Kaen, Encey, LUDD, Kaini, Analogue Wings, SR4, SPD2, MrSalads, Kcinsu, Yek, LOL Alzado, Adjective, Assymetrical head

  On 12/8/2009 at 9:38 AM, sneaksta303 said:

I just heard yesterday that these things, while the tweakability factor is great, they are prone to failure. Also I guess the onboard fx are not so good. I'm talking out my ass though cuz I never played one yet, just going by word of mouth. They certainly look nice tho....

Thanks for telling me, though, I'll do a fair amount of research before just dropping 3K on something that will fart once and never work again.

Ok I will give fruity loops a rimming before buying any hardware yet.

LOL 1-36.

yeh download and fool around with a bunch of vsti - get the ms20 and the moog's arp etc and just play around with the synth, as if you are really new to synths, you will not only be learning alot of new words, but new concepts - and gets a bit

I used to be EKT Plus you know....then the credit crunch hit and I had to downgrade to the more Spartan EKT.

anyway, if you want to make some toons, best advice is not to spend too much, or any money until you're sure you like spending your weekends making weird noises with the curtains drawn (or maybe that's just me). so yeah, give Fruity Loops or Reason a go, or maybe invest in a Groovebox type thing from eBay (can get Korg Electribes and MC303s at good prices secondhand) and off you go!

  On 12/8/2009 at 10:00 AM, OneToThirtySix said:

  On 12/8/2009 at 9:38 AM, sneaksta303 said:

I just heard yesterday that these things, while the tweakability factor is great, they are prone to failure. Also I guess the onboard fx are not so good. I'm talking out my ass though cuz I never played one yet, just going by word of mouth. They certainly look nice tho....

Thanks for telling me, though, I'll do a fair amount of research before just dropping 3K on something that will fart once and never work again.

also, I doubt very much an alesis andromeda would be especially unreliable...certainly would be more stable than a vintage analogue polysynth...saying that, I have cooled on them a bit since my recommendation....if I had the same money to spend now I'd get a Roland Jupiter probably.

btw I'm getting a Casio CZ1000 today - got one off eBay for £50! bargain.

uelogy and BCM, thankyou very much, I will explore these programs first, glad I was told, coz I really don't know wtf I'm doing lol.

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give Fruity Loops or Reason

He should go with Reason since he's just starting out. The amount of vsti's out there is overwhelming. Being forced into just a few instruments will probably help him learn more about basic techniques rather than downloading a bunch of vsti's and getting lost in a million great presets. He'll also learn a bit more about routing with Reason.

get some freeware vsts and a host - i use fruity loops, the synth it comes with, 'sytrus' is very versatile. me and luddy both use fl.

freeware vsts are amazing nowadays. flstudio is fairly cheap.

if you then have any more money to spend get a usb controller keyboard so you can twiddle your virtual knobs. something like a novation or m-audio.

  On 12/8/2009 at 11:06 AM, Oscar said:

  Quote

give Fruity Loops or Reason

 

He should go with Reason since he's just starting out. The amount of vsti's out there is overwhelming. Being forced into just a few instruments will probably help him learn more about basic techniques rather than downloading a bunch of vsti's and getting lost in a million great presets. He'll also learn a bit more about routing with Reason.

Reason it is then, thanks :). I've been told elsewhere to start with reason too.

Ok so it's a toss-up between fruity loops and reason seeing I have equal recommendations for both.

U can always buy this for 1200 dollars (lol)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320457861159&adtype=3

buy my g2 engine instead

but srsly, get some free vsts as mentioned above. synth 1 is one of the best as it is based on the nord lead and sounds almost exactly like it.

Learn about what you are doing.

The most common, and basic type of synthesis is subtractive synthesis. Most of the vintage gear that is lusted after is subtractive based. There's modular synthesis which is basically the same thing, but doesn't have a fixed signal route, but since it is modular and you can add anything to it, you could make it say additive synthesis if you hooked in an additive module.

