What types of samples are included with the EXSP?

Question

I'm considering purchasing Logic Express, but wanted to know what types of samples (orchestral, synth, drum, keyboard, etc) are included with the EXSP player. Can anyone owning Logic Express tell me what types of samples are included?
Mac G5   Mac OS X (10.3)  

Answer 1

Hello, Jeb247.
This is merely a matter of personal opinion, but I believe that the included samples for EXSP are among the better features of the program. Granted, there are some cases where you have several instruments loosely based on the same samples run through different filters, but you are likely to find a decent array of what you need.
You get all the Garageband instruments, as well as the ability to load the Jam Packs into EXSP. While the following list probably contains some overlap with those samples, it will still give you an idea of what's out there:
The top-level hierarchy lists 41 different groups of sounds. After each listing, I'll note the approximate number of 'instruments' in each group:
Piano (10)
Guitars (11)
Bass (5)
Strings (9)
Horns & Winds (9)
Ethnic Instruments (2)
Voices & Choir (3)
Drum Kits (12)
Effects(~50)
Percussion & Specials (2)
Analog: Bass (45), Leads (20), Pads (17), Percussive Waves (44), SpectrumSQ (25), Sweeps (30), Synthcomp (33), Waveforms (50+)
Digital Chromatic Kits (12), Initial Waveforms (60+), Motion & FX (36), Pad Synths (46), Percussive Waves (23), Synths (31)
FM Bass (17)
Synth Atmospheres Layers (31), Singles (40)
Synth Bass (45), Brass (12), Chords (21), Leads & Hooks (30), LFO Synths (21), Multi Sequence (6), Pads (44), Percussive Synths (44), Poly (28), Sidechain Chords (14), Spacious Effects (40), Strings (16), Sweeps & Swells (32), Vocalish (25)
Now, as to the quality of the sounds... your mileage may vary. For orchestral stuff, nothing appeals to my ears like the Kurzweil -- largely because of those smooooooooooth output filters. That's not to say that the EXSP stuff isn't worth checking out; I just happen to use it for electronic textures and percussion rather than acoustic emulations. The drums simply don't cut it for me -- not nearly enough punch. But -- as I've mentioned before, you ears may report different pleasure levels.
Suffice it to say that the EXSP comes with a substantial array of music-making potential. For the money (a freebie w/ Logic Express) it's a really good deal. Shortcomings in its sound set can be overcome by the careful purchase of additional material where your ears report unsatisfactory sounds. If you don't like the drums, iDrum or Battery might be a good idea (or my personal favorite: an outboard drum machine with dead-short latency...); if the orchestra stuff is weak, there are alternatives there, too.
And your options for synth textures are beyond counting -- though I can specifically recommend the utterly astounding (and free!) Alphakanal "Automat". And you can have a pile of fun with the (equally free) NUSofting daHornet. And... and... the list goes on.
Cheers,
Michael