After 37 hours spread well into 7 days with one link and 0.1 to 53bps.... (instead of 5 and 1800 to 2200 broad band...) I finally got HW4.0.0.724 !!!!!!!! 2.17GB installer for windows.
It took me 40minutes to play the first note on St.Anne, mailny because HW4 needs to clear any previous version (HW3.30 here). All went OK, no probrlems. Exept my antimalware warned me about HW's need to install data for USB dongle.... what to do.
What beauty is this !
I played the last 24 hours with it. Too many functions to mention here, a very long post is needed. But,
For free version users and those who still want to play with their loved HW1 sets (like Roquemaure, Marienkirche, Smecno ect) but also with many other beautiful HW2 and 3 sets without combination pistons and /or couplers,
HW4 has them for us !!!! for any set loaded !
Midi Learn is a dream, just right click, hit the controller we want, even computer's keys, done, and that's it !
Great recorder both audio & midi on separate window. Also Audio & midi window for easy volume control, ram consumption, CPU, everything at hand.
Great full screen option and the new GUI can load broader GUIs from some sets that in HW3 were not to be seen completely, at last I saw them all and could work with all stops ect
One thing is missing for HW1 sets...... they still cannot be used with different temperaments.... why? it's a shame....
The sound is wonderfull, and the whole concept is more a player's software, more friendly and easy.
St.Anne new is a totally different organ. Even has multi attack samples/releases.
Mat , if not already tried, you'll be very happy with, carefull though as it is big and with free version's 256 limit there's a tail sudden cut on full stop ect.
Now the HARD part. hmmmmm
That one needs a lot of work.
Milan Digital did a totaly new design on VSTi version, sending sys ex VST link. Luckily REAPER supports such a thing and the manual has long tutorials on how we can make it work, also with Cubase, Sonar and Cakewalk. (Thanks guys !)
I'll treat this issue later in deep, but as far as today, I found it very tricky. Is totaly different from what we knew so far, actually we cannot see a HW4 VSTi inside Reaper, they work in parallel, and virtual (or hardware>>>) midi cables are needed.
Maybe this is a better way, will see. Real time reverb can be applied this way and full support for multi audio (16 stereo audio ch in Reaper....) but I'm curious if I can work with HW and EWQL symphonic Orch the way I did with HW3.
One thing that is definately not possible, is to open a Reaper project with HW in and the set opened on the spot along with Lexicon and other instruments. Manual load of the set is needed now and outside Reaper..... hmmmm
It was nice before , as I used to have a desktop icon of a Reaper project, containing a HW organ with Lexicon, or SIR2 and by just double clicking I got my organ set in my hands in just seconds in my prefered environment and ready to record if needed.
This given, I'll keep my Free version of HW3.30 as VSTi on my second laptop as I got many many projects with this setup and I do not want my work to be wasted, even for the best VPO program today (HW4).
Thank God I got 2 laps and I do not break also the lisence, as these are two different HW versions.
Overall a winner and the best there is.
More posts will follow, evaluation continues....
Best
Panos