MS Synth - Is It Really That Bad?

On October 22, 1996, something terrible happened:  Roland licensed the Sound Canvas sound set for use as the default MIDI synthesizer for Micro$oft Windows operating systems.  This sound set was based on the Roland SC-55.  Many (but not all) classic video game soundtracks that used General MIDI were intended to be heard with the Roland SC-55.  If this sound set was based on the legendary SC-55, then it should have been perfect, right?  Nope.  Why was this relatively terrible?  Read on...

Roland had previously released the "Virtual Sound Canvas" earlier in 1996.  The VSC was Roland's official software emulator for the SC-55.  It featured reverb and chorus effects.  The quality of the instruments was not as good as the instruments from the real SC-55, but it was better than nothing, at least.

Anyway, this Sound Canvas sound set was then licensed for use in MS Windows, and was now known as the "Microsoft GS Software Wavetable Synthesizer", or simply MS (or MS) Synth.  The sounds were stored in a "gm.dls" (DownLoadable Sound format) file.  The gm.dls was 3.28 MB.  It had 495 samples, 235 instruments, and 235 presets.  And it sounded awful, or rather, that was my first opinion of it.

The MS Synth's Sound Canvas set was of sad quality.  It used mostly the same sounds from the Virtual Sound Canvas; the instrument sounds were still poor, and many of them still sounded nowhere near the quality of the real SC-55.  The MS Synth did not even support reverb or chorus effects!*  And to add insult to injury, some of the instruments in the MS Synth were actually worse than the Virtual Sound Canvas.  The result was that the MS Synth, with its licensed Sound Canvas set, was disappointing and very underwhelming.  The amazing (at the time) sound of the SC-55, was now reduced to a cheap, dry, plastic, ugly, MS software synthesizer.

In 2000, Roland released a new Virtual Sound Canvas.  It was basically the same quality as the previous VSC, but still better than the MS Synth, and it now had three sound sets to choose from:  SC-55 (354 sounds + 10 drumsets), SC-88 (546 sounds + 15 drumsets), and SC-88Pro (902 sounds + 26 drumsets).

Now, years later, with newer Windows operating systems like Windows 7 and Windows 8, the same MS Synth is still used.  They did not bother to ever properly update it.  Even though Roland released newer versions of the VSC, Windows still uses the horrendous MS Synth from 1996.

Even on the most recent Windows, the default MIDI synthesizer for playing back MIDI sounds cheap and unrealistic.  It is unfortunate that Windows had to end up with such a low quality sound set, especially when there were many other much "better" GM sound sets available...

Is it really that bad?  For a long time I considered the MS Synth to be the worst MIDI synthesizer ever.  Its lack of effects, its low quality sounds...I thought that just about every other GM sound set (from sound cards, modules, etc.) sounded better than the MS Synth.  I got sick of the MS Synth's sound, and developed an aversion to it.  AWE32, Gravis UltraSound, even FM Synthesis, everything was better than it, in my opinion.

Well, the MS Synth is now considered "authentic", and many MIDIs that are intended for playback on a Windows system with no fancy other GM synths, are optimized for it.  So, even though it's not amazing, it ended up being the default intended sound for MIDIs from games like Atomaders, Astrobatics, and Alien Sky, and even DOOM PWADs (composers for PWADs generally make sure their MIDIs are balanced for the MS Synth).

I still prefer to avoid the MS Synth, unless I'm composing MIDIs intended for balanced GM sound sets.  I still prefer using other sound sets for playback however, like Gravis, or Yamaha, or even the VSC.

When compared to huge realistic sound sets or the original SC-55 hardware, the MS Synth really is pretty dull.  On its own however, it is very well balanced and therefore perhaps the best synth (after real SC-55 hardware) to use for composing perfectly balanced MIDIs (unless one is composing MIDIs intended specifically for certain realistic soundfonts).

