Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 I just checked out some sound samples for the OasysPCI, and was very impressed. I can't believe they're going on Ebay for less than $200. Am I just not looking in the right spot, or is this card really only supported under Windows98? That is, perhaps, the lamest thing I have ever heard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hyperstationjr Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 basically. Also runs under OS 9, where you can also use SynthKit, to make your own programs/patches/effects. I was reeeaaally into the idea of a modular-style synth and effects card with sampling and all that awesome stuff, with a software editor, and the demo's I heard were very good, but when I actually GOT it, I spent so much on computer parts (cases, even a whole computer...) just to get the damn thing running... The Oasys forums at Yahoo are very good. Everyone there is going nuts because of the 1U rack PC's that are going on e-bay which are perfect for these cards... As I understand you can also use them over Ethernet with these PC's and remote control them, so you wouldn't have to deal with Win98... thought this might not be ENTIRELY accurate, I'm a little hazy on the details, just because it's sort of on the technical side... which is like everything else when dealing with the Oasys PCI... Seems like it's just sort of luck... and if you are someone who actually can get it running (seems like most could... though with a little trouble) then you will love it, as I haven't heard a bad review about this thing other than it's compatibility issues. Some even say it's one of the best, most analog-sounding VA's they have heard. I hope I don't scare you off and all, but just know it will be a bit of work to make sure you're PC is compatible, and setting the thing up and all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Interesting, so in order to make it a rack-mount synth and design your own patches, you'd have to retro-fit a mac into a rackmount chassis and run OS9 on it? Sounds like more trouble than it would be worth...if the cards start going for Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members keanu reeves Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 Interesting, so in order to make it a rack-mount synth and design your own patches, you'd have to retro-fit a mac into a rackmount chassis and run OS9 on it?Sounds like more trouble than it would be worth...if the cards start going for ... consider the price of these cards when they sold new. consider the number of channels of dsp driven synths and effects you get. consider the passionate existing userbase. the only reason these cards are going for so cheap now is because of the lack of support for xp or os x. a bit of a blessing to those who dont mind tinkering with computers and all that jazz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Yoozer Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 Interesting, so in order to make it a rack-mount synth and design your own patches, you'd have to retro-fit a mac into a rackmount chassis and run OS9 on it? Or a PC (which is much easier to get in rackform) running Windows 98. The reason OS9 is mentioned is that you still get it on the disks that come with new "old" (non-Intel) Macs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Can you run the SynthEdit software on Win98? Im really interested in this...it just so happens I have a rackmount server chassis sitting around just begging to be used;) That DSP processing would really take a load of my XP 2600+ PC as well... I wonder why some audio-passionate techie doesnt write XP drivers for it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members G-bus Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 is this card really only supported under Windows98? That is, perhaps, the lamest thing I have ever heard. Agreed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 I listened to the demos and read the specs...I can't believe korg would drop support for a product like this. If you had the PC parts laying around, it would be totally worth it to build a little synth-in-a-box...wonder if there is a way to get win98 to boot up faster:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hyperstationjr Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 I listened to the demos and read the specs...I can't believe korg would drop support for a product like this. If you had the PC parts laying around, it would be totally worth it to build a little synth-in-a-box...wonder if there is a way to get win98 to boot up faster:) A lot of people on the Yahoo forum run what's called Windows 98 lite. Then they run it from a media card (compact flash I think), it supposedly runs very fast, and is small enough to fit on the media card, so you can run is silently (with the exception of the cpu fan). As I posted last week, there are rackmount PC's on E-bay going for like $80 bucks, which are big enough to house the very large Oasys PCI, and everyone seems to have success with them. You would be looking at $300 for PC and Oasys... for the kind of effects and synth power it has, that's not too bad. Also, there are a LOT of patches for the synth and effects. And I'm not sure if you understood properly. You can edit these all, and change any available parameters the author put in. However, you can't go and say, build a 2-oscillator synth with 5 modulation points, 6 ADSR, LFO, etc... from scratch... In other words, you can't make your own synth architecture, but on w Win98 machine you can edit the architectures already available (and there are quite a few...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aeon Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 Can you run the SynthEdit software on Win98? No. MacOS 9 only. cheers,Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Actually, if you installed Win98 lite on a solid state Ram drive, the PC would basically be instant-on - making it a true rackmount super-synth if you could configure things properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aeon Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 But you CAN build your own synths/effects w/SynthEdit using MacOS9? Yes, with SynthKit under MacOS 9, you have low-level modular-style access to the DSPs of the Korg OASYS PCI, and can build custom synths and effects which can then be saved and shared with other users. Those synths and effects can then be patch-programmed via the parametrics you assigned to the engine "under the hood," so to speak. That said, this modular-programming fan didn't find it to be a particularly intuitive or pleasureable working environment - it is, after all, and internal development tool that Korg is sharing with the person who signs the NDA. In other words, it is not a "polished" software app by any means, nor is the documentation on the level of the Korg OASYS PCI itself (which is very well-done). I probably didn't give it as full a chance as I should have, but I had and have other modular programming pastures to explore. On the other hand, I still do use the card as a synthesis tool, fx processor, submixer, and audio I/O device. It will be connected via ADAT (8 channels) to an Eventide processor. cheers,Ian cheers,Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Thanks for the info! Would a smooth running Oasys PCI system make owning a Z1 redundant? