Steinberg The Grand 3

What HALion Virtual Piano Is For

HALion Virtual Piano is designed to integrate high-end acoustic and electric piano sounds into your composition, arrangement, and mixing projects. Whether you produce pop, jazz, film music, neo-classical, or electronic music, it allows you to quickly achieve an expressive, nuanced, and credible piano sound, both in solo playing and within dense mixes. Thanks to microphone options and the ambience section, you can switch from an intimate "player" piano to a broad, cinematic piano without changing tools.

Main Features

A complete collection: grand, upright, and electric pianos

At the core of the software, you'll find three iconic grand pianos, each with its own color: the Yamaha C7 for precision and presence, the Bösendorfer 290 Imperial for depth and harmonic richness, and the Steinway D for balance and versatility. To broaden the palette, the library also includes a Yamaha CP80 electric piano (ideal for pop/rock textures and sharp attacks) as well as a Nordiska upright piano for more intimate, sometimes woodier and direct atmospheres.

Playing realism focused on response and resonances

The playing feel is based on high-resolution sampling with up to 20 velocity layers per key, enhancing continuity between pianissimo and fortissimo. Instrument details are also reproduced through key release samples, re-pedaling, and various resonances (sustain and sympathetic). The true sostenuto completes the package for a more authentic classical interpretation, especially in passages where some notes must remain held while others are free.

Microphone placement and space: a piano that sits in the mix

Each grand piano offers 4 microphone positions (Close, Player, Room, Side) with continuous mixing. This approach facilitates production work: a close mic for definition, a "Player" perspective for an instrumental feel, a room mic for width, and a side mic to vary color and stereo image. The Ambience section includes both algorithmic and convolution reverbs to shift from a natural room to a more stylized space, plus a 3-band EQ, a compressor, and a limiter to stabilize dynamics and finalize the sound without multiplying external plugins.

Performance, voice management, and customization

The engine delivers polyphony up to 300 voices and dynamic voice allocation, useful for long sustain parts, orchestral piano arrangements, or playing rich in resonances. For more modest setups, the Eco mode helps reduce system load. On the settings side, the built-in tuning editor offers 11 presets and freely adjustable tuning, convenient for adapting intonation to historical contexts, ensembles, or creative aesthetics. Finally, controller assignment is easy thanks to the MIDI learn function, allowing quick mapping of pedals, wheels, and surface controllers.

Technical specifications