The 3rd Wave

[mimidancer]

I know I can do all of this in reason, but it is so blue.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ-s9YW7JgA

[bxbrkrz]

PPG Wave 2.3 blue

[Jac459]

I know I can do all of this in reason, but it is so blue.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ-s9YW7JgA

Remind me of my yamaha CS1X...



I was jealous of the red... NordLead

[mimidancer]

I know I can do all of this in reason, but it is so blue.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ-s9YW7JgA

Remind me of my yamaha CS1X...



I was jealous of the red... NordLead

Red is difficult to resist. But with Blue one may skidoo, you can too. At age 6, I was quite the skidooer.

[Micha1973]

If i have some bucks - it´s my synth

[mimidancer]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoRmV_uKDjg

If i have some bucks - it´s my synth

that is how I feel too. I hope someone gives a good once over at NAMM.

[moofi]

And I at least guess it sounds like hardware.

I know I can do all of this in reason, but it is so blue.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ-s9YW7JgA

[mimidancer]

And I at least guess it sounds like hardware.

I know I can do all of this in reason, but it is so blue.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ-s9YW7JgA

I do not subscribe to the hardware vs Software stuff. Different instruments/UIs inspire divergence in my approach to writing. I know I can already do what it does in reason. Also, it is blue.

[avasopht]

I do not subscribe to the hardware vs Software stuff. Different instruments/UIs inspire divergence in my approach to writing. I know I can already do what it does in reason. Also, it is blue.

100%.

I notice this all the time with Roland Cloud / Korg Collection.

As a VST it just does not feel the same as using the hardware. You get tactile feedback when you click buttons. You feel the grooves of the aluminium casing.

It sounds expensive.

I find that even with cheap (or ancient) hardware I'm able to express myself just as well.

Screens can greatly impact your music-making process by the way. First by creating a stimulus for your brain to filter. Second by taking attention, focus, and the responsibility of maintaining the form of your track. So you negotiate your arrangement with a screen.

That's why I do a lot of composition with hardware controllers now (like Maschine).

[crimsonwarlock]

And I at least guess it sounds like hardware.

I do not subscribe to the hardware vs Software stuff.

Agreed. Some people don't accept that software has sounded as good as analog for a long time now, although with its own character. Some of the most liked hardware synths of the last few decades, like an Access Virus and a Nord Lead, are in fact software synths.

Of course, you need some justification for the fact that you plunked down a serious amount of cash on an analog monster from the eighties, while an emulation is available for a few tenners. So, the hardware must sound 'better', obviously

[selig]

I do not subscribe to the hardware vs Software stuff.

Agreed. Some people don't accept that software has sounded as good as analog for a long time now, although with its own character. Some of the most liked hardware synths of the last few decades, like an Access Virus and a Nord Lead, are in fact software synths.

Of course, you need some justification for the fact that you plunked down a serious amount of cash on an analog monster from the eighties, while an emulation is available for a few tenners. So, the hardware must sound 'better', obviously

Some people DO accept that software sounds as good as hardware (my first exposure to software synthesis was a computer music class in 1979). Or to put it another way, many folks find BOTH approaches useful in music production.
And not every hardware lover is claiming they sound better. I get a very different feeling working with hardware than software, I love both, both can sound good or bad depending on the design and personal preferences.
Long live both!

[DaveyG]

Yeah, there is a world of difference between a soft synth connected to a midi control surface and a hardware synth with dedicated knobs. I'm not talking about the sound. I'm talking about the way a hardware synth just tempts you to fiddle with the controls more.

[crimsonwarlock]

Agreed. Some people don't accept that software has sounded as good as analog for a long time now, although with its own character. Some of the most liked hardware synths of the last few decades, like an Access Virus and a Nord Lead, are in fact software synths.

Of course, you need some justification for the fact that you plunked down a serious amount of cash on an analog monster from the eighties, while an emulation is available for a few tenners. So, the hardware must sound 'better', obviously

Some people DO accept that software sounds as good as hardware (my first exposure to software synthesis was a computer music class in 1979). Or to put it another way, many folks find BOTH approaches useful in music production.
And not every hardware lover is claiming they sound better. I get a very different feeling working with hardware than software, I love both, both can sound good or bad depending on the design and personal preferences.
Long live both!

