The Endless Dilemma... what else to buy?

[Luca_Capozzi]

Hi folks,
I'm actually in the endless struggle about what other synth to buy. I have owned, so far, a couple of Kurzweil K2500, a Yamaha DX-21, a Waldorf Micro Q, a Nord Micro Modular. The day i've bought my Modular G2X i've found, finally, a machine that can grant me hours of fun. Anyway, I ever search something new to play with. Just to fill my curiosity I've bought a couple of Korg MS, to feel the analog taste.. very kind machines but those babies require a lot of care.. so I've sold them. To fill my lack of sampled sounds, I've just bought a Korg Triton rack. Cute for acustic pcm sounds, but very weak for certain timbres... and it is very weak about modulation matrix.

Usually I don't use soft synthesizer. I feel more confortable with something more "material" to put my hands on... but just yesterday i've bought my first soft synth: Reaktor 5. Can't wait to explore this software deeply. I've tried the demo and it sounds awesome.

Anyway... my thirst of gear wasn't satisfied :P
I'm still searching for something "special". Given those features, what synth do you suggest to me?

Feature list:
- Wide modulation matrix
- Good filters
- Polyphonic

Those are main features that MUST exists on a device I seek. Optionally, can be nice to have also Audio inputs, a lot of physical controllers (knobs, faders, slides, etc.), good fx section, delay lines.

Awaiting for your entries :D
Thx,
Luca

[Grey Loki]

Korg OASYS.

:P

[lighthouse]

weren´t you looking for the V-Synth??


Juan Pablo

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Actually, two of your requirements, wide mod matrix and strong filters, are the two greatest strengths of the Ion. It's considered more low-end by some, but you might be surprised, especially given your programming skill, how much you could extract out of it.

[Omega Monkey]

Hmmm, sounds like you might be looking for something like a Yamaha EX-5 (or EX-5R rack). Let's see...

AWM/Sampling (and of course you can use your own samples as AWM waves) with up to 4 "elements"

AN analog modeling (2 osc 2 voice, or 4 osc mono) which sounds REALLY nice, with great filters and a very useful "edge" parameter for shaping the overall sounds of waves before they even hit the filters, in addition to some basic FM capabilites

FDSP effects, which is basically a note dependent effects engine, with killer guitar and electric piano pickup simulations, a deadly phaser (set on stun), and various other interesting textural tools, all of which can be added to AWM or AN voices

VL physical modeling-very nice and fairly realistic emulations of real world monophonic instruments (can also be combined with AWM elements), esp woodwinds (the saxes and flutes are killer)

And how about that front panel?

1 pitch bend wheel and TWO mod wheels (how many other synths have TWO mod wheels, other than Yamaha's own SY-77 and SY-99?)

a small ribbon controller, of course assignable to all kinds of parameters

6 (SIX) front panel knobs which are assignable to various parameters, though typically are assigned to filter cutoff and resonance, env attack and decay, and reverb and delay

typical array of sequencer transport buttons (play, record, etc...)

8 function buttons beneath the display

the usual data knob, +/-, numeric keypad, etc... as well as 48 (?) voice select buttons, which double on other functions depending on mode (like element select and mute in voice edit mode)

And some other nice touches...

2 "scene" buttons (I have never seen this on any other keyboard) which allow you to save 2 additional variations on each sound. Very useful for switching from "rhythm" to "lead" (like for an organ patch maybe), or whatever else you can think of, like effects changes

a fairly comprehensive arpeggiator with a bunch of preset patterns as well as user slots

16 track sequencer with all the normal features

2 independent MIDI busses (A & B) for a total of 32 channels

awesome blue finish

a very nice 76 key board with velocity and aftertouch

option for 8 or 16mb of flash ram so you can store all your favorite samples

excellent and very programmable effects with "reverb" and "chorus" and up to 2 insert effects per voice (with about 80-100 algorithms to choose from)

and probably a bunch more Im not thinking of now.


Of course, its not perfect, and like any board it has its shortcomings. File loading from the floppy drive or from the optional SCSI card are somewhat slow, however this can be mediated by replacing the floppy with a card reader drive.

Sample memory is only expandable to 65mb (81mb with flash) which by todays standards isnt all that much, but still with the internal waves and other synthesis methods, should be sufficient for a lot of applications.

The stock piano isnt that great, adn most people dont like the stock strings either. But there are always samples to remedy that.

Overall, I would say the pros outweigh the cons. I absolutely LOVE mine, and I have played it a LOT in the almost 4 months I've owned it, still barely scratching the surface. Not to mention there is the EX-5 Tech forum which is a fantastic resource for helpful tips, advice, and of course SOUNDS (they have many downloads available to members including stuff like "M-Lab" which is a tron sample library).

Bottom line, you can nab one off ebay for anywhere between $500-900 or so in varying conditions and depending on how upgraded it is. Mine was pretty much brand new and I bought it from a reputable dealer (Sweetwater) for $700 including shipping, for a stock EX-5. Memory simms are pretty cheap, the other 2 main upgrades you would want are SCSI and Flash. Flash is in the range of $150 for 16mb (but remember it holds your samples even when the keyboard is off). SCSI is more variable, but there are other units which use the same SCSI board, which could be bought as "donors" for pretty cheap and then resold.

[ChrisMcCoy]

How's about one of these ? :)


http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Andromeda/

[Luca_Capozzi]

eheeh i've bought Reaktor 5 and a DSI Evolver :P The first is just ready to be twisted, while the second is in travel from USA to me :D

Luca

[Airspeed]

Oberheim Matrix 12 !!!! :)
http://matrix-12.tripod.com/home.htm

[ChrisMcCoy]

eheeh i've bought Reaktor 5 and a DSI Evolver :P The first is just ready to be twisted, while the second is in travel from USA to me :D

Luca

Did you get the Keyboard or Module version of the Evolver ?
Of course I want to see lots of pics !
:)

[Grey Loki]

DS Poly Evolver.....

*drools*

[Luca_Capozzi]

ehehe I drool too on keyboard poly evolver.. but is very expensive. I've bough the little one.

Luca

[ktriton]

You can buy my undying platonic love. And then I'LL get new gear.

;)