Hi,

I've been looking at and listening to the available samples, and I really like the concept this little wonder is built around. It seems to be a soundscapers machine, it somehow reminds me of Crystal - and reasonably priced.

If there are any owners of an Evolver lurking here, it would be great to read your experiences.

My only nag is the absence of headphone out, as I'm primarily looking for a small, portable "stand-alone"-kind of synth... but I guess small headphone amps can't be too pricey.

...waits for EndMusik to appear...

Devon

Have only played one .. and its a very very powerful beast. The sound quality is amazing, and the monophony is not really a limitation. Its affordable too .

the examples I have heard are cool, I think that the poly evolver will be something worth having.

The poly is it... But it ain't cheap!

DevonB wrote:

...waits for EndMusik to appear... Devon

Buy one. Now.

it's really something else - I wish there was a good way for me to describe it, but suffice it to say the sequencer is phenomenal, the sound is huge and gritty (and soft if you want it to be) and once you get your head around the interface it's a blast to program.

I primarily use it for leads and random noise drones - I very rarely use effects on it as the delay lines it offers are phenomenal, and the sound is so pure and cutting.

The poly-evolver is on my to buy list (most likely next year) but it's simply 4 evolvers in one rack unit. You can get the same effect with one by overdubbing.

Seriously - get it if you like what you hear, and go to Dr. T's website for more great stuff - he's a phenomenal programmer, and his demo tunes with the evolver and the poly are a great listen on their own!

http://www.trippler.net/music/DSI-Evolver/dsi-evolver.html


Michael

pakana wrote:

If there are any owners of an Evolver lurking here, it would be great to read your experiences.

I love mine. There is a clarity to the analogue side that one generally associates with digital, while there is a warmth and presence on the digital side that usually goes with analogue. I don't use the sequencers much for playing notes, rather just for burbling, rhythmic modulations - you can set each one to be a different length so it's easy to work up complex patterns. You can even get wavesequence-y stuff by switching between the digital waves. Then you have a bunch of envelopes and lfos, 2 LPF slopes, some insane distortion possibilities, tuneable feedback, and delays. Plus, almost everything can be synced to the internal clock or MIDI clocks. There are two inputs and mine seems to find service as an effects unit at least as often as a synth. And that little box is actually pretty easy to use once you get your head around it. Dave Smith is a very clever guy.

pakana wrote:

My only nag is the absence of headphone out

I made myself a Y-cable so that I could program it on my lap: 2 mono plugs into the evolver's stereo outs connected to a stereo jack into which I plugged my headphones. It isn't terribly loud but it does the job.

I own an Evolver. It's wonderful, my favorite synth, hard or soft.

Main reason: the sound of the analog oscs and the filter--substantial, thick, rubbery, liquid. Keep the adjectives coming. It's all true. Turning a knob on Evolver is almost always a reqarding, surprising experience.

Secondary reasons: For a mono synth, it has a lot of programming depth, a lot more mod possibilities than you'd think. Slectable destinations for all 4 lfos and the one assignable env (filter and amp have their own envs), a 4-slot mod matrix, and dedicated slots for velocity, aftertouch, mod wheel, and more that I'm forgetting. The destinations are many and varied AND a whole bunch were added in OS2, including the individual envelope stages, which is very important for achieving dynamic gate effects with the sequencer. The sequencer is extrememly cool--makes you play by its own somewhat limited rules, but that's okay.

At $500, The Evo costs only a little more than the high end softsynths and samplers and is a perfect complement. I can't recommend it highly enough.

No I don't work for DSI...

I know Sonicseven is expecting one any moment now

pakana wrote:

I vote for more laundry

I have quite a lot of that at home, can you do that before I get home?

the evolver is a fantastic synth. the sound quality is tremendous...as suthnear said, the analog is clear and the digital is warm. its a perfect hybrid. you can create a very wide range of sounds on it. thanks to its highly flexibly programming options, it is excellent for odd, experimental, harsh, atmostphere-setting stuff...but it can also do standard basses and leads with equal quality.

and with its audio in's, the evolver is also useful as a filter/distortion box for your other gear. lately, i've been using it as an envelope filter for my bass.

-ugo

One cool Evolver trick I made use of recently:

You can use the external audio in not just as a signal to be processed but as a trigger for the internal oscillators, so I programmed a patch where I clapped or snapped into a microphone to trigger a chord with rhythmic delays. And one of the mod sources is external in amplitude, so you can modulate filter or distortion or even pitch by how hard you clap or snap. I used it live. Great novelty act...

If you go to www.ex5tech.com and look in Disscussions/Other Synths - one of the patch developers named Ski has a dedicated forum there for Dave Smith Evolvers/Poly Evolvers. I'm supposed to get one myself - but haven't won the lottery yet.
But this forum is like 'guru central' for Evolvers, and Ski's the BEST dude you could ever meet.

Totally cool only describes him halfway.

