them into another format like SF2 and bring
them into the Kronos. They need to be
re-sampled. You would use software like
Sample Robot or Extreme Sample Converter to accomplish this. These products, through an automated process,
go and re-sample your libraries. You
could also use this approach sample hardware.
In this tutorial I’m not going
to be covering re-sampling.
3) What I will be covering are the steps I would recommend when converting standard sample
libraries, and specifically Kontakt libraries, into the Kronos. What I mean by standard libraries are those
that don’t have copy protection and give you access to actual WAV samples. If you have a library which REQUIRES the full
version of Kontakt in order to run, then it’s a standard library and doesn’t typically have copy protection. Some examples
include:
- Cinesamples – Piano in Blue
- Sampletekk libraries
- SoundIron – libraries such as Emotional Piano
- Hollow Sun
- and lots more
NOTE: There are a few libraries that DO require the full version of Kontakt but where the WAVs were saved using compression (.NCW). You will need to re-save them without compression to get access to the waves.
CLEANUP PRIOR TO CONVERSION
One
problem with converting these large libraries to the Kronos is that they can be
very detailed and include things like release samples, noises, and other layers
that add to the sound. Now I would argue, that while these sounds do
add detail, these components are considerably less critical than the overall
sustain sound. So my recommendation is
to edit the library to eliminate everything but the base sounds, in order to
guarantee a successful conversion to the Kronos. If you want to, you can add detail sounds later. It’s up to
you as to how much detail you think is necessary and how much work you want to
put into it.
So
one aspect of the clean up of the library is removing everything but the
essential sounds and another is to make sure the layers are lined up nicely in
order to create multisamples in the Kronos.
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| Fig.1 |
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| Fig. 2 |
While
I’m going to be using Kontakt, if you have libraries in other formats such as
EXS24 in Logic or Halion, you should be able to use their editors to do the
same cleanup or prep that I’m going to show you in Kontakt.
Open Kontakt (standalone mode is preferred). I use version 3
because it’s supported by all of the conversion utilities (Translator, ESC,
CDxtract). Only Translator 6 supports
Kontakt 4 and none support Kontakt version 5.
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| Fig. 3 |
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| Fig. 4 |
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| Fig. 5 |
CONVERT KONTAKT TO SF2
In order to convert these libraries into the Kronos, you’re going to have to first convert them to Soundfont 2 (SF2) format, which the Kronos can then directly import. There are several conversion utilities that can do this:
- Chicken Systems Translator (Mac & Windows)
- Extreme Sample Converter (Windows)
- CDXtract (Mac and Windows).
WRAP UP
I hope this helps you in converting some of your sample libraries into the Kronos. The process might seem a bit complicated at first, but once you get the hang of it you'll find it's really not bad. Spending a little more time up front leads to a better conversion in the end.
