What is the difference between the Gold and Diamond versions of Opus?
The Gold edition (available for purchase or within the ComposerCloud subscription) has 16-bit samples and one microphone position. The Diamond version, which you can purchase or access with the ComposerCloud Plus subscription, is 24-bit samples with all mic positions.
Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition is the highly anticipated expansion to Hollywood Orchestra, the best-selling and most awarded orchestral virtual instrument ever produced. It includes brand new pristine recordings, reimagined original content, and powerful new features, all housed in our new revolutionary OPUS software engine. Produced by Doug Rogers and Nick Phoenix, recipients of over 100 international industry Awards, and sound engineered by multiple Academy Award and BAFTA winner Shawn Murphy, Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition is the culmination of years of recording and programming and will set a new industry standard for achieving professional sounding orchestral soundtracks. Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition will be released with the new Opus software and a companion product Hollywood Orchestrator, a must-have tool for composers of every skill level who want to achieve that Hollywood blockbuster sound quickly.
BRAND NEW RECORDINGS AND REIMAGINED ORIGINAL CONTENT
Brand new recordings include a new 18 violin string section for Hollywood Strings, new ensembles for Hollywood Brass and Hollywood Orchestral Woodwinds, plus new string, brass, and wind multi ensembles. "The new 18 violins are an alternate to the first 16 violins of the original library. They have a different sound," says producer Nick Phoenix, "the players are different. The vibrato is different. The legato is the best we have ever recorded. They work well with the existing collection or as a replacement for the original 1st violins. The new 2 tenor trombones have a completely different sound from the 3 trombones in the original collection. The new trombones are warm, full, and extremely precise. 2 trumpets were recorded again using two of the best players in the Hollywood film score scene. The legato is blazing at high velocities and sounds like a live performance."
The programming of the original content from Hollywood Orchestra has been updated to take advantage of the features included in the new Opus software engine, as well as the Hollywood Solo Instrument Series (now included in this expansion). Particular focus was placed on Hollywood Orchestral Woodwinds. After improving the original woodwinds, new ensembles were recorded, including 3 bassoons, 3 clarinets, and 3 flutes. "Once again, this was a huge success because of the quality of the players," says Phoenix, "Each woodwind ensemble works together on a regular basis and the tuning and timing are immaculate. In addition, a "Stage" recorded mic position was added for all of the new instruments and ensembles. This extra mic position is perfect for capturing the larger sound of EastWest Studio One, the home of countless Hollywood film and television scores. All mic positions are available in the Diamond version and for ComposerCloud Plus subscribers. One mic position is available for the Gold version and for regular ComposerCloud subscribers. ComposerCloud X members get an extra mic position than Gold. These new recordings are unmatched in the virtual instruments world. The Opus Edition also includes new string, brass and wind multi ensembles that have a unique fat sound that captures the tuning of a large orchestra playing together in a live setting."
POWERFUL NEW CONTROLS
Powerful new control features include Master key-switches where all articulations can be fully customized in the new OPUS articulation palette. You can also customize the sound of each instrument using the new MOODS feature. Classic Mood is the original Hollywood Orchestra sound. Soft Mood modifies the sound for slower, more emotional passages. Epic Mood does the opposite, giving you a sound perfectly suited for your next Action Adventure score. Each mood changes the settings and the look of the interface, which has been completely redesigned and stylized for Hollywood Strings, Hollywood Brass, Hollywood Orchestral Woodwinds, Hollywood Percussion, Hollywood Solo Violin, Hollywood Solo Cello, and Hollywood Harp. In addition, we simplified all instrument versions down to LITE and MAX, making Hollywood Strings in particular much easier to navigate. On less powerful systems use the LITE versions, and on more powerful systems use the MAX versions. Although the MOODS feature works on all versions, it was programmed for the Diamond editions that include all mic positions mixed by Shawn Murphy.
OUR REVOLUTIONARY NEW OPUS SOFTWARE ENGINE
Our brand new OPUS software engine replaces PLAY and has been years in development. "Many improvements were made to the PLAY software engine over the last decade but we suddenly had a unique opportunity," says producer Doug Rogers, "we were able to bring Wolfgang Kundrus in as head of software development. He was the mastermind behind the creation of Cubase, Nuendo, and Studio One. Then we were able to bring in Wolfgang Schneider, the creator of Kontakt. With these two titans of music software development now on our team, we decided it was time to develop a brand new software engine from the ground up. The OPUS software engine is the realization of this effort. Not only is it faster, more powerful, more flexible, and better looking than PLAY, it comes with some incredible new features such as individual instrument downloads, customized key-switches, new effects for the mixer page, scaleable retina GUI upgrades for legacy products, a powerful new script language, and many more features that allow you to completely customize the sound of each instrument. It's one of the most exciting developments in the history of our company and will be the launching pad for many exciting new products in the future."
ALSO INCLUDES HOLLYWOOD ORCHESTRATOR
Create full-scale orchestral music with complex arrangements by playing a few simple chords with one hand and shaping expression with the other. Developed in collaboration with Sonuscore, Hollywood Orchestrator uses all the instruments in Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition to create realtime arrangements based on your MIDI input with our Innovative Scoring Engine.
System Requirements
Below are the minimum and recommended hardware and software specifications for using Opus on Windows and MacOS systems.
MINIMUM SYSTEM - CPU: Quad-core (four cores), running at 2.7 GHz (or above)
- RAM: 16 GB
- OS: macOS 10.13 (or later); Windows 10 with ASIO sound drivers
- Drive: SSD for HW Orchestra Opus Edition
| RECOMMENDED SYSTEM - CPU: Octa-core (eight cores), running at 2.7 GHz (or above)
- RAM: 32 GB or more
- OS: macOS 10.13 (or later); Windows 10 with ASIO sound drivers
- Drive: NVMe SSD
|
The chart below outlines the MacOS and Windows 64-bit operating systems and sequencers that are officially supported and fully tested with the latest version of Opus. Please note that while most Sequencers / DAWs are VST 2, VST 3, AU and AAX plug-in format compatible, only those listed in the chart below are officially supported.
| Product | Version | MacOS (10.13+) | Windows 10 |
|---|
| EW Play 6 Stand-Alone | 6.0+ | YES | YES |
| EW Opus Stand-Alone | 1.0+ | YES | YES |
| Ableton Live | 10.0+ | YES | YES |
| Apple Logic Pro | 10.0+ | YES | - |
| Apple Garageband | 10.3+ | YES | - |
| Avid Pro Tools | 2018.1+ | YES | YES |
| Bitwig Studio | 3.0+ | YES | YES |
| Cockos Reaper | 6.0+ | YES | YES |
| Image-Line FL Studio | 20+ | YES | YES |
| Motu Digital Performer | 9.0+ | YES | YES |
| Steinberg Cubase(1) | 9.0+ | YES | YES |
| Steinberg Nuendo(1) | 8.0+ | YES | YES |
| Presonus Studio One | 4.0+ | YES | YES |
| VSL Vienna Ensemble Pro | 6.0+ | YES | YES |
| Notation Software(2) | Version | | |
|---|
| Avid Sibelius | 2018.1+ | YES | YES |
| MakeMusic Finale | 25.0+ | YES | YES |
| Steinberg Dorico | 3.0+ | YES | YES |
- (1) VST3 usage is recommended
- (2) Sibelius / Finale / Dorico notation programs work with Opus, but do not support the full feature set of some Opus/Play Libraries, such as those that use WordBuilder. Please contact support for details.
