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Cinematic Studio Series Tips & Tricks! :)

I'll start I guess, here's how I got around the CSS legato delay:
I hard quantize my legato line and then nudge the notes back a bit (except for the first note) until it sounds right. My usual starting point is a 1/16 note ahead for CSS (low latency mode), and a 1/32 note ahead for CSW (also low latency mode).

Learned this workflow from @Anze Rozman's brilliant video!

 
I've created several presets for the midi logical editor in Cubase and bundled those together in a makro.
First I have to decide where I need which transition speed and alter the velocity of the notes accordingly. After that I mark all notes (except the first one - that one doesn't need to be nudged) and depending on the note velocity each note gets moved by the delay amount specified in the manual and the note is also lengthened by that amount to still have overlapping notes to trigger the legatos in the first place.
All these actions are buttons on my Stream Deck to trigger when needed...
 
It took me a while to get the right mic mixes for the cinematic studio series, so thought it might help some people if I share my current mic setup. The standard mic mixes are good, but sound way too flat for my liking.

For the strings I use:
Spot 1 at -3dB,
Main at -3dB,
Room at 0dB.
If it takes up too much RAM, you can drop the spot mics. The strings will lose some sharpness, but will still sound good.

For woodwinds I use
OH at -3dB,
Room at 0dB.

For brass I use just the room mic at 0dB.

Of course this is all preference, so let me know if you'd do things differently.
 
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I built expression maps in Dorico to help with quickly assigning the various legatos and articulations - it made all that so much easier to work with (I program performances rather than play them live with modwheel so the delay isn’t too much of an issue). Currently I’m dealing with the lead time by ear using Dorico’s note start delay attribute but I’m planning on setting up the KSP for Kontakt, variable delay compensator to help when I’ve gotten good at selecting the values. Also I turned off the overlay which was a big time saver for legato phrases, don’t have to keep editing the initial note velocity. My RAM is too low to do all that great Mic mixing but I’ve started exploring what EQ can shape. You can definitely brighten CSS when needed, although I’m appreciating the darker sound more and more. I do sometimes wish all the latencies were the same across the series at times and look forward to CSB update.
 
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ThijsLander said:
It took me a while to get the right mic mixes for the cinematic studio series, so thought it might help some people if I share my current mic setup. The standard mic mixes are good, but sound way too flat for my liking.

For the strings I use:
Spot 1 at -3dB,
Main at -3dB,
Room at 0dB.
If it takes up too much RAM, you can drop the spot mics. The strings will lose some sharpness, but will still sound good.

For woodwinds I use
OH at -3dB,
Room at 0dB.

For brass I use just the room mic at 0dB.

Of course this is all preference, so let me know if you'd do things differently.
Click to expand...
Thanks for this! I just started messing around with the brass mics a couple of days ago and also use the room mics only, the mix sounded a bit too close for my liking :)
 
jenssieckmann said:
Use the vibrato control (CC2 I think). CSS has 3 or 4 different vibrato recordings (including no vibrato). A crescendo starting at no vibrato ending at the highest vibrato gives a phrase an extra portion of expression.
Click to expand...
Building on this, I saw many recommending having CC2 around 64 as a starting point for a less over-the-top molto espressivo vibrato. I find that it works well, and of course you can always bring it up when needed.
 
This is a very useful thread already and I think I have some things to add in regard to CSS Strings:

* For mixing CSS strings I start with the default mic mix and then apply the Joel Dollie pro tipp. I learned it in a private session with him, but meanwhile it's also covered in one of his YT videos:



* As to the delay, this is certainly one of the more annoying traits of CSS, but I too found a quick workaround: I have hotkeys for moving MIDI events by 1 frame ("<" and ">"). Hitting "<" once is pretty much exactly what the short articulations need after quantizing to the grid.

* For the legato delay it's usually ~3 frames, even more for the advanced legato. For those who didn't know (I certainly didn't when I started out using CSS): The first note of the legato phrase pretty much sounds where it's at, it's only the notes coming after which are (considerably) delayed. And the delay is also depending on the velocity of the note, so having the same velocity for all notes of a phrase is usually a good idea.

* String runs: I don't know if this is the way, but I'm having good results by using the "marcato legato with spiccato overlay" articulation, keeping the velocity of the notes between 30 and 80 and accenting notes that are important harmony-wise (like 1sts, 5ths... depends on the mode you're in). If you break down your run in smaller parts, it's usually a good thing to accent the first note of each part. But iirc there's a thread covering this in detail already.

