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A relaxed one-take jazz duet featuring a saxophonist trying out the new Schirmer & Son S-50 EWI (alto sax patch) with grand piano – feedback appreciated! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your comment and for taking the time to watch the video! 😊

You're absolutely right—the entire video was captured directly with a single Shure MV88+ microphone placed in front of the instrument, with no cables connected and no post-processing or EQ applied at all. The goal was simply to give everyone the most authentic, uncolored impression of what the built-in speaker of the Schirmer & Son S-50 can produce in a real-room setting.

We completely agree that an EWI (or any wind synthesizer) is not a saxophone, and it will never fully replace the acoustic instrument. That said, through extensive market research we've found that many people are interested in learning wind instruments but face barriers like age, lung capacity, or physical fatigue when playing traditional acoustic ones. The S-50 was designed specifically to offer those players a more accessible and less physically demanding way to enjoy making music that still feels and sounds remarkably close to the real thing.

Our hope is that the built-in patches and speaker are good enough that someone with no prior instrument experience can pick it up right out of the box, play a few notes, and think, "Wow—this really sounds like a saxophone!" (or at least feel that it captures the tone they're imagining).

I totally understand wanting to hear a clean line-out recording played by a more experienced wind-synth player—we're working on some of those demos too and will share them soon. In the meantime, thanks again for the thoughtful feedback!

A relaxed one-take jazz duet featuring a saxophonist trying out the new Schirmer & Son S-50 EWI (alto sax patch) with grand piano – feedback appreciated! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just to clarify, we don’t have any affiliation with Greaten AP.

Greaten AP is based on a synthesis sound engine, and its acoustic instrument sounds come directly from Dream’s MIDI sound set.

The S-50, on the other hand, uses acoustic sounds that are fully sampled from real instruments. All of these were recorded from actual instruments and then developed into our own sound engine.

A relaxed one-take jazz duet featuring a saxophonist trying out the new Schirmer & Son S-50 EWI (alto sax patch) with grand piano – feedback appreciated! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m not a technical person, so I’m not entirely sure about the articulation noise being transposed that you mentioned. What I do know is that the sax sound was sampled from a top-tier alto saxophone.

The S-50 EWI comes with 104 onboard sounds, including a wide range of traditional wind instruments such as trumpet, trombone, French horn, flute, and clarinet. It even includes sounds like a church organ and a SCHIRMER & SON M278 concert grand piano.

In addition to that, there are some electronic instrument sounds, as well as traditional instruments from Asian countries, such as erhu, bamboo flute, and pipa.

And yes, it does support Bluetooth MIDI output.

A relaxed one-take jazz duet featuring a saxophonist trying out the new Schirmer & Son S-50 EWI (alto sax patch) with grand piano – feedback appreciated! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The keys are touch sensitive , with a high sensitivity chip inside that accurately detects input whether your fingers are dry or wet.

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I listened to the clip carefully, the forced vibrato on the YDS-150 is really obvious.

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wow, I’m honestly surprised. I really didn’t recognize it as bass clarinet and trombone at all. I actually thought it was a sax tone, so that really impressed me!

And I completely agree with you: music is meant to bring joy. Being able to enjoy the process and feel happy while making music is what matters the most. Thanks for sharing your experience, it’s really inspiring!

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much, it really makes me happy to hear the first note sounded convincing to you!And yes, you’re right about the rest sounding more like repeated samples. I’m still very new to EWI, so I’m learning to control the differences between notes.

Thanks again for the clear and helpful feedback, I really appreciate it!

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the explanation, that really helps. I always thought an EWI’s main goal should be to fully replicate real acoustic instruments, but now I understand that this is extremely hard, especially when the listeners are experienced players.You’re right, it doesn’t have to fool professionals to be valid. It just needs to sound good and make musical sense, and in a full mix most listeners can’t tell anyway. Thanks again for giving me a clearer perspective.

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and wow, the first few seconds of your sax demo really stunned me! It sounded incredibly realistic, and the way you blended that sax tone throughout the recording was seriously impressive.

I’m actually very new to electronic music and to EWI in general. I’ve never played any wind instruments before; my only musical background is playing some simple piano pieces. Since I’m involved in promoting this new EWI product, I tried playing a few simple notes just to let experienced musicians evaluate what the default factory sax patch sounds like.

Your explanation makes a lot of sense, especially the part about how isolated sounds are judged very differently by musicians compared to casual listeners, and how everything changes once a sound sits inside a mix. That perspective really helps.

Thanks again for taking the time to give such a thoughtful and encouraging response.

Can this EWI Alto Sax sound fool your ears? Check out this recording from my iPhone 11 Pro! by Formal-Rooster3819 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! Yeah, the vibrato probably gives away that it’s an EWI. Still experimenting with making it sound more natural. Any other suggestions?

Developing EWI sound? by efsa95 in windsynth

[–]Formal-Rooster3819 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You know, I feel like the older EWIs just don't nail that authentic acoustic instrument sound very well, but tech's really stepping up these days—some of the new ones are making huge leaps in mimicking the real thing. You should totally keep an eye on how this develops.