FM synthesis is the other big type as it is what the yamaha dx7 and all the dx's that followed were based on. It can do the cheesy doogie houser electric piano, but also pretty much anything else, typically sounding very metallic, digital and cold. Squarepusher and afx have used fm synthesis a lot for some great basslines and pads (squarepusher respectivley using the yamaha fs1r)

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=8jL&q=subtractive+synthesis&start=10&sa=N

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may99/articles/synthsec.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtractive_synthesis

http://www.kvraudio.com/wiki/?id=The+Basics+Of+Subtractive+Synthesis

http://www.darksonus.com/DS_articles_intro_subtractive_synthesis.php

http://audio.tutsplus.com/tutorials/instruments/a-basic-guide-to-subtractive-synthesis-part-1/

http://switchedonsynthesizer.blogspot.com/2009/04/clavia-nord-lead.html

Hardware synths like:

Nord lead(1 and 2), Alesis Ion, Korg Ms2000, Roland jp8080(8000), Roland sh-201, etc are all good for learning b/c they have a very well laid out signal flow and you can see what is going where and what can do what.

Most free software synths can achieve this also, you're just editing with a mouse instead of turning knobs, etc.

The TAL synths are all pretty good and straight forward (and free).

http://kunz.corrupt.ch/

Drop the $99 on Reaktor 5.

Drop the whatever on Nepheton/Drumazon.

You'll be set for a good, LONG time.

i'd advise against reaktor as that's likely to overwelm you and the layout is a mess. THough modular synthesis is a great way to learn. I would suggest vaz modular over that, but at the sametime, keep it simple, then branch out.

as much as i don't like reason i suggest that over anything else or just get fl studio. THey are both "everything u need" type programs. And if you get fl studio 1st you can use reason inside of it(fl has rewire support i think? i've never used fl in my life buti know it is great for starters)

Also resist the urge to download tons of free vsts just to have them. Just get a couple good ones and stick to that. Plus the more vsts you have, the longer your daw takes to load. (daw=digital audio workstation....or host or sequencer, or program u use to make music)

o0o0

i forgot about rebirth. It's free now and still a great tool in some respects. Great way to learn and also become familiar with x0x style sequencing (x0x meaning the roland family of products that used that type of programming, ie- the 808, 909, 303, etc)

http://www.rebirthmuseum.com/

  On 12/8/2009 at 10:00 AM, OneToThirtySix said:

  On 12/8/2009 at 9:38 AM, sneaksta303 said:

I just heard yesterday that these things, while the tweakability factor is great, they are prone to failure. Also I guess the onboard fx are not so good. I'm talking out my ass though cuz I never played one yet, just going by word of mouth. They certainly look nice tho....

Thanks for telling me, though, I'll do a fair amount of research before just dropping 3K on something that will fart once and never work again.

Only some are prone to failure, There was like this giant bad batch of lemons but iirc the last batch they made was okay. A lot of andromeda users have never had ANY problems with theirs, while others have had voices die, stuff generally break, or had certain aspects of the synth just never work. The people that still have andromedas will swear by them and tell you it is the greatest modern analog synth in the world. It is a fantastic beast if you just listen to sound demos. There is other stuff i would rather have, but if i needed a thick modern poly analog and had the cash i would surely get an andromeda.

the probs with the andromeda seem to be hit and miss, but the people that get hit by them are obviously very upset since the andromeda is VERY expensive and also heavy (costing a bit to ship if you need repairs)

if you are serisouly considering one signup to analogue heaven or the andromeda yahoo group (if it'sstill around) and ppl can likely tell you which serial numbers to avoid.

If you are considering the Andromeda, you might also consider a used Prophet08. They've dropped in price considerably and are quite flexible.

  On 12/8/2009 at 10:51 AM, BCM said:

I used to be EKT Plus you know....then the credit crunch hit and I had to downgrade to the more Spartan EKT.

 

anyway, if you want to make some toons, best advice is not to spend too much, or any money until you're sure you like spending your weekends making weird noises with the curtains drawn (or maybe that's just me). so yeah, give Fruity Loops or Reason a go, or maybe invest in a Groovebox type thing from eBay (can get Korg Electribes and MC303s at good prices secondhand) and off you go!

yeah if you are going to go hardware and want more than just a synth the get korg emx electribe. Has great drum sounds and a wonderful 5 part synth. And is VERY afforable considering what you are getting. BEst thing is you can take it places with you and just plug in some head phones and jam. I have had lots of electribes and they are nothing but fun and great quality sounds (myself being a huge fan of the korg sound).

  On 12/8/2009 at 3:46 PM, acidphakist said:

If you are considering the Andromeda, you might also consider a used Prophet08. They've dropped in price considerably and are quite flexible.

agreed, i perfer the dsi sound anyway. But the andromeda is much more thick and warm vintage analog sounding than the dsi stuff which is more crystal cut thru the mix type. Some people are willing to pay a lot more for warmth (myself NOT included).Course then again i'd buy a cold g2 before any analog atm.

