By Daedalus
On 18th May 2004
Version: 2002
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2 of 4 people found
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When I first download this synth I didn't think it would do any good compared to synths like the Superwave P8. But as it turned out, the Claw can create some nice lead and bass sounds, especially sreaming and acid-like ones. The Claw only has a few buttons and knobs, but they are easy to use and give you a lot of possibilitys. This is a synth I can recommend! |
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By Jeremy_NSL
On 29th October 2003
Version: 1
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1 of 1 people found
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I've had Claw for awhile. At first I didn't see a monophonic 1-osc synth as very usable - but lately I've pulled it out on a few tracks and found that it sits in the mix well and doesn't sound cheap.
The GUI is very simple and looks good; this is a good synth to learn the basics of VA synthesis. Its very easy to dial up the tone you are looking for.
As I've said above, the sound is very good. There is a quite warm distortion that helps fatten the sound without sounding overly dirty. The delay is also a nice touch, especially for spacey leads. A stereo spreader is also a generous addition.
For me Claw's sound is more geared for leads than basses; 1-osc is sometimes just not enough for a nice bass. Of course, thats what the 4-osc Beast is for.
One thing claw is not is full-featured. It doesn't have an adsr env - so its not possible to create pads or anything without a fast attack. It also doesn't have the capability to change pitch-bend range. Since Claw is most useable for leads, its a shame there is no lfo for vibrato. And since the pitch-bend range is so high, you can't 'hack' vibrato in with automation very easily.
The docs are complete and explain everything you need to know, though you probably don't need them. Claw is also packaged with 32 presets which is more than enough for such a simple synth.
Claw has never crashed my system, or either of my hosts: Sonar 2 and Tracktion. Claw tends to use about 3-4% cpu per instance on my p4 2.1ghz, which is low - though considering its a 1-osc synth thats a higher % than I expected.
All in all, thanks ReFX for Claw! I recently bought Beast because Claw is such a nice "demo" freeware of Beasts' capabilities. I'd say more devs should release lite versions of their synths for free. |
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Last edited by floyd on 30th October 2003
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By dreibel
On 30th September 2003
Version: 1.0
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Being pretty skint when it comes to affording plug-ins, it's neat that companies can release fully functional freeware as a taste of what their commercial products sound like - and reFX has something special with Claw.
It may be pretty basic in its synth architecture - it's only got one oscillator, and it's monophonic - but it's got some nice delay and distortion functions to fatten up the tone, and the gui features a nice retro knob look. And the basic sound is pretty warm for digital, with a nice high end for cutting through a mix.
But IMHO one thing that's really neat about Claw is how well it gets along with input from MIDI guitar signals - it even tracks better with my "ancient" Roland GM-70 than most hardware synths. If you're a guitar-head who wants to input synth lines with MIDI guitar in your compos, this VSTi is certainly one of the best tools to keep in your virtual kit |
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By rsmus7
On 1st March 2003
Version: 1.0
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The claw really got a claw on me or the other way round.
Itīs not seen directly on the interface, but as you start to tweak it... Yeah you can get some really decent leadsounds and other stuff.
In the other reviews you can read the low cpu usage and that it is stable.
And it is really easy to operate, like a hardware piece of one unit height. Every knobīs function is easy to recognize.
SO it might appear as a one trick pony, yes but a very tricky one. |
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By kritikon
On 28th February 2003
Version: 1.0
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I thought there'd be more reviews of this one, which maybe shows how the 303 is going out of favour with the dance crew.
And that somes Claw up really - it is designed as a 303 clone. Does the world need more 303s? Well, if you like that sound, then short of actually shelling out and buying a real one, this is the next best thing. To my ears it is THE most realistic 303 plugin. I have Rebirth, and I now use Claw in preference (even though I don't use it that often - after all, you can't have a 303 in everything). I used to own a 303 way back when, so I know what they sound like - Claw gets that difficult to obtain lemon-sucking edge when on pulse wave and filter down, which is the real test of a 303 clone. It can sound very hollow but also has the true 18dB/Oct Curtis chip squelch.
A very useful addition is the hi-pass filter to obtain that hollow sound. Without it, Claw can be just a little too bassy. And that is actually a bonus - with one flick of a switch you get 303 squelches that sit ideally in a mix. A real 303 lost its bass end with the resonance up. You can do that with Claw too, but if you want to retain the bass content you can - and there aren't many true analogue synths that could achieve that particular trick.
I still own an MC202 (same circuits/filters as a 101) and Claw also does a very good 202 emulation when the resonance is further down. So it's alot more than a one trick pony - sure, it's aimed squarely at the techno dance-heads; but that just shows how ReFX got it right again - they give (for free!) one of the best 303s AND the best 202, all in one package.
There is midi automation, a good set of presets to start you off, and it is very easy to use. Very little CPU useage also. Stable as a rock bolted to the ground.
It won't do pads, it's not polyphonic, but so what - if you do dance, you NEED Claw, and that's what Claw sets out to give. And it does with bells on.
Top marks to ReFX again. |
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