* The GM.DLS file is also available as a soundfont called scc1t2.sf2.  The soundfont version can be loaded into a good quality software synthesizer such as CoolSoft VirtualMIDISynth, which features effects such as reverb and chorus.

All Commercial General MIDI Soundfonts

Squillions and squillions...that's about how many free custom General MIDI soundfont banks have been released.  They mostly use free or public domain samples, which are taken from various sources.  Besides these custom GM soundfonts, there are also commercial professional GM soundfonts; ones that are generally meant to be very high quality, and of course cost money.

So let's take a look at the commercial GM soundfonts that have been released.  Please note that it is impossible to fully explain the quality of a GM bank in text, and you may or may not agree with my opinions here...  My YouTube channel has some recordings of MIDI music (mostly DOOM) played with these GM banks.  Anyway, as far as I know, here are all commercial GM soundfont banks that have been released.  The size is based on the total size of the uncompressed sf2 file, and may vary slightly.  GM means the bank contains only the 128 standard instruments, and a standard drumset.  GS means the bank also contains additional GS instruments.  GS drumsets means the bank has GS drumsets only, but no melodic GS instruments.  Some of these banks also contain extra non-GM/GS instruments and drumsets.

EdgeSounds GeneVoice GM64Pro | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  59.9 MB

There are two versions of this soundfont:  16-bit and 24-bit.  The 24-bit version costs more.  This soundfont features two GM banks.  The instruments are mostly suited for synthy music like dance, disco, etc.

EdgeSounds SoniqBear GM120Pro | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  115 MB

This soundfont features four GM banks, and many different types of drumsets.  The instruments aren't exactly realistic, but they have some nice synthy sounds, making this soundfont great for dance/disco/electronic MIDI music.

JaZMan Genesys Pro8 | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  1.13 GB

This is a 24-bit soundfont featuring samples from the Roland SC-88 Pro.

JaZMan GM24 PRO | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  259 MB

A large 24-bit soundfont.  I have a review of it in another post on this blog.

JaZMan GMLiVE | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  300 MB (16-bit), 500 MB (24-bit)

JaZMan SF88 MINI GM/GS | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  500 MB

A Roland SC-88-based soundfont optimized for less powerful systems.

JaZMan SF88 Roland Edition | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  1.65 GB

A very large soundfont version of the Roland Sound Canvas SC-88 sound module.

JazMan SFXGM series | Standards:  GM/XG

A series of large Yamaha XG-based soundfonts.

• SFXGM PRO (1.80 GB) - 586 GM/XG instruments, 18 percussions kits + 2 fx sets, velocity layers.
• SFXGM LITE (1.10 GB) - 128 GM instruments, 12 percussion kits + 2 fx kits, velocity layers.
• SFXGM DEV (500 MB) - 128 GM instruments, 8 percussion kits + 2 fx kits, NO velocity layers.

JazMan SFXGM PRO MINI | Standards:  GM/XG | Size:  700 MB

An XG-based soundfont optimized for less powerful systems.

Merlin Symphony | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  163 MB

There are many soundfonts in the Merlin series, such as Creative, Elite, Gold, Gold Plus, Grand, Jupiter, Plus, Pro, Silver, Special, Vienna, and WXP.  I'm not sure what the "order" is of these soundfonts; i.e. the order of their release dates or quality, but here are how many credits each Merlin Pro soundfont costs:  Symphony - 50, Vienna - 25, Orchestra - 20, Grand - 15, Special - 10, GMPro - 8, Audigy - 4, Gold - 2.  I assume Symphony is the "best" one. Free soundfonts in the Merlin series include GM, Creative, and Silver.

NemeSys Conexant GM500 | Standards:  GM | Size:  350 MB (sf2 version)

A large GM bank that used to be sold on CD-ROM, in Giga format.  It is now discontinued.  A soundfont version of this is available.