That's why I said "Some people don't...". It seems obvious from my statement that I'm not one of them either

I also do like the tactile feel of hardware, reason why my studio is littered with hardware MIDI controllers

[mimidancer]

Some people DO accept that software sounds as good as hardware (my first exposure to software synthesis was a computer music class in 1979). Or to put it another way, many folks find BOTH approaches useful in music production.
And not every hardware lover is claiming they sound better. I get a very different feeling working with hardware than software, I love both, both can sound good or bad depending on the design and personal preferences.
Long live both!

That's why I said "Some people don't...". It seems obvious from my statement that I'm not one of them either

I also do like the tactile feel of hardware, reason why my studio is littered with hardware MIDI controllers

I agree I do not think hardware is better. I think both are awesome. I enjoy my diverse hybrid workflow not out of a place of presumed superiority, but because each instrument and interface bring out new ideas in me. One can make music exclusively on hardware or software and get great results. BUT we need to focus here. This thread is about just how blue the 3rd wave is... Sofa king blue.

[crimsonwarlock]

Yeah, there is a world of difference between a soft synth connected to a midi control surface and a hardware synth with dedicated knobs. I'm not talking about the sound. I'm talking about the way a hardware synth just tempts you to fiddle with the controls more.

I do agree to some extent. However, MIDI controllers have a lot of tactile options these days. It takes a bit (sometimes a lot) of work to set up, but you can have close to similar tactile control with software.

I come from hardware synths, so I do have the experience you point at. Because of that, I've spend a lot of time (and money) to find a MIDI controller setup that would give me an approximation of that. I can say for myself that I am pretty close to that.

[moofi]

No it doesn´t, the current state like I can observe it playing with a hardware modular compared to software is software has improved over the years, yet doesn´t deliver the impact hardware has (yet?). Besides I feel like Selig mentioned, software sound evolves along an individual path, saying they will most likely vary even after further development, similar to analog and digital photography. I know I sound like a loop in that regard and I was actually surprised how well software became over the years, after not having listend much to VA during quite a long time, then there´s still is a difference. You can feel the pushing energy in hardware. An additional area where software is yet lacking is distortion. Compare this filter screeching to bascially any software (though you can already hear the difference in the basic VCO sequence):
.

I do not subscribe to the hardware vs Software stuff.

Agreed. Some people don't accept that software has sounded as good as analog for a long time now, although with its own character. Some of the most liked hardware synths of the last few decades, like an Access Virus and a Nord Lead, are in fact software synths.

Of course, you need some justification for the fact that you plunked down a serious amount of cash on an analog monster from the eighties, while an emulation is available for a few tenners. So, the hardware must sound 'better', obviously

[crimsonwarlock]

This thread is about just how blue the 3rd wave is... Sofa king blue.

Instant PPG-wave vibes for me, even before listening to the video

I had the privilege to see Wolfgang Duren live in the eighties. He was associated with PPG, and me and my friends were pretty jealous seeing him with not one but two PPG Waves on stage

[crimsonwarlock]

No it doesn´t, the current state like I can observe it playing with a hardware modular compared to software is software has improved over the years, yet doesn´t deliver the impact hardware has (yet?).

I wouldn't compare a modular rig to the experience of playing, let's say, a Juno 6. The software-based hardware synths I pointed to are also not modular rigs. Apples and Oranges. Of course, there is (still) a lot of hardware that is hard or even impossible to emulate in software, but tmo that was not what is discussed here.

[moofi]

Not referring to a modular in specific, it´s simply the hardware I got most hand on experience with. And e.g. the example in the video is simply a basic sequence through a filter, nothing special in terms of what is being done. Even if it was, functionality-wise you can basically recreate anything in software. The sound is the holy grail in that sense here and while hardware also varies in it´s field, the sounds from hardware devices I heard share a common characteristic. From briefly having checked on a 3rd Wave demo on youtube, it´s got that typical basic character aswell, even though it´s a polysynth compared to the monophonic sequence from the filter video. Listen to the attack and the low end for example:

Yet enough from here in that regard for now.

No it doesn´t, the current state like I can observe it playing with a hardware modular compared to software is software has improved over the years, yet doesn´t deliver the impact hardware has (yet?).

I wouldn't compare a modular rig to the experience of playing, let's say, a Juno 6. The software-based hardware synths I pointed to are also not modular rigs. Apples and Oranges. Of course, there is (still) a lot of hardware that is hard or even impossible to emulate in software, but tmo that was not what is discussed here.