Hey!

Im planning to buy a Virus C to complement my softsynths. Just running softsynths today, but who doesnt:tongue2 ..

Any Virus C owners here? What do u think?

//toomas / toka

i own a kc.
I wouldn't part with it!!
I also use my kc for my controller.

tokak wrote:

Just running softsynths today, but who doesnt:tongue2 ..

Who is Tongue2 and why doesn't he use softsynths? He doesn't know what he's missing!

Peter.

crack cocaine and whores, i'm tellin' ya

Buy something like a Korg prophecy, you'll save money. That or the Ion or Micron. Or that new Korg Synth, there is so many choices (did I forget to mention Dave Smiths Polyevolver?). I would go to your nearest music store to demo any synth before buying it because while people may praise one synth and say it is good, it may not live up to its hype for you, or it just may not be your thing.

Prophecy is a mono synth and kind of a apples-to-oranges comparison with the Virus, I don't really understand suggesting it as a way to save money. RADIAS and Polyevolver both cost as much or more also. The ion is cheaper, but even a used one is probably about the same cost on a per-voice basis, if he intends to get near the C's limit regularly...

Used Viruses are hard to beat on price/performance due to the fact that there are a ton of them out there.

Of course you mentioned some fine synths and they are well worth investigating, I just thought you chose a strange way of presenting that...

tokak wrote:

Hey! Im planning to buy a Virus C to complement my softsynths. Just running softsynths today, but who doesnt:tongue2 .. Any Virus C owners here? What do u think? //toomas / toka

I'd rather recommend a nice control surface or controller instead.

I merely suggested them because he is, if i'm not mistaken, buying his first synth. It sounds like he has dived into softsynths and wants to finally try a hardware one. I just figured spending 1,200 dollars on a first synth is a little crazy, but to each his own I suppose. What were you expecting me to refer him to? Every synth has its own selling points.


Let us ask this then...

What is it that interests you in the Virus. What is it that you mainly look for or desire in your new synth?

No name you're 3 posts away from being 1337

tokak - are you aware of the Virus Powercore plug-in? for about the same money as a hardware virus c you could have a powercore card with it's bundled plugins and the virus plug.. it's modeled after the model b rather than c, but it is pretty convenient seeing as it renders audio down just like any VSTi...

i've had mine for a number of months and i never stop using it..

the new powercore MKII is very pricey, but you can still find the powercore Element at places like jrrshop.com - here - http://www.jrrshop.com/product_info.php?products_id=2069&osCsid=a25ba7 6792ff72bab0bc777c46c2ad94

oh and btw - it is exactly like the virus b, not an approximation - they took the virus internal software and compiled it to run on the powercore..!

oh and one more thing - for $200 more you can get an upgrade to the 'unlimited' license which means you can have more than one instance of it running at once - like having multiple virus b's..

I own a Virus B. It's the first hardware synth I've owned after using only soft synths for 2 years. I can recommend you no doubt. The fact that Virus are overmentioned everywhere doesn't mean it's not worth its fame. And as I said, it's also the first hardware synth I've had, and I have no problems. It's a beast.

If you want to spend some years on programming wonderful analog sounds buy an Alesis Andromeda A6

I's a real modern analog - 16 voices, on board fx... and veeeeeeery deeeeeeeeeeeep programming.

If u find it 2nd hand... well no doubt over Virus...

(I'm the virus redirector !!!)

cmon ppl .. let's go real analog !!!

what's up with the massive 'old thread'-bump, eh?

If you can find a good deal on one... maybe a good used one... I would say go for it. It's a wonderful synth.

A6, yes, but expensive.

Evolver keyboard, cool, but only 4 voices, 1 for the mini.

Alesis stuff... well, nice, but be aware of quality issues... especially if you go with a used one. No Microns or Ions in sight at the NAMM booth for Alesis. No A6 either, for that matter.

The Radias from Korg is also going to be very nice... but more expensive too.

I have both hw and sw. I think it's nice to have at least one or two hw items. If you get a keyboard synth that sends controller info for all knobs, that might be a good way to go too.

Sequent wrote:

Alesis stuff... well, nice, but be aware of quality issues... especially if you go with a used one.

What do you mean by this? Did your Micron fail or?

fred-hal wrote:

what's up with the massive 'old thread'-bump, eh?

Wow, no kidding, I didn't even notice that earlier.

Guess he's probably already made his purchase by now.

No name wrote:

..I just figured spending 1,200 dollars on a first synth is a little crazy..

why would that be crazy?

Yep, I've owned one for a couple of years now.
Just a great sounding synth IMO, plus mucho knobbage for fun tweakablility.
I could never sell it and go all VST.
It's my one hardware VA now having sold a Micro Q.

I still have my JD-990 too, which is equally indispensible.

contrast wrote:

fred-hal wrote: what's up with the massive 'old thread'-bump, eh? Wow, no kidding, I didn't even notice that earlier. Guess he's probably already made his purchase by now.

glad someone noticed!

Just what it says... I'm sure you're aware of the problems that people have had with their Ions and their Microns... so I'm only saying to be careful if you're buying a used one... so that you're not buying someone else's problem.

