VOCALOID can i trust bigfishaudio for buying hatsune miku?

[lithia]

(very very sorry if this is the wrong place to post this!! not sure where to post it)
hello everyone! for christmas this year, i'm getting vocaloid 5 and hatsune miku v4x. i'm having a super hard time finding hatsune miku. i can't get her from the english vocaloid site and it costs 219.99 dollars on amazon AND it comes in a box with a disc (which i don't want because my computer doesn't have a disc drive!). i found this website called "Big Fish Audio" that has hatsune miku (download and dvd) for sale for 199.95 dollars and is so far the only site i have found with a digital download. i just want to know if i can trust this site. i really don't want my mom have her money scammed! any help is appreciated, thank you!!
here is the site, by the way. Big Fish Audio - Hatsune Miku V4X Bundle - Hatsune Miku V4X Vocaloid Voice Synthesizer

 

[uncreepy]

Yes, Big Fish Audio is a very commonly used site for purchasing Vocaloids (they often have sales, too). It's trustworthy, so don't worry if you decide to use it. I know many people who have used this site, but I haven't myself.

However, Sonicwire is actually Crypton's website where you can buy Rin/Len/Kaito/Meiko/Miku from in download version. I personally have bought from Sonicwire and it's easier in my opinion, because it registers your purchase to your account. Be careful about which version of Miku you buy, there are 3 versions.
Miku V4X is only her Japanese banks, comes with Piapro: HATSUNE MIKU V4X（初音ミク V4X） | SONICWIRE
Miku V4 English is only her English bank and does NOT come with Piapro: HATSUNE MIKU V4 ENGLISH（初音ミク V4 ENGLISH） | SONICWIRE
Miku V4X Bundle is her Japanese AND English banks and Piapro: HATSUNE MIKU V4X BUNDLE（初音ミク V4X バンドル） | SONICWIRE

Piapro is an equivalent software to Vocaloid Editor, it comes for free with each V4 Crypton Vocaloid. So if you purchase Miku, you don't actually HAVE to buy Vocaloid 5 unless you really want to spend that extra $200ish on 4+ Vocaloids you might not like (Amy, Kaori, Chris, Ken).

If you have more questions, feel free to ask.

 

[peaches2217]

I actually bought Miku from Big Fish Audio. They're 100% dependable! The shipping is slow, even if you get it expedited, but if you're just downloading then it's an excellent option.

Like Uncreepy said, she comes with Piapro, which I feel is much easier to use than V5. (I honestly wish I could get a refund for V5; unless you'e got a heavy-duty desktop, it's just clunky.) Save that money or buy another Vocaloid with it.

Also, I see you're new here. Welcome to the forums! We're friendly and open here, so don't hesitate to ask questions and get involved!

 

[TheStarPalace]

The site is legit, I bought Avanna from there and it went fine. Sonicwire is another legitimate place to buy Miku. She's also on the Japanese vocaloid store if you change the language (yeah not all of them are on the English version which is dumb)

 

[lithia]

thank you all so very very much!! i'm interested in vocaloid5 because of all the features but i'll look at piapro too! thank you again!!

 

[peaches2217]

thank you all so very very much!! i'm interested in vocaloid5 because of all the features but i'll look at piapro too! thank you again!!

I understand! That was why I got it too. The features look amazing... but since there's so much, you've gotta have a high-powered, high-dollar computer to run it. If you do any Vocaloiding from an average computer or a laptop, it will freeze and force-close. Constantly. I speak from experience on that issue. Just proceed with caution, either way.

Again, we're glad to help, and we're glad to have you here!

 

[uncreepy]

It might be a good idea to only buy Miku for now, learn how to use her/Piapro that comes with her, and THEN get Vocaloid 5 after you think you are ready. (I'm assuming you have never used a Vocaloid before. The learning curve for how to make them sing by tuning them is actually quite time consuming--as in several months.)

Vocaloid 5 is a bit harder to use because it sometimes has bugs depending on how powerful your computer is. The method to make them sing is a bit different, because it has the Attack/Release presets. Personally, I don't use those very often and prefer to tune the old way like Vocaloid Editor 4 and Piapro. Also, Vocaloid 5 loads slowly after every single change you make (you have to wait for it to load before you can continue to draw tuning or listen to the changes you made). That being said, I like to collect Vocaloids, so I do enjoy messing with Vocaloid 5.

 

[Aia]

Since V5 does have pretty big system requirements, getting Piapro first is a good way to go. Or you could also consider getting the trial version of SynthV. There's not many English vocals, if that's what you're looking for, but I heard it's easy to work with, so I think it's best if you're new to tuning!

V5 while not really good for those already used to the previous versions of the software, it's actually pretty good for beginners. Whether you like the 4 starters or not, I heard the features are pretty neat to mess around with. It really gives some really nice results to the vocal. Even though the price is kinda expensive, you pretty much get what you pay for (that is, if your computer can handle it well)

 

[___]

As others said, as long as you have powerful PC you'll be just fine! I can attest that. The loading with strong PC isn't that bad and you can make the loading much muuch faster by cutting the track in parts, that's what I do!

However, if you don't have a strong pc you should stick with Piapro, I really like V5 but I recommend it only to those who can meet it's system requirements.

 

[lithia]

i checked the system requirements and my computer seems able to run v5, i tried downloading the piapro and hatsune miku demo but couldn't find it, but i'll still try to get around to testing it! thank you all again!!

 

[Aia]

No problem!

 

[Scarlet Illusion]

Welcome to the forum!

I recommend buying Miku from Sonicwire if you'd prefer a download version, and I recommend not buying V5 until you feel like your ready for something a bit more advanced. Like Uncreepy said, Vocaloid can be difficult to learn at first, and also V5 seems to have a lot of extra features which may be confusing for a beginner. Can't necessarily say much about v5 since I don't own it, so anything I say about it only based on what I've read and should be taken with a pinch of salt. Hope this helps! ^^

 

[peaches2217]

i checked the system requirements and my computer seems able to run v5, i tried downloading the piapro and hatsune miku demo but couldn't find it, but i'll still try to get around to testing it! thank you all again!!

Unfortunately, you can't run her demo without an editor. No Piapro trial exists, to my knowledge. Used to, you could download a trial of V4 and run trials with it, but Yamaha being... well, Yamaha, it's no longer available and there's no trial of V5.

If you want to get started practicing, though, Synth V is a good place to start! It runs a lot like Vocaloid and will get you used to using a vocal synth. And it's free, which is a major plus! (The "trial" is the full version. You only need to buy it if you want to make money off of it.)

 

[Scarlet Illusion]

I think Miku should come with a trial of Piapro Studio. That was the case when I tried both her English and Japanese vbs.
Here's her trials for English and Japanese!
HATSUNE MIKU V4 ENGLISH TRIALの詳細情報ページ | HATSUNE MIKU V4X TRIALの詳細情報ページ

You'll need a DAW to run Piapro, so if you don't have one already, I recommend FL Studio since the demo is never ends. I've linked to it below! ^^

Create Your Best Music | FL STUDIO

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