KVR Audio

quantum7 · Post by **quantum7** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:19 am

I messed with it this afternoon and OBXD sounds great....considering the FREE price-tag, but unless you can create the hundreds upon hundreds of killer presets that the OP-X PRO-II has for the OBXD to do a side by side comparison, I'll take the OP-X PRO-II.

V0RT3X · Post by **V0RT3X** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:35 am

Is that frequency issue present in the reaktor version?

also here is some Matrix12 goodness

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=285A-WFuvUQ

quantum7 · Post by **quantum7** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:44 am

V0RT3X wrote:I'd rather buy a used Xpander

You can get them on Evil-bay for between $2,500 and $3k. Personally, for about 85.00 Euros (on sale currently until the 27th) the OP-X PRO-II is a steal.

quantum7 · Post by **quantum7** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:53 am

V0RT3X wrote:Is that frequency issue present in the reaktor version?

also here is some Matrix12 goodness

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=285A-WFuvUQ

I had a buddy that offered to sell me his for a ridiculously low price 7 or 8 years ago and now REALLY wished I had taken it off his hands.

yessongs · Post by **yessongs** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:55 am

curious if you any of you have ever taken an OPX preset and tried to make it sound like that on obxd to see what it sounds like? Is it close or does it totally sound different?

Breeze · Post by **Breeze** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 12:29 pm

yessongs wrote:curious if you any of you have ever taken an OPX preset and tried to make it sound like that on obxd to see what it sounds like? Is it close or does it totally sound different?

It can be practically the same but it really depends on the preset. The OPX has more features like continuous kbd scaling and osc wave balance, among others, that allows for more fine tuning and flexibility. You can download the OPX demo and compare for yourself.

I almost pulled the trigger so many times on the OPX, but the fact that it's both 32-bit only and SynthEdit held me back. Historically, the day I categorically stopped using SynthEdit plugins is the day my DAW stopped crashing. It's a rule I can't bring myself to break, despite the reports that OPX is perfectly stable bridged. And now, the OBXD fills that sound niche very nicely for my needs. It just needs to be managed more (8 voices only, no FX, no built-in patch browser, feature limitations...).

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 12:51 pm

Aubrey Lamont wrote:How does it compare to OBXD?

Like apples and oranges.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 12:57 pm

quantum7 wrote:but unless you can create the hundreds upon hundreds of killer presets that the OP-X PRO-II has for the OBXD to do a side by side comparison, I'll take the OP-X PRO-II.

I guess you loaded with cash then, as $179 is not an easy investment for everybody.

Last time I downloaded OBXD it came bundled with hundred upon hundred presets. You don't mean that these presets should be recreations of the presets in OP-X Pro II?

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 1:03 pm

Thankfully OP-X Pro can be snagged when it's on sale, which isn't that far between...

And it actually can do inverted filter envelope sweeps, which really bugs me with OBXD, even it being free.

electro · Post by **electro** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 2:46 pm

quantum7 wrote:I haven't touched OP-X PRO-II in quite a while, mainly because it's the only softsyth I have left that is still a lowly 32-bit

How the hell is this still acceptable in 2014? There are only 5 serious synths left as 32-bit dinosaurs. 3 of those 5 are expected to have x64 ports within the calendar year.

Aubrey Lamont wrote:How does it compare to OBXD?

Sonically Speaking OP-X Pro is the clear winner, a very precise Oberheim OB-X emulation.

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 3:02 pm

electro wrote:How the hell is this still acceptable in 2014?

It's ok when you have a good bit-bridge. Like in Reaper.

electro · Post by **electro** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 3:18 pm

the x86 dead end street is understandable when you're talking about sub par emulations and generic freeware synths, but having to bit bridge its really not acceptable for a project as serious and ambitious as OP-X.

Imagine a x86 only Monark or TAL Bassline. It just wouldn't make sense.

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 3:25 pm

I can agree with that. But oh well. I'm also not sure why Peter doesn't just buckle down and do a proper C++ multiplatform version of it with a more pleasant GUI to work with. Or at least outsource that...

PAK · Post by **PAK** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 4:22 pm

yessongs wrote:curious if you any of you have ever taken an OPX preset and tried to make it sound like that on obxd to see what it sounds like? Is it close or does it totally sound different?

I'd say OBXD sounds closer to Diva than OP-X. In the end I decided OBXD didn't offer sufficient differences to use it much over Diva. But it's a free(!) plugin, so we're not exactly comparing like for like.

For some basic sound elements - not only resonance heavy, but which lean in a brighter or more "raw" (Jump) like direction, OBXD will continue to have an edge until OP-X's filter methods are updated.

Although OP-X can sound "dulled" (Ie not as bright nor punchy) it's also been tone tweaked against a real OB-X by someone with a good musical ear. So, despite the disadvantages of no ZDF methods, it still captures elements which require more effort to tweak towards with other synths.

If you check out areas like the Crossmod, OP-X can (quite literally) scream in ways OBXD just can't do. OP-X also offers more control of voice variation, which means you can create nice voice cycling sounds which can't be done in OBXD.

It isn't just about extremes though. Off the top of my head - try to copy the unison bass sound from the infamous synth anthem "Axel F". OP-X provides a good attempt in its famous bank. If you attempt it with OBXD then, even allowing for feature differences, it might build a greater appreciation for why it isn't always about being bold and brash.

But, again, we're talking about comparing things to a free plugin here. So it's more about whether you can justify spending on other things in light of what that free thing provides - and only you can answer that.

For the sort of person who doesn't tweak a whole lot themselves (in reality that means most users) then the impressive amount of high quality, vintage oriented, presets OP-X comes with makes it hard not to recommend when on sale.. Otherwise OBXD will generally cover the more brash side of things better.. IMO at least

quantum7 · Post by **quantum7** » Thu Apr 24, 2014 4:53 pm

The "famous bank" comes the closest IMO to sooo many 80's classics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1oG2O3_IuM

I tried this morning to duplicate some of the OPX sounds with the OBXD, but personally like the OPX better. Again, for less the $120 USD price which on sale now until the 27th, it's a steal......even if you do have to use JBridge. I just HOPE that they go 64-bit soon.

SonicProjects OP-X PRO-II - I'm surprised this doesn't get talked about more