The synths themselves are great.

floyd wrote:

Sequent wrote: Alesis stuff... well, nice, but be aware of quality issues... especially if you go with a used one. What do you mean by this? Did your Micron fail or?

No I haven't heard anything... What kind of stuff is going wrong?

I had one problem with my first Micron; there would be a significant decrease in volume if you held a note/chord (like someone turned it down by half). It drove me crazy at first as it didn't seem to happen with every patch, usually a long pad or anything with a long filter sweep on it. I thought that maybe there was something with the velocity settings, the filter enevelopes, etc. There became no rhyme or reason to it.

Anyways, I returned it (it was still covered by store warranty) and have had no problems with the new one.

Absolutely a great VA though, phenominal actually for the price. I have the ION and a Virus A as well. The Micron gets used a lot more than both it seems. (The ION and the Micron share the same DSP engine, however the Micron has a better reverb and better effects in general. Alesis updated them from the ION before its release.)

But that's the only problem I've had.

I heard the Micron has some percussion/arpeggiation stuff that the ION doesn't have?

The micron has the better reverb as noted, also has a sequencer.

The early ions and early microns had problems... the phantom editing thing on the ion... edit knob falling off on some microns?

I just know stories from users that had kept me away until the bugs could be worked out. Band partner went through three ions, I believe... or he is on his third one, I think.

floyd wrote:

I heard the Micron has some percussion/arpeggiation stuff that the ION doesn't have?

Yeah, that's right. These are the features that the Micron seems to have over the ION:

1. Holds 1024 presets, or more maybe. Can't remember the exact number. (All are user re-writable, comes with 512 standard). The ION holds only 512.

2. Drum Sequencer. You can build some crazy kits and rhythms.

3. Phrase capture (up to 16 bars). This allows you play in real time and “capture the phrase and play it back on a single key or you can step sequence it in.

4. And as mentioned before, better effects in general.

May be a few other items but those are the crux of it.

The only 2 things I really do not like about the Micron is the fact that the Bank and Program numbers aren't apparent. You have to go into the menu to find them. And the menu; it's a little frustrating at first but you get the hang of it; you have to learn how to use a combination of the one endless knob and the push/hit key on keyboards for parameter x (filter, osc 1,e.g. ) method of building patches. Not a deal breaker obviously, but takes a little getting used to.

Best thing to do is build them on an ION and them dump them on the Micron.

Black Box... sounds like you have both? No problems on your end then? I have been interested in either one or the other... or both, if the opportunity arises, but also... the quality issue has kept me away.

Also, my own bad experiences with Alesis gear going back a while... get burned once or twice makes you kind of gun shy, ya know?

Hmm, I'm going to buy a Micron... But I will buy it locally in case I need to return it.

Yeah, I think that's the key. As long as you can return/exchange... and you have the warranty then you're good. I would only be extra careful if you're getting used... unless it's someone you know and trust.

A Micron should be a lot of fun. Also nice and small if you intend to gig with it.

floyd wrote:

Hmm, I'm going to buy a Micron... But I will buy it locally in case I need to return it.

Sequent,

Actually, I think you should buy it from American Music Supply. The reason I say this is this;
1. Free shipping.
2. They offer a FREE 1 year extended warranty.
3. They offer a full money back guarantee before 45 days.
4. They have a dead easy return policy.
5. Also, they can break the payments into 3 payments (if under $1,000 USD) or 5 payments (over 1,000 USD), no interest. They just take the total, say a $600 total, and bill your credit card $200 3 times; once when you place you order, and then on the same day the following 2 months. Plus, you get a keyboard stand for free.

Here's a link to the micron at AMS:
http://www.americanmusical.com/item--i-ALE-MICRON--s-micron.html

When I had to return my first Micron (see my previous posts) I just called them up and told them what was wrong. They told me they would ship my replacement the next day with a return packing slip. Once I got the new Micron (4 days ground UPS), I just packed the old Micron up and took it to the nearest UPS store and had it shipped back. It cost me nothing and I still had a synth until the new one arrived. I didn’t have to be without while I was waiting for a replacement. I still have 4 months on my 1 year warranty so if anything else seems to happen to the second model, I can still return it the same way.

Of course it’s easier to just return it locally, but you won’t get the extended 1 year warranty for free.

Pretty damn convenient, I think. Pretty unheard of as well.

I really love the Micron. Plus, it has some of the best presets “out of the box” that really show what it can do. I hate to say this out loud, but even once I knew I was going to buy it because of the features what really, REALLY sealed the deal was the “TOM Sawyer Bass” patch. Absolutely, perfect recreation of the Oberheim patch used by Rush on that song. Also, you can load ION patches into it, which you can download SYSEX files from the Alesis sight. For $399. USD, you literally cannot do better, unless you find another comparable synth used.

Cool. Yeah, I've used AMS before and it is a great place for stuff like that. The service is great.

I have the micron too, and one of the kick ass things about it is the filters. An assload of filter types, with about 5 modelled after classic synths by Moog, Oberheim, and Roland. To be honest, I really didn't think much of the presets it came with, but there are banks upon banks of micron/Ion patches out there for it. You really can't top it in the price range, you surely get a bang for the buck.

Too bad there wasn't a micron or ion in sight at the alesis booth at namm. only fusions and the new mixer things... i think their focus now is on fusion