Is it just me, but is the accolades for this because the styles are something that is not available elsewhere, rather than how high the musicality, realism and production is?

Sadly, to my ears, the sounds themselves on these demos, the drum kit samples, the guitars (all MIDI), the horns, you name it, don't sound anywhere NEAR as good as many of the ROM styles. In fact, sorry, but my G70 FRIES those drums for realism and dynamics. And the guitars are a pale shadow of Yamaha or Korg. Horns, blatty and unrealistic, etc., etc.. But the RHYTHMS....? Unique.

I think, more and more, I am beginning to see that people don't rave about an arranger for what it basically sounds like, or what it's OS can (or cannot!) do. They just like the styles. If an arranger has styles in it that nothing else has, it is GREAT (no matter how poor those styles actually SOUND). If it doesn't, it ain't!

These styles have the RHYTHMS that people performing this music want. And that, it appears, is a LOT more important than the sound...