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East West Quantum Leap's Play Engine titles are available in a 'buy one get one free' deal, but not for long.

Recently, I discussed how to acquire a solid starter loop sample library on a budget. Be warned, this article is about much pricier options; for composers who want the highest quality samples and are willing to pay for them. East West has produced some incredible titles throughout the last few years, and their sounds, used by a number of movie score composers, have found their way into the soundtracks of many big screen productions. Reviews of individual titles will be subjects of future articles. For now, I will just put it out there for thought that all the Play titles together cost $4,820. Talking about "massive" in both gigabytes (the Pianos collection alone is 270 GB, and it comes on DVDs) and U.S. Dollars. With a little order picking and matching, you can save quite an amount of money and own some truly impressive virtual instruments.

First, pick the titles you want. There should be an even number of them, as if you order three, you get three for the price of two. That is not exactly the best deal, considering you qualify for a free fourth item anyway. If you just one title, get two, if you want three, get four.

Next, match up the titles in pairs by price. Let's say you want two titles costing $445 each, and two costing $355 each. The promotion gives you a second title for the same or lower price, so you pay for the higher priced item in each order. If you ordered a $445 item in both the first and second order, you would be out of $890 (plus shipping and handling), even if you bundled them with two additional $355 items. Instead, order the two $445 titles first, then the two $355 ones, paying a total of $800.

If you are interested in the Symphonic Orchestra titles, you also have to decide which version you want. Symphonic Orchestra Silver Complete does not include all the instruments and all the articulations, and has 16-bit samples and one microphone position, though it is a bargain at $265. If you are not too worried about the sample bit depth and miking that much, get all the instruments and articulations in Gold Complete for $625. If you choose this edition and want Goliath, buy them together, as one of them will be free. If Goliath is your primary focus of sonic desire, you might as well toss in Symphonic Orchestra Gold Complete. Should you really feel like investing in Platinum Standard or Platinum Plus, bundle it with Goliath.

What if you want all eight titles? Order them in pairs and one set of four, otherwise you will pay for the four highest priced ones. Here is the most economical bundling of orders for the complete collection if you include at least Symphonic Orchestra Gold Complete or above.

1st order: Symphonic Orchestra Gold (or higher) + Goliath, $625 (or $1,165 if choosing Platinum Complete Plus)

2nd order: Ministry of Rock, Voices of Passion, SD2, Pianos, (they are all priced the same) $890

3rd order: Fab Four, Gypsy, $355

Total: $1,870 (or $2,410 with Platinum Complete Plus)

In a single order, it would have cost $2,140. ($2,680 with Platinum Complete Plus)

Getting the same titles in the also available Play Gold Mega Bundle would set you back $2,495 ($2,875 for Play Platinum Plus Mega Bundle), but after October 31st, that will be your cheapest option.

If you only included Gold Complete in your pick and match orders, you can update to Platinum Complete Plus later, even after October 31st, for $649, putting your total investment at $2,519, still better than the Play Platinum Plus Mega Bundle.

So as musicians, why do we bother with financial brain gymnastics, when it should all be about making music? Because in the pursuit of creating better compositions, we acquire tools that help us express ourselves better, and when a great deal comes along, there is nothing wrong with making the most of it, right? Besides, who can afford not to save some extra cash in these times?