Big Bang Orchestra: Quasar

Introduction

Welcome to the Vienna Symphonic Library's series of Synchron Instruments! As the name says, Big Bang Orchestra furnishes you with a selection of full-orchestra articulations, at the same time allowing you (if you haven't done so already) to explore our powerful Synchron Player software. If you're looking for that extra dramatic effect or want to highlight a passage in your composition, this bonus library could be the solution, or at least point you in the right direction.

About Presets

Big Bang Orchestra makes use of our Synchron Player's unique features, and offers several Mixer Presets in five categories: Room Mix, Stereo Decca Tree, Surround to Stereo, Surround, and Processed. The Mixer Presets in each category are Close (Dry in the Room Mix), Classic, Wide, Distant, and Ambient. The Processed section offers "Big" versions of these Presets.

The BBO expansions also provide you with "Wet" Mixer Presets in each category, as well as more choice in the Processed section. These additional Mixer Presets may vary according to the respective libraries' requirements.

About Patches

Patches can be used to build your own custom Presets and shape them according to your specific requirements. Big Bang Orchestra does not contain so many Patches, so the possibilities are somewhat limited. Still, if you want to get into creating Presets of your own, please refer to the Synchron Player manual, which will be helpful in case you encounter any problems.

About Pitch

For designating pitch, the Vienna Symphonic Library uses International Pitch Notation (IPN), which was agreed upon internationally under the auspices of the Acoustical Society of America. In this system the international standard of A=440 Hz is called A4 and middle C is C4. All pitches are written as capital letters, their respective octave being indicated by a number next to it. The lowest C on the piano is C1 (the A below that is A0), etc.

The Synchron Player software allows you to set middle C to C3, C4, or C5 according to your preference.

Selecting another setting than C4 will of course also change the play ranges and keyswitches accordingly.

Upgrade Info

The instruments in this collection were derived from our Libraries Synchron Percussion I and Synchron Percussion II, which not only feature more instruments, but also offer additional articulations. Owners of BBO Phoenix and/or BBO Quasar will receive discounts on the purchase of these Libraries.

Tip

Make sure you are logged in on the product pages, so you can see your personal upgrade discounts!

Walkthrough Videos

Included Presets

BBO Quasar complements the pitched percussion from BBO Phoenix with a selection of unpitched percussion instruments, including bass and snare drums, concert toms, taikos, tambourine, piatti, suspended cymbals, tamtams, slapsticks, thundersheet, triangle, windmachine, and woodblocks.

Drums

Bass Drum

Bass drum played with soft and hard beaters: normal and rim hits, 1–4 upbeats, and rolls.

  • Soft/hard beater: C1/D1
  • Range: C4–C5

Mapping:

Concert Toms

Concert toms ranging between 8" and 16", arranged in octave mappings: normal and and rim hits, stick on stick, rolls, rimshots, and muted.

  • Range: C2–G#7

Mapping:

Snare Drum

Snare drum played with sticks, rods, and brushes: single hits offcenter (normal) and rim, 1–4 upbeats, and rolls (sticks only).

  • Beater keys: C1–D1
  • Range:
    • sticks: C4–C5
    • rods, brushes: C4–B4

Mapping:

Taikos

Taikos from 8" to 53" (mapped to two instruments per octave) played with a cudgel and with a tam beater: normal and side hits left/right, and rim hits (cudgel only).

  • Cudgel/tam beater: C1/C#1
  • Range:
    • cudgel: C3–A7
    • tam beater: C3–G#7

Mapping cudgel:

Mapping tam beater:

Tambourine

Tambourine: center and rim strokes, 1–4 upbeats, and thumb tremolo.

  • Range: C4–C5

Mapping:

Cymbals and Tams

Piatti

Piatti: normal and muted strokes, sizzle stroke.

  • Range: C4–G4

Mapping:

Suspended Cymbal

Suspended cymbals played with sticks, mallets, and brushes: edge and top hits, and rolls (according to beater).

  • Beater keyswitches: C1/E1
  • Range
    • sticks: C4–C#5
    • mallets: C4–C5
    • brushes: C4–D#4

Mapping sticks:

Mapping mallets:

Mapping brushes:

Tam-tams

Large and extra large tam-tams (100 and 120 cm): normal and muted strokes, rolls.

  • Tam-tam large/Xlarge: A1/A#1
  • Range: C4–C5

Mapping:

Percussion

Slapsticks

Large, medium, and small slapsticks mapped to octaves: variants 1–4.

  • Range: C3–D#5

Mapping:

Thundersheet

Large thundersheet: single hits with hands, sticks, felt, rubber, and gong beaters, chain, and brush; shaken, bowed, and played with a superball; tremolo with gong beaters and brushes.

  • Range: C4–D#7

Mapping:

Triangle

Steel triangle, 21 cm: open and closed hits, 1–4 upbeats, and rolls.

  • Range: C4–C5

Mapping:

Windmachine

Wind machine: steady loops with quick mutes and slow endings, light and strong crescendo and diminuendo from 2 to 12 seconds.

  • Range: C4–A#6

Mapping:

Woodblocks

Five woodblocks (mapped to separate octaves) played with a yarn-wound mallet: center and rim hits, rolls, and 1–4 upbeats.

  • Range: C2–B7

Mapping: