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How do I appreciate my synth?


swanusa

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Originally posted by swanusa

It took me a couple of days to really understand the beauty of them.

Some of the pads are incredible.

 

How should I go about appreciating this synth?

If you've worked your way through the thousands of presets already - well, you can make it a fast or a slow transition from what you're used to ;). The Virus can do reasonable brass, strings, EP, clav, and it's even got a piano (which does sound like a cheap rompler, but one small step etc.).

 

I'd start with the traditional instruments; what you really can't do with the Virus, do it with another machine (drum kits for instance). Gradually work your way from the 'real' stuff to the 'unreal stuff'. Try replacing parts of a song you used to do with a Motif/XP/whatever, see how far you can go :). The Virus TI has an improved category system; you should be able to dial "Piano" and get results.

 

How long did you take before you started liking the sounds

That happened immediately the first time I demo'd the C. The B already made an impression on me, but the C truly kicked ass from the start.

 

and also started creating your own?

This is quite an undertaking. I recommend you read this PDF here: http://www.access-music.de/pdffolder/Programming_Analogue_Synths_Tutorial.zip

 

It's for an earlier version, but the Virus synths are incremental in their improvement. Everything you could do with the B, you could with the C, and therefore, also with the TI. You've got the editor working & all?

 

Also, did this happen to you too?

Well, I've never really lost the connection with synths that weren't sample based; I guess it helps when you start with a Juno-60.

 

Virus and me was pretty much love at first sight, but it took 3 years or so for one to arrive in my studio.

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Originally posted by dxdreamer

if you dont like eletronic music, then i think its too late to estabilish that kind of "liking" in ur brain now

 

 

...but... you might find the virus very usefull:thu:

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Originally posted by swanusa

How should I go about appreciating this synth?

 

Talk nicely to it - talking dirty sometimes works as well - depends what mood it is in. Keep it well fed and watered etc. Wining and dining it sometimes works. Telling it how much you love it allways helps, but not too much else it wil think you are upto something and get stubborn. Stroking and cuddles works too.

 

 

Originally posted by swanusa

How long did you take before you started liking the sounds and also started creating your own?

 

Since long before I owned one - that was why I bought it - its usually why many of us buy a synth... :confused:

 

As for creating my own sounds - same applies - used a friends C on and off long before my TI eventually turned up...

 

Let me guess - the marketting hype sounded cool, the integration etc? ADSR fodder...

 

 

Originally posted by swanusa

Also, did this happen to you too?

 

No - see above.

 

 

 

BTW - congrats - you end ended up with and very powerful and flexible synth - as far as some of us are concerned - the best there is for our purposes :)

 

 

The link in my sig (below) goes to one fo the Virus forums - if you want to find out a bit mnore about the world you have entered...

 

 

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Originally posted by swanusa

How should I go about appreciating this synth?

 

 

The snarky answer:

 

Post countless threads challenging the worthiness of all other VA's, stopping to occasionally claim it sounds better than most REAL ANALOG's. While this goes on, save up for another synth or ten and let ADSR/Plastic Baby get under your skin.

 

The high ground (and Zen wannabe) answer:

 

Treat it differently from all other instruments. Then treat it as just an instrument.

 

Learn how and why it makes its sounds - read up on it (there are some nice articles online as well as some good books out there), try to replicate favorite patches or sounds from some of the great synthesists out there. Or reverse engineer them by looking at the various controls on a patch (SoundDiver helps here). If you are so inclined, get really stoned and spend a few Saturday nights twisting knobs until the neighbors call the cops. If that bores you, you may not be an analog synth person, but give it time, it's not a quick process.

 

Then, once you've got an appreciation for the inner beauty of a patch, try to use it as a musical instrument. Not just as a replacement organ/clav/drum but as a compliment to them. Try playing a piano line over a pretty pad swirl. Combine a drum part with that sound of an android vomiting on the chest of the Pope that you came up with and wondered why you bothered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Or you can impress the natives by playing "Just Can't Get Enough" and leave it at that.

 

Laters,

Tommy

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If all the patches sounded alike then I would question your ears. The closest you could get to saying that is some banks, depending on which ones you choose, might be unison detune and reverb/delay heavy, or use phaser sounds or something. This could create a samey feel on some sounds.

 

If you really liked the C and went on to buy a TI that you don't appreciated a week later then that speaks more for your own issues :) Unless you really know your way around synths (and even then) the Virus takes some reading to understand what's going on before you can properly make your own sounds on it. It's not the easiest synth to tweak and requires some knowledge to go beyond basic tweaking. If you don't want that then buy a synth that provides a control for every function, although those usuallyl tend to be more limited in their range.

 

There's nothing wrong with admitting you don't like the sound of something either. I never fell in love with the Virus sound myself, although I like it enough to consider it worthwhile keeping rather than selling on.. Give something a chance by all means, but if you don't like something then you'd be as well to admit it than try to struggle to like something because it cost a lot of money..

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Originally posted by swanusa

I just got my Access Virus TI. (I really liked the Virus C that I bought a week before and immediately switched and got the TI).

 

Swan, did you sell my C, already? :eek: If you liked it, that probably had a bit to do with the sounds that I compiled in Bank B.

 

Someday, I'll get that TI. Let me tell you, the TI is like having several Virus Cs. There's a complexity to having all of that power. My suggestion is to pick a RAM bank, for your special sounds. When you hear something that strikes your fancy, put it in that bank, which will be your "Favorites" bank.

 

Multi-mode can yield some huge layered sounds. Experiment by putting some presets on top of one another. Set tracks one and two to the same channel and try different sounds.

 

Before you get into LFO and Modulation sources/destinations, choose a sound and play with the Amplitude envelope (how fast or slow your sound attacks and fades). As you do this, play with the filter cutoff and resonance. You can adjust the envelope of the filters, too. The Virus has some of the best filters, ever.

 

Just so you know, when I first got my Virus C, I was not that impressed. Stores near me didn't carry it, so I bought it based on the many raving reviews. But,......as I started to play around with it, the filter saturations settings and the thick FX really grew on me. In fact, it's my favorite VA, because I love those Filters and FX.

 

If you liked that C, you're going to love the TI. Being smacked by over 1,000 electronic style patches is going to overwhelm any novice VA user. Over time, you will recognize the subtleties. Don't just play one patch and move onto the next. Grab the knobs and see what happens.

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Hey Mike,

 

I knew you would see this post!! :D Yes, I did sell your C. Just a little change of plans provided me with extra cash and I switched to the TI immediately. Had to make quick decisions, don't have much time. I really liked your C and I will always remember you for being the one to push me to the next level.

 

Thanks again for all your advice. You are great!

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Originally posted by swanusa

I really liked your C and I will always remember you for being the one to push me to the next level.


Thanks again for all your advice.

 

You're welcome! If I had that shot to get the TI, I would have done the same thing. Give the complexity some time. Trust me, a year from now it will be your prize pet. :)

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