Mixed impressions on u-he Zebra

[Howard]

I'm very happy with its sound and thus I will not change anything.

Hooray!

[TiUser]

OK, I'm flaming you, but I don't really mean to be mean. (only a little). First, let's start off with your user name. You're screaming about how much you love a product IN YOUR NAME. To me this speaks volumes....

For a flame you are much too polite...

I understand your message but I think you are perfectly wrong.

The nickname means not much but I found it nice.

The decision for the virus was not a love affair but a compromise.

I wanted a good sounding stand alone synthesizer capable of a broader variety of sounds. I was convinced by some special demos and I accepted the price because of it's additional functions like Midi and Audio interface (simply less fuzz with additional boxes), high polyphony and many effects. I don't know if the virus has "that" sound I love - maybe I'd more deny that, especially if you come to sounds that people might associate the virus with (I hate hoovers for instance), but it's a good allround synth.

Sometimes I think I had better spent a bit more for a Clavia Nord Modular G2, that's a cool machine that has a high quality sound too...

I am still not convinced of PC solutions as an "instrument" (not DAW, that's a different thing, but I don't need that). Anyway I wanted a platform to explore and the virus Audio IF is pretty well for that. To be honest, taken the time to get a clue, find and check out free and commercial hosts and plugin instruments or plugin effects was and still is a nightmare that pays back any hardware instrument in no time... But ok, for the passionate DAW user it's absolutely the way to go, no debate.

I myself hope for the SM Pro audio V-Box and that it may allow me to run a selected choice of plugs once I am sure what I like. But a way I fear that the V-Box will not have enough processing power and might end up not that simple as announced...

As said, I don't want a folder of hundreds of plugins, I feel that's inefficient and can be quickly as expensive as some hardware instruments... you simply can't dive into all so I may look extraordinary picky when it comes to VSTi's

To end with, the Virus is not my holy grail, nor my other gear, and that's really not much, an old Matrix 6R (happy that I didn't sell it), a DX7 (never finally liked the sound but at that time it was the must have synth...) and a Yamaha workstation (great, think this will satisfy me for a very long time)

Hope your curiosity is satisfied now as well

See you in the "Origin" thread... I assume you referred to that

[TiUser]

I'm very happy with its sound and thus I will not change anything.

Hooray!

boys...
...but just to remeber, Urs, didn't you tune stuff from zebra 1 to zebra 2? Who knows what you tune when you do Zebra 3... (except yourself...)

[tetsuneko]

Sometimes I think I had better spent a bit more for a Clavia Nord Modular G2, that's a cool machine that has a high quality sound too...

I think that you'd be disappointed eventually.. A friend of mine (not the one I mentioned earlier just so you know) has a love-hate relationship with his G2: He totally loves the features, but thinks that the sound is a bit too "distinctive" for certain things. So no doubt you'd find it dissatisfactory as well

Just out of curiosity, you list all these synths and you say you don't really love any of their sounds... Can you name some synths that have a sound you 100% love please?! (are there any?)

[bmrzycki]

Just curious, do you hear the "plasticy" or "curtain" in the following mp3s?:
1 2 3 4 5 6
All of these mp3s were created to showcase commercial preset banks available today for Zebra2. They're meant to be usable for dance/house/trance sounds. In my mind these show Zebra's normal neutral color sound can be changed into the realm the TI is usually quickly referenced as the go-to synth. Of course, after 8+ pages I doubt this will convince you either.

Just the fact that you can get this sound for $200 + $40 + $40 or less than $300 is pretty darn impressive to me. And I'm not even talking bout the amazing passion and skill Howard and Michael bring to the table with their Science and Oldskool banks (another small sum of $80).

To me I find inspiration whenever I go wandering around the presets. A few minor knob changes and the sound can go from very very dancy to dark IDM or cold techno. The versatility of Z2's neutral sound I find to be one of its greatest strengths. Sure it takes a bit more to push Z2 into what you want but once you do you just save the preset and use that as your building block for X sound 01.

Oh and the argument about the TI being heard on all those dance records are true only if you remember the slew of digital post-processing effects added onto the sound in the final mix. Let every synth have that luxury and the playing ground levels quite a bit...

[TiUser]

Sometimes I think I had better spent a bit more for a Clavia Nord Modular G2, that's a cool machine that has a high quality sound too...

I think that you'd be disappointed eventually.. A friend of mine (not the one I mentioned earlier just so you know) has a love-hate relationship with his G2: He totally loves the features, but thinks that the sound is a bit too "distinctive" for certain things. So no doubt you'd find it dissatisfactory as well

Just out of curiosity, you list all these synths and you say you don't really love any of their sounds... Can you name some synths that have a sound you 100% love please?! (are there any?)

