Crazy to think Vaz Modular is the best wavetable synth

[Numanoid]

'first and foremost' is your slant

Nope, I didn't use the word slant, but you did.

[Numanoid]

Yes, inspired by. Not 'completely dictated by', as though noone should be allowed to mention the other stuff that it does well.

Well, quite contrary to the thread title then

[Numanoid]

There's no 'of the 70s' restriction about Vaz, though. Again, that's your slant.

Nope, I didn't use that word, but you did

[Numanoid]

What, because of this misplaced notion you have that your interpretation of the design influences of Vaz somehow have any relevance to its actual capabilities?

So it comes in 64 bit version, and also works for Mac, just like Reaktor.

[pdxindy]

Zebra, hands down. With user definable, true spectral and geometric morphing and the addition of two extra axes of waveform morphing provided by the Osc FX (before we've even left the oscillator module), something akin to 3D wavetable morphing is available to you right off the bat. If you turn the resolution parameter down, it becomes much more granular, and you get endless crossfades of waveforms rather than morphs, making it sound more like the older wavescanning and sequencing synths that used crossfades.

Yeah... 1 Zebra Osc is a synth all by itself

[stikygum]

Hm... VAZ wavetables don't sound better - Dune 2 or Surge have much better anti aliasing because of the internal multisampling / resynthesis (they require a special format and have other limitations to sound that good).

But VAZ wavetable OSCs are the most flexible (beside Reaktor), because it's a modular environment. Further the wavetables can have nearly arbitrary content (also regarding the number of slots and slot size) and use the *.wav format. Even stereo wavetables work. Try the following wavescanning examples with any other WT based synth (this are single, raw wavetables - no unisono, filters or fx):

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/mpnurujr3a1goc ... tables.mp3
https://dl.dropbox.com/s/ipkskb3uxhob8x ... _Ghost.mp3

This is what makes the VAZ wavetable OSC unique (at least for me). But you can also do 'classic' single cycle wavetables like PPG Wave or Waldorf Microwave/Blofeld. Here some selfmade user wavetables from Terratec Komplexer, converted and played in VAZ (the wave scanning is used to keep equal length of the sound's evolution over time for all pitches):

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/lqbcsdr3dibk5s ... ck_VAZ.mp3

This is exactly what I'm talking about. Vaz sounds great here. It has a gritty raw quality to the sound. You think Dune 2 and Surge sound better in the wavetable dept? I haven't listened to much of Surge, but Dune 2's wavetables sounded somewhat tame to me.

Years ago I was surprised to find out that Vaz was capable of wavetable synthesis as it's aimed at being an analog modular type synth. It seems to me the whole confusion stems from the creator. It understandable anyone would perceive this synth one way or the other. Seems like the creator was very ambitious and then became disappointed once it didn't take off and has since let it be with a lower price point. Is it an analog modular, is it a wavetable synth…. well the answer seems to be both and even more that I'm probably unaware of. Aimed at being an analog modular, somehow this synth managed to not only surprise me with it's wavetables, but sound better than most out there to my ears.

Does Vaz use sampled Wavetables as the Osc? I was thinking it does. Do others like Dune 2, Electra 2, Surge, etc. do the same?

[dj-daniel]

Xfer Serum is gonna be crazy for wavescanning.

[VariKusBrainZ]

Xfer Serum is gonna be crazy for wavescanning.

And it'll be uglier than Vaz if Deadmaus is involved in the graphics again

[blacktomcat666]

Does Vaz use sampled Wavetables as the Osc? I was thinking it does. Do others like Dune 2, Electra 2, Surge, etc. do the same?

Some examples of wavetable implementations:

VAZ uses sampled wavetables. In Theory you even could turn any 'normal' *.wav into a wavetable by putting a loop range at the start of the file. VAZ counts, how often the loop range fits into the file and this value is set as "number of slots". For better results it's recommended to resynthesize samples in an external software in order to make it scanable without heavy buzzing/phasing artifacts. This resynthesis will make the sample sounding a bit artificial, robotic or smeared, but this is a result of the WT technology itself (since it doesn't allow a free running phase / pitch envelope for each single partial).

