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Gaia versus Mininova... which one to buy?


bluesmandan

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Hi. I'm really wanting to buy a synth, and these two, the Gaia and the Mininova, seem to stand out as having the easiest user interfaces for novices like myself. I haven't found any threads dealing specifically with these two...

Can some of you chime in on how these two compare, what the pros and cons are, how the ARPEGGIATORS compare (the mininova seems to let you build your own or at least quick edit as far as I can tell, and the Gaia doesn't). Also, does the Gaia have a vocoder? And how many oscillators can you stack in the mininova (the Gaia does 3).

Any help comparing/contrasting the two would be great.
Thanks!

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The Mininova is far away a more powerful synthesizer than Gaia, and in my opinion, it sounds a lot better.

The thing I don't really like about the Mininova are the mini keys, which is why you might want to look at the Ultranova instead. Of course you could always trigger the Mininova with another controller via MIDI if you have one, but the Ultranova also gives you a built-in audio interface and a few other bonuses.

Mininova also has three oscillators per voice, as well as 14 filter types, 3 LFOs, 20 modulation slots, up to 5 simultaneous effects, and a nice collection of waveforms to choose from. I also like that Mininova includes its own software editor and patch librarian that will run as a DAW plug-in.

Gaia scores points with the amount of sliders available for easy programming, but the lack of a display is, in my view, a significant strike against it.

It's also important to remember that Gaia is not a true VA in the sense that it uses sample playback as opposed to waveforms generated in real time. This makes Gaia more akin to the SH-32 than to true VAs like the JP8000 and SH-201. You'll notice the difference as you pitch it down, and in many cases as you dial down the filter cutoff. Gaia "seems" to give you a lot of the same things that other VAs like the SH201 and JP8000 do, but if for example you were to try and modulate the width of a supersaw in real time on the Gaia, you'd find that since it's sample based you can't do it -- you're merely allowed to select between sampled variations of the supersaw.

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Quote Originally Posted by bluesmandan View Post
Hi. I'm really wanting to buy a synth, and these two, the Gaia and the Mininova, seem to stand out as having the easiest user interfaces for novices like myself.
On that point for the hardware GAIA yes Mininova no

Many people are looking at the Mininova and thinking they are seeing a micro KORG patch build matrix... It is a live tweaking matrix and while it could tweak and save parts of a patch, you will probably end up on one parameter at a time of the display and data input. So really it is one to avoid if that kind of endless menu diving is not your thing.

For a PC user who wants to build patches on their PC and use the Mininova matrix editing for live sound effecting, the Mininova is very good. See it as a hard ware extension of a softsynth with great live controls then you understand it better.

On GAIA you don't need an editor, so don't worry that they do not send you the editor free, that is more an educational tool.

The GAIA in a sense is like owning a 64 memory Analog that benefits from external EQ and some effects (its default is bright so it needs some help for some sounds). You can also use the 64 onboard sounds (some are OK) and add yet more via USB 64 at a time. More than enough for that kind of thing.


Quote Originally Posted by bluesmandan View Post
I haven't found any threads dealing specifically with these two...

Can some of you chime in on how these two compare, what the pros and cons are, how the ARPEGGIATORS compare (the mininova seems to let you build your own or at least quick edit as far as I can tell, and the Gaia doesn't).
If you are more concerned about ARP building then don't bother with the GAIA. Start a fresh search including the PC patch build dependent Mininova


Quote Originally Posted by bluesmandan View Post
Also, does the Gaia have a vocoder?
No


Quote Originally Posted by bluesmandan View Post
And how many oscillators can you stack in the mininova (the Gaia does 3).

Any help comparing/contrasting the two would be great.
Thanks!
A picture is worth a thousand words:

mininova-synth-engine.png?resize=640%2C3
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Quote Originally Posted by bluesmandan View Post
How do you set the tempo on the mininova... such as for arpgeggios... the gaia has a tap tempo and the mininova does not... but is there a tempo select inside the nav-menu?
Keyboard/performance controls

Pitch wheel (LED lit)
Modulation wheel (LED lit)
37 note keyboard with velocity
4x smooth edit/performance pots
1x large smooth filter pot
1x six position parameter selector switch
6x parameter indicator LEDs
8x three-colour, back-lit animate/arpeggiator/favourite patch-select buttons
2x animate/arpeggiate LED indicators
1x back-lit 'hold' button
1x animate/arpeggiator/favourite patch toggle switch
1x 'favourite' patch select button
1x arpeggiator tempo control pot
1x arpeggiator tempo indicator LED
2x back-lit arpeggiator control encoders
2x back-lit octave select buttons


You must visit here:

http://uk.novationmusic.com/hardware...specifications

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Gaia for interface, Mininova for sound. Or if you want fullsize keys, Ultranova. The Novations sound over 90000 times better, currently my favorite sounding VA's.

