Stalker Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 ....Does anyone have opinions about any of those synths? I will probably buy a synth by the end of this year, and I'm researching about them Thou I would like to hear some personal opinions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 ....Does anyone have opinions about any of those synths? I will probably buy a synth by the end of this year, and I'm researching about them Thou I would like to hear some personal opinions 591099[/snapback] Well, I think I've only briefly played the Nord Lead, but they're different animals. Well, the Virus and the Nord are both VAs, but the Andromeda is real analog, and the triton is a rompler/workstation synth. What do you want out of a synth? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalker Posted August 21, 2006 Author Share Posted August 21, 2006 Well, I think I've only briefly played the Nord Lead, but they're different animals. Well, the Virus and the Nord are both VAs, but the Andromeda is real analog, and the triton is a rompler/workstation synth. What do you want out of a synth? 591106[/snapback] Thanks Yeah I was thinking that the Triton is out of question for now. I don't need a workstation And what I'm looking for a synth is flexbility, being able to create my own sounds with plenty of options and wave forms...I really don't know if I buy an analog feeling kind of synth like Andromeda or a digital alike ( Nord, Virus etc) but what I truly want, is that it sounds great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quark Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 Andromeda Conclusions That the Andromeda is a powerful, meaty synth is obvious. Indeed, I suspect that it's the closest thing there's ever been to an analogue workstation. But most people who love it will do so for its 'American' sound which can range from warm to harsh, fat to thin, squelchy to digital, as you desire. Alesis' ASIC technology has produced an instrument with its own character, and that's no bad thing at all. In that light, the Andromeda earns a significant 'thumbs-up'. It's all-but complete, it didn't crash once, and it sounds great. On that basis, you should certainly try it. But a word of warning... don't base your views on the factory sounds. Delve deeper, and don't stop at a bit of gratuitous knob twiddling on the control panel. Get into those menus. As you will have realised, I like the Andromeda a lot. This wasn't entirely the case at first, yet the more I experimented with it, the closer friends we became. But, ultimately, it's not for everyone. Its price alone determines this and, for me, arguments that it's equivalent to 16 monosynths for less than £200 each do not wash. Let's face it... the majority of players want digital workstations with all the facilities of the Andromeda — and more — but at a fraction of the price. So Alesis must be keeping their fingers crossed that the Andromeda will attract enough people to justify the time, effort and cost expended in its development. I hope that it does, because the company should be congratulated for stepping beyond the self-imposed boundaries of other synth manufacturers. Virus C Conclusions The Virus C is a gorgeous instrument, equally at home reproducing anything from all-out American polysynth overkill to hardcore trance and ambient textures. As a means for transforming external signals into something weird and wonderful, it's also bags of fun, and once you become familiar with its menu structures, programming can be as easy or as complex as you want to make it. I would like the vocoder to have been less convoluted to set up and to offer a greater degree of intelligibility, but there are still endless creative possibilities to be uncovered regardless of this. Given the Virus' indisputable talents in the analogue percussion department, the absence of a dedicated drum part is a shame, and somewhat restricts its use as an all-in-one box. Nevertheless, most musicians interested in that aspect of production will in all likelihood have such percussion duties well covered by other devices, the advantage being that the Virus' polyphony can instead be reserved for making all sorts of other groovy noises. The Virus has a big sound, a big personality and no shortage of tricks up its virtual sleeve, making it an excellent addition to (or centrepiece of) any studio setup, and one which is certain to become indispensable within minutes of powering it up. The only difficulty you might have is deciding which Virus to go for, as OS v5.0 is compatible across the entire new range — in other words, the Virus C, Virus kC, Indigo 2 and Virus Rack XL all now enjoy the same 32-voice polyphony and features as each other. Ah, choices, choices... Nord Lead 3 Conclusions Clavia have done a fine job of developing and enhancing the sonic versatility and flexibility of the Nord Lead in a way which could be described as organic — existing Nord Lead users will find the Nord Lead 3 a natural outgrowth or extension of their instrument, and will take to it like the proverbial duck to water. The enhanced FM synthesis capabilities, new oscillator modes and new filtering options are all welcome additions, and particularly effective is the way the FM-generated sounds blend into the overall rich, warm sonic character of the synth, while giving it a broader range. And it's good to see that Clavia have responded to criticisms of the earlier Leads by providing keyboard aftertouch control, an additional two audio outs, a MIDI Thru socket, an LED window, and a much healthier number of Program and Performance memories. Also praiseworthy is the ability for users to upgrade the OS themselves via the Internet. On the other hand, the Nord Lead 3 is a pricey instrument but it still doesn't have features taken for granted on many other synths, namely built-in multi-effects processing, an onboard multitrack sequencer, and a disk drive. Whether or not the absence of these features matters on a purist's synthesizer like the Nord Lead, which certainly isn't trying to be an all-singing all-dancing workstation, is ultimately an individual decision. All in all, though, the Nord Lead 3 is a worthy if not earth-shattering or mould-breaking addition to the Lead series. Nord Lead 2x Conclusions The Nord Lead 2X is a means of continuing production of the Nord Lead 2, whilst along the way exploiting updated components. However, many of the reservations I expressed in my original review remain. The keyboard has no aftertouch, there is no MIDI Thru port and there are no onboard effects. Mind you, neither these niggles nor a relatively high price have prevented the Nords from gaining a strong following, and