NTONYX 32MB GM Stereo | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  30.9 MB

This soundfont is free, but I decided to list it here anyway.  It's made by the same company that did the EdgeSounds soundfonts.  Not really suited for MIDIs that require realistic sounding instruments; the instruments like the electric guitars and strings are better for synthy music.

Papelmedia GM 2007 | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  229 MB

Seems to be mainly focused on orchestral stuff.  Some GM instruments, such as the "synth voice", are usually unusable for playing MIDI files with, since this soundfont uses a very out of place female "Laa" sample for that instrument.

proVITAMIN | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  231 MB (rfl file)

A GM bank for Propellerhead Reason.  The MKII version has extra instruments.  The distortion guitar is horrible.

Sonic Reality OmniSynth | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  1.32 GB (OmniSynth 2, SampleTank), 250 MB (sf2 version)

A large GM set for SampleTank.  A soundfont version is also available.  OmniSynth 2 (SampleTank) features many extra instruments.

Sonido Media Monster GM! 12 MB | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  12.0 MB

Included on the "Soundfont Toolbox" CD.

Sonido Media Monster GM! 24 MB | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  24.0 MB

Included on the "Soundfont Toolbox" CD.

SONiVOX 24 MB GS | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  23.2 MB

A GS soundfont by SONiVOX.  Now discontinued.  The drums are nice and have a "big" sound, but the instruments mostly don't sound very realistic...still, it's a good GS bank.  There was also a 12 MB version, which was mostly the same as this one, except the 24 MB version has two differences:  Stereo Grand Piano, and Stereo Session Drums and Session Brush Drums.  Also, a small 4 MB soundfont was released by SONiVOX; this one only had GM presets and 1 drumset, and is lower quality than the 12/24 MB GS soundfonts.

SONiVOX 250 MB GS | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  251 MB

Well then.  This one was certainly bragged about.  I remember when articles were released on it, saying how gargantuan it terms of quality and quantity it was.  One of the most monumental GM banks ever produced?  Oh really?  Nope.  In reality, this one is poorly balanced and just "okay".  It does have some good instruments, especially the bagpipes, but it's mostly a mishmash of somewhat nice instruments and weak instruments.  The snares in the drumset also have poorly done velocity layers, so that in songs like E1M1 from DOOM, the sound of the snare annoyingly keeps changing:  "POK, blaft, POK, blaft, POK, POK".  I actually prefer the 24 MB SONiVOX soundfont over this one, because the 24 MB soundfont is much better balanced.  Some instruments actually sound better in the 24 MB soundfont with some MIDIs.  The overdriven guitar in this soundfont sounds a bit too clean in most MIDIs, and doesn't sound very good in MIDIs like DOOM that need a more aggressive sounding guitar.  Sadly, SONiVOX really didn't do a great job with their super awesome unbelievable ginormous 250 MB soundfont.  SONiVOX doesn't sell their soundfonts anymore...

SONiVOX Industrial Dance | Standards:  GM | Size:  4.06 MB

A small dance-themed General MIDI-compatible soundfont.  Does not exactly follow the GM standard in terms of specific instruments; uses a lot of synth sounds.

SONiVOX Retro Synth | Standards:  GM | Size:  3.99 MB

A small retro-themed General MIDI-compatible soundfont.  Does not exactly follow the GM standard in terms of specific instruments; uses a lot of synth sounds.

sYnerGi GS | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  43.6 MB

This soundfont is discontinued, unfortunately.  Pretty nice, powerful sound.  Unique samples.  A previous version of this soundfont was available titled sYnerGi 200, and a smaller version, titled sYnerGi 200LE, was included for free when purchasing sYnerGi GS.

Utopia Live! | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Size:  various - see below

Discontinued.  A commercial soundfont designed specifically for Sound Blaster Live! sound cards.  Intended to replace the default 2/4/8 MB E-mu and have the balance of a Roland Sound Canvas.  The electric guitars are kind of "muffly-froomfy" style.  Versions of this soundfont include the following:  LW P LE, LW P PE, LW P, LW S, VLQ Demo, WDM P LE, WDM P PE, WDM P, WDM S.  LW is for LiveWare drives, WDM fixes some issues when used with soft synths such as CoolSoft VirtualMIDISynth (strings cutting off on release, for example).