Mystahr wrote

Quote:

I know Sonicseven is expecting one any moment now

And I can hardly wait. 4-5 days from now I should be in Sonic Heaven. I have been reading all sorts of glowing reviews and visiting the Evolver forums. Hardly any negative comments anywhere. The biggee for me, being a guitar player, is that Dave had us guitar freaks in mind when he first thought of this. Oh the posibilities.

One of the coolest parts about the Evolver is how much you can do to drive the various stages into distortion. That analog distortion is one of the reasons why I personally feel synths like the Minimoog & MS-20 sounded so great &, when you consider just how poor a job software usually does of emulating that kind of smooth analog distortion, it makes it very clear just how complementary this synth is to the way most of us work.

btw, the Evolver is around $430 from JRR Shop after you enter the 'forum' coupon code. I hope nobody's offended by my plugging that here.

Uncle E, the discount you offer KvR members is worthy of any plug, feel free to plug some more.

I'm considering taking the plunge on one of these because I'm studying Sonic Arts and I could do with something a little wacky.

C'mon guys - no cons?

Thanks anyway great answers!

I should have expected this kind of response... Mr Smith has done things right in the past as well.

DocT has made excellent stuff for VSTis as well, and those Evolver demos are incredible- nice link, Endmusik!

I do like the sound, no voiced complaints on build quality, highly versatile (I don't have any "outboard" FX so those inputs would surely find use)... and I haven't seen any units on second-hand sales - this really seems to be a wise buy. I've been working my butt sore this summer, and I feel I should use the overhour additionals to something that'll keep me happy for years.

(and thanks suthnear for the headphone tip!)

Sunny days,

Jon

Quote:

btw, the Evolver is around $430 from JRR Shop after you enter the 'forum' coupon code. I hope nobody's offended by my plugging that here.

Not offended... not at all

Really nice, have to check the overseas shipping details on JRR Shop. [/quote]

The Evolver is light (as I'm sure you can imagine) so shipping should be no more than $40-50 anywhere. Don't trust what our site says for shipping, we can usually get a rate that's 1/2 to 1/3 the price.

I was going to list some cons just to be fair but, in all honesty, it's hard to do! Even the matrix editor is fantastic, I initially didn't like having to hold the shift button to get to some parameters but got used to it very quickly. The sound has a bit of that modern analog thing going, like a Doepfer or MAM has, but then I don't think anybody was every thinking they were going to get a Minimoog in that little package. It wouldn't be unfair to say that the tighter sound probably complements the delays, distortion, & "output hack" better than a looser sound would, anyway.[/list][/list]

Uncle E wrote:

The sound has a bit of that modern analog thing going, like a Doepfer or MAM has, but then I don't think anybody was every thinking they were going to get a Minimoog in that little package.

But the analogue components will age and this will change the sound somewhat. My voyager and doepfer system both sound better now than when I got them (they're still tight but they're warmer, more rubbery now too). And I am sure that my evolver will as well (it's still pretty new and I tend to use the digital side more than the analogue side). Make no mistake, though, you can still get big analogue sounds out of the evolver.

pakana - the only cons I can think of is that the HPF is not resonant and that it doesn't have any CV outs (I'd love to use the sequencer with my doepfer). But I'm just being greedy here - the evolver is one of only a few things (along with the sherman filterbank and ohmforce plugs-ins) that I would recommend without any reservations.

Can someone describe the sequencers a bit for me? I don't get much detail at the site. Can the sequencer run in steps other than 4,8,16 and can each line have a different length? I have one old computer utility that does this and the effect is really hipnotic. I don't see this in hardware.

You can choose any number of steps between 1 and 16 and each sequence can have a different length.
The sequence speed in bpm has but to be the same for all 4 sequencers in a patch.

pakana wrote:

C'mon guys - no cons?

only one from me...i dont dig on the cryptic little display.
i always have to go back to the manual to decipher the abreviations.

Quote:

no voiced complaints on build quality

nothing to complain about. i think the build quality is great. very solid.


-ugo

I own one of these little monsters as well, I can't recommend it high enough. You can coax both smooth, musical timbres as well as the wackiest FX you can imagine out of this. Lots of programming depth - it feels almost modular. At the price, it's a real bargain and complements softsynths very well. Very versatile for a monosynth. It doesn't take up much space either...

Thanks guys for your replies - now it's just a matter of doing some math, atm JRR Shop has the best price even after our taxes and whatnots. (We Finns are cursed with a ridiculous VAT of 22 f***n percents.)

I'm also going to splash out on decent headphones (and an amp, mic & pre but that's another yadayada)while I'm at it - I understand there are differences in the "ohmage/resistance", if you have any tips what hphones would be easy to drive from Evolver's output, I'd more than glad to know.


P.S. Sounds like DocT not only makes out-of-this-world patches, but his music is pretty damn GOOD, been listening to it all morning...great stuff, kudos to that direction!

