Native Instruments Akoustik Piano Software Synth

First Class Grand Piano Samples with Software Player. Compatible with Intel-based Macs.

Item: NINAKOUSTIK

  • Pricing
    • $199.00
    • List: $229.00
    • SAVE 13%
  • Standard Shipping
    Ground
    free shipping
  • Expedited Shipping
    2 Day Shipping
    $6.99
     | Overnight
    $17.99

what's new?

  • In Stock :: Will Ship Monday

Click here to read details about our 'Play As You Pay' Installment Payment Plan. Play As You Pay is available only by phone.

Or call 800.ZZOUNDS (996.8637) right now. You get the same low price and shipping discounts online or by phone!

No Sales Tax. (Except NJ)

Seen a lower price? We'll beat it! details

Be a zZounds Spy!


related accessories

Main

Edirol PCR-300

$269.00

Main

Hosa MID-300 Standard MIDI Cable (Black)

from $4.95

Main

Akai MPD24 USB/MIDI Pad Controller

$169.00

Native Instruments Akoustik Piano Software Synth reviews

Rate and Review This Product:

32 People rated this product : * * * * * * * * * * 7 out of 10

 

8 People wrote reviews

Read all Native Instruments Akoustik Piano Software Synth reviews...
* * * * * * * * * * 8 out of 10

"Get this for the Upright"

Feature:
I give the features a 7. I really like how you just click the piano you want (or use one of the presets that came with the program, or one you've made yourself) and have it load up in under 20 seconds. The loading for the intruments seems incredibly fast compared so something like the Art Vista piano, where you have to sit and wait to be able to play for about 6 hours. I really love that the convolution samples on the right-hand side of the interface load absolutely instantly, without the slightest delay or hiccup. There are no wet/dry sliders to mess with, nothing technical. Just select the room, and how far you want to be from the instrument and you're set. The built-in sound recorder doesn't seem to quite work, as it echoes and garbles the sound. I find it alot easier and stable to just use a recorder in a VST host, anyways.

Quality:
I have to give this a 5, actually; Besides the Steingraeber upright sample being so damn awesome, the other pianos flat-out suck for most playing styles, and if you want just a good, expressive Steinway sample get the Art Vista Virtual Grand Piano. My biggest dip in quality is me being unable to update the produce to 1.1, which i'll elaborate on in the "Support" section.

Value:
I give the value a 7, and that's again for the upright piano sample. I'm sure this piano would be even more valuable if I could update to 1.1, and get rid of the polyphonic errors and the occasional non-working sustain (imagine trying to record a song, or playing live and all of a sudden during the chorus it stops sustaining and you have to raise and lower the sustain a couple of times to get it to work again!!!)

Desirability:
Uhm. . .I don't want it because I already have it. lol Get either this piano and install only the upright, or go on www.sampletekk.com and get the Black Grand sample and use the sympathetic/harmonic resonance scripts from http://music.mezo.com/

Sound:
The entire reason you should buy this is because of the Steingraeber upright sample. The upright sample (if that's the sound you're looking for) is extremely realistic, and it sounds just like a nice upright you'd want to have in your home. Part of what makes it sound so realistic is the bass notes sound "muffled;" you can actually hear the body of the instrument, rather than a microphone being shoved right against the strings. If you have a good controller and speaker system, i'd go as far as to say that you can just leave this sample loaded up all the time and use it to sight-read music from various styles, or just to jam/work out musical ideas simply because it's so pleasing and authentic to hear a "REAL" piano whilst playing. The Steinway favors pp-mp playing. If you play very soft and expressively it'll sound 100% realistic (assuming you make sure that the key return sample isn't set too high), but if you try to play mf-FFF, the midrange sounds OKAY and you almost can't even hear the bass notes anymore. To give you an idea, it'll sound beautiful playing Aeris' Theme from Final Fantasy 7, but if you try to play any Chopin besides the ballades, it'll just flat-out suck. The Bosendorfer is far too weak to even sound remotely like a Bosendorfer, and i'd recommend that you go with Synthogy Ivory, or Eastwest Bosendorfer 290 if you want a good Bos sample; This piano isn't even worth considering in this library. The Bechstein has a slightly more even tone and playability than the Steinway in the mf-F velocities, but it completely falls apart during soft, expressive playing which is the place the Steinway actually shines. If you're the kind of player that plays things in-the-mix, go with the Bechstein with the Studio "Near" impulse and have at it. What you have to understand, is besides the programming of the pianos each and every piano is going to have strengths, and weaknesses. I've played actual Steinways that favor one playing style over another, and i've played 7,000 dollar upright pianos in small shops that sound ten times better than a grand piano (with classical musicians agreeing with me).