Dune 2 also uses precomputed samples. The wavetables consist of up to 64 slots and have 2048 samples each. Dune's *.wt files also hold precomputed copys of the wavetable with limited harmonic content (every fourth note) to avoid aliasing when playing higher pitches. These copies are derivated from the source by resynthesis and this resynthesis happens inside the editor software, not within the synth.

Surge's *.wt files also hold samples (up to 512 slots with up to 1024 samples per slot), but Surge has a built-in resynthesis engine for single cycles. You only have to write the proper header, the sound content is similar to a *.wav file.

Wolfgang Palm's Wavegenerator *.wts files are similar to these of Surge (but with up to 256 slots and fixed 128 samples per slot), but have a more complex header and further allow only mirrored half-cycles (like the PPG Wave or the Waldorf MW 1). The resynthesis is done within the synth, so you have access to a cycle's partials.

Terratec Komplexer uses additive data. The *.wt files hold 33 slots with 64 amplitude values each for sine waves (which also results in a wave mirrored half - cycles).

[MadGav]

I think Vaz Modular sounds like a decade old softsynth

OMG VAZ Modular accused of being what it is! The last round of VA module updates are around a decade old.

On what is and isn't... it's a modular, so is what you make it, and while the workflow was (kinda) inspired by analogue modulars as in patching and tweaking at the same time sample playback/wavetable has been there right since the beginning. I wonder if that's before some forum members were born

[V0RT3X]

Recently I heard some newer soft synths that have wavetables like Dune 2 and Electra 2. I haven't heard a whole of wavetable stuff from those two, so maybe I'm skewed in thinking Vaz Modular wavetables sound better.

Hm... VAZ wavetables don't sound better - Dune 2 or Surge have much better anti aliasing because of the internal multisampling / resynthesis (they require a special format and have other limitations to sound that good).

But VAZ wavetable OSCs are the most flexible (beside Reaktor), because it's a modular environment. Further the wavetables can have nearly arbitrary content (also regarding the number of slots and slot size) and use the *.wav format. Even stereo wavetables work. Try the following wavescanning examples with any other WT based synth (this are single, raw wavetables - no unisono, filters or fx):

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/mpnurujr3a1goc ... tables.mp3
https://dl.dropbox.com/s/ipkskb3uxhob8x ... _Ghost.mp3

This is what makes the VAZ wavetable OSC unique (at least for me). But you can also do 'classic' single cycle wavetables like PPG Wave or Waldorf Microwave/Blofeld. Here some selfmade user wavetables from Terratec Komplexer, converted and played in VAZ (the wave scanning is used to keep equal length of the sound's evolution over time for all pitches):

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/lqbcsdr3dibk5s ... ck_VAZ.mp3

For some reason it reminds me of something from a Doom 64 or Playstation horror video game. Right down to the aliasing qualities. That's pretty neat.

Here's what the sample qualities remind me of. Not the actual samples you used, but just how they sound while being played in Vaz.

http://aubreyhodges.bandcamp.com/album/ ... soundtrack

[whyterabbyt]

'first and foremost' is your slant

Nope, I didn't use the word slant, but you did.

I never said you used the word slant, I said your use of 'first and foremost' was adding one. Do you need the difference explained to you?

[whyterabbyt]

Yes, inspired by. Not 'completely dictated by', as though noone should be allowed to mention the other stuff that it does well.

Well, quite contrary to the thread title then

Nope, not that either.

[whyterabbyt]

There's no 'of the 70s' restriction about Vaz, though. Again, that's your slant.

Nope, I didn't use that word, but you did

I never said you used the word slant, I said your use of ''of the 70s' was adding one. Do you need the difference explained to you?

[whyterabbyt]

What, because of this misplaced notion you have that your interpretation of the design influences of Vaz somehow have any relevance to its actual capabilities?

So it comes in 64 bit version, and also works for Mac, just like Reaktor.

Is that your conclusion? Because that, just like any of the other irrelevancies you raised, has nothing to do with its wavetable capabilities, and that was the subject in question.

Have you got such a serious objection to someone finding Vaz able to handle wavetables well that you'll manufacture any spurious reason whatsoever to dismiss it? Because that's what youve been doing.