Low impedence headphones like the Audio Technica ATH-M20 will sound louder than others, making them better for driving straight from the Evolver outputs. Be sure to get a Y-Cable so you can get the full effect of sequenced panning.

Thanks a lot, Pakana *blushing*

So this Poly Evolver Multi is for you:
Mod Destination Distortion

1 Poly combo in midi trigger mode played live from the keyboard, parts
spread over several split zones. Some controller twiddling.

Uncle E wrote:

btw, the Evolver is around $430 from JRR Shop after you enter the 'forum' coupon code.

Sorry for the silly question but where can I find the coupon code ? Is it for KVR members ? I'd be interested....

There's a field on our checkout page where you can enter coupon codes. It's the last page just before you finalize your order.

It turns out that the Evolver & Poly Evolver use real Curtis chip oscillators & filters so they really ought to be very equivalent in sound to a Prophet 5 ver. 3, Pro One, & Prophet VS. I personally think my Pro One sounds a bit looser but perhaps this could have to do with the age of the components. Dave?

Also, if anyone's interested in getting one, the price is supposed to be going up on September 1.

I finally made my order

(I ended up buying a car & new amp last time when loose money was around... I never really wanted a car but life's amazing, isn't it )

Now I'm just waiting the Evolver to ship... "Ships Immediately" has been a bit longer than I expected, but maybe days are longer when one's waiting for 1st real HW synth

DocT wrote:

Mod Destination Distortion

Yes!

Just in case no one else has said yet, there's a Evolver User Forum at www.EX5tech.com in the 'Other Synths and Equipment' area. About as close to Dave Smith as you're ever going to get.

I think Dave Smith is maybe more of a unsung hero in the world of synths than Moog, Buchla, and Chowning.

Steven West quoth
I think Dave Smith is maybe more of a unsung hero in the world of synths than Moog

Moog who?

pakana wrote:

I finally made my order

Congrats

Being a very very happy owner of an evolver, I really wonder how polyevolver owners manage their beasts ...
I read on other forums : " well, 4 voices is not that much " while I thought 4 voices may be too much already ...

I am not quite sure if I really manage the Poly Evolver, but I have a lot of fun with polyphonic pads and 4 part sequencer multis

I have several Poly Evolver only recordings on my site: http://www.trippler.net/music/DSI-Evolver/PolyEvolver/polyevolver.html

Sorry guys, I'm gonna go against the trend here. After reading all the reviews and forums, I decided to pick one up.

Tried it in the shop and wasn't fully impressed but thought that it will grow on me once I bring it home. Got into the editing with no problems but really wasn't impressed with the sound. No where near as fat as my 101 or sh2 which i was hoping it would be. I also found the unit very noisy and didn't like the sound of the basic analog waveforms, i thought they sounded a bit weak. The digital side sounded very gritty, good if you like that kind of thing. I really couldn't get any smooth sounds out of it. Don't get me wrong, i like the distorted soundscapes it could make but I was hoping for something a bit more versatile.

Overall it was OK but really found it way to noisy and ended up taking it back. Dunno, maybe it was faulty but i haven't missed it at all.

The basic sound character is always a matter of taste. There's no discussing if you don't like it.

But there shouldn't be any noise. Both my Mono and Poly Evolver are completely silent at highest output and mixer levels. As long as I didn't program the noise

Btw, here are some mor elush analog sounds from the Poly-Evolver:

http://www.trippler.net/files/poly/polyfun.mp3

1 Poly-Evolver, means 4 Evolver voices, in 1-finger mode (basic transposing played live, the rest from the stepsequencers in multimode),a little reverb, no additional processing.

It arrived

So small it's cute... and so alive

There's something about the filter sound that made me smile a lot yesterday evening... perhaps it's that there's no aliasing, and my ears are not used to that Mr. Smith really nailed his concept of "Thee Ultimate Dongle" with this one.

Furthermore, as I ordered other things as well, I was very, very pleased to find out that Eric Dahlberg from JRR Shop more than lives up to his good reputation as a fair and generally cool businessman. He and the other staff were friendly enough to answer my numerous noobie e-mails, they handled everything professionally and prices are excellent for Europeans right now. Thanks JRR crew, I know where I'm shopping from now on

Short sunday morning Evolver blues:

http://www.trippler.net/files/poly/sundayblues.mp3

Only one thing annoys me ( a little ): the sounds are so sharp that I can't work a long time with it, my ears begin to hurt quickly, sad because it's the most intense and productive synth I have !

Hey Doc T - I likee that a lot.

pakana wrote:

C'mon guys - no cons?

I have one and love it. I agree with everything that people have said.

One criticisim of it is that it is not easy to control with other synths. You only have a few parameters that can be controlled with controllers simultaneously....ummm (struggling here, obviously) - you can modulate the clock division with the sequencer - but this doesn't really work when the Evolver is either slaved to another source, or is the master.

The o.s. hasn't been updated in quite some time...

I hope to maybe get the new keyboard version of the Polyevolver in the coming year...