Alternative to Hive

[greedy.mf]

I was in a similar situation but i like and choosed Hive
Maybe Z3TA+ 2 fits your need, its a waveshaping synth, 2000+ Presets and pretty cheap.

I own it, it's nice. It was my first plugin purchase, to complement iOS version. No regrets.

Tons of presets, yes. Good effects, several synthesys methods - PM, FM, RM.
However the interface and overall approach is way too old school for me.
You need to click a lot. Every ENV, OSC or LFO.
Some quirky stuff like unable to regtrigger in mono mode.
Mod matrix is an unintuitive mess.
Every time I use it I can't help but wonder that can it do what Serum cannot. Only faster, easier and with more fun.
Similar OSC shaping with warp modes, which you can render to wave table and warp again.
Better matrix.
One can argue that OSCx6 is better than two and a half, and mayby it is for rare patches like ethereal morphing pads or whatever.

As for Hive replacement - not good. Hive is all about workflow. Pick a preset, correct some settings and carry on. Z3ta pulls you in to fiddle with OSC volumes, mod curves and all that stuff. More of sound design than making music.
Sonically Z3ta pallette is wider than Hive's. But so is of Serum, Bazille, Synthmaster, Spectral or pretty much anything.

[greedy.mf]

So many options to choose from but none of them satisfies you?

I suppose this question is for me.

As for options that make good sounds, there are plenty of them to my liking.

Serum
Bazille
Synthmaster 2

As for options that combine good sound with comfortable workflow not so. Meaning abundance of presets with easy tweaking.
If Hive sounded like Diva it would be an all-around winner. However it does not.

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

[Igro]

So many options to choose from but none of them satisfies you?

I suppose this question is for me.

As for options that make good sounds, there are plenty of them to my liking.

Serum
Bazille
Synthmaster 2

As for options that combine good sound with comfortable workflow not so. Meaning abundance of presets with easy tweaking.
If Hive sounded like Diva it would be an all-around winner. However it does not.

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

Try Rapid. The bigger GUI is coming as well as different skins. Very fast workflow.

[EnGee]

There are many choices there. The differences become thin even though using other synthesis than subtractive. Anyway, some of the synths that haven't been mentioned yet (I think):

- Waves Codex
(Very near to Element 1 sound but can do much more as it is a wavetable synth. It is discounted now I think).

- U-he Diva (great and easy on the eyes subtractive synth with a great sound and versatility).

- Air synths (especially Vacuum Pro (subtractive) and Loom (additive)). Loom 2 is to be released soon and it has some enhancements over Loom 1. It has great presets and one of the best morphing tool I have ever seen. The instruments bundle is discounted usually and sometimes with a silly upgrade from Hybrid 3 (or whatever).

- Reaktor 5/6 ensembles (They really have a great sound). I like more and more the synths that come with Reaktor. They cut into the mix like a knife without any additional effect! The downside might be the GUI for the old synths, but they damn aged well! One of the many I like is 2-Osc. It has a great sound:

Reaktor - 2-Osc.JPG

[Elektronisch]

So many options to choose from but none of them satisfies you?

I suppose this question is for me.

As for options that make good sounds, there are plenty of them to my liking.

Serum
Bazille
Synthmaster 2

As for options that combine good sound with comfortable workflow not so. Meaning abundance of presets with easy tweaking.
If Hive sounded like Diva it would be an all-around winner. However it does not.

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

You do realise there wount be perfect synth (wich is also very personal)?

I dont know but i think you are way too picky. More then it is i dont know what is your background but being so picky i suppose you dont really produce music (at least on a professional level)?

I think Nexus 2 full bundle is maybe something for you if your main goal is presets anyway

[ilmai]

I'm in a similar boat, looking for a "workhorse" synth. I own Komplete 11 but while I use most of the synths for specific sounds (I haven't found a use for FM8 yet, and Absynth is melting my brain), I don't feel like any of them could become my go-to synth. Massive feels the most versatile, but the UI is confusing for sound design. I'm working in Bitwig and while Polysynth has some nice presets, especially if you pile on effects, the basic sound just isn't inspiring enough to spark creativity. Also the UI suffers from being crammed in the device bar instead of being its own window.

For me, the most important things are versatility, an intuitive UI for sound design, and inspiring sounds. I'm not looking for accurate emulations, I have never owned a hardware synth (except some cheap Yamaha as a kid) so I'm nostalgic for anything. Both the UI and the sound have to work together to make me want to experiment. If I can't figure out how to map an LFO to the filter cutoff for example, that's not a good start. I think I'm more sensitive to UI design than average, maybe because that's what I have studied and do for my living.

