In the old days of non-velocity switched drum sounds and no extra 'squeaks' and stuff, it didn't matter if a style part was low velocity, high volume or the other way 'round. But now that things have improved, dialing in the EXACT velocity level to make the sound switch at the correct point, and then balancing it's volume is critical.

Unfortunately, the concept of GM/GS has gone the way of the dodo, despite the usefulness of the concept. SA and 'Live!' voices have all sorts of behavior in them that is completely proprietary, so translated styles just don't work well with these kind of voices, and accounts for why so many T2 users prefer the onboard Yamaha styles.... they are the only ones that address this extra layer of 'detail'.

Plus, many of the drum note assignments are now no longer standard..... half open hi-hats, snare drum 'ghost' notes and stick drags, tom-tom flams etc., work differently from one arranger manufacturer to another. I find much of what makes the Rolands so 'live' is the extra snare ghost notes and other subtle drummer performance things that are so difficult to translate between arrangers.

But also a philosophy difference is there, too. I am always looking for styles that concentrate on the rhythm section and don't add a lot of other parts. That's MY job! I just want a rhythm section that responds to how much I want to put on top, rather than one that stays out of the way because the style itself has already overloaded itself... One of my first tests of usefulness of an arranger's styles is to turn off ALL the non-rhythm section parts, and see if the rhythm section BY ITSELF really rises and falls through the variations in a smooth and satisfying manner. If it really needs the other parts to help out, it's no use to me, because I am the one going to play the other parts, not the machine!

I would REALLY like to see someone take a good crack at using the arranger's velocity response features (Rolands, for instance, have a feature where how hard you are playing the Keyboard Parts adds a little extra velocity to each part, so it responds to your playing... I imagine most others can do something similar) in a more dramatic fashion. Anything that makes the rhythm section more responsive to our playing styles, rather than concentrate on whizz-bang extra parts, is in my mind FAR more useful.

Some arrangers can make whole different parts come in and out with velocity, I believe. Now THAT'S fun to play with.....!