An old Nova/SuperNova might get you the sound (or close to it) with a good interface. I remember liking them but maybe the sound of the Mini/UltraNova is better. I also really do like the X-Station (and A/K- station etc.) and they have a great interface but they don't sound as good.

I really did not like the Gaia's sound which is weird as not only have I liked every other Roland VA, I even liked the SH-32 a lot more and it's basically the same engine as the GAIA. also the SH-32 even does some things the Gaia does not. and the Gaia is overpriced for what it is.

But whatever sounds good to you and inspires you, that's what really matters.

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In the present field of low cost VAs like the Korg R3 and UltraNova, it's just odd to me that Roland would set the price of GAIA so high. I just looked it up online to see what they're going for, and all of the major retailers are still asking $699.

GAIA would be a decent entry level synth if they blew them out at $299, but I just couldn't imagine paying $699 for something with sampled waveforms, cheap plastic, and no display. For that much money, you're getting up into Radias and Virus B territory, which is a whole other universe of sound quality and programming possibilities.

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Right now, with the various synths I have to work with, my immediate go-to is my X-Station. The reasons are many:

1. 3 discrete oscillators (as opposed to oscillators that are only good for reproducing the same sound over a number of keys)
2. knobbage and sliders
3. relatively shallow menus for on the fly editing of many parameters
4. great sound (IMHO) - not as rich and diverse as the Ultranova, though, which is my #2 go-to

The only shortcoming of mine is that it is the 24 and not the 48, but it was all I could get at the time and it fits nicely into a small suitcase I have so that leads me to

5. portability

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Quote Originally Posted by liliththekitten

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I really did not like the Gaia's sound which is weird as not only have I liked every other Roland VA, I even liked the SH-32 a lot more and it's basically the same engine as the GAIA. also the SH-32 even does some things the Gaia does not. and the Gaia is overpriced for what it is.

 

Agreed! Though I have to add that I was not too wowed by the SH-201 when I played one in the store, which led to my buying the Ultranova.
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I would get the Ultranova instead of the mininova. It still costs less than the Gaia ($520 at bhphoto, has an audio interface built in, aftertouch, a decent display, vocoder, wave table sequencing in addition to VA, a software editor that can be used as a plugin in your DAW, and a patch librarian. If you are a preset user, Novation has sound sets to download for free on their web site. Gaia has more voices and hands on control, but I don't think package is as complete for the price. However some folks may prefer to play with the knobs and sliders. Also go out and try each one if you can.

I don't care for minikeys and would rather have just a sound module, but the minikeys must sell.

Novation X-Station was a fine synth and controller. I sold mine a short time ago because I have a pile of synths and it was not getting much use. The buyer got a very good deal. I have also owned the Novation Supernova 2 and liked it.

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Quote Originally Posted by ChristianRock

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Did you think the X-Station was a lot inferior to the Supernova sonically, Gribs? I'm asking because X-Station 49s have been going for less than 300 dollars and that's a very tempting price point.

 

I owned an X-Station 49 which I liked a lot, but eventually sold it and got an UltraNova - mainly for the sound. For the kind of ambient music I do, the UltraNova has a more advanced synth engine and is capable of more interesting sounds and tweaking. Nothing wrong with the X-Station, but the UltraNova sounds better for my needs. I sold my X-Station 49 to a friend for $300, which was less than half of what I paid for it new.
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I can get the mininova or ultranova for about $450.

I tend to like the mininova for its quick on the fly changes with the knobs, like the Gaia has, and it's quick changes for the ARP.

How important is the aftertouch? What kind of parameters do you assign for it?

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Quote Originally Posted by ChristianRock

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Did you think the X-Station was a lot inferior to the Supernova sonically, Gribs? I'm asking because X-Station 49s have been going for less than 300 dollars and that's a very tempting price point.

 

I would say the X-Station is a nice VA but the Supernova was significantly more powerful in terms of its arpeggiator, step sequencer, and effects. Also the Supernova 2 that I had was 24 voice multi-timbral, had multiple outs, etc. Honestly I never compared them side-to-side. I used the X-Station mostly as a controller and sound card for about a year or so and kept it around as long as I did because I thought that my son might want it. The X-Station has lots of nice controls on the panel. You have to do some button pressing to change between oscillators, filters, etc., sort of like a on a Virus, but that is it.
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Well, yeah, I'm familiar with the specs of both, and I know the Supernova has much better specs (especially the II).

