Real analog or VA?

[Umbe78]

After 7 pages of this thread, I think I'm going to sell my JP4

[mao]

just a thing to think about...

I had ALWAYS said that I love real analogs... I have some good analogs and I simply can't quit them for an emulation... but... first of all there are some really great VA like the Clavia's that imho needs a lot of respect.

I thought that every piece of gear inspire me something different... so If I use analogs I usually do a particular kind of music... if I use other synths I'm inspired to do something else. To be more clear... I just bought a MachineDrum and a Monomachine to try making a live set without computers or other synths... well believe me or not... these 2 incredible piece of hardware does the job. Amazing. I'm starting to work in a new way, fast and productive... They sounds awesome... who cares if they didn't sound analogs... they simply works for me far better than starting the pc and setup things. So there is only an answer to the initial thread subject... and it's simply: "you choose"... and I'm a bit amazed this things lasted all these pages...

[Primal Drive]

I think all VA's are worthless junk and their inventors should be stung up by their nut sacks and tortured until they realize that true analog is THE ONLY type of synth worth owning!!!











No I don't...

[TrondC]

just a thing to think about...

I had ALWAYS said that I love real analogs... I have some good analogs and I simply can't quit them for an emulation... but... first of all there are some really great VA like the Clavia's that imho needs a lot of respect.

I thought that every piece of gear inspire me something different... so If I use analogs I usually do a particular kind of music... if I use other synths I'm inspired to do something else. To be more clear... I just bought a MachineDrum and a Monomachine to try making a live set without computers or other synths... well believe me or not... these 2 incredible piece of hardware does the job. Amazing. I'm starting to work in a new way, fast and productive... They sounds awesome... who cares if they didn't sound analogs... they simply works for me far better than starting the pc and setup things. So there is only an answer to the initial thread subject... and it's simply: "you choose"... and I'm a bit amazed this things lasted all these pages...

thats why I chose the machinedrum & monomachine way too. they actually do it all. they're nowhere near analog sounding, but very much good sounding. they also do stuff analog synths could never do. for the same money, I could opt for a voyager RME and a 909 or something, analogue, but I would never ever be able to do as intuitive music as with the digital elektrons. for me, features > analogue sound.

sorry, drifting off the topic here, but the point was that with such amazing digital gears out there, analog vs digital wasn't even a question I had thought about until now. and I won't switch any time soon (sure, I suddenly come across a million dollars I'd get me a voyager... but probably also more digitals...)

[maelstrom_808]

Personally I think it depends on what you are doing with it. If it's going to be heavily processed, layered with other tracks, etc. the differences are going to get lost most of the time.

[nvbrkr]

All of the replies to this thread seem to emphasize the end-result more than anything else. There's another aspect to it as well. Playing.

When I was using VAs they didn't keep me interested when improvising and trying to come up with new stuff. An analog synth with nice modulation possibilities reminds me of an acoustic instrument (or an electric guitarr). I don't get the same feel at all from the digital emulations. It's even quite relaxing after a stressful day to just doodle with a cheesy mono patch.

[mao]

Have you ever played a Clavia Nord Lead 2?

I can understand your point of view if you compare real analogs with VST... I hate VST too... but if you play an astonishing instrument like a Nord Lead 2 or a V-Synth XT... things changes. NL2 has the interface of a real analog so... modulations and so on are the same... even better. The V-Synth is another great piece of hardware... with great lowend sometime better (don't ask me how it's possible) than my other analog gear.

[nvbrkr]

The other half of my previous band had (has) a NL2. We used to compare my Voyager with his NL2 side by side and had to conclude that there was no comparison in sound and feel. I'm a so-so player, but he is a very good one. For whatever funkish / prog / kraut -licks, the Nord couldn't pull it off as well. There's also a huge difference in the detail and colour of the tone. I noticed you also have a Voyager and a Nord on your gear list, so your opinion may be different. I think the NL2 an sound nice enough when playing pads with analog delay etc.

I used to toy with the NL3 at work. Never really stayed more than 15-30 minutes at it. It was impressive at first, but something seemed to be always wrong about it to my ears. I used to do short funkish loops with it when the studio didn't have any customers, but it just never really sounded like how I'd want it to sound. This was about 7 years ago when I still firmly believed that VAs could do anything real analogs could do. The most expressive digital keyboards I've played have been sample based, actually. The FM stuff is nice for polyphonic playing.

[mao]

I think there is no way to compare the voyager to the NL2... they're totally different beasts...and both with a strong soul. I never thought of replacing my voyager... nor the NL2... I simply use them both for different thinks.

[maelstrom_808]

All of the replies to this thread seem to emphasize the end-result more than anything else. There's another aspect to it as well. Playing.

When I was using VAs they didn't keep me interested when improvising and trying to come up with new stuff. An analog synth with nice modulation possibilities reminds me of an acoustic instrument (or an electric guitarr). I don't get the same feel at all from the digital emulations. It's even quite relaxing after a stressful day to just doodle with a cheesy mono patch.

I agree completely that the synth has to inspire you while simply playing around...and in this aspect I'll take my Virus TI over any true analog in the world. The sheer weight of options to play with the sound and the speed at which I can implement those options have provided inspiration for me far more than any other synth I've owned...analog or VA.

[CS_TBL]

I dunno.. would "inspiration from playing a certain model" also mean that such persons are sensible for writers blocks? I mean, I couldn't care a rat's a*s about a synth. I use a masterkeyboard and the rest was either a module or is a VSTi. If I have an idea for a tune, then the tune either emerges from my mind, from the piano keys or from the sound (which I rate on its own merits, never on the architecture of its source). I never get ideas from the panel layout of my machines..

[Solderman]

After 7 pages of this thread, I think I'm going to sell my JP4

After 8 pages of this, I think I'm going to spend less time on the web and more time in the studio playing both and enjoying both.

[nvbrkr]

Layout? Well, I myself meant to emphasize only the expressiveness of the instruments themselves. It really doesn't have that much to do with the available options or the layout.

Then again, I live myself in a world where keyboard solos still exist.

[Dogboy73]

I've got an MS2000 & I think it's awesome I've got a real soft spot for this synth. Also really loving ImpOSCar 2 at the moment (been doing patches for thids upcoming release). It sounds amazing & is so good for coaxing interesting so8nds from. My DSI TETR4 is bloody great as well. Loads of possibilities & contrloing it from my Akai MPK 49 it's great fun to use & sounds fantastic. My Neptune 2 (analogue VCO I'll have you know!!) is fantastic to. Extremely limited but I kind of like that. It forces me to actually work with it & push to coax different sounds frm it. I've got an Oberheim SEM (MIDI>CV) on order as well ..... because I'm a victim of the analogue VCO hype (DCO's are so uncool according to every fu^&er that's ever owned a VCO synth) & I just had to have one for some reason ............ After 8 pages of this thread & 5 pinbts down the pub I realeey don't give a f£$k!!

[projectwoofer]

My Neptune 2 (analogue VCO I'll have you know!!) is fantastic to. Extremely limited but I kind of like that. It forces me to actually work with it & push to coax different sounds frm it.

Extremely limited?
I mean, apart from PWM this thing has everything a decent VCO monosynth has: 3 osc, LFO with MIDI sync, ring mod, LP and HP 24db/oct filters with res, dual envelopes, analog fuzz and distortion...ok, it doesn't have a million routing possibilities but that's why Matrix 6's and Tetras exist!
I couldn't ask for more actually!