MIDI Synths

[Jimi Hendrix]

I need a synth. I'll mostly use it for my own music. I like ELP, Pink Floyd, Rush, and weird trippy stuff like Shpongle. I can only spend about $100, maybe a little more. What MIDI keyboard and soft synth should I buy?

[Jimi Hendrix]

Is this one good?
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-a...ard-controller

[Crazyfoo]

Did you want 88 weighted keys?

[liliththekitten]

These Arturia keyboards are quality and the softsynths they come with are very good and good for what you'd be doing. It's a great price and I'd get one myself.

[liliththekitten]

I'm also a big fan of the Korg Legacy synths and NI Massivebut you mention ELP and Rush so you'd need something Moogy for that

[Citizen Klaus]

Originally Posted by liliththekitten

These Arturia keyboards are quality and the softsynths they come with are very good and good for what you'd be doing. It's a great price and I'd get one myself.

I run the 49-key version of the Analog Laboratory as the primary controller for my DAW, and I can attest to the fact that these keybeds are quite good for the price. Where else will you find aftertouch that isn't just usable, but actually good, and for under $500?

The included software, though, is another story. It's essentially a glorified preset browser with little to no editing capability -- unless you spring for the Analog Laboratory series of boards, which start around $350 USD, and own the individual Arturia soft-synths, which are sold separately. Assuming you're fine with that, you'll find that Arturia's presets generally lean towards the avant-garde and unconventional, rather than towards familiar reproductions of vintage sounds.

And Arturia's file management is far more complex than it needs to be. You can't search for presets by name. Many presets have cryptic, indecipherable names like "CE_SQ12b" (which is an actual preset, by the way). Arturia's category-search feature allows you to filter the preset list by choosing subjective, inconsistently-applied terms like "Cold," "Aggressive," or "Digital."

Long story short, I don't use the Analog Experience software very often. Sonically, it's a good value for the money. There are usable, familiar, vintage-style presets in there, though you may need to do a fair bit of digging to get to them. But you get what you pay for in terms of workflow.

[Karma1]

check out this post:
http://acapella.harmony-central.com/...n-Rapture-vsti

[DJ RAZZ]

The is Arturia stuff is great but installation can be tricky.

[Jimi Hendrix]

Can I use it on more than one computer? I have an old desktop computer right now, but it's not going to last much longer, maybe another year. When I get a laptop will it let me install it on that too?

[Citizen Klaus]

 

Originally Posted by Jimi Hendrix

Can I use it on more than one computer? I have an old desktop computer right now, but it's not going to last much longer, maybe another year. When I get a laptop will it let me install it on that too?

 

Assuming that you're referring to the Arturia board, then yes. The software requires a license key, which is managed through Steinberg's eLicenser program. Normally, eLicenser installs the license to your computer's hard drive -- which means the license is tied to that computer. But you can transfer the license to a different hard drive, as long as it only exists on one computer at a time.