I kept the Virus TI one month.
Great on paper, I found it very deceiving. Didn’t like filters, end of the story. Much happier with my MM2. 2 MM2s is better than a TI Snow imho.
Before I had a Blofeld and didn’t like its filters and UI too. Happier with MM1.
Received Hydrasynth Explorer recently, really like it, sounds much better than Virus imho. Before buying it I thought 8 voices was too limited, but the cheaper Explorer version convinced me…
In combination with MM2, Typhon and Syntakt, I should be fine !
Don’t get me wrong please, but your question is very general and a decent answer needs better understanding your intentions. (sorry didn’t read the entire thread…)
If you mean by VA the emulation of a typical analogue synth, well here are my fiew cents…
Having the TI2 and a couple of others I would say, there are:
16 x multitimbral (any other hardware synths out there?)
formant and granular like oscillator modes (unique to this machine)
wavetables, I would call them okay, but not comparable to Waldorf machines
three oscillators per voice, with a couple of differnet modes
two independent filters with different modes (couple of others have that too)
many modulation sources (3 x LFO and 4 x ADSR)
many modulation destinations and a quite good modulation matrix (some modern synth might come even with a bit more)
The TI shines, if we play his special forces creatively.
There is even more to say … not many can provide this … check out their specs.
The Waldorf Quantum/Iridium do many different things quite differently and are totally other beasts compared to others. They are very open and flexible for new creative ideas, but it would be a overshot using them for VA only.
If you look for a VA only, there are many others, which are also available for less money.
I really don’t think other synths can make these types of sounds the way the Virus does. The Micromonsta 2 doesn’t do gritty/crunchy the same way and the Waldorf Iridium sounds too clean/precise and I really don’t like its distortions. People tend to criticize the filters on the Virus, but I also think they have a unique character I really like. I love dual filters in series.
you seem to know about iridium. to my knowledge, the iridium is completely digital. would you say that it still sounds better than e.g. Diva or Omnisphere and co.?
I’m interested in this because I once decided not to buy expensive digital hardware synths, even if it works the same with a DAW.
I don’t cut corners when it comes to analogue stories, they stay here.
yes, the quantum also sounds very different than the iridium via various youtube videos. a dream synthesizer. it’s a pity that there is no desktop version of this.
While it’s less versatile because it’s really just VA without any other the other synthesis types, I think Kyma is an interesting one to compare. The demos I’ve heard sound phenomenal, and I’m hoping to get my hands on one at some point.
The Iridium is one of the only things that can compete from a pure sound design features perspective, but personally I prefer synths that are slightly more focused and excel in a specific area (same reason I prefer the M to the Iridium, for example).
To point out a particular sound let’s say just the intro. I’m really wanting to know how close a hydra can get to performing the intro the way a virus can
I feel like that genre is best suited to being composed in software. Like, it’s cool that someone may have made that track on a Virus, but it seems so much less emotionally or technically tumultuous to do it in software, where you have access to so much in terms of automation.
edit: I think the evidence can be found through older producers eventually moving on to software. Shit, even Edgar Froese adopted a digital/software setup for Tangerine Dream at some point!
I even say this as a hardware guy. Spending all this time looking for a perfect dnb wub or trance hypersaw when it’s already available in a free softsynth seems a bit too much imo.
Funny thing is that I don’t even listen to this type of music. The other day, I was reminiscing on how I did actually listen to some Drum n’ Bass in the 90’s, but stopped following it for decades.
I was thinking of the type of tracks I liked most, and they had a more stripped-down, lo-fi, raw sound that has the charm of being made with hardware. I was posting the examples above because I think the Virus excels at doing them with a certain charm. The FM on the virus is lo-fi, and the distortion has a certain crunch that is different from modern VSTs.
The types of Drum n’ Bass tracks I like most actually sound like these:
The familiarity of the Virus is what makes me love it, as well as the sound of course. For me, it’s like stepping into my favourite pair of shoes. I like to think the enjoyment of using a device comes across to the listener. As much as I adore Pigments, the relationship I have with it is purely business. There is no love there.
Yeah, fair. Of course that’s why I still have hardware as well! My comment probably came across as a bit too dismissive; apologies, it was post-gig and I’d had a few drinks
No need to apologise, honestly! You did t come off as dismissive at all, and I didn’t know that about Edgar Froese, someone I have a lot of respect for. Hope you had a great time at the gig.
Hope you had a great time at the gig.