Synths from the past to the future

[griffin avid]

With any instrument; acoustic, electric, electronic or software, you have to put some time into it before you can just sit down and play. I could install software instruments and set up a brand new computer for music making faster than I could set up and tune a brand new guitar because that's what I've had more experience doing.

I like this guy.
I've pressed a key and heard no sound. The hunt for the problem has, more than once, removed any inspiration I may have felt for making music. That's happened in both approaches.

And it's true, once you know one piece of hardware/software, you know them all or at least the next one easier and quicker.

[Automatic Gainsay]

The thing I would point out, that will be militantly shot down (because this isn't about facts as much as it is about defending one's own approach), is that one approach has mystery when you don't know what you're doing, and the other one has mystery even when you DO know what you're doing.
But yeah. Everything is equal, and nothing is ever different, it's all equal and subjective and people who are for one and against the other are just being subjective unless they're for the right one, in which case they're fighting for the underdog.

[tekkentool]

But yeah. Everything is equal, and nothing is ever different, it's all equal and subjective and people who are for one and against the other are just being subjective unless they're for the right one, in which case they're fighting for the underdog.

I know you're being sarcastic here, but...


It's all in the end result to me.

[nathanscribe]

With any instrument; acoustic, electric, electronic or software, you have to put some time into it before you can just sit down and play. I could install software instruments and set up a brand new computer for music making faster than I could set up and tune a brand new guitar because that's what I've had more experience doing.

Valid point! I guess what I'm saying is simply that the premise that software being time-consuming is unimaginable is ridiculous.

And for the sake of human decency I am going to agree with both of you.

Maybe I'm a grump, but most hardware does not come with a 2000-page user manual as a download, and also a whole bunch of other guides to "extra" features (eg. Logic "Express" comes with a guide to effects, a guide to MIDI controller setup, and another one I can't even remember). The largest manual I've seen with a hardware device is a couple of hundred pages or so. Personally, I find software more intimidating as a tool in a process because of the sheer quantity of features that need such explanation - I know a good DAW will have to be able to do a lot, but reading the whole manual is not an option, and browsing/searching it for solutions to problems is not much fun. And no, I don't have a laptop or iPad so I can't sit on the sofa with a cup of tea and pick it up while half-watching Buffy or something.

Anyway, this isn't a hardware/software debate, it's a question of tools being designed well enough for a user to familiarise themselves with as little experience as possible and to get in the way of the workflow as little as possible - not all software succeeds, and not all hardware succeeds. Also, I wish there were an option to purchase a printed copy of the documentation, as with Sibelius - I'm one of a dying breed who actually like to read books. (To those of you under 19, a book is a portable passive device with multiple-bookmark feature, instant access, and note-making facility, with a lifespan of perhaps several hundred years. They also often cost less than a splurge at Starbucks.)

And there's a difference between the kind of tool that a guitar or piano or synth or voice is, and the kind of tool a compressor or EQ or recorder is. They all take time to learn, but whatever technology they use is best employed when you can forget about it.

[griffin avid]

Did you know you can print a PDF?
Instant manual. (and you can only print certain pages/chapters/subjects)
Not as good as the leather-bound Necronomicon, but...
As far as manuals go, read what you need to know WHEN you need to know it.
I do love reading "Congratulations for buying the most powerful ....." whenever reading that opening paragraph. Makes you feel good.

I hate how most DAWS make you:
1. Save/Name song that does not exist
2. Create Audio Track
3. Create MIDI track
4. Initialize VST on MIDI track
5. Arm & Record.

Thank the lawd for Templates and Preset Sessions.
----------------------------
But I still haven't found a ROMpler that handles effects intuitively. It's still a lot of menu diving and weird diagrams for chaining with a lot of changes seemingly having no effect.

[mharris80]

http://www.guitarmagazine.co.uk/article ... ate/page1/

Wow, what a poorly researched and written article. He says guitarists can easily adjust for the time it takes for the sound to travel from the amp to their ears (hundredths of a second) but get thrown by millionths of a second differences in the circuitry? [/quote]

Y'know, I think this has to be the first time I've ever heard time factors come up in the PTP/PCB debate. Before I'd seen lots of talk about effects on tone-(snake oil, if you ask me)-but this takes it to whole new levels of ridiculousness. Reminds me of some of the discussions on a certain gear-related forum....

[nathanscribe]

Did you know you can print a PDF?
Instant manual. (and you can only print certain pages/chapters/subjects)
Not as good as the leather-bound Necronomicon, but...
As far as manuals go, read what you need to know WHEN you need to know it.

I've been reading manuals since the early 80s, and yes, I have stacks of printed PDFs. It's a matter of preference that I like everything in one place. Sibelius' manual is nicely presented, sensibly priced and compact. Logic's is a bloated crapfest. Bad writing and sloppy presentation is another gripe for another day, though.