* Sustain/Tremolo/Trill Release: When I started using CSS I immediately shortened the release time of those articulations because they messed up my phrasing. Meanwhile I increased them again (I think around ~80) and I really appreciate the long release because it kind of emulates what string players do, letting notes "fade out". I learned though that I better use these articulations for textures, chords and supporting harmony, not for melodies.

* Articulation switching: This is a personal thing, but I like my template clean and compact, so I have one track for all articulations and I switch between them using sound variations in Studio One. You can download these via the Presonus exchange platform. I think I had to modify them after 1.7, but this isn't a big deal. If you want to use my updated ones, let me know, I'm sure it's possible to export and send them over.

Hope this helps and/or inspires. CSS is such a great library.
 
Since I use a lot of Spitfire Libraries as well I have CC21 for vibrato control always in reach. Since you are not aloud to use CC21 at all with the the Cinematic Series I put a midi transformer plugin within Kontakt to transform all CC21 to CC2. So I can use my controller and do no harm to the instrument. A trick I got from their very helpful customer support.
 
xanderscores said:
This is a very useful thread already and I think I have some things to add in regard to CSS Strings:

* For mixing CSS strings I start with the default mic mix and then apply the Joel Dollie pro tipp. I learned it in a private session with him, but meanwhile it's also covered in one of his YT videos:



* As to the delay, this is certainly one of the more annoying traits of CSS, but I too found a quick workaround: I have hotkeys for moving MIDI events by 1 frame ("<" and ">"). Hitting "<" once is pretty much exactly what the short articulations need after quantizing to the grid.

* For the legato delay it's usually ~3 frames, even more for the advanced legato. For those who didn't know (I certainly didn't when I started out using CSS): The first note of the legato phrase pretty much sounds where it's at, it's only the notes coming after which are (considerably) delayed. And the delay is also depending on the velocity of the note, so having the same velocity for all notes of a phrase is usually a good idea.

* String runs: I don't know if this is the way, but I'm having good results by using the "marcato legato with spiccato overlay" articulation, keeping the velocity of the notes between 30 and 80 and accenting notes that are important harmony-wise (like 1sts, 5ths... depends on the mode you're in). If you break down your run in smaller parts, it's usually a good thing to accent the first note of each part. But iirc there's a thread covering this in detail already.

* Sustain/Tremolo/Trill Release: When I started using CSS I immediately shortened the release time of those articulations because they messed up my phrasing. Meanwhile I increased them again (I think around ~80) and I really appreciate the long release because it kind of emulates what string players do, letting notes "fade out". I learned though that I better use these articulations for textures, chords and supporting harmony, not for melodies.

* Articulation switching: This is a personal thing, but I like my template clean and compact, so I have one track for all articulations and I switch between them using sound variations in Studio One. You can download these via the Presonus exchange platform. I think I had to modify them after 1.7, but this isn't a big deal. If you want to use my updated ones, let me know, I'm sure it's possible to export and send them over.

Hope this helps and/or inspires. CSS is such a great library.
Click to expand...

This is very good information! Thank you so much :)
 
Found a new mixing trick! :)

I find that if you cut around these frequencies on your string bus, it makes my CSS sound way better.

Screenshot 2023-05-16 192435.png

Here are some quick and dirty examples (ignore my goofy programming)

CSS with EQ:
View attachment CSS w EQ.mp3

CSS without EQ:
View attachment CSS no EQ.mp3

The difference is pretty drastic, especially if you turn on and off the EQ while playing your track. :grin: The EQ removes the harshness that mostly comes from the high strings.
 
To me, The EQ'd one sounded easier on the ear which is nice! It makes the violins blend nicely with the whole strings section. On the old-but-gold Cinematic Strings 2, Alex Wallbank himself also suggests a slight cut not too far off from the 3.7k range. Take a look:



I don't use CSS (although I'm loving the sound, but sadly have commited my investment on other library) but I usually cut around that range (3k-4k) to achieve a sort of muted/con sord-ish sound (way deeper than -6db of course).
 