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Analog Kid Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 pretty much. It's a nice keyboard though. I've built a machine around my OASYS. And yes, Korg is teh suck for their appalling support for this flagship product. Don't be surprised in the future if another of their OASYS products starts selling on ebay for less than 1/10th the original price because they simply dont bother to support it. Still, having said that, my OASYS computer is quite fun. Originallly i went with windows98 for the OASYS- wasnt the lite version, just 98. I got tired of that right away so yanked the O out and installed XP and dropped a new mobo in that machine.I picked up a Beige G3 Desktop PowerMac on ebay for $70. The OASYS was instantly happy in it's new home, but I decided it would be happier if i souped it up a little.so check out these specs- is this not the baddest beige on the planet? Beige PowerMac Desktop: 1ghzG4/2mL2 768mbram Radeon9200-128mbvramUSB2/FirewireSATA133 drives-7200rpm system-180gbmedia-300gbSCSI connection to my sampleSerial connection to my midi interfacesKorg OASYS soundcard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 That's not too shabby AnalogKid!! And the Mac interfaces with your main DAW, which is an XP machine? I just purchased a Z1 off Ebay, and now I find out about this!! Does the Oasys run better in the mac? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Oh scratch that - the G4 is your DAW! Nice:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Analog Kid Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 i run a DAW on two G4's ,the Beige and my iBook. While i cant stick a PCI card in the iBook (heh, dont think i havent tried!) it plays nicely with the OASYS through the MOTU 828mkII's ADAT interface. This may be a strange idea, but the Magma PCI chassis with an old powerbook would be pretty cool. As long as it boots in 9.2.2 (you need to use a power book because it requires a card slot for the magma solution)You can also run Creamware cards under 9.2.2, but Im not sure if the latest and greatest SCOPE edition is fully compatible. SCOPE 4.0 should be.Sometimes the Magma chassis are affordable on ebay. The OASYS does seem to run better on a mac, but...Mac vs Windows pretty much sums that up. Unless you want synthkit, in which case you have to use the mac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aeon Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 Would a smooth running Oasys PCI system make owning a Z1 redundant? No, IMHO. The OASYS PCI has so many more synthesis engines, faster envelopes, better filters, mix channels, way more effects power, I/O options, MIDI control, and the ability to use user samples, but is mainly geared to being a studio tool. The Z1 has a quality keybed, wheels, knobs, a great X/Y pad, an overall architecture that is more complex in terms of modulation than any single OASYS PCI model, is built well, and IMHO, is an aesthetically-pleasing keyboard that can be used live easily. cheers,Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Thanks for all the info, AnalogKid. Ill really have to give this some thought. I did a lot of research into the Z1 before I bought it, its not even at my door yet and I learn about the Oasys PCI. Lol. An old G3 powerbook goes for ~$100 it seems, about the same for the PCI Chassis. A 1U P3 server can be had for $100...damn. Of course, Im overlooking any compatability/setup issues...but it does seem that if it were running smoothly it would be a heck of a lot of DSP power for literally dirt cheap. Most reviews Ive read place the Oasys' VA's at the top of the heap, software or hardware included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 No, IMHO.The OASYS PCI has so many more synthesis engines, faster envelopes, better filters, mix channels, way more effects power, I/O options, MIDI control, and the ability to use user samples, but is mainly geared to being a studio tool.The Z1 has a quality keybed, wheels, knobs, a great X/Y pad, an overall architecture that is more complex in terms of modulation than any single OASYS PCI model, is built well, and IMHO, is an aesthetically-pleasing keyboard that can be used live easily. Thanks for the input, aeon. I decided on the Z1 not only because of its unique sound, but because it could double as a master keyboard as I'm not using a controller at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aeon Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 Originally posted by Awake77 Thanks for the input, aeon. I decided on the Z1 not only because of its unique sound, but because it could double as a master keyboard as I'm not using a controller at the moment. Smart move. As it concerns the Korg OASYS PCI analog synth models, I think they have been superceded in terms of "analogness" by native softsynths, but that does not take away from the fact that the oscs yield almost no aliasing and the filters are resonant to beyond 20KHz. By any standard, the OASYS PCI kicks ass in terms of sound quality. That said, the unique structure of the OASYS PCI in terms of routing and mixing, plethora of quality effects, as well as the ability to layer disparate synthesis engines means that you have a different level and angle of control when it comes to sound creation, and it has resulted in some of the finest timbres I have ever heard, regardless of the fact it is a "legacy" product. I love my Korg OASYS PCI,Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 As it concerns the Korg OASYS PCI analog synth models, I think they have been superceded in terms of "analogness" by native softsynths, but that does not take away from the fact that the oscs yield almost no aliasing and the filters are resonant to beyond 20KHz. By any standard, the OASYS PCI kicks ass in terms of sound quality.That said, the unique structure of the OASYS PCI in terms of routing and mixing, plethora of quality effects, as well as the ability to layer disparate synthesis engines means that you have a different level and angle of control when it comes to sound creation, and it has resulted in some of the finest timbres I have ever heard, regardless of the fact it is a "legacy" product.I love my Korg OASYS PCI,Ian Awesome....and you're running this on a Mac, correct? Ive been working strictly with software, but recently purchased a few sythesizers that Ive been anxious to try for quite some time. Ill have my hands full learning the new hardware and writing, but I think Ill keep an eye on the OasysPCI. The price can only go down, when and if Im ready to check it out perhaps I can put together a system for a song. Awake77 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Analog Kid Posted April 17, 2006 Members Share Posted April 17, 2006 I wouldn't say the price can only go down. Doubt the card will ever drop below $200. I think it's bottomed out, but whether it will ever increase in value might be another question. as far as G3 Powerbooks go, just be aware the Wallstreet isnt Magma compatible, i think everything USB on is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted April 18, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 18, 2006 I wouldn't say the price can only go down. Doubt the card will ever drop below $200. Last few on Ebay went for ~$170... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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