* WDM P LE (24.6 MB) - Stereo panned percussion (Light Edition).
* WDM P (27.5 MB) - Stereo panned percussion.
* WDM P PE (31.1 MB) - Stereo panned percussion and enhanced pianos.
* WDM S (31.6 MB) - StereoID percussion.

Voice Crystal 4 MB GM | Standards:  GM (with GS drumets) | Size:  3.99 MB

I like this one, partially because of nostalgia.  It's only 4 MB, but it's well balanced and nice.  It's made by EYE & I productions, and is actually based on the 4 MB bank from the Gravis UltraSound card.  A great, small soundfont, with an excellent "classic" sound, in my opinion.


And now for the really ginormous one...

East West Quantum Leap Colossus | Standards:  GM | Size:  32 GB

Thirty.  Two.  GigaBytes.  Yes.  32 GB.  A sample library with jillions of instruments.  And it's GM compatible.  Oh my.  However, keep in mind that this library actually contains many non-GM instruments, so that is the reason for the huge size.  The GM set is available in soundfont format.  Still, its GM set does take up quite a few GB...  Despite the size, the GM set really doesn't sound that great...bleh.  If you decide to get Colossus, do not get it just for the GM set.  If you really want to get the most out of it, then use it for its non-GM sounds instead.


Here are two more soundfonts that can be purchased from their authors online...

GMR | Standards:  GM/GS (with GS drumsets) | Size:  468 MB (Basico version 1.1)

A very nice soundfont, with a few GS sounds.  The Basico version is free, and there is a commercial "Latino" version that has some improved instruments.

Princess Soft | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets)

I don't have this soundfont, so I can't really say much about it.


Well, that's all the commercial GM soundfont banks.  So, let's look at some commercial GM VSTis/DXis/soft synths...

Coyote ForteDXi | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Formats:  DXi

A free trial is available.  Sounds pretty generic.

EDIROL Hyper Canvas | Standards:  GM2 | Formats:  VSTi, DXi

A GM2 soft synth by Roland.  Based on some sounds from the SC-88.  The electric snare in the drumsets is unfortunately not really suited for MIDIs that need a more acoustic sounding snare...that "pewf" sample sounds out of place in MIDIs from stuff like DOOM.

Sonic Cat (formerly LUXONIX) Purity | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Formats:  VSTi, standalone

A software workstation, that has a GM set.  Sounds okay, except for some MIDIs like Grabbag from Duke 3D, in which Purity's electric guitars sound awful and "bbraaapy".  However, since Purity is a workstation, its primary purpose is music composition.  As such, it includes a lot of great synth sounds that you won't hear if you just play General MIDI files.

M-Audio GM Module | Standards:  GM | Formats:  VSTi

A software GM module.  Has some nice sounds, I guess.  Like the Hyper Canvas, the electric snare is a "doof" sample that sounds out of place in a lot of MIDIs...

Native Instruments Bandstand | Standards:  GM (with GS drumsets) | Formats:  VSTi, DXi, standalone | Size:  ~2.5 GB

A large GM soft synth.  Discontinued.  You would expect it to sound great.  But, it's more like "okay" at best, to flat-out terrible at worst.  The huge GM sample library includes instruments from many well known audio companies.  Bandstand has a built-in MIDI player.  In terms of performance, it's not very good.  Bandstand takes quite a while to load the samples for the instruments, and this causes it to be problematic when playing MIDIs that use patch change commands.  Also, some notes on some instruments keep cutting out, which is obviously annoying.  As for quality, the samples are quite a mixed bag.  Some instruments are too loud, some are too soft; I really expected this to be better...