Ease of Use:
Fairly easy to use, as i've said before. If you want "just play" and have an extremely simple interface, go and get a host called "Plogue Bidule" and if you use it once you'll want to use it whenever you don't feel like messing with Cubase, or especially Fruity Loops.

Support:
I was unable to update the program, so I sent an e-mail to Native Instruments and they actually never even got back to me. Service Center doesn't even find Akoustik Piano on my system, and tells me to register Art Vista (which isn't even installed on my system anymore). When I try to register that it says that an error occured and that's it. I'm extremely disappointed in Native Instruments for neglecting a customer, and if they would ever even bother to get back to me I would gladly change this number to at least a 2, or possibly 3.

Submitted: 4/13/2007

6 of 6 people (100%) found this review helpful. Did you?

Thank you. Your vote has been counted. Could you briefly tell us why the review was or was not helpful?
 
 
* * * * * * * * * * 9 out of 10

"Large Piano, Small Price."

Feature:
Can't get simpler than this. Reverb presets (rooms) are in pictograms to the right with additional parameters and tweaks in the dropdown panel beneath the main interface. Audio/midi setup was easy, too. Since my soundcard doesn't have ASIO built in I used Asio4All. I get really good latency.

Quality:
It seems this category was intended for hardware, not software. Nevertheless, since this is software and therefore cannot be blemished or lose mechanical parts, I give it a 10 for sheer stability.

Value:
Nothing, of course, can replace the sound of an actual Bosendorfer or Steinway sitting in your face. That's just not possible. But with a good amplifier & monitors for, say $300, and the $300 spent for this product, that still costs way less than the thousands that would be spent for an actual concert piano. Plus this software takes up less space if, like me, you live in a small apartment.

Desirability:
The Akoustik piano is gorgeous to both the eyes and ears. Sex Appeal? I don't know how that applies to software (unless it's "virtua porn"), but from what I've read, the NI Akoustik Piano is the best sounding one out there...

Sound:
I've noticed people complaining about the "muddy" midranges, "shoddy" bass, and so on. To fully appreciate a software of this complexity you need good equipment. My main computer is an HP laptop with an AMD 64 Athlon & 1Gb mem. The soundcard I use (for now) is the AC'97 built-in one. When amplified and played through good monitors the Akoustik sounds excellent. When I took it to band practice and played it through the P.A. it sounded horrible. That made me think: did this instrument get some bad reviews because its players put it through bad equipment? Probably. In my home system, when I play it live against other music also playing from my computer, you can't tell the difference, and this is whether I'm playing stuff by Queen, The Beatles, Chopin, or Chick Corea.

Ease of Use:
You know what I wish? I wish it didn't take so long for samples to load. I guess it's my fault. I loaded the 24bit version which resulted in my using 12Gb of HD space. Of course, loading the pianos is a piece of cake, I just wish it'd happen faster.

Support:
I should really put no comment here since I have't dealt with NI directly.

Overall:
...but I just wish it wasn't so damn huge! 12Gb is a lot of space. I guess i shouldn't complain. The mileage I ope to attain from it should be worth it. i do wish it was much smaller, though. I've listen to DevVst's two demo pianos - Absolute Steinway & Absolute Bosendorfer. Both of them sound excellent and only clock in at around 350 Mb. They also only cost $49 each. Those two pianos might also be worth taking a chance on.

Submitted: 1/17/2007

Style of Music: Rock, Reggae, Calypso, Country

5 of 7 people (71.43%) found this review helpful. Did you?

Thank you. Your vote has been counted. Could you briefly tell us why the review was or was not helpful?
 
 

Read all Native Instruments Akoustik Piano Software Synth reviews...

