Softsynth itch. What to buy?

[Greenstorm33]

Biotek's that good, huh? When the editor came out I got the impression from looking at the product page that it was sort of a diet Falcon and didn't give it much thought after that.

[KBSoundSmith]

Perhaps I'll look into BioTek myself, hadn't heard much of it before.

As for suggestions....

If you like Wiggle, then I'd highly recommend a more fully featured FM synth. If you really want to dig deep into FM, Sytrus is the best available. FM8 is great, I own a copy... but I have been demoing Sytrus and it is abundantly clear that it can go far beyond FM8's capabilities (although FM8 maintains a few respectable tricks up its sleeve too).

I'm not sure why you hesitate on Zebra. While any one aspect of the synth can be beaten by more specialized synthesizers in terms of features, its primary advantage is that it can mix and match various synthesis types and achieve "more than the sum of its parts." If I was only allowed to keep one of my synths, this would be it.

I've heard good things about Avenger as well, although I've yet to explore it at all -- I've heard it allows sample usage in an FM context recently, although if I'm not mistaken full-blown matrix FM programming isn't possible. It sounds like a "do-everything" synth overall, so if you aren't interested in Zebra and want sample usage, perhaps this would suit you.

Harmor. It may be the most criminally overlooked synth on the market. And that's probably because most people are afraid to try to program it -- I've been demoing it recently and it's fantastic. It seems so simple on the front...but the rabbit hole doesn't have an end.

....but all that aside, you seem to have plenty of capable synths. Why not choose a type of synthesis (FM, subtractive, wavescanning, etc) to focus on and try to dig as deep as possible with what you already have?

[yellowmix]

I lean toward synths with relatively complex OSCs, I believe that they define sound, not filters or effects. I like oscillator effects, like warping in Serum, or Z3TA2. Constantly variable waveforms for VA and such.

I have 25% off coupon for U-he. I always gravitated towards Zebra, but something is odd about it. I should demo it again.

Definitely demo it again. It's got everything you say you want in oscillators that isn't in any other synth. It's got vector or additive morphing wavetables and two FX per oscillator. The FX range from partial-based filters to waveshaping to fractalizing and more. That's in addition to sync and a bunch of other options that multiply with everything else.

What did you find odd? It's a semi-modular synth with four lanes, audio rate modules like oscillators and filters go on the left, modulators like envelopes and LFOs are on the right. Then there is a master mixer lane with two bus lanes, and FX there show up to the right of the mixer panel. It can be overwhelming if you're used to fixed architectures. It's important to read the manual. Besides learning how to use the software, there are a lot of tricks and tips in there. It may take some time to grasp it. Fortunately u-he's demos are very generous.

[perpetual3]

Softube Modular with Buchla 259e

[Michael L]

I'm not sure why you hesitate on Zebra.

Personally, I don't like Zebra, even though it is a top-quality synth. We can't always explain why we have a strong feeling for/against an instrument. Sometimes we listen to a feature list and not to ourselves.

Jean-Michel Jarre said this in a video, and I put it on my desktop:

think about what instruments - a plugin, a module, a polyphonic synth you feel a kind of empathy with, and then stay focused for six months or one year only on this. Don't take anything else. Just on one element and try to express yourself because what's going to be unique is yourself. It's not the machine.

[perpetual3]

I'm not sure why you hesitate on Zebra.

Personally, I don't like Zebra, even though it is a top-quality synth. We can't always explain why we have a strong feeling for/against an instrument. Sometimes we listen to a feature list and not to ourselves. Jean-Michel Jarre once said:

think about what instruments - a plugin, a module, a polyphonic synth you feel a kind of empathy with, and then stay focused for six months or one year only on this. Don't take anything else. Just on one element and try to express yourself because what's going to be unique is yourself. It's not the machine.

For me, those would be TAL Sampler, TAL Mod, and Plogue PortaFM.

[dandezebra]

Zebra 2 - a must have
Biotek 2 - endless
Harmor - endless II
Repro or Bazille - synths with balls
Aalto - fun and gorgeous
Dune 2 - beast
Systrus - beast II

There, no facts but the truth.

[acYm]

get a kore2 and use all your softsynths for the first time.

[Richard deHove]

After reading the OP's parameters I think ArcSyn is a good fit. It has a huge variety of oscillators and filters with one of the most unique modulation systems around. If you want unusual sounds with constantly shifting modulations and randomizations then ArcSyn fits very well.
As an example, here's a link to the manual detailing the various oscillators:
https://www.spcplugins.com/arcsyn-manual-osc-waves

I also hadn't heard much about Biotek and have had a bit of a look. Looks like a much slicker, smoother version of ArcSyn in some ways, but from what I can tell, much slower to tweak. ArcSyn's GUI isn't the prettiest, but it's an efficient, fast one-pager.

[pdxindy]

I lean toward synths with relatively complex OSCs

A single Zebra Osc is a credible synth just by itself...

[bbtr]

Try to play Zebra at 10 or 15 BPM - the oscillators fall apart, as they are nothing but a bunch of wave shapes cycled through in some way. "Real" oscillators don't fall apart at such BPMs and stay as thick and detailed as when played at 100 or 150 BPM.

[mevla]

Try to play Zebra at 10 or 15 BPM - the oscillators fall apart, as they are nothing but a bunch of wave shapes cycled through in some way. "Real" oscillators don't fall apart at such BPMs and stay as thick and detailed as when played at 100 or 150 BPM.

I'd be curious to hear some music created at 10 to 15 BPM. Are there any examples out there ?

[Michael L]

I'd be curious to hear some music created at 10 to 15 BPM. Are there any examples out there ?

No. Slower than ~33bpm and we can't remember the musical pattern: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afhSDK5DJqA

[low_low]

The slowest performance I've ever heard of is that one that's been going on for years at a Cathedral in Europe, where they play a new note every 50 years or something and people fly there and have a big party when it changes lol. I can't remember the piece of music, I just remember reading about it.

Edit, I just looked it up, it's in a church in Germany and its called "As slow as possible" and takes 639 years to play from beginning to end lol.

[KBSoundSmith]

Try to play Zebra at 10 or 15 BPM - the oscillators fall apart, as they are nothing but a bunch of wave shapes cycled through in some way. "Real" oscillators don't fall apart at such BPMs and stay as thick and detailed as when played at 100 or 150 BPM.

You mean try to play Zebra at 10 or 15 Hertz?

You aren't going to hear sustained tone by any synthesizer at that point -- because it's sub-audio. If the waveform is jagged like a sawtooth wave, then you will hear pop/clicks at peak amplitude...again as would be the case with any synthesizer, hardware or software, analog or digital. "Real" oscillators behave in exactly the same way -- do you need me to record my Moog to demonstrate?