the extra improvements are worthwhile. Four more notes of polyphony proved very handy when using the 2X multitimbrally, and the massive increase in onboard storage is also welcome. Perversely, having so many patches now makes the display more of a liability — identifying and locating favourite patches requires some method of your own, such as the famous 'writing on bits of paper' technique or the use of patch lists in a computer-based sequencer (if you use one). Those 24-bit DACs sound good too. In terms of sound and performance, you know what you're getting with the 2X — namely a synth that delivers plenty from a (largely) intuitive interface and which has a character all of its own (indeed, some people are happy to admit that they prefer it over the Nord Lead 3). Ultimately, it makes perfect sense to improve any instrument for which demand remains high, and the fact that Clavia have breathed new life into this range suggests that they see no reason to abandon their classic line just yet. Triton Conclusions At the start of this review, I pondered whether existing Triton owners (myself included) would now be kicking themselves and wishing they had waited for the Triton Studio instead. In the end, it depends on how you work. The Studio is not in direct competition with computer-based MIDI + Audio applications, nor does it offer all the CD-writing bells and whistles of programs such as Steinberg's Wavelab. Where the Triton Studio does score is in being a complete package — it offers music production facilities to aid you on the path from the first faltering notes of a new composition to a finished audio CD, and without you ever needing to touch a mouse. For some, that will be reason enough to examine this Triton closely. Had the onboard sequencer been integrated with hard disk recording rather than sampling, it would have offered far greater versatility, not to mention longer audio recording times. As it is, the audio implementation feels rather limited by modern standards, although it is still capable of impressive results if sufficient ingenuity (and RAM) is applied. If you feel the need for some kind of visual feedback of the audio alongside the MIDI data, though, you'll need to look elsewhere. In other areas, the Studio excels. As a scratchpad for quick audio recordings, it is invaluable and the convenience of CD writing and audio 'ripping' should not be underestimated — especially for quickly grabbing samples. I particularly liked the new piano patches and was pleased to see those extra expansion slots — they make the two in my own Triton seem ungenerous to say the least. With SCSI and digital I/O now supplied as standard, Korg have made the new Triton a far more rounded package than ever before. It's important not to forget that the Triton Studio contains the same awesome sounds, arpeggiators and other features that made the original Triton such a hit. Finally, to answer my own question: no I'm not kicking myself, and I'm still more than happy with my Classic Pro X — but the Triton Studio's extended feature-set will doubtless be enough to tempt other existing Triton owners to take that extra step up. I hope this will help.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalker Posted August 21, 2006 Author Share Posted August 21, 2006 Wow Quark Great... That is what I was looking for Thank you so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyboris Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 to make it a little bit more difficult... http://www.spectralis.de/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quark Posted August 25, 2006 Share Posted August 25, 2006 Wow Quark Great... That is what I was looking for Thank you so much! 591126[/snapback] No problem.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowball Posted September 5, 2006 Share Posted September 5, 2006 so what did you finally get? give us a review! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixxxan Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 i dont really have any experience with the korg triton, but i have experience with nord lead 2, virus c and waldof q. I think that for psytrance its better to have an VA synthetizer like nord or virus than a workstation. These synths may not have a percussion or sequencer capabilities (and yet they do have some). but i really prefer to use other devices, like a software sampler (Battery, Kontact) within the sequencer. same thing with bass, because of better sync u are better using a vst. In the end , ull be using the synth mainly for leads, pads and fx. and either the virus and the nord are awesome at it. it u can afford andromeda. man go for it! anyway thats my 2 cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NEMO.BOFH Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 ....Does anyone have opinions about any of those synths? I will probably buy a synth by the end of this year, and I'm researching about them Thou I would like to hear some personal opinions 591099[/snapback] Love the virus and the nord Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeyon Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 You said you want flexibillity and the possibility of creating your very own synth-sounds. Well then I wouldn't go for the Andromeda (Although it is nice to have some REAL analog equipment).. Triton sounds like it's out of the question. Really don't know anything about the waveforms on the NL. So I would (always) go for a Virus. But instead of a C I would go for a TI, if you have the money for it.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 You said you want flexibillity and the possibility of creating your very own synth-sounds. Well then I wouldn't go for the Andromeda (Although it is nice to have some REAL analog equipment).. Triton sounds like it's out of the question. Really don't know anything about the waveforms on the NL. So I would (always) go for a Virus. But instead of a C I would go for a TI, if you have the money for it.. 599956[/snapback] Why do you say that about the Andromeda? You're insulting my lady love! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeyon Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 I'm only talking about the waveform-possibilites, which Andromeda doesn't have many of. I don't know it's filter, envelopes, lfo's a.s.o... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 I'm only talking about the waveform-possibilites, which Andromeda doesn't have many of. I don't know it's filter, envelopes, lfo's a.s.o... 600160[/snapback] Oh, well that's only because it's got real VCOs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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