Welcome to Music Nation. The Big Bang Orchestra from Vienna Symphonic Library has always felt like one of those libraries everyone talks about but few truly explain.
It sits in this interesting space: familiar enough to understand what it offers, yet distinct enough that you can’t quite compare it to the usual “all-in-one” orchestral bundles. Maybe that’s VSL’s engineering DNA showing – everything they make feels meticulously shaped, a bit unconventional, and unapologetically ambitious.
Trying BBO from a fresh Synchron user perspective was more revealing than I expected. This isn’t your everyday cinematic orchestra; it has a “make-room-I’m-coming-through” quality baked right into its DNA. Big gestures, bold textures, and a kind of full-body orchestral presence that’s hard to ignore. Give it a moment and it starts to make sense why so many composers keep coming back to it, quirks and all.
BBO has a distinct “outer space” vibe about it, from the graphics to the nomenclature, so forgive me the odd wise-crack throughout the review. That being said, beam me up, Scotty! Let’s get stuck into it.
First Impressions & Installation
Being considered the upper-echelon of sample libraries, and when seeing some of the bundle prices on the website comparable to a decent second hand car, there is a sense of “Oooo, this is really nice!” with BBO, perhaps similar to visiting a show home thats way outside your budget.
Getting the library installed was painless. Vienna Assistant does most of the heavy lifting, and for once, “guided installation” actually means guided. If you’ve spent years wrangling Kontakt paths or manually copying sample folders around like some kind of 18th-century librarian, this will feel positively luxurious.
I love how you can install just exactly what you need. Only need strings? Fine. Just the brass? Go for it. Want the whole universe but none of the extra mic positions? Sure. VSL’s modular approach feels like something every developer should have adopted years ago, especially with SSD space becoming scarce.
And in the event (like me) you accidentally install half the library to the wrong drive… Vienna Assistant makes relocating samples stupidly easy. Honestly, I wish every company handled file management with this level of clarity.
There’s even a sweet download monitor that appeals to the inner nerd, all very clean, techy, and satisfyingly overdesigned.
Synchron Player – First Contact
Then you open Synchron Player and, well…it’s a lot. Not unusably complex, but very busy if you’re only familiar with more minimalistic offerings from Spitfire Audio and even some Kontact libraries.
Tabs that spawn more tabs. A “Dimension Tree,” which sounds like something you’d use to summon a dungeon boss rather than choose staccato or pizzicato. And the ever present oddly space-themed UI that feels more like Star Trek LCARS than a Mahler symphony.
While I’m joking a little, the weird space theme certianly matches the Big Bang title, I was just anticipating dry, Austrian conservatoire seriousness – this is actually quite fun and whimsical.
Once you get past the initial button-shock, though, it’s a very nice place to work. This is a sound engine clearly built by people who actually use the tools. The mixer is proper, not a token three-fader affair – with powerful FX, routing options, and mic balancing that rivals full DAW workflows. Everything feels deliberate and purposeful… but also slightly intimidating at first glance.
A standout feature for me is Flow mode, which is much more simplified and intuitive than the default “Precision” mode. It feels designed for hobbyist rather than seasoned super-composers, and I’m happy for the guidance.
There are some really nice little details only a composer designer would consider, such as the velocity monitor. It’s such a simple idea, but I found it surprisingly useful for balancing my play style with the libraries dynamics.
The Sound – We’re going to need a bigger boat.
If I had to describe the Big Bang Orchestra in one sentence: This is what happens when you ask an orchestra to play like they’re trying to impress a stadium full of rock fans.
The Tutti patches are massive. Like, physically-feel-the-air-pushing-past-your-face massive. Those broad, fortissimo swells practically beg for a trailer cue or big heroic theme. The recording quality is immaculate, polished, wide, and unapologetically loud.
The low strings are monstrous. The immediate need to play the theme to Jaws results in perfect composer “bass-face”.
But this is also where the first caveat shows up.
BBO leans heavily into its loud side. Sure, there are softer dynamics, and you can coax gentler performances out of the individual sections, but the overall identity of this library is scale. It’s not nessasarily shouty or brash, its just….big.
The lack of divisi also contributes to this sense of size. Strings especially feel like they were recorded with the entire population of Vienna. It’s great for impact, less ideal for nuanced writing.
