Spectrasonics Omnisphere!

[ambientdrone]

noiselurker - yours is one of the better posts I've read here in a long time, and certainly strikes a chord wrt the "overmarketing" I feel has been taking place over Omnisphere.

The bottom line, imho, is that we have a new kid on the block that will end up sounding better than some architectures in certain instances, and not as good as others in other instances. I guess I'm just failing to see the conceptual leap forward wrt what other products can already accomplish.

I have to say that I'm underwhelmed by visualizers, burning pianos, and an academic concept like psychoacoustics applied and portrayed as a conceptual leap forward. Perhaps the real value in this new synth is the repackaging of an already stellar Atmosphere with some existing sample library offerings from SOV, HOA and the like for a reasonable price. Certainly more open-ended, but still the same old tried and true synthesis concepts under the hood.

[noiselurker]

neverfall

wow what is wrong with you, I try not to brag about equipment because wyterrabbit(sorry spelling) will hawk me down and argue with me.

If you must know:

Two quadcore computers one runs sonar 7 it's the cheaper q6600

The other is the newer QX9650, fastet chip I know of, 999 dollars on ebay with a mother board combo. It runs samplitude 10.

Fruity loops, and acid are used sometimes, I still like fruity loops.

Softsynths: Kore, Komplete 3, 4, and 5, cameleon(love it), Reaktor second liscence, Massive Second liscence, waldorf ppg, waldorf attack, Tim conrady's galaxy 5, m42 nebula, Korg digital legacy collection (for the wavestation), Zebra 2, Blue, Emu-emulator soft synth, Two Emu cards running at 64 bits, windows vista on the QX9650(it's giving me some problems, not sure why), windows xp home edition on the sonar computer, I need to buy xp pro, because I do have a mother board with two xeon processors I've installed, and xp home doesn't handle two seperate physical processors, camel space, camel phat, SPECTRASONICS STYLUS RMX, I dunnno is that enough, oh wait, yes and wusik station, because I LIKE IT.

I have an ASR-10 that I've repurchased because I love it.

I have a symbolic sound Kyma, with one extra card, would like to add one more card.

So, now people will complain saying I'm bragging or something, just listing what I have, so my little thrifty self can play with the big boys, big boys, what are you 12, this site man, I'm sitting here backing up samples for a very patient man who purchased an ASR-88 from me, and instead of browsing KVR, and commenting on various posts, I'm arguing with a person, who said, play with the big boys? I use sonar 7 producer, I use no warez, everthing is purchased, I'd have to say Komplete along with Kore is my favorite "synth" Reaktor and Absynth combined with kontakt three make up most of the patches I make, and it's actually what I work with the most in terms of soft synths, Kyma gets most of the hardware tasks. I use a blueberry mic $999, but found it new for $671 oh damn I saved money good lord how stupid of me.

I said I like the dang synth in this thread, I'm not sure what everyone's problem is, just because I didn't immediately drool over it, and I made posts with a viewpoint that wasn't exactly the same, you guys are all over me.

Let me know is this the official "PRAISE OMNISYNTH" thread, if so, I will stop commenting, or only say good things about it. Already said I'm probably going to buy the dang thing along with the korg m3 rack later this year, keep them for a year and then probably sell them. I'll probably make a CD with those being the main pieces I'll build around, and add whatever else I need, and then master it in samplitude, I used to use wavestation, but I dropped all steinberg stuff, because I looked at sonar, and really felt it was the better product, and had a more receptive nicer customer service and upgrade path. Samplitude replaced wavestation, and also makes a mean DAW, it handles vsti's alot better than it used to.

And this september, I'll see if omni synth works in samplitude, fruity, acid, and sonar.

Jeese, louise, you guys are really head over heals about this aren't you, sorry to bug you. Leaving now ok, clearly a bother here, and yes you are all right as you have in posts declared yourselves right. Right about what, I'm not quite sure, really....

So I guess you enjoy omni synth in september, and I'll do the same thing, I'm just not in AWE of it, I honestly think alot of it's sounds are coming from the FX, the site uses alot of phrases that sound "new" sort of like the neuron hartmann did, it used terms like neural synthesis, which really was just a bunch of looped samples WITH GREAT FX. The OMNISYNTH site uses phrases like organic and psycho acoustic, which I was right about before even listening to the sonic state site, it's him banging around playing bows on guitars, probably plucking violins, basically having a BLAST playing with all sorts of ideas, BTW, sampling a lightbulb is cool, but sampling peas defrosting is even cooler(actually in more ways than one). Ok I'm leaving this thread, you guys obviously just want to praise the synth, and have no desire to even discuss what it actually is/does. Enjoy. If you can afford it, in september.

