bill5 8,116,284 Posted October 17, 2018 Off the top for me: FB3300 EZKeys Absynth Eyeing Zebra and Serum which I hear good things about. Need good presets though (which is why Massive will never make my list). Also this does not include "specialty" synths which are not really general, broad synths but have a niche sound etc. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kbeaumont 121,147,779 Posted October 17, 2018 Omnisphere 2 KV331 Audio SynthMaster Mainstage built-in synth Alchemy On IOS: Sunrizer Magellan Animoog Thor Polysix Korg Module Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JazzMastaJim 46,022,471 Posted October 18, 2018 My top 4: - Proteus VX: I don't always use it in the final mix (although sometimes I use a couple tracks), but it's great for quickly putting together a rough arrangement while composing. - PG-8X: I still love my Roland JX-8P's pads and other sounds, but my physical instrument is getting very old (1984) and it's not always convenient to pull it out of the case & set it up for recording. The PG-8X VSTi is the next best thing, as its sound is basically indistinguishable from the keyboard's. - Ample Guitar: Astounding acoustic guitar simulation. This and my Jupiter-50 together cover 90% or my guitar tracks. - EZ Drummer: Does a drum module count? As realistic-sounding as perhaps anything else in its class, and much easier than trying to record an actual drum set -- especially since I'm a keyboardist! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil O'Keefe 9,829 Posted October 18, 2018 I'll start with my iPad... maybe I'll come back later to post the ones on my DAW... I've purchased others, but I have the following currently installed on my iPad. Ones that are listed in bold are the ones I tend to use the most... Arturia iSpark iMPC iPolysix Odyssei Arturia iSEM iProphet Z3TA+ EHX Mini Synth Sensual Sax Syntronik iMini Sensual Sax looks as cheesy as they come, but it is actually really good - they took the complaints I had in my review and fixed them all, making it an excellent V.I. for use with a MIDI wind controller. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bill5 8,116,284 Posted October 19, 2018 - Ample Guitar: Astounding acoustic guitar simulation. This and my Jupiter-50 together cover 90% or my guitar tracks. - EZ Drummer: Does a drum module count? No, and neither does Ample stuff. Soft synth, not guitar/drum VSTi. (I agree about both being good though) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Music Bird 10 Posted October 23, 2018 Synth1: I use this one a lot blooo: I use this one a lot too Dexed: nice DX7 emulation, which isn’t dated, especially the harmonica and e. piano sounds which I use all the time! PG8X: I like the brass section sounds, I don’t even think they’re dated! Musyng Kite Standard Drums VST: yeah I use this for drums, even though they cut through too well and sound really live Tyrell-N6: same with PG8X, I replace all horns in a midi with this stuff and Synth1 or Dexed. MinimogueVA: don’t use it as much, but it’s great as well. SQ8L: like this one as well, unique presets and sound design. FB-3100/3200/3300: nice for anything except bass, weak on bass. scrooo: some nice sound designs for this. I’ve gotten a nice tuba sound out of it. Arppe2600 VA: nice one as well TAL-Uno-62: I think it sounds just as good as an old Juno. TAL-Elek7ro and TAL-Noisemaker: nice bass and lead machines Phutura: once you get into sound design on this one, you can get past the EDM/rave presets. Anything else by Full Bucket Music, and anything by GTG and Elektrostudio is worth mentioning too. OP-X Pro is on my list! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
moogerfooger 3,892 Posted November 9, 2018 moog model 15 moog model D iSEM MS 10 poly 6 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bill5 8,116,284 Posted December 24, 2018 Synth1: I use this one a lot Dexed: nice DX7 emulation, which isn’t dated, especially the harmonica and e. piano sounds which I use all the time! These are 2 of the few I've tried that I didn't like...Synth1 I can't get past the ridiculous 80s look and feel, which is dumb, it shouldn't matter, working on that...and Dexed I just thought brought nothing special at all to the table and I thought the presets were weak (preset jockey here). I'll have to re-look at the EP and harmonica. I have no problem having a "niche" soft synth for a particular sound. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tullsterx 4 Posted January 9 Sylenth1 - I run two instances of this NI FM8 TyrellN6 Those are pretty much the only synths I use. The rest of my setup are sample players (Sample Tank, NI Vintage Organs) or modeled pianos. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ed A. 63 Posted February 8 Apple's Logic Pro/MainStage: Sculpture, Alchemy, RetroSynth, AAS Chromaphone 2. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
koolkat 89 Posted February 16 VB3 II organ Ample Sound bass Lounge Lizard EP's AAS (various synths) Acoustic Samples KontraBass Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tullsterx 4 Posted July 20 In my live rig I use: IK Multimedia Total Workstation Bundle, NI Vintage Organs, NI Scarbee Vintage Keys; Tyrell N6, Sylenth1 x 2, XLN Addictive Keys, NI FM8 Sylenth is by far my fav. But I use FM8 and Tyrell N6 for some things, usually during some song where I'm using my 2 instances of Sylenth for something else. The IK Multimedia stuff, Sample Tank and Sonic Synth have some good stuff if you start digging around, but those are samples. I use those for quite a few things as well. Plus I layer them all together at times to get really deeply layered and nuanced textures if necessary. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
