Futureretro Revolution - worth it? Does anyone even use a 303 anymore?

[winterelegy]

Hey guys, got an opportunity to get a future-retro revolution but wonder if it's worth it? I've been looking at getting some kind of 303 clone for a while but I'm worried about it being too limited overall - as in, it can do "that 303 sound" and nothing else. Like, to be honest it feels like I barely even hear people using the typical 303 sound in goa/psy anymore and I've got plenty of other synths with a lot more features. Just wondering what you guys think about 303 clones and if they're still relevant.

[antic604]

The "303 sound" is primarily about phrasing, sequencing and accents (both for amp and filter envelope) and not about the sound (oscillator) itself, really. It's difficult to achieve the same articulation in other synths.

So if you like that, then go ahead and get one - you can always change the SOUND by processing it via effects, EQs, etc.

[Padmapani]

On 6 August 2018 at 8:25 PM, winterelegy said:

Just wondering [...] if they're still relevant.

kneel down before the silver box, ask for forgiveness and listen to acid air raid six times (three times on the first day, not at all on the second day and three times again on the third day).

 

of course the acid sound is still relevant, but no clone has ever gotten the sound down 100%. the futureretro revolution sounds decent (which is enough for non-acid genres like psy), but so does a xoxbox and do phoscyon and abl.

[winterelegy]

Yeah I get that, if you want to do the classic "acid" sound than you gotta have a 303 (or clone). But I'm not looking to do that, and I think for psy/goa there are so many other possibilities that a 303 isn't crucial unless, like antic said, you really want that specific style of sequencing with the accents and slides (which is indeed cool, but hardly essential). I guess I'm just on the fence as to whether I NEED that. Also, the future retro seems really big in comparison to the usual 303 clones, only a point because I don't have a lot of free surface area in the studio at the moment

[Veracohr]

On 8/6/2018 at 11:25 AM, winterelegy said:

I'm worried about it being too limited overall - as in, it can do "that 303 sound" and nothing else.

 

If you get a faithful hardware clone, you WILL get something that can do "that 303 sound" and nothing else. If that's not enough for you, go with something else. The Revolution appears to have DSP effects built in, so already that's beyond the 303. I have a x0xb0x and it almost gets the 303 sound, but it's not perfect. A little too sterile sounding at certain settings, but still I like it, and I like the limitations.

 

If you want an acid sound that will sit in a dense mix like they're often used in psy, then any 303 software will get you there. If you want an upfront 303 sound like in acid techno, a good hardware clone is the better way to go. I used to use ABL2, and it had more capability than the x0xb0x, but I personally would never go back. I like the knobs and the imperfections.

[Proxeeus]

5 hours ago, Veracohr said:

 

If you get a faithful hardware clone, you WILL get something that can do "that 303 sound" and nothing else. If that's not enough for you, go with something else. The Revolution appears to have DSP effects built in, so already that's beyond the 303. I have a x0xb0x and it almost gets the 303 sound, but it's not perfect. A little too sterile sounding at certain settings, but still I like it, and I like the limitations.

 

If you want an acid sound that will sit in a dense mix like they're often used in psy, then any 303 software will get you there. If you want an upfront 303 sound like in acid techno, a good hardware clone is the better way to go. I used to use ABL2, and it had more capability than the x0xb0x, but I personally would never go back. I like the knobs and the imperfections.

Perfect summary.

[mudpeople]

Personally I have plenty of satisfying results making acid lines with the Microbrute.  Bonus because it's actually great for a whole lot of different sounds besides acid lines, but the filter really does lend itself to them.  

I've considered getting a 303 clone of some kind mostly to use live, but every time I have the money I've decided I can't justify spending on something that I pretty much have covered.  Especially for such a one-trick pony.  The MAM MB33 Retro is super cheap, and every demo I've seen sounds 303-y, but again I can find reasons not to; no more room on the MIDI thru, only one empty in left on the mixer :P.

When I want actual-303-sounding acid lines (put side by side the Microbrute will definitely sound different to any 303) I've got Phoscyon.  I got it on sale for something like $40 USD from Plugin Boutique.  Definitely worth it, it sounds pretty good and it's rather easy to emulate 303 sequences in a piano roll if you know the sliding and accent tricks.