With that being said, what I've done is basically take all the synth suggestions from this forum (except those requiring iLok, personal issues with that) and started demoing using a song I'm working on, trying to replace the sounds I'm currently using. I have several left to try, but here are some notes so far, in alphabetical order:

ACE - Didn't feel versatile enough sound-wise, compared to some of the other options.
ANA - Felt both too basic and too confusing at the same time. Sounds were ok but didn't stand out.
Bazille - Sounds really nice, the UI isn't bad but the complexity is melting my brain. Probably not a workhorse synth but might have to pick this up later.
Diva - An absolute gem! I was almost put off by warnings about insane CPU usage, but not a problem at all on my i7. Sounds awesome out of the box, very versatile, complex but not overwhelming. Modulation routing could be more intuitive. My favorite so far.
Hive - Like the OP, I wanted to like it but the sounds just weren't inspiring.
Saurus - Nice, but not very versatile compared to others on this list, and not super impressed by the sounds.
Serum - As intuitive as they say. Very nice sound quality, harsher than e.g. Diva but seems it can do some types of sounds such as plucks better. Preset browser (and the presets themselves) could be better, but everything else seems to be better then Massive, which is the most direct comparison out of the synths I have tested so far.
Synthmaster - Nice sounds, horrible UI, doesn't sound inspiring enough to make me stand the UI.
Wiggle - Sounds like it has its niche, and both the UI and sounds are nice enough, but doesn't feel like it could become my go-to synth.
Wusik - From the installation process to the sounds and the UI, wasn't impressed.
Zebra - The UI was an instant turn off. Didn't sound as inspiring as Bazille & Diva.

I only wanted to buy one synth, but at the moment it looks like I might have to get both Diva and Serum. I have a bunch still left to demo though, so I'll update my notes when I'm done with that.

Still left to demo: Avenger, Diversion, Dune 2, Electra, Gladiator, Icarus, Lush 101, Rapid, RayBlaster, Spire, Sylenth1.

EDIT: Forgot to mention Saurus

[greedy.mf]

I'm in a similar boat, looking for a "workhorse" synth. I own Komplete 11 but while I use most of the synths for specific sounds (I haven't found a use for FM8 yet, and Absynth is melting my brain), I don't feel like any of them could become my go-to synth. Massive feels the most versatile, but the UI is confusing for sound design. I'm working in Bitwig and while Polysynth has some nice presets, especially if you pile on effects, the basic sound just isn't inspiring enough to spark creativity. Also the UI suffers from being crammed in the device bar instead of being its own window.

For me, the most important things are versatility, an intuitive UI for sound design, and inspiring sounds. I'm not looking for accurate emulations, I have never owned a hardware synth (except some cheap Yamaha as a kid) so I'm nostalgic for anything. Both the UI and the sound have to work together to make me want to experiment. If I can't figure out how to map an LFO to the filter cutoff for example, that's not a good start. I think I'm more sensitive to UI design than average, maybe because that's what I have studied and do for my living.

With that being said, what I've done is basically take all the synth suggestions from this forum (except those requiring iLok, personal issues with that) and started demoing using a song I'm working on, trying to replace the sounds I'm currently using. I have several left to try, but here are some notes so far, in alphabetical order:

ACE - Didn't feel versatile enough sound-wise, compared to some of the other options.
ANA - Felt both too basic and too confusing at the same time. Sounds were ok but didn't stand out.
Bazille - Sounds really nice, the UI isn't bad but the complexity is melting my brain. Probably not a workhorse synth but might have to pick this up later.
Diva - An absolute gem! I was almost put off by warnings about insane CPU usage, but not a problem at all on my i7. Sounds awesome out of the box, very versatile, complex but not overwhelming. Modulation routing could be more intuitive. My favorite so far.
Hive - Like the OP, I wanted to like it but the sounds just weren't inspiring.
Saurus - Nice, but not very versatile compared to others on this list, and not super impressed by the sounds.
Serum - As intuitive as they say. Very nice sound quality, harsher than e.g. Diva but seems it can do some types of sounds such as plucks better. Preset browser (and the presets themselves) could be better, but everything else seems to be better then Massive, which is the most direct comparison out of the synths I have tested so far.
Synthmaster - Nice sounds, horrible UI, doesn't sound inspiring enough to make me stand the UI.
Wiggle - Sounds like it has its niche, and both the UI and sounds are nice enough, but doesn't feel like it could become my go-to synth.
Wusik - From the installation process to the sounds and the UI, wasn't impressed.
Zebra - The UI was an instant turn off. Didn't sound as inspiring as Bazille & Diva.

