If I were you....

[jasedee]

A friend of mine is planning some synth purchases when his tax return comes in, and I've been trying to help him out with some decisions. I thought I might post here and ask you guys some opinions.

I think he wants to get a VA, and a Rompler. At the moment all he has is a Novation A-station.

I recommended he get a Nord lead 2, and maybe a Fantom XR. I didnt recommend a Virus cos I got one, and I didnt recommend a Motif cos I got one aswel.

The only other Rompler I could think was the Triton. How does this compare with the Fantom (and Motif?)

What about other options for a VA? I suggested Supernova, but he already has the A-station, and thought it might be better to get another brand.

Any help appreciated!

:)

Jase

[Hollowcell]

An Alesis Ion might be worth a look in the VA department.

I reckon you're on the right track with the rompler though. If it were me I'd rather a Fantom over the Triton, but that's only from initial impressions in a store environment.

Ahh, tax refunds......

[jasedee]

An Alesis Ion might be worth a look in the VA department.
Yeah? I thought they looked kinda cheap....You think they would be better than a Nord Lead?

I guess I shouldnt judge on looks alone

[pDc]

The Fantom XR is probably a great choice.
I own an XV-3080 sound module. The sounds are delicious and the unit is a pleasure to use.

For a synth - I have it on good authority (and sound demos) that the Alesis Andromeda A6 is a beasty synth. This is analog though, not VA.

On the higher end of the price range but it can create some really original sounds and sounds like real fun to program.

No first-hand experience on this one though, I'm afraid.

[Gopal]

I'd rather have a fantom than a triton any day of the week.

At least everything you produce on the fantom won't reek of rinsed out pop sounds :lol:

Also, supernova is a damn good synth, but only for certain genres IMO.

[Panopticon]

Well, if I were you...

I'd tell your friend to quit music and take up gambling instead, with a little bit of a bankroll I'm sure he'll end up richer and wiser that way.

[Hollowcell]

An Alesis Ion might be worth a look in the VA department.
Yeah? I thought they looked kinda cheap....You think they would be better than a Nord Lead?

I guess I shouldnt judge on looks alone

The Ion is a unique machine, many filter choices, tonnes of routing and probably the most analogue-ish VA out there.

Th Nords are very cool synths for sure, but the Nords aren't for people with only one other synth I reckon (although the G2 may be a different story).

As the Ions are really cheap, how about an Ion and then a second hand NL2-rack or something.

PDC mentioned the Andromeda, which brings me to a question: How much cash will he be getting back?

[jasedee]

Thanks for the tips!

He is probably getting back around $5000 AUD.....

Andromeda is out of the question, too expensive!

I looked at the ION, only 4 parts, 8 poly I think. That is pretty weak...Especially compared to the Virus.

I guess he has to get out there and play with an ION. I wonder if his budget would stretch to an ION, Fantom XR, and Nord rack, that would be a pretty good start I reckon.

P.S Panopticon, LMAO! Good advice....

:)

[Analog Warriors]

if u're looking for a unique machine, u should take a look at the Hartman Neuron (http://www.hartmann-music.com/home/us/news/) !

Neuron's synthesis engine is powered by the technology found in neural networks (for more on this, see the section "Neural Networks"). It uses models as the basis for sound generation. In conceptual terms, these models are comparable to samples, and they are derived by analyzing audio samples. This means that in principle, any auditory event can provide the raw material for creating and processing sound in Neuron. It ships with some 100 of these models on its internal hard disk. Though this is a huge store of sound design resources, you are free to analyze audio resources (samples) of your own, using our proprietary ModelMaker software, and archive them in the form of user models. These models contain the actual sound as well as the parameter sets that were captured during neural analysis. Parameter sets are subdivided in up to three levels, and they may be manipulated via the resynators' sticks. That makes Neuron the first synthesizer offering dynamic parameter assignment tailored specifically to the sound that you select for processing.

http://www.soundhouse.co.jp/shop/prod_img/hartman_neuron.jpg

[Gopal]

That thing looks really cool and interesting.

DAMN THE GAS!!!!

DAMNIT DAMNIT DAMNIT







I'll take two in each colour

[jasedee]

That thing looks really cool and interesting
And expensive!

[Analog Warriors]

i once had the chance to test this baby for some hours, it's a brandnew synthesis system architecture - you can do amazing things by pitching the sticks, it's so easy to create a whole new kind of sound. But the price ... *ah* okay about 2.900 Euro :roll:

[jasedee]

OK.....after much deliberation, he has decided to get an Alesis Andromeda.

It is brand new, and will cost around $4000 AUD.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

One more thing, anyone know where we can hear some decent samples of the A6??? We downloaded some from the Alesis site but they were pretty average, just lots of arpeggiated lines.

Cheers,

Jase

[Tomer=Trance]

The Hartman synth is not a good choice if you are looking for analog emulation.
if its for studio use only and his into sound design and modular patching i would say get a creamware card.

[Hollowcell]

anyone know where we can hear some decent samples of the A6??? We downloaded some from the Alesis site but they were pretty average, just lots of arpeggiated lines.

Cheers,

Jase

I think DS may have some. Not sure but I remember him talking about it a while back. Worth a PM.

[jasedee]

anyone know where we can hear some decent samples of the A6??? We downloaded some from the Alesis site but they were pretty average, just lots of arpeggiated lines.

Cheers,

Jase

I think DS may have some. Not sure but I remember him talking about it a while back. Worth a PM.
Cheers!

:)