First I was attacked for seemingly being cheap, now I'm going to get attacked because people think I'm bragging, neither of which I'm doing, I'm simply defending myself at this point.

And thank you ambientdrone. I like the user name too btw, now I am leaving because I'm clearly some kind of cancer in this thread.

WOW....

[phatty]

Well....I dunno much about anything...but judging from the videos, I'm buying this one. I'm sold. It just seems to have character

[Arksun]

First I was attacked for seemingly being cheap, now I'm going to get attacked because people think I'm bragging, neither of which I'm doing, I'm simply defending myself at this point.

And thank you ambientdrone. I like the user name too btw, now I am leaving because I'm clearly some kind of cancer in this thread.

WOW....

Don't take it too personally. I think you ruffled a few feathers because, despite being given a link to a ten minute video that showed a lot of the features Omnisphere has, you continued to make two or three posts, posting in a rather authoritive way about what it can and cant do, without even bothering to look at the video yet.

It's clear that only something truly groundbreaking in synthesis is going to impress you, and thats cool. It's what you want.

However, I personally feel Omnisphere is something we haven't seen before in terms of overal package. I don't know of any other synth with such a vast sample base for the oscillators, with such unique diverse range of things sampled, coupled with an equally strong synth engine in software form before.

Whether what it can do can be done with other things isn't so relivant. After all, anyone with enough know how could literally code a synth from C++, but we choose not to because its too much effort.

It's all about that balance of easy of use vrs control. We want lots of control to shape the sound, but we don't want to jump through insane hoops to get the results when that stifles creativity.

Judging by the video, Omnisphere provides a very interesting sample base + enough synthesis to any degree of complexity the user wants to feel comfortable using it, and THAT is its strong selling point. That it can be used as a simple ROMpler, or those that want to delve deeper can delve deeper.

To try and recreate some of its sounds in other synths would take a fair amount of effort I think. not impossible, but stuff like the guitar played with a bow, it's all about new sounds to inspire, with the control to tweak it much further.

So I'm pretty excited about Omnisphere and look forward to tweaking it to the max

[neverfall]

I can't be bothered with arguing with 15000 word essays explaining how User A cannot be thrifty as the evidence shows he's a gear whore.


No problem...I'm a gear whore myself. I don't understand why you're concerned with whyterabbit hunting you down to argue with you. Sorry but that's just plain stupid. What is he your father or something? You're busy compairing me to a 12 year old and you're shook by a forum identity? I'm a grown ass man son. The boogeyman doesn't hide in my closet, and I'm pretty damn sure he isn't waiting around on KVR to scream BOO at anyone who brags about the gear HE BOUGHT WITH HIS OWN HARD EARNED GROWN ASS PAYCHECK.


Let's put this to rest. People who can afford don't complain. People who can't will. There's plenty of material things I want but can't afford. I'm just one of the few who makes due with what he's got.



And I rarely...hardly...if ever...complain.



Just let the fanboys...or soon to be fanboys have their fun. This thread reminds me of a bachelor party I attended where every dude was having a blast while sticking $1's down a stripper's thong...

And the one guy who only carried a debit card started bitching about her stretch marks that we all swore couldn't be seen by the naked eye.

[meister eder]

In all honesty, the best softsynth I think I've seen recently is a MAC only utility/synth/sampler that goes along with logic's exs24. It won computer music award for something. It is really bugging me that I can't find the link or remember the name, but if you are a mac user you probably know what I'm talking about. It does realtime formant, pitch, volume, RESYNTHESIS, and alot more. It is THE BEST piece of software in terms of bringing hardware synthesis to soft synths. In fact, that little bugger might grow and turn into something really special, it already is special, and quite frankly, it is a program that makes me want to own at least ONE MAC just to use it.

Sounds like you're talking about Redmatica Keymap, which is not a softsynth, but a sampled instruments editor - and you can be about sure that, among other tools, Spectrasonics used this extensively in creating the content for Omnisphere.

[neverfall]

It's all about that balance of easy of use vrs control. We want lots of control to shape the sound, but we don't want to jump through insane hoops to get the results when that stifles creativity.

Judging by the video, Omnisphere provides a very interesting sample base + enough synthesis to any degree of complexity the user wants to feel comfortable using it, and THAT is its strong selling point. That it can be used as a simple ROMpler, or those that want to delve deeper can delve deeper.

Just quoting you as this is the exact point I tried to get across in the Zebra vs. Gladiator thread. I'm not entirely impressed with as many features a synth has if I have a difficult time exploring that synth to get THE SOUND I need.


