The "I don't get it" or your 3 overrated synths thread

[bullshark]

I love this thread; it's like truth serum for KVR'ers.

And (so far) incredibly civil also. I kind of expected all-out-war by page 2...

kind of disapointed by that AAMOF

Yeah, what's up with that? John Viluch was involved, even! Maybe the truth is...we're civil!

Shhht. Don't go spreading that around, or I'll have to go back to watching TV for inane, mindless entertainment.

[mckenic]

Kantos - I just dont have the TIME to learn to reinvent the wheel... Im sure it can sound good but a I ever heard sounded terribe.

Symptohm: Melohman - Just never understood it. Good bass sounds but a lack of patches kiled it for me.

PlastiCZ! - For some reason I never took to it... I prefer Oatmeal.

[JerGoertz]

All the Arturia synths. I hear many like them, professionals use them, they must certainly be good in some way but *I* don't get it. They sound flat and boring in my opinion...

I feel the same way exactly.

I agree, I have never been able to like anything Arturia does for some reason. The synths just sound crappy to me, the UI's are clunky, and each one has given me bugs. I just don't get it why some people go crazy for them - is it because they're emulations? For some real emulations check out Oddity, ImpOSCar and especially Minimonsta!

I think CS-80V, especially after the update that enhanced chorus and ringmod, sounds INCREDIBLE. Organic, lush, and smooth.

[bduffy]

Kantos - I just dont have the TIME to earn to reinvent the wheel... Im sure it can sound good but a I ever heard sounded terribe.

Symptohm: Melohman - Just never understood it. Good bass sounds but a lack of patches kiled it for me.

PlastiCZ! - For some reason I never took to it... I prefer Oatmeal.

Kantos! 100% agree. And I forgot to mention physical modelling synths. What a snore-gasm.

[vespers75]

1) Most commercial synths
2) Most freeware synths
3) Most VST instruments

There's much truth in that, actually...
Of all the synths I've purchased, and of the freebies as well, I can count on one hand the ones I actually use time and time again....

[bugs]

1) Most commercial synths
2) Most freeware synths
3) Most VST instruments

There's much truth in that, actually...
Of all the synths I've purchased, and of the freebies as well, I can count on one hand the ones I actually use time and time again....

I can relate as well, however, of the five that I use most frequently and love, three are mentioned in this thread as over-rated. LOL

[JerGoertz]

1) Cameleon 5000 - Maybe it's wrong to judge this just based on the presets in came packaged with (although the presets really SHOULD be designed show off a synth's capabilities to its fullest), but the sound seems rather bland and thin to me.

2) Albino 2 - A synth praised for its great sound, with presets designed by a praised designer, but they seemed pretty uninteresting to me.

3) The Absynth 3 and 4 updates, compared with Absynth 2 - I am a huge fan of Absynth's power and versatility (you can get a LOT of really different, appealing sounds if you roll up your sleeves), but I don't really hear anything in 3 and 4 that make me think, "Wow, that sounds great and couldn't have been done with 2".

[eduardo_b]

First, I am so impressed with the quality of posts in this thread and the way everyone accepts without being defensive the comments of others. This is so cool.

I thought the comments in general point out how personal these instruments are in terms of usability, getting sounds that "work" and trying to find what all the excitement is about with others. The real value of this thread is that it takes into account that it's entirely possible to not "get" or like instruments that have received high praise.

I also noticed that most of the synths cited were at the upper end of the price range. This makes sense because spending close to $200 or even $300 on one soft synth represents a not insignificant investment for many, particularly if there are several seemingly desirable ones to choose from. Expectations are higher because one wants value for dollar or euro.

I would list Zebra 2 and Nexus as the most overrated, with no disrespect to either developer. Although both reflect different design criteria, in both cases I find the sounds simply not useful...for me. Of the two, Zebra seems like it has many good qualities, but the presets are locked into the space and beyond theme, which says to me that the developer -- a really nice guy who works hard for his customers -- wanted to showcase these qualities in the presets.

