Just curious as to what you guys use for synth VSTs and how you go about working with them in Finale or Sibelius. I know that Absynth, Omnisphere, and Atmosphere have some great sounds, but how do you use them within the work flow of your scores?

I'm wanting to be able to set up a single synth staff in Sibelius 6 and use a whole host of sounds on that one staff.  I'm not aware of a way to control/change sounds in most of those VSTs by a means other than manually changing them.  I've used the Kontakt library and actually created a sound set for myself using the synth library included with Kontakt, but I'd like more options than that. 

Any good recommendations of synth instruments that are KP2-based and have a wealth of sounds that would satisfy most tastes and needs? That would allow the use of sound sets, so if anyone knows of anything like that, I'd appreciate suggestions.

I don't think you can do program changes with a Kontakt-based player, meaning having one staff send a message to KP2 to change between many instruments.  Instead you would create a manual soundset...<snip> my reading comprehension is poor lately.

I know how to write soundsets. I was just curious as to what libraries people used. I've been looking at Phaedra and Syntax since they are both Kontakt-based.  I wrote a limited soundset for the Kontakt 2 synth instruments; just wanted to know what other people used, if anything.

I mostly use Absynth and the synths included with Logic.  I have seen demos of Omnisphere that are impressive, but it's also 50 GB of space.  I also use Reason a lot.  Check your local music stores for demos of stuff.  I was able to attend a Pro Audio demo and Reason demo at an Apple store with Chris Vrenna (Nine Inch Nails) and other big names.

However, a lot of people get bogged down in finding ";cool sounds"; in a synth library.  When you listen to good electronic music, it's often an interesting combo of sounds that would be boring by themselves.

If you're into tinkering around some, Reaktor 5 might be a good fit...It includes a bunch of pre-made synths, along with the ability to create your own.  It isn't too cumbersome to learn, and you can create some pretty cool customized sounds.

http://www.native-instruments.com/#/en/products/producer/reaktor-5/?page=545