Brandi B-

You like the Korg sound? You belong at livepa.org

i like pretty much everything korg makes (except the micro korg,i dont like anything that encourages ppl to use presets). I don't belong anywhere, tbh. I've been on pretty much every music forum, harmony-central, kvr, vintage synth, gear slutz, and analogue heaven are the only ones that stick (and watmm too tho the gear discussion is pretty minimal around these parts compared to other sites). I sold all my electribes anyhow, only korg thing i own is the legacy collection and my old trusty ax1000g guitar processor :) Also sites like livepa are filled with frustrated hard headed noobs (as opposed to noobs that are willing to learn such as ol georgie here), same ol rehash threads, and generally people doing stuff that i have no interest in listening to or talking about. :)

Amen to that, sistah. Excuse the me-giving-you-shit <3

livepa.org has this collective hardon for cheap grooveboxes...

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(squarepusher respectivley using the yamaha fs1r)

Such a beautiful synth. I will own one some god damn day.

FM synthesis is a bit tough for a new comer. He should just stick to a subtractive synth, sampler, and sequencer for now.

  On 12/8/2009 at 4:10 PM, Oscar said:

  Quote

(squarepusher respectivley using the yamaha fs1r)

 

Such a beautiful synth. I will own one some god damn day.

 

FM synthesis is a bit tough for a new comer. He should just stick to a subtractive synth, sampler, and sequencer for now.

true,and true.

However the very first hardware synth i owned was a yamaha tx802 and i am glad now b/c the horrendous interface on that thing made me REALLY appreciate a well laid out synth (and eventually fall deeply in love with fm7/fm8) Tho fm8 doesn't quite have that digital thwunk that those old 80's converters had on the hardware. Regardless, when i actually DID manage to program a sound on it, the results were WELL worth the frustration. I kinda miss it a bit.

But yah i was just mentioning fm synthesis since it's bound to come up if george reads up on subtractive synthesis.

ps- george FM stands for frequency modulation. Which subtractive synths can do as well but in a generally vague way (vague at least compared to what a true fm synth can do).

i know i sound like a nordaholic but the nords really have my fav. fm timbre of any va synth :)

edit: for those that don't know this is what a tx802 looks like.

i recommend you get Fruity Loops and 1 or 2 free Virtual Synth plug ins (VST) . It is possible to get sounds out of the ones that come free with Fruity that the majority of people who know no better will believe are "amazing warm creamy analogue goodness" (judging by the amount of comments and messages my fake tuss myspace gets saying that sort of thing.)

FL is pretty good at getting statred with. It's very easy to get the basics sorted out and then there is a tonne of deeper features that you will discover and get your head around over time. Some kind of midi controller (a keyboard with knobs or just a knobs/faders device is good to give you some hands on knob action as opposed to just mouse fingering). It is certainly not necessary to start off with some fancy analogue synths or anything. That's kind of how i started but having my own computer back then was the stuff of a madman's dreams. Regardless of any analogue vs. digital debate that may (quietly) rage in a few back streets of the internet, starting out with some cheap software host and virtual analogue subtractive softsynths is the easiest, cheapest, most convenient way to start from scratch for all sorts of reasons including not taking up your whole bedroom floor. However you acquire an understanding of basic subtractive synthesis, once you get it, it is a fully transferrable from synth to synth (soft or hard). So yeah get FL and a cheap 2nd hand midi controller keyboard (this is just a dummy keyboard that plays whatever sounds your virtual synths are making on the PC)

have you still got a piano in the front room?

and if you want to make incredibly homosexual trance rubbish then check out every FL tutorial on youtube.

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Ok so it's a toss-up between fruity loops and reason seeing I have equal recommendations for both.

Both are great pieces of software. The truth is that you could use just about anything. Just stick to a few things and learn them inside out. After that, you'll be able to jump into any daw and figure out if it's the right thing for you.

By the way, what's your goal in this? Do you plan on writing music or do you just want to make sounds and stuff? The reason I ask is that you should definitely learn the basics of music theory if you plan on writing music. It will help you out a lot.

Also, get a keyboard controller with some knobs so you can play and tweak sounds at the same time.