Members Tomkeen Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Hai all, I've been thinking of adding some softsynths to my rig. I've always been a hardware guy and tried to avoid the computer as much as possible. Tweaking sounds or selecting them seemed like too much work for me, but now I have the X-station that won't be a problem anymore. I have some experience with the Korg Legacy collection and NI B4 (the original). I just downloaded the B4 II demo and compared it to my PC3x. Wow. I didn't remember it sounding that good, or is the new version just a big improvement? I remember there being a demo of KLC too, but cannot find it anymore. Anyway, I want to add both B4 II and KLC digital edition too my stuff, since I have a perfectly good working macbook, which I bought for all things music anyway. What are you're favorite softsynths and what do you use them for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Vember Audio Surge is my favorite softsynth. I use it for everything really, but have found that its wavetable oscillators really excel at deep, clear bass sounds. It sounds unique and fits in great with the hardware synths I have. Some other softsynths that are growing on me - Albino 3, Synplant,and Olga. I'm not really a fan of the NI stuff, it always felt clunky to use even on a high powered machine. The Arturia synths and most of the other 'analog emulators' fall short in my opinion...I tend to gravitate toward the softsynths that actually take advantage being in the software domain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gribs Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 I own what I would call an embarrassingly large number of VST instruments. My current personal favorites are: Waldorf Largo (new and improving) Camel Audio Alchemy (sample mangling and making odd noises) Rob Papen Blue (multi-operator FM/hybrid - NI FM8 is a close second) FXpansion Guru for messing around with rhythm and drum patterns (might be augmented and superseded by NI Maschine some time soon). Vaz Modular (flexible and fun modular with lots of modules) NI Kontakt for sample playing. If you are looking at picking up some software instruments the Native Instruments "Kompletely Insane" deal for Komplete 5 at $399 is darned near impossible to beat. That really is a bat-{censored} insane deal. If I didn't own Komplete 5 already I would jump on it. I just wish they had an "Insane to the Kore" deal on Kore 2 or an "Insanity Maschine" deal on Maschine at the same time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members midinut Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Omnisphere (and anything Eric does), Scarbee KGB, Lounge Lizard, Oddity, SampleTank 2XL & Sonik Synth 2, and getting ready to pull the trigger on NI Komplete 5 at that rediculous price. Had a demo of Hypersonic from Steinberg that came with one of my older versions of Cubase that I loved as well. Too bad it went away. It was a powerhouse for throwing things together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomkeen Posted July 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Thanks for the Komplete tip! I'll check if they're as cheap over here as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Audacity Works Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 ReaktorMassiveOmnisphereStylus RMX (with custom SAGE library from manually REXed loops) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomkeen Posted July 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Thanks for the Komplete tip! I'll check if they're as cheap over here as well. Nope, cheapest I've found is 579 euros for an educational version (whatever that means ). That's a bit too much.. Why do you always get the good deals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gribs Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 I'm not really a fan of the NI stuff, it always felt clunky to use even on a high powered machine. The Arturia synths and most of the other 'analog emulators' fall short in my opinion...I tend to gravitate toward the softsynths that actually take advantage being in the software domain. Po-tay-toe Po-tah-toe on NI stuff (so try before you buy I guess) I also have a major lack of interest in vintage analog synthesizer emulators for programming and playing. I think they are cool as historical pieces and technical works, but every time I demo one I end up not liking the interface (or not being able to read all the fine details of the interface) or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gribs Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Nope, cheapest I've found is 579 euros for an educational version (whatever that means ). That's a bit too much.. Why do you always get the good deals I dunno, maybe because we pay the high prices on prescription drugs instead Having a heart attack was expensive. My copay is about $90 / month (much of that going to Plavix). All kidding aside, go to the NI web page where it is listed as 399 dollars or Euros. You can buy it directly from the NI shop there. I tried that and put "Netherlands" as my country and it came up as 399 euros. There is also a message that says there may be a slight delay in shipping due to the overwhelming number of orders for the product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomkeen Posted July 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 I've seen that indeed, but the only payment options are creditcard and paypal, and I have neither. But it IS an incredible deal! I'll see about paypal, might sign up there.