Is omnisphere still king?

[BBFG#]

There were quite few spellings in the beginning, including yours.
But it isn't the main point anyway. The main point is that ROM was and is an acronym for read only memory. And if it can only read from its supplied memory, it is rom-based. So again, Omnis is a ROMpler. K5 & ST2 & DP & AP & Engine & others are simply sample players

[BBFG#]

So is Massive a ROMpler?

Massive is a specialized form of rompler in that wavetables have a shorter cycle than those with better handling to take on longer and multi-wav samples.
In a way it is a sample player purposely limited to single short sections catergorized in tables. For that reason, a distinction between the two had to be made. But again, a further distinction between ROM & RAM (or import) further makes a difference.

[mhog]

So is Massive a ROMpler?

The question is: how would it be called if it was real? Who knows... By the way, Nexus and Sampletank (in particular) and Omnisphere, too are designed as if they were real romplers. Some people even believe Nexus is a hardware synthesizer (Because of the very realistic GUI). They look like real hardware, with touchscreen, metal handles etc. The only difference is that the ROM is simulated by some HHD sector The computer simulates reality: it is all virtual, for now...

[BBFG#]

So is Massive a ROMpler?

The question is: how would it be called if it was real? Who knows... By the way, Nexus and Sampletank (in particular) and Omnisphere are designed as if they were real romplers. Some people even believe Nexus is a hardware synthesizer (Because of the very realistic GUI). They look like real hardware, with virtual touchscreen, metal handles etc. The only difference is that the ROM is simulated by some HHD sector

Most likely, if it were HW, Massive would be considered a wavetable synth?
(For me realistically, it's preset player that I rarely even consider using.)
They are called by their methods of producing sounds, not their looks.
The terminology is pretty much standard, although the sale pitchs can vary and confuse with or without intention to close the product as something it is not.

And btw, those 'real' romplers had all their samples on ROM chip.

[mhog]

Kontakt is a sample player, not a sampler, The same is true for Sampletank. Both have ways to manipulate the sample but no way to sample on thier own. The distinction between these differences must be maintain for the sake of clarity in communication. We use three hardware keyboards that all have built in samplers. That is, they contain a sampler with their own memory and mic/line inputs to record the samplers, plus they can import samples and wavs via USB.

All the software mentioned here, does not do that, hence, anyone saying they do, is either under-educated, misinformed, confused, or deceptive.
They really come down to where the samples are dictated from of whether they're romplers or sample players. So by this basis alone, if it cannot, at the very least, import outside samples (and it depends largely on factory samples for its sound)... it is a ROMpler. If it can import but cannot sample itself... it is a Sample Player. All of my ITB gems are for manipulation and processing, none of them sample. But my HW keyboards do.

Kontakt is a sampler, because if it was real it would have some bloody "mic in" behind
The fact NI did not put an "audio in" is just because it is useless nowadays. It is a sampler because for a "virtual sampler" there is no difference between "recording" and "importing" samples. Hardware samplers had the microphone because it was useless and expensive (and unfair etc.) to be forced to buy an external recorder when you just could have it within a single piece of hardware. I think in Kontakt a "mic in" would be rather "redundant" and useless. In Hardware samplers you had to "save" your recording before manipulate/edit the samples. In virtual samplers, you just need to "import" them. Why should one "record" them within it?!

[aciddose]

I think we pretty much agree. My point has only been that things can fit with more than one label at once.

Just because we call it a rompler doesn't mean it can't load samples or isn't an editable synthesizer, it means only like you said there is some component that can't be modified and 90% of the time people mean samples.

Just because we say something is a sampler doesn't mean it can sample, as people often use the term as short for sample-player. I agree sample-player would be better but unfortunately it isn't up to us.

People should try to view terms in a much more liquid format with more abstract meaning. Try to isolate what the word probably means, then start to question if it means everything you think. In most cases you can strip a word almost bare just down to one specific meaning that it must have, while everything else is a maybe. Only that one meaning is concrete, and even concrete can be smashed.

Only when you use: "____ is only a rompler" you start to get the impression they are using it as an exclusive like "not-editable-synthesizer", "only-sample-player", etc.

[A.M. Gold]

This has turned into an incredibly useful thread. Thank you all.

We now know that the world has a lot of people in it and they like using different words for different things and then they like logging onto forums and expressing that they like using different words for different things and then they like mixing it up with vairous other cool and happening human individual creatures of the world and grooving on all the different words for all the cool stuff and all that cool shit n' stuff.

Nom sayin'?

I still think if Massive was an object it would be a Christmas tree with lights that spelled out "Mega Burrito" when they blinked, which is obviously a kind of rompler.

[A.M. Gold]

Notice I said rompler not ROMpler.

[Sampleconstruct]

This has turned into an incredibly useful thread. Thank you all.

We now know that the world has a lot of people in it and they like using different words for different things and then they like logging onto forums and expressing that they like using different words for different things and then they like mixing it up with vairous other cool and happening human individual creatures of the world and grooving on all the different words for all the cool stuff and all that cool shit n' stuff.

Nom sayin'?

I still think if Massive was an object it would be a Christmas tree with lights that spelled out "Mega Burrito" when they blinked, which is obviously a kind of rompler.

ROFL

[aciddose]

if Massive was an object

What color would it be? High pitched and probably loud.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e57QD6Pxjeg

[mhog]

I just think people forget to add "simulation of a..." when interacting with virtual reality (software). Example: people say "desktop" (it is understood nothing is real: it is just a model), "library", "folder", etc. Just add "simulation of a" (rompler, sampler, modular synth, keyboard, electric guitar, amplifier... whatever) and everything can be solved in a... microsecond

[mhog]

P.S. well... what is reality?...
This is becoming too deep. Bye.

[aciddose]

Well, software isn't a simulation though. In the vast majority of cases you can argue at best certain implementations partially emulate certain other implementations.

They're both reaching to do a computation and approximating that in different ways.

[Hadrondrift]

what is reality?

Easy: Reality is the reverb tail of the big bang output of a singularity rompler modulated by consciousness.

[osiris]

Some of my favorite Omni patches only use the Oscillators. Judging from some comments, the Virus is a Rompler.
Or Wavetable synth....