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Be aware that many of the keyswitches are velocity sensitive! If you press the keyswitch for short notes at low velocity you get spiccato, if you press it at high velocity you get sfz. And so on. It can be confusing because the short notes are also selected by cc1. If you are wondering why the first note of a passage with short notes isn't playing the articulation that you want, it's probably because of the velocity of the keyswitch.

@Ihnoc's script is a great way to handle the legato delays automatically:

CSS (Cinematic Studios) Control Panel - CSS/CSSS/CSB/CSW legato delay solution + other features (1.8, now with Winds!)

Hi, This community is grand and has provided so many useful things for me. I have been tooling with a script to automatically offset the notes in CSS, based on what articulation you have set and I would like to share this with you. A control panel for Cinematic Studio Strings, Cinematic Studio...
vi-control.net vi-control.net

Read the description of how to use it carefully. Once set up you don't have to nudge notes individually anymore. All legato transitions will play in time as soon as set cc13 above .64.

About mixing CSS, I used to use an exciter, followed by Kush Clariphonic to open up the sound a bit. Since v1.7 I don't use the exciter anymore, as the sound out of the box is brighter now. Still use Clariphonic with settings similar to these most of the time:


Clariphonic Settings.jpg


This one is probably obvious. Cinematic Studio Strings layers well with Cinematic Studio Solo Strings. If you want to make the sound slightly more intimate or defined, you can dial in a bit of the solo strings. As the Cinematic Studio Series are so consistent, it usually takes not much more work than copy pasting a track from CSS to CSSS, and make the odd adjustment. I don't have the same track with and without CSSS layered unfortunately. But here is one track only CSS, and another one CSS layered with CSSS:

Cinematic Studio Strings only (v1.0 with VSL exciter and Clariphonic):

View attachment Emotional Strings Track 1.mp3



Cinematic Studio Strings layered with Cinematic Studio Solo Strings (v1.0 with VSL exciter and Clariphonic):

View attachment Emotional Strings Track 2.mp3
 
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Hey guys,

I might not even be up to the "tips and tricks" level yet, just getting back into it as a second attempt of getting back into writing after a long season of performing...

I just got Cinematic Studio Strings and I was expecting to be floored but just wasn't. I fully think the problem could be me and the fact I don't know what I am doing yet so school me please.

Conversely I got some Project Sam Libraries and the strings seem more immediate under the fingers with fast response... CSS seems to have a bit more latency and a little trickier to perform. I immediate regretted the decision but I have heard performances I like a lot with CSS which makes me think maybe I just don't know how to perform with it yet.

I have had the luxury of performing in orchestras for years, at the conservatory and professional level, as well as someone who would frequent orchestra performances, so after studying violin for 3 decades I feel like I kinda have an ear for strings. But I am not confident I am understanding this library and how to use it to the fullest. I understand key switches and use them, but it seems like it is going to take some work to pull off a good performance.

I want to like CSS and I'd love to get the rest of the series, but I am stopping here until I can get a handle on how to perform better with this library. Project Sam was immediate satisfaction, CSS seems a little trickier... Suggestions?
 
JVIOLIN said:
Hey guys,

I might not even be up to the "tips and tricks" level yet, just getting back into it as a second attempt of getting back into writing after a long season of performing...

I just got Cinematic Studio Strings and I was expecting to be floored but just wasn't. I fully think the problem could be me and the fact I don't know what I am doing yet so school me please.

Conversely I got some Project Sam Libraries and the strings seem more immediate under the fingers with fast response... CSS seems to have a bit more latency and a little trickier to perform. I immediate regretted the decision but I have heard performances I like a lot with CSS which makes me think maybe I just don't know how to perform with it yet.

I have had the luxury of performing in orchestras for years, at the conservatory and professional level, as well as someone who would frequent orchestra performances, so after studying violin for 3 decades I feel like I kinda have an ear for strings. But I am not confident I am understanding this library and how to use it to the fullest. I understand key switches and use them, but it seems like it is going to take some work to pull off a good performance.

I want to like CSS and I'd love to get the rest of the series, but I am stopping here until I can get a handle on how to perform better with this library. Project Sam was immediate satisfaction, CSS seems a little trickier... Suggestions?
Click to expand...
Read the manual, if you haven't already, it has a lot of "hidden" features (the simple UI is deceptive).

Try using the classic legato patches if you want it to be more immediate. I'm not sure of the exact delay of these patches but it's less than the regular ones.

Hang in there, CSS is worth it!
 
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