Additional Images:

Main
Main
Playing View
Playing View

iconThis item cannot be returned once the manufacturer's seal has been broken. Any defective merchandise must be dealt with directly through Native Instruments. If a product is found to be defective, you must contact Native Instruments' customer support at 866-556-6487 for service. details

About This Product!
Description
Grand Slam
Akoustik Piano fuses the sampled sound, expressiveness and playability of three of the most reputable grand pianos - the Steinway D, Bechstein D 280 and Boesendorfer 290 Imperial - as well as the charismatic Steingraeber 130 vintage upright piano into one application. Akoustik Piano covers the entire range of piano sounds and styles, transfusing the sonic characteristics and subtle tonal nuances of all four into your computer - the perfect complement for studios, rehearsal rooms, schools, stages and clubs.

Three first class grands and one upright in a single, compact software instrument

Under The Lid
Akoustik Piano is the new benchmark in sound quality, capturing the full body and feel of the originals with unprecedented authenticity. The latest recording technology as well as a specially developed microphone setup was used for all 4 pianos. The result is a uniquely warm, transparent and flexible sound that delivers the same distinctive character of each individual piano in exacting detail and can still be adjusted to meet specific needs.

Intelligent Ivory
Akoustik Piano plays and responds exactly as real pianos do. The keys were sampled at varying velocities and great care was taken to capture the entire sustain and release phases. The brand new Layer Morphing Technology generates a seamless dynamic gradient. The characteristic resonances caused by use of the pedals can be adjusted as can the subtle mechanical noises of the pedals and keys themselves. From perfect pianissimo to forceful fortissimo, this instrument delivers the same breadth and depth of tone as the originals.

Enchanting Ebony
Akoustik Piano has a first-class integrated convolution module, allowing highly authentic spatial characteristics to be added to the sound. Place the piano in a studio, jazz club, concert hall and a cathedral or use the dry signal as it is. The acoustic parameters of these spaces, such as the size, can also be manipulated. From the close mic setup of a jazz combo to the more ambient nature of classic solo performance, Akoustik Piano covers the whole spectrum.

Availability: Akoustik Piano is scheduled for world wide release mid-September. Pre-order now in our Online Shop...

Top Features
3 famous grand pianos and 1 vintage upright piano

Extremely intuitive and clearly structured user interface

Integrated convolution module for high-quality controllable room acoustics

4 different room types with distinctive characteristics

Exceptionally high sample quality incl. sustain and release phases

"Layer Morphing Technology" ensures a seamless velocity gradient

Highly efficient sample engine based on Kontakt 2, including Direct from Disk

Adjustable mechanical noises of pedals and keys

Integrated metronome, recorder and flexible 3-band EQ

Keyboard velocity curve allowing response to be adjusted for different master keyboards

Technical Info

iLok compatible

Interfaces
Stand-alone, Audio Units, RTAS, VST, DXi, Core Audio, DirectSound

System Requirements
Mac OS 10.3, G4 800 MHz, 512 MB RAM

Windows XP, Pentium 1 GHz / Athlon XP 1.4 GHz, 512 MB RAM

DVD Drive, 17 GB free hard disk space

Recommended System
Mac OS 10.4, G5 1.8 GHz, 1 GB RAM

Windows XP, Pentium IV / Athlon XP 3 GHz, 1 GB RAM

*DVD drive required.
catalog

what our customers say about zZounds

"Quick, painless, and an easy site to make purchases from. zZounds has been the fastest shipper and the easiest site to find what I want, and they ALWAYS beat the competition prices." - customer on June 25, 2009

Free Catalog

First Name Last Name
Address 1 Address 2
City State
Zip Email

Would you like to receive periodic email notices of new items, special buys, and promotions? WE WILL NOT SHARE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS WITH ANYONE ELSE. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Tell us

Is there something you want to tell us? How can we serve you better? Want to see different products? Is this shirt ugly? Let us know!
Sound & Vision Magazine

Sound & Vision offers accessible information on home theater, audio, video and multimedia products.

This is not a free trial offer and you will never get a bill. The subscription is included with your purchase.

Please allow six to eight weeks for subscription to begin. If you'd rather not receive the subscription it can be removed from your cart.