Recommendation for Strings and Pads VST Plugins with MG2

Anyone have a recommendation for 1) Strings and 2) Pads plugins for use with MG2? I’m currently using some of the plugins that come with Mai Tai in Studio One and they sound GREAT, but would like to expand the library. Thanks!

There are so many plugins, free or commercial, for different operating systems and in different formats… It is difficult to answer you exactly without knowing anything about your equipment, budget or sound preferences.

Try searching informations on the web, for example by starting from this link that uses the following tags and filters: all OS, free, pads, newest:
https://www.kvraudio.com/plugins/instruments/free/pads/newest

Then use your own tags and filters and search on youtube or other in order to listen to demos or tutos and to get an idea about how it sounds.

I use regularly this method to find new plugins that correspond to my needs.

Thanks for the information Herold …

Since you have Studio One, have you considered using the strings available in Presence XT? And Mai Tai excels at pads. If there’s not an existing pads preset that works for you, check for 3rd party Mai Tai add-ons.

Thanks for the suggestion John … how do I check for 3rd party Mai Tai add-ons? Tried a Google search but nothing comes up …

Bonjour!

There’s not much available outside of the PreSonus store, but here’s a little to get you started.

Google search phrase: “PreSonus Mai Tai Presets”

PreSonus Shop Mai Tai Presets

Patch Hut Mai Tai Presets
Note: Their Dreamstate preset pack is also available at the PreSonus Shop.

Here’s a good article on Mai Tai and Mojito presets.
Building synth textures with Mai Tai and Mojito

Good luck!

Hello!

As strings sound I love the Juno-60 Strings in SURGE (Claes / Polysynth).

A pad sound that come close to Pink Floyd’s intro in “Shine on…” is the sound Etos in ZEBRALETTE - really great!

Another pad I like is Pad8 again in SURGE (Claes / Pads). It is very soft, warm and smooth.

Cheers, Hans

There’s a whole orchestra available :

You can get any violin sound or section sounds you can imagine.

Each instrument is a separate instrument so a staccato violin is listed the same way in MG as the JM Synth is, as a separate midi instrument. There are also some string sections and other combos available in the package listed as midi instruments.

It’s free.

There’s a lot of files to download and it descibes them on the site link above.

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I am not a blogger.
I did download and currently use Virtual Playing Orchestra.
I should have mentioned that the virtual instruments are real samples so each instrument has a different dynamic range so one has to adjust the levels in one’s interface to compensate.
For instance using any combo of instruments will greatly increase the dynamic output in on’s DAW or stand alone MG.
Anyone can add guitar sounds and other effects later so I would suggest trying the basic sounds of each instrument included in Virtual Playing Orchestra to start with.

If you are interested in strings that are awesome with both MIDI Guitar and as a straight-ahead plugin to do some (manual) orchestration work with, I absolutely suggest you take a look at Audio Modeling’s SWAM strings. They have just released their version 3, and here is a little demo:

If you are looking to see how they perform (live) with MIDI Guitar 2:

And if you want a sample of the SampleModeling ones Herold mentioned:

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I want to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar`s, with Bonanote in the role of Caesar mentioning Sample Modeling :wink:

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Thank you very much for the credit !!

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Credit where credit’s due. My bad! :grimacing:

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I really appreciate everyone’s input, I downloaded SURGE and am planning to download the Virtual Playing Orchestra and get SWAM.

Has anyone had experience with Wave Pads - Auditory Labs?

Free(ish) strings and various orchestral instruments. BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover

Pads = Vital Synth and the previously mentioned Surge 1.9

Also July’s Beat Music magazine includes the serial number to Syntronik Instruments J-60 which has some nice pads & strings.

The magazine also has their branded (cut down) version of Overloud TH-U amp with presets - if you’re interested in guitar amp and effects??

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Has anyone had experience using Omnisphere with MG2? I’m just getting educated in this area and it looks like Omnisphere is the most widely used synth out there. Again thanks for the feedback …

i dowloaded this package and it shows up as instruments in MG 2. But i cant get any sound from any of the instruments. do i need to download a separate SFZ player and if so how do i access it through MG2. thanks for any help you could provide

Hi vijit:

I think I mentioned you have to read the download instructions.

There are two sets of files to download.

I didn’t add anything other than thier files but you have to make sure you put them in your appropriate MG folder.

I did everything they said and it works fine for me.

You have to be careful on the level settings for each instrument because some of the instruments have a huge dynamic range.