Which synth is killing Sylenth1?

[JonSolo]

Wow. And boring. Sylenth....awesome! Spire....awesome! Great synths both in their own right!

[kelldammit]

I'd looked at sylenth some years ago, and liked it well enough. It was a contender, despite me not being an edm guy (for my uses, supersaws aren't even a consideration). In the end, though, i opted for blue (more versatility for the $). Nothing killed anything else, and i've enjoyed plenty of music other folks have done with sylenth in the years since.

...i could probably use Zebra for all my experimental stuff, and efx. That would probably work out well!

That's all i used it for for years. It's fantastic for that. Over the last two years or so, i've found myself leaning on it more and more as a go-to. It's particularly good for off-kilter takes on "the usual sounds'.

(Diva is actually my favourite sounding synth available overall, it's just always been a tad out of my budget, i had finally saved for it then the charity auction came up and i went overboard with that so am skint).

I finally broke down and snagged it not too long ago myself. Being able to save a couple of bucks by buying second hand was the push over the cliff for me. Good thing I don't mind ramen!
I just can't wait to use it in earnest on the new project (alas, the first track due is acoustic! )

For example listening to Arksun's diva bank demos actually gives my entire body chills. It sounds amazing.

Agreed (his zebra bank & demos are likewise very good). The demo for Bronto Scorpio's new Diva bank has been in heavy rotation here, too. Buying both as soon as bills allow!

[D N A]

Sylenth is like hmm Synth1 in the freeware world.

1. It has (very) low CPU consumption
2. It has rather simple UI, not overcrowded and user don't feel overwhelmed
3. There are tons of sounds available. Sure, some banks sound the same but still there are hmm at least few thousands presets available.
4. Pirated or not, it has the biggest tutorial section on youTube + it's most popular when it comes to professional / commercial tutorials (ie. Future Music, Sonic Academy etc.)
5. It's very easy to create simple, good sounding presets.

Personally, I like the sweet spot Sylenth1 achieved, which is: perfect combination of simplicity, limitations vs algorithms, amount of presets, sound quality.

And to be honest, I like Sylenth's bright sound. The only one synth which reminds me Sylenth's bright sound is Diversion.

One more thing, it's not another "bread and butter" synth, synth for everything. Since the beginning, it was supposed to be a synth for so called (modern) "electronica", which includes all kinds of Electronic Dance Music. The factory presets show this cleary.
Actually, I'm bored with synths that try to to everything, that have presets which show: "look, I can do everything". At the end, you end up with few usable (for your "genre") sounds and that's pretty much it.

For me, Sylenth (for software synths) is like Minimoog, Yamaha DX7 (for hardware synths) - it's a legendary synth. Even if for some it may sound cheesy, still it's a legendary synth. No other synth became such popular.

[HcDoom]

Well said, DNA.

This threads usually don't have any positive outcome so it's best to close it down. Any quality synth is good in proper hands and can make the job done...be it Sylenth1 or Spire or Zebra or Dune!!!

[fluffy_little_something]

Am I missing something or does Sylenth1 not even have a PW control?

[V0RT3X]

I often wonder if they name sylenth was inspired by the name Soylent

[Gamma-UT]

Am I missing something or does Sylenth1 not even have a PW control?

If you don't like modulation, why do you want PWM?

You can simulate PWM using the old sawtooth inversion trick. It's in the manual.

[fluffy_little_something]

I also demoed Zebra yesterday. Very pleasant sound (and different from Diva in a positive way), but just too many controls for my taste, too complicated and hence time-consuming...

[fluffy_little_something]

Am I missing something or does Sylenth1 not even have a PW control?

If you don't like modulation, why do you want PWM?

You can simulate PWM using the old sawtooth inversion trick. It's in the manual.

I never said I wanted PWM, but I do want a PW control. I would never spend a single cent on a synth without it...

[Sendy]

Am I missing something or does Sylenth1 not even have a PW control?

If you don't like modulation, why do you want PWM?

You can simulate PWM using the old sawtooth inversion trick. It's in the manual.

You can, just don't expect to be able to have precise control over pulsewidth, be able to freeze at a certain duty cycle, then modulate back to square, cycle around a narrow pulse wave or control the PW arbitrarily with the modwheel to use it like a filter. If you only want to use PWM to get that "doubled" sound, you won't miss any of that, though.

Having direct control over pulsewidth is by far the most tonally varied thing in traditional synthesis. It's omission was really what killed Sylenth for me.

[fluffy_little_something]

Am I missing something or does Sylenth1 not even have a PW control?

If you don't like modulation, why do you want PWM?

You can simulate PWM using the old sawtooth inversion trick. It's in the manual.

You can, just don't expect to be able to have precise control over pulsewidth, be able to freeze at a certain duty cycle, then modulate back to square, cycle around a narrow pulse wave or control the PW arbitrarily with the modwheel to use it like a filter. If you only want to use PWM to get that "doubled" sound, you won't miss any of that, though.

Having direct control over pulsewidth is by far the most tonally varied thing in traditional synthesis. It's omission was really what killed Sylenth for me.

Exactly, same here
I love to emulate electric bases and guitars, which is basically impossible without a PW control. It works more or less like the tone controls on a hardware (bass) guitar.

[Regnas]

Well, it seems like Sylenth1 will come back soon...
So, Sylenth1 will kill them all again?

[digitalboytn]

Well said, DNA.

This threads usually don't have any positive outcome so it's best to close it down. Any quality synth is good in proper hands and can make the job done...be it Sylenth1 or Spire or Zebra or Dune!!!

This is 100% true,but there are a lot of sheep out there

[Yorrrrrr]

DUNE 2 totally killed it, for me. It is better in every single way. I can do with this thing way more than I ever did with Sylenth1.

[Everglide]

I often wonder if they name sylenth was inspired by the name Soylent

Soylent Green?

Sylenth 2 release date in the poster