Well, it's a difference between nit picking and usable synths. Maybe nit picking is one of my hobbies too...

Depending on music style may be there is no bad synth at all... Possibly I am just behind synths because I don't like the sampled synth sounds I have... liveless and pampered... beond that I am happy with most samples

With the G2 you might be right, I asked myself this question... The G2 seems to sound "analytical" or "cold" too, just to use again some meaningless words

In general I like the older more vintage sounds with that upfront touch, focused on pads and leads, less on weired effects.

If I'd know how to put EMU proteus in a simple box, maybe I'd use their vintage synth libs. The EMU is fairly tweakable as well and the z-Plane filter is good too...

He, you make me chit-chat, you little ba....

[TiUser]

Just curious, do you hear the "plasticy" or "curtain" in the following mp3s?:

I tend to say yes also it's hard to identify on my cheapo speakers - you remember my initial confusion in my early question. Convinced? Well, I guess that wasn't my primary goal but ok, maybe I will check it out again... so I have so few time left, I simply have to comment so much...

However the patches itself are really high quality - if you like such sounds... as for me, forget the hoovers

Before I forget, any sound can be inspirational, there are few sounds that are so bad that they might be totally uninspirational

Referring to purchase decisions, I never start with price, I first try to find out if I like something. Then I take a breeze and look if I can afford it. Maybe the conclusion is I drop it because I can't afford what I like. As a non pro I don't need anything! Big advantage But I agree, if you like it, the price is a non issue... without doubt... and $$$ is even more attractive if you live in the €€€ zone

[tetsuneko]

So, you can't give a simple answer to my question - Any synth that has a sound you 100% like? Last time I checked, a sampler was not a synth..

Anyway, you're answers are so vague that I'm dropping out from this thread. Sounds to me like you can't decide what you want, and that has nothing to do with how a synth sounds..

[TiUser]

So, you can't give a simple answer to my question - Any synth that has a sound you 100% like? Last time I checked, a sampler was not a synth..

Anyway, you're answers are so vague that I'm dropping out from this thread. Sounds to me like you can't decide what you want, and that has nothing to do with how a synth sounds..

My question was about a certain characteristic in all sounds of some synths.

It was not about which synths or which sounds I desire.

A sampler is not a synth, right... I referred to that for contextual reasons.

But trying to answer your question, no, there is no synth I like 100%. I think there is no such thing at all.

Beside that I like vintage synths sounds like those from Moog, Arp or Oberheim which might also be the gap I want to fill. But if something like Zebra can do even more I won't mind either...

[VitaminD]

So, you can't give a simple answer to my question - Any synth that has a sound you 100% like? Last time I checked, a sampler was not a synth..

Anyway, you're answers are so vague that I'm dropping out from this thread. Sounds to me like you can't decide what you want, and that has nothing to do with how a synth sounds..

My question was about a certain characteristic in all sounds of some synths.

It was not about which synths or which sounds I desire.

A sampler is not a synth, right... I referred to that for contextual reasons.

But trying to answer your question, no, there is no synth I like 100%. I think there is no such thing at all.

Beside that I like vintage synths sounds like those from Moog, Arp or Oberheim which might also be the gap I want to fill. But if something like Zebra can do even more I won't mind either...

That may be the case..

However, you come off as fronting that statement and really seem to be wanting Urs to change Z2 to do everything you want it to do.. then question whats wrong with it when it doesn't sound how you want it to sound.. it cant emulate this other synth I have.. it has a 'curtain' to it... it sounds different... can someone help me out... please tell me why its different.. etc

it all seems like a ploy from you to request Z2 be adapted to sound the way you want it to sound vs. the way the developer intended it to sound...

[Electrobop]

Maybe my "problem" is that I think a synth should be free of any special "signature" and be able to do everything. I know that might be an illusion but maybe that's the point in my experience.

Hmm… Last time I listened, I could have sworn that all sounds have a signature.
I think in the real world they call it "timbre".

Take for example a saxophone. Many brands and players out there. Now, provided there are some people that can't tell the difference between a saxophone and a trumpet. The saxophone has its own signature and more specifically, individual players also. And with each individual player you can usually tell who the person is with three notes of their playing.

Same goes for a singer. The vocals have their own signature, and each individual vocalist will have a more specific signature. You can take a specific vocalist and stick them into ever genre, and I guarantee you will still be able to recognize them even if their inflections are different.