I'm looking forward to Omnisphere mostly for the immediate wow factor vs. complexity of learning at my own pace. Seems like this is the software synth I've waited years for.

[MacQ]

Noiselurker ... you've done a LOT of talking without actually saying much. I mean no disrespect, but I'd suggest that brevity is a quality you might try cultivating in the future. But regardless ...

Your blanket statements and confused statements and inaccurate statements only make you look ignorant and deliberately acrimonious. If you want to speak against it, speak against it. But you're also saying you like it, so it's a mixed message. Again, I wonder why you've posted at all. Perhaps to say, "not revolutionary, but I'll buy it anyway"? That would have been a one-sentence post.

Anyway, the value of Omnisphere for me is in its out-of-the-box sound-design. Spectrasonics are peerless in that regard. I think there's a lot of talk about the Psychoacoustic-sampling (which is an odd malaprop of the term, in my opinion), but that's just because it's something "new" for a commercially available instrument. I have confidence that you'll find plenty of "normal" sounds inside the Omnisphere core library, along with some that could only be described as "bizarre" (though others might call them "signature").

Finally ... the Korg M3 is a waste of money. Don't buy it. Also, it's Steinberg WaveLab, not Wavestation.

~Stu

[christianmusicmaker]

Anyway for those that are waiting,
VIDEO 2 IS NOW UP ON THE SPECTRASONICS SITE!!!
http://www.spectrasonics.net/omnisphere_teaser/

Thanks for the heads up Ben! Having seen the second Spectrasonic Episode, I'm even more impressed.

(Thinking aloud) It may very well be a clever combination of existing ideas available elsewhere but the sound is fantastic and it is a really creative package. Great.

In all honesty, the best softsynth I think I've seen recently is a MAC only utility/synth/sampler that goes along with logic's exs24. It won computer music award for something. It is really bugging me that I can't find the link or remember the name, but if you are a mac user you probably know what I'm talking about. It does realtime formant, pitch, volume, RESYNTHESIS, and alot more. It is THE BEST piece of software in terms of bringing hardware synthesis to soft synths. In fact, that little bugger might grow and turn into something really special, it already is special, and quite frankly, it is a program that makes me want to own at least ONE MAC just to use it.

Sounds like you're talking about Redmatica Keymap, which is not a softsynth, but a sampled instruments editor - and you can be about sure that, among other tools, Spectrasonics used this extensively in creating the content for Omnisphere.

Yes thats what I thought he was referring to as well. The name escaped me. Interesting to read about Spectrasonics using this tool as well.

[neverfall]

Finally ... the Korg M3 is a waste of money. Don't buy it.

~Stu

I might have argued with this statement a while ago, but I have to admit I hardly use my M3. If you already have a Triton the M3 seems even less worthy.


I should have put the money towards an Andromeda.

[Ben H]

(Thinking aloud) It may very well be a clever combination of existing ideas available elsewhere but the sound is fantastic and it is a really creative package. Great.

I tend to agree.

While the argument was that it is not as focussed on any type of synthesis as having a single VST can be, I think it will be the hybrid approach that will win people over because it will allow for a broad palette of different types of sounds to work with.

The non-real sounds are also nice to have, and will certainly inspire a lot of new musical ideas too. And also the fact that you can use it as a rompler (for the non-synthesists), or tweak the heck out of it (if you wish).

But for me, the biggest thing that it has going for it over Atmosphere, is the fact that you can turn the layers off and reduce it to simpler sounds. This means it will fit much nicer into my songs than some of the full pads that didn't quite suit with Atmosphere.

Oh... and how awesome was the patch swapping feature from the 2nd teaser where the patch keeps on playing while Eric dials up a new sound?

Now that was awesome!!!

[beej]

Interesting to read about Spectrasonics using this tool as well.

I think you'll find just about *every* sample library developer is now using Keymap, because it's simply unique in what it does - there are no other tools optimised to multisample development, and it really dramatically speeds up workflow, as well as offering interesting creative possibilities.

And yes, Keymap is superb...

[beej]

Hehe - I like the way that in the second video, Eric is playing a little riff, and then a pad comes in, and the guy in the audience gets a little look and leans over to see exactly what Eric is doing on the keyboard, with a "how is he doing *that*?" look on his face...

[DocAtlas]

I just saw the second video; this just keeps getting better & better. I'm looking forward to seeing more on the various types of synthesis, and how they can intereact. Should be a fun ride.

[ericj23]

am i the only one who thought the second video essentially had no real content - just hints of stuff without really explaining what is going on

certainly still very little on the synthesis