I'd add Reaktor as my third choice, but I find it hard to do so because the factory synths included plus those from others sort of make up for the impenetrable interface of the instrument. It's way beyond me.

[shamann]

2. Rhino. I love the sound of this beastie, but I personally found the interface very dificult to work with.

Funny, I'm the opposite. I really like how Rhino works, I've just never been enthusiastic to use one of its sounds in a track.

Symptohm: Melohman - Just never understood it. Good bass sounds but a lack of patches killed it for me

I understood it, but really just never liked it. I don't know why exactly, since I love the sound of QuadFrohmage and I like the idea of the Melohman octave (although I'm not sure it's as musically useful as it could be), but Symptohm as a synth always just never clicked with me. So, I traded it for Reaktor (which was a good trade in terms value for money, but as stated, I have my misgivings about Reaktor, too).

[CS80]

I know presets are really important, and give you a first impression of the synth, BUT, in someways, particularly with a new synth like Zebra2, it's like judging a book by its cover. That is a very flexible and powerful piece of software, and keep in mind its a work in progress, as are its presets, by a very talented
developer -- who does listen to his users! Modular synths are a different 'animal' if you pardon the expression, than preset-oriented synths and take a long time to get a handle on.

[gnu23]

First, I am so impressed with the quality of posts in this thread and the way everyone accepts without being defensive the comments of others. This is so cool.
...

I find KvR to be a civil place more often than not. Things got out of hand recently but that has passed, I hope.

There a few posters in this thread I'd disagree with in terms of their choices, but hey, it's their opinion and I respect that. I see no reason to "go public" with it...wouldn't serve a useful purpose anyway.

[vespers75]

1) Most commercial synths
2) Most freeware synths
3) Most VST instruments

There's much truth in that, actually...
Of all the synths I've purchased, and of the freebies as well, I can count on one hand the ones I actually use time and time again....

I can relate as well, however, of the five that I use most frequently and love, three are mentioned in this thread as over-rated. LOL

Don't feel bad, as a few of my staples were mentioned as well

It's all good though...different folks need different sounds to suit their tastes when composing.

[eduardo_b]

I know presets are really important, and give you a first impression of the synth, BUT, in someways, particularly with a new synth like Zebra2, it's like judging a book by its cover...

I understand your point, but I always assume a developer, particularly one as detail oriented as Urs, assembles presets that present the instrument in ways that reveal its very best characteristics. Although there was a variety of preset categories and many examples in each, there was a distinct "sound" that many of them shared despite their variety. I didn't find that to be the case with, say, Blue. In the end, I felt that I would have to work hard indeed to overcome this sound personality of Zebra, which seemed to not fit my needs easily. I ended up buying Komplexer, which is even more expensive, but had many sounds on which I could build easily. That's why I emphasized the personal aspect of these synths.

[mellotronaut]

I admit, not everybody wants (besides of lack of time) to make his or her own patches, but it's necessary to judge about the synth's abilities. Many developers first make or let others make more or less bread and butter-presets to satisfy the hit-factories with their always the usual attitude and get their money and/or attention.
Another way is to fulfill the wishes of the 'average' customer of a special synth. Best example is Absynth. There was a lot of diversity in the first two versions' presets, but from n°3 on, NI wanted to convince primarely soundtrack-makers or movie-wannabees (because it got a good rating there). So they put all these moving pads into it.
Therefore it is quite important to try out the synths with patchmaking, in combination with fx etc to get a realistic impression of the gear before buying it.

[CS80]

Certainly a good point eduardo_b -- I had the impression that the software was pretty much ready to send out to the world, but using it and finding the best in it would happen later. Urs is exceptional, and I don't feel the synth itself is overrated, or really ready to be rated yet. I'm kind of holding out on that one. This thread is to celebrate the truly bad , and I can't really put Z2 on the same negative level as Halion or some of the Arturia stuff, or god forbid, MX4. But the all time worst, which I want to give all 3 of my votes:

Dog of all time: Motu Symphonic Instrument