No I don't think it's possible to not have a signature. Wind has its own signature, and even silence does.

Up to a certain extent, every sound will have a common signature because the medium through which it travels is "air".

Yes the TI has a signature, the Nord Lead has a signature, and Zebra also does.

I don't blame you for not understanding Zebra. Zebra's sound is so pure that most people don't understand what they are listening to. It's ahead of its time. Maybe in another 10 years, inexperienced listeners will...

Best regards, ZEBRAUser
There is nothing like a 2 buck chuck
There is a time when even real wine can't compare to illusion

[DevonB]

I don't know if the virus has "that" sound I love - maybe I'd more deny that, especially if you come to sounds that people might associate the virus with (I hate hoovers for instance), but it's a good allround synth.

Hoover and a Virus? Huh? What The...? is on the Roland Alpha Juno or Roland MKS-50.

Devon

[zerocrossing]

I'm not going to argue with you but my spidey sense tingles when ever I see someone decide to refer to themselves by referencing a product. It's your chance to name yourself! You chose a product. Think about it.

Anyway, I kind of understand what you're getting at, though I don't agree with your assessment of Zebra 2. I had the same feeling about Massive, though I didn't feel it was a bad thing. I did feel that buying the full synth was more than I wanted to spend to get that tone though. Then I downloaded their free KORE player thing and I found myself digging some of the Massive based presets. They worked really well in some of my tunes. Not wanting to drop $200 on it I picked up the $59 Massive Expansion pack and I found that it was perfect for my needs. I don't like to spend a lot of my music time making presets.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that there's really no such thing as a "good" sound. Either the sound works in your tune or does not. Right now I'm listening to Beck's Odelay Deluxe and it's full of lo-fi and cheap crappy sounding instruments and guitars that sound like they're being put through overdriven transistor radios. Guess what? Beck makes it work beautifully.

My suggestion is that you should stop listening to Zebra 2 and just try putting it in your music.

btw, I have no idea what you're talking about with the "Origin" thread. I meant the thread where I say, (tongue in cheak) "analog synths! I hate 'em!"

OK, I'm flaming you, but I don't really mean to be mean. (only a little). First, let's start off with your user name. You're screaming about how much you love a product IN YOUR NAME. To me this speaks volumes....

For a flame you are much too polite...

I understand your message but I think you are perfectly wrong.

The nickname means not much but I found it nice.

See you in the "Origin" thread... I assume you referred to that

[bmrzycki]

Either the sound works in your tune or does not. Right now I'm listening to Beck's Odelay Deluxe and it's full of lo-fi and cheap crappy sounding instruments and guitars that sound like they're being put through overdriven transistor radios. Guess what? Beck makes it work beautifully.

I'd rather hear what Stevie Wonder can do with the crappiest Synthedit creation than the average KVRer with a $10k studio (no offense KVR but SW has serious skills!)

[TiUser]

So, you can't give a simple answer to my question ...

My question was about a certain characteristic in all sounds of some synths.
It was not about which synths or which sounds I desire...

That may be the case..

However, you come off as fronting that statement and really seem to be wanting Urs to change Z2 to do everything you want it to do.. then question whats wrong with it when it doesn't sound how you want it to sound.. it cant emulate this other synth I have.. it has a 'curtain' to it... it sounds different... can someone help me out... please tell me why its different.. etc

it all seems like a ploy from you to request Z2 be adapted to sound the way you want it to sound vs. the way the developer intended it to sound...

This thread seems to have a problem because it is split into two directions and one is not why I asked. Indeed "that may be the case" is it, not more or less...

I did ask to possibly better understand my percecptions possibly find some reason (technical, psychoacustical, anything else) or share experiences if someone else might have had similar impressions or not. Not more or less. So I could have replied "can't you just answer my question a simple way..." like "I don't know", "I feel or heard something similar", "I don't feel the same", and so on, maybe give some personal idea why and that's it!

Of course if there's anything that looks to be more precise, I comment it, why not?

I didn't ask for changes to make Zebra a Moog or anything else, exactly that was the reason why I hesitated to answer the question at all because this was not my initial road. There are many other things I already stated I am NOT about in this thread, like "is Zebra usable" (it is), "does it sound good" (it does) "has it good patches" (really good ones thanks to some talented sound designers) or "is it inspirational" (possibly yes, as any other gear) and some more...

There may be some other arguments in that thread that might be true or not but that wasn't the primary goal. I just stated them to make clear what I am not about in THIS thread, but that seems to be difficult to address... sorry.