Having never played either, I was wondering about the sonic aspect itself, using it more as a simple VA. I'm looking for something knobby to fill the void of the departed SH-201... I'll probably end up with a Virus B module or a Supernova (not the II, too expensive).

I'm liking the fact that the X-Station has an S/PDIF out.

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Quote Originally Posted by ChristianRock View Post
Did you think the X-Station was a lot inferior to the Supernova sonically, Gribs? I'm asking because X-Station 49s have been going for less than 300 dollars and that's a very tempting price point.
I bought X-Station specifically to ease my longing for the SuperNova 2.

The sound didn't disappoint me. I'm not sure, but X-Station seemed to sound clearer, perhaps even more pleasing, than Supernova; I couldn't play them side by side, but I was positively surprised.

But the build quality is worrying. And I'm not at all picky person what comes to build quality, I'm a Casio man after all. But the X-Station is so flimsy, that it affects my enjoyment when tweaking it. The joystic seems to have achieved consciousness and makes weird but very creative stepped pitch effects at will, the menu knobs raffle values(but so did Supernovas too), pressing X-Y pad makes its plastic body creak, and while the rest of the knobs and sliders seems to work well, they feel so fragile, that I'm afraid to play with it passionately. The keys are fantastic though! Apparently the joystick issue is rather common, and might not be a big deal to fix, so I have thought that I would take it to the service for making it an ultimate iPad controller/audio interface. I have also played with an idea of getting the Ultra Nova mini, and make a template for it on X-Station.
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The other thing that was great on the X-Station was the XY pad. I liked playing with that with the synth itself and also with soft synths. The keyboard felt really good for playing too. I am not an uber player and I had only the 25 key version, but I thought it felt pretty good. I would not discount the built-in wave forms on it either - some nice extra sounds are possible with those.

I usually assign aftertouch to a combination of the filter cutoff and vibrato. Also if a board has some distortion or filter saturation I might kick that it as well maybe with a little extra filter resonance. This can give a "digging in" feeling that is fun to play for me - almost like wiggling guitar strings with my finger tips. You will find presets that have this sort of thing. I am a fan of controlling distortion (not earth-shattering gain necessarily but nice distortion). I guess it comes from guitar playing. The Ultranova has a 20 slot modulation matrix so you can get creative with routing various mod destinations to aftertouch and mod wheel.

You guys have no idea how many times I have done a quick search on Novation Supernova on Ebay and thought about bidding on something if it came up. Sometimes the little Supernova desktops come up for sale.

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Quote Originally Posted by Bernard View Post
On that point for the hardware GAIA yes Mininova no

Many people are looking at the Mininova and thinking they are seeing a micro KORG patch build matrix... It is a live tweaking matrix and while it could tweak and save parts of a patch, you will probably end up on one parameter at a time of the display and data input. So really it is one to avoid if that kind of endless menu diving is not your thing.

For a PC user who wants to build patches on their PC and use the Mininova matrix editing for live sound effecting, the Mininova is very good. See it as a hard ware extension of a softsynth with great live controls then you understand it better.

On GAIA you don't need an editor, so don't worry that they do not send you the editor free, that is more an educational tool.

The GAIA in a sense is like owning a 64 memory Analog that benefits from external EQ and some effects (its default is bright so it needs some help for some sounds). You can also use the 64 onboard sounds (some are OK) and add yet more via USB 64 at a time. More than enough for that kind of thing.




If you are more concerned about ARP building then don't bother with the GAIA. Start a fresh search including the PC patch build dependent Mininova




No




A picture is worth a thousand words:

mininova-synth-engine.png?resize=640%2C3
Pretty much in agreement with the bolded part.

I personally only found a couple of the onboard sounds on the Gaia to be useable for me. I certainly wouldn't buy this machine as a preset machine; it'd suck...lol I've pretty much started from scratch with every patch I've made (very logical interface compared to some of the synths I've had the displeasure of trying to tinker with). The effects are a bit meh'ish; but I run everything through my Lexicon MX200 so I was too concerned in this department. I use this synth exclusively for jazz-fusion and prog; it's simple enough to operate and sounds great.

I've only seen or heard the mininova in Youtube vids. Seems like a decent synth, no doubt. I'll vote yes on the Gaia; obviously I'm biased.
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From the input here, and reading/watching some more reviews, I think I might be leaning towards an ultranova. I can't find many samples of the pads from the ultranova (there are lots of vids for the gaia's pads) but the ultranova is supposed to have really rich pads, too. It actually looks like its interface isn't all that bad... and with the dedicated octaves, filter, and touchknobs, it looks like you can do a lot of on the fly stuff, too.

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