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ew_ Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 I've seen that indeed, but the only payment options are creditcard and paypal, and I have neither. But it IS an incredible deal! I'll see about paypal, might sign up there.. You should see that price at almost all your usual vendors; the promotion's worldwide. I'm another one with scads of VIs. My personal favorites at the moment? ReaktorAbsynthKoreMaschineMassiveFM8TeraAlchemyZebraRhinoKubikKorg DEKomplexer There's a lot of others that get rotated in and out, but the above are my go-tos. YMMV... ew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Hamburglar Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Kontakt is the best {censored} ever! I just got Komplete 5 for $334 (400 - 65 off 350 coupon MINE) from musician's friend. So much to work through...happily. I'm figuring out Massive first, then I'm thinking Absynth next. The only instrument in the set I'm kind of disappointed in is Elektrik Piano which I think is really outshined by the competition. Other than that, having basically just gone through the presets on each item, I'm very excited. Haven't even touched Reaktor or Guitar Rig yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomkeen Posted July 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 You should see that price at almost all your usual vendors; the promotion's worldwide. Thanks ew, I've sent an email to a nearby store. All of the online shops still have the old price shown.. I hope they will answer tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members augerinn Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 The usual suspects: B4IIFM8AbsynthMassive (Although it is a system HOG) A couple less known: OP-XSQ8L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Andy's Eyebrow Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 My two favorites are Toxic Biohazard and Zebra 2. Biohazard is a 6op FM synth with a great subtractive filter. Everything's on one page and makes FM really, really simple. And the sound is insanely pure. Superb. Then there's the Zebra2 modular synth... A great UI that take advantage of what a computer offers (instead of just mimicking hardware knobs) and does awesome bezier curve wave blending with unlimited sonic opportunities. Both these synths are fantastic examples of how software can go way beyond the scope of hardware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ElectricPuppy Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 +1 for Stylus RMX. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MuzikB Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 NI's FM8 is my favorite. Followed by the original Korg Legacy Collection. I've got more softies but favor the one's that run standalone as I don't like to program sounds in a DAW environment. Call me weird but it helps me stay focused and I feel like it's more of an instrument. DAW's put me into a "song writing" mode. Not a sound designing one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members flat earth Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Not really got too heavily into softsynths, but the Korg Legacy Collection and Crystal have been a somewhat pleasent experience so far. Always quite liked the look of Virsyn-tera. Maybe I will give it a go at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mildbill Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 I'm thinking about getting Komplete. I already have several of the synths included in it (Reaktor, FM7, Pro 53, and Absynth 2), but the ones I don't have, and the upgrades, are worth getting the whole deal, I think. That said, NI's not my favorite stuff when it comes to sound quality. For that, I like Imposcar. Simple, but sweet. Vaz and Tassman sound real good too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ew_ Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 Always quite liked the look of Virsyn-tera. Maybe I will give it a go at some point. You should- Tera's an amazing synth. It can cover lots of ground. ew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Hamburglar Posted July 13, 2009 Members Share Posted July 13, 2009 NI's FM8 is my favorite. Followed by the original Korg Legacy Collection. I've got more softies but favor the one's that run standalone as I don't like to program sounds in a DAW environment.Call me weird but it helps me stay focused and I feel like it's more of an instrument. DAW's put me into a "song writing" mode. Not a sound designing one. That's an interesting point, I've been running Massive in standalone and it is a lot more focused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EerieDreamZ Posted July 14, 2009 Members Share Posted July 14, 2009 The korg Legacy collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kooki_sf Posted July 14, 2009 Members Share Posted July 14, 2009 supercollider is my favorite soft synth. it is quite evil though.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Diametro Posted July 14, 2009 Members Share Posted July 14, 2009 none of the above or below ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChristianRock Posted July 14, 2009 Members Share Posted July 14, 2009 none of the above or below ... +1... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.