Still, when you need that blockbuster punch few libraries do it better. But just a heads up, don’t wander in here thinking you’ll find a delicate scandi noir quartet anywhere, this is the big boys.
Playability & Workflow
One of BBO’s underrated strengths is how quickly everything loads. Compared to similar Kontakt-based products, Synchron Player feels like a sports car. Even the bigger patches pop in faster than expected.
There’s also a surprisingly good MIDI loop player for the percussion sections. It’s not a gimmick – it’s genuinely useful for sketches, mockups, or when you’re running on two hours of sleep and need timpani rolls right now.
And the built-in Academy pages are brilliant. Having detailed info on each instrument, historical notes, orchestration tips, usage examples – right inside the ecosystem feels like having a pocket-sized orchestration tutor. There is a slight vibe of a thinly veiled orchestration masterclass tutorial, but then again if could be seen as VSL ensuring there are no excuses for its users not to fully understand the basics.
The Learning Curve
Synchron Player is powerful, but not simple. Even after a manual dive and a few tutorials, I still found myself stuck on seemingly basic tasks. The UI looks to have improved over the years, but as a new user to the platform it’s feels more technical than musical in places.
Newcomers like me will be thankful for the numerous YouTube ‘Getting Started’ guides available. Happily, there is a fully interactive mouse-over help/tips popup, which I used constantly in the beginning. Every single dial and function in the (very) in-depth editing section of the Synchron Player is tagged with help like this, absolutly indispensable.
And the VSL website… well. Let’s just say it’s an adventure. Product names, bundles, expansions, and “add-ons formerly known as space packs” require a short study session before you understand what you’re buying. It is laid out quite well once you understand the categories, but on my first visit it seemed like a mountian of choices and no real advice on where to look first.
Who Is Big Bang Orchestra For?
Having now used BBO for 2-weeks, I can apprechiate though process of the engineers behind the series. Its a big, brash and lumbering and scratches the epic itch perfectly. While I think all professional composer will want a BBO style library in their collection, this for me is not your first choice as a hobbyist.
Can you score with BBO? Somewhat, but I struggled. BBO feels more like the big cannon you drag in once the arrangement is set. If a section feels a little flat, roll out BBO to boost it. That kind of thing. To write from scratch its all too much.
With that in mind, I felt BBO slots in well with other libraires I had on hand, such as the way more subtle Spitfire Audio BBCSO and ProjectSAM’s Lumina ensemble bands. Sonuscore’s new LUX Strings compliment BBO perfectly too, so mostly likely your exsisting libraries will work pretty well here.
I think this is perhaps what the engineers had in mind with the modularity, and I apprechiate that. You can effectivly uninstall everything except the big brass section you need for the project, and it works. Next project needs might need large strings, bring them in and retire the brass.
BBO is not a nuanced chamber section nor a dexterous shorts and pizzicato band that can rock out tighter 16th ostinatos all day long. Its a big silverback gorilla, and I love it for its ability to do scale well and not attempt to be the jack of all trades.
Conclusion
The Big Bang Orchestra isn’t subtle. It’s not even trying to be. What it offers instead is size, clarity, speed, and a genuinely forward-thinking engine wrapped in the slightly eccentric packaging of the VSL universe.
As a first-time Synchron user, I walked away impressed – sometimes overwhelmed, occasionally confused, but genuinely excited to write music, which is a win for me when reviewing sample libraries. There’s a sense of craftsmanship here that sets VSL apart. And while BBO isn’t perfect, it’s undeniably powerful, fast, and inspiring once you understand how to drive it.
If you’re building a modern cinematic toolkit or dipping your toes into the Synchron ecosystem, this is a very easy recommendation. I think the retail price of $599 USD reflects excellent value, though you can buy à la carte if you prefer, picking up only the sections you expect to use most.
As VSL’s quote-unquote “entry-level” offering price-wise, Big Bang Orchestra is surprisingly powerful. It may sit at the accessible end of their catelog, but the sound is anything but basic. It gives you a real taste of the depth and cinematic punch VSL is known for, and it makes me excited to imagine just how detailed their more specialized libraries must be. As a composer, investing in high-quality tools matters, and VSL’s Big Bang Orchestra absolutely deserves a spot on your wishlist this year.
Head over to Vienna Symphonic Library’s website for full details on Big Bang Orchestra 2.0 and other amazing titles www.vsl.co.at