I only wanted to buy one synth, but at the moment it looks like I might have to get both Diva and Serum. I have a bunch still left to demo though, so I'll update my notes when I'm done with that.

Still left to demo: Avenger, Diversion, Dune 2, Electra, Gladiator, Icarus, Lush 101, Rapid, RayBlaster, Spire, Sylenth1.

EDIT: Forgot to mention Saurus

Check out Synthmaster One. Looks like Hive, sounds like Synthmaster 2.
May be to your liking.
Naming could be less confusing though.

Some mentioned ANA 2 is around the corner, looks and sounds nice based on two videos.

EDIT: Added ANA 2 bit

[ilmai]

Check out Synthmaster One. Looks like Hive, sounds like Synthmaster 2.
May be to your liking.
Naming could be less confusing though.

Some mentioned ANA 2 is around the corner, looks and sounds nice based on two videos.

EDIT: Added ANA 2 bit

Actually my notes covered Synthmaster One, 2 (what's with the names) and Player. One was better than 2 IMO, but still hated the UI.

[greedy.mf]

So many options to choose from but none of them satisfies you?

I suppose this question is for me.

As for options that make good sounds, there are plenty of them to my liking.

Serum
Bazille
Synthmaster 2

As for options that combine good sound with comfortable workflow not so. Meaning abundance of presets with easy tweaking.
If Hive sounded like Diva it would be an all-around winner. However it does not.

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

Try Rapid. The bigger GUI is coming as well as different skins. Very fast workflow.

Just checked it on their site.
The looks of it is almost insulting. Color scheme, font. Dreadful.
Audio demo is ok. Demo it in my DAW later, if I'll get over UI.

[greedy.mf]

Check out Synthmaster One. Looks like Hive, sounds like Synthmaster 2.
May be to your liking.
Naming could be less confusing though.

Some mentioned ANA 2 is around the corner, looks and sounds nice based on two videos.

EDIT: Added ANA 2 bit

Actually my notes covered Synthmaster One, 2 (what's with the names) and Player. One was better than 2 IMO, but still hated the UI.

There was only one entry of Synthmaster in the list.
Since you mentioned horrible UI, I thought it was 2.8.

[Zexila]

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

Serum was my suggestion also, but agree, sound banks variety for Serum is really lame, best stuff sound bank wise I heard is for Zebra, hands down.

[recursive one]

So many options to choose from but none of them satisfies you?

I suppose this question is for me.

As for options that make good sounds, there are plenty of them to my liking.

Serum
Bazille
Synthmaster 2

As for options that combine good sound with comfortable workflow not so. Meaning abundance of presets with easy tweaking.
If Hive sounded like Diva it would be an all-around winner. However it does not.

Serum is closest. Preset wise it as a mess. All the soundbanks I've heard sounds like sandpaper on a glass. Besides Hollo's Warmed.

But designing from scratch is a joy. Granted, that's not what I wanted initially. But maybe it is the only way to go.

Try Rapid. The bigger GUI is coming as well as different skins. Very fast workflow.

Just checked it on their site.
The looks of it is almost insulting. Color scheme, font. Dreadful.
Audio demo is ok. Demo it in my DAW later, if I'll get over UI.

Visuals are definiutely not the strongest point of Parawave.

But the synth itself is very good, both the sound and the ergonomics. If you rely on presets there are plenty of them in the full version, they mostly are targeted at EDM and generic pop music but it's easy to tweak them into something more interesting.

[fluffy_little_something]

Predator is more or less one-page and comes with lots of presets, but I am not sure they fixed the unison by now, it used to have an ugly phase bump if I remember correctly.

[greedy.mf]

You do realise there wount be perfect synth (wich is also very personal)?

I dont know but i think you are way too picky. More then it is i dont know what is your background but being so picky i suppose you dont really produce music (at least on a professional level)?

I think Nexus 2 full bundle is maybe something for you if your main goal is presets anyway

There is no perfect synth. Some are just better for you. Market is huge. I learned a lot of new names.
I believe in positive effect of all instruments you use in you craft, whether it is carpentry or skateboarding.

You're right, I'm not on a professional level, so I seek pleasure in this activity first and foremost for myself.
If I was forced somehow, I'd be more than happy to use Hive or Sylenth or every name on the thread. They are fine instruments and do the job.

As for Nexus - not a fan of samplers.

EDIT: added Nexus bit.

[greedy.mf]

Predator is more or less one-page and comes with lots of presets, but I am not sure they fixed the unison by now, it used to have an ugly phase bump if I remember correctly.

Do you mean v1? Because v2 is knee deep of tabs and subsequent clicking.