u-he

szurcio · Post by **szurcio** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 3:12 pm

I was going to sell Albino 3, Z3ta+ (unregistered) and Cameleon 5000 and buy Zebra instead to simplify my setup and concentrate on just 1 synth. The question remains if Zebra could replace these 3 synths. Albino 3 has great clear basses - I'm not sure how easy it would be to create for example a convincing analog-sounding emulation of a Moog bass in Zebra. Looking at the demo, it seems to be a very versatile synth. Right now I'm torn between Zebra and Virsyn Tera.

eduardo_b · Post by **eduardo_b** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 3:19 pm

The short and long answer is no.

Lotuzia · Post by **Lotuzia** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 3:23 pm

Imo no it can't replace all the 3 above.

This said the best way for you to know if Z2 can fullfill all your dreams might be to demo it. The demo is fully functional.

LtZ

szurcio · Post by **szurcio** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 8:09 pm

Thank you. I think I will keep these 3 synths and save for Zebra (or Tera) as an extra one. I guess there is still no one synth that would cover everything (leads, pads, basses, FX, analog, digital, acoustic sound modelling) equally well.

Lotuzia · Post by **Lotuzia** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 8:14 pm

szurcio wrote: I guess there is still no one synth that would cover everything (leads, pads, basses, FX, analog, digital, acoustic sound modelling) equally well.

That's the idea

tylenol · Post by **tylenol** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 8:34 pm

szurcio wrote:I was going to sell Albino 3, Z3ta+ (unregistered) and Cameleon 5000 and buy Zebra instead to simplify my setup and concentrate on just 1 synth. The question remains if Zebra could replace these 3 synths. Albino 3 has great clear basses - I'm not sure how easy it would be to create for example a convincing analog-sounding emulation of a Moog bass in Zebra. Looking at the demo, it seems to be a very versatile synth. Right now I'm torn between Zebra and Virsyn Tera.

With respect to the moog question, the factory patches in Zebra 2 have some moog little phatty emulations in bank 9 ("Clowns"); you could try them and see if they are to your taste. Personally, I would be happy (and nowhere close to running out of ways to use them) with just zebra 2 and cameleon, of the synths you mention. But you will find (since roughly this question comes up from time to time here) that no one will really agree on the answer.

spritex · Post by **spritex** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 7:46 am

Whatever you do, trimming down your selection of synths will make you more productive.

Vectorman · Post by **Vectorman** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 12:54 pm

Whatever you do, trimming down your selection of synths will make you more productive.

Truer words were never spoken. When you're screwing around with two dozen softsynths, you end up using them as a bunch of preset machines and never really seem to dig very deep into any of them. Me, I'm basically not using much more than Kontakt 3 and Zebra now (and occasionally the Korg Wavestation). I just ordered the Kontakt Tutorial DVD so I can start watching a little of it every morning while I'm on the elliptical machine (multitasking, LOL) and really begin mastering the tools I have.

Btw, I owned a Virus TI for about a month and ended up selling it. The Virus just seemed kind of redundant and didn't offer much I couldn't do with Zebra and Kontakt. I probably won't bother buying another hardware synth unless it has real analog filters (although the wealth of analog-based libraries for Kontakt offers a sufficient variety of Minimoog basses, SEM filter sweeps, etc. that I don't feel a great need for an analog synth right now either).

pdxindy · Post by **pdxindy** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 1:36 pm

For some people, Zebra can replace those 3 synths and for some people not. Each person has to decide that.

kuniklo · Post by **kuniklo** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 2:00 pm

I'd say Zebra can pretty easily replace all three of those. You can't do exactly *everything* you can with them, but you can certainly get plenty of the same kinds of sounds. The detailed additive morphing you can do in Cameleon would probably be the hardest to emulate but with Zebra's wavetables and osc fx you can get close enough for any real music making purpose.

The only serious hole in Zebra's arsenal is some kind of sample/granular synthesis. Once that appears in some form I'll be able to use Zebra for everything.

Al.Kamala · Post by **Al.Kamala** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 7:22 pm

From my point of view there is no one synth that can do as much things than Zebra2. I think that the problem of many people is that they fly like bees from one synth to another, desperatly searching "THE" sound that no one else found before, but that they do this without experimenting deep enough. And this is precisely what makes Zebra so different: you never have finished to experiment new ideas, because the number of parameters you can add or change, even when starting from only one waveform, is so high that there is simply no limit excepted your experience and/or your imagination. I've experimented the three synths you're speaking about and all I remember about it is a big sensation of frustration. It is not a question like "What can they do": I know what they can do: a very limited and commercial oriented range of sounds; when you analyse them in terms of possibilities they are in fact very poor. These kinds of synths are very well, for example, for the composers who want to have a quick idea of how their compositions will sound, but they will never make a musical revolution by themselve.

Zebra2 can virtually emulate any kind of existing instrument: Acoustic, Electric, Synthetic, it is a question of experience and imagination, and when you've reached the point where you can get all this out of it, making Fx patches, or pads, soundscapes and so on, this seems like a game for a sixty years old child.

You don't believe me? Maybe it seems to beautyfull... Well do you know any synth that can emulate a realistic piano?
Zebra can do that... and much more: saxophones, trumpets, harmonicas... the list is simply endless.

But I'm sure you must still have a doubt... well, go to the adress below and download the Mp3 File. It is a version of "Für Elise" of Beethoven... played with Zebra2, it's a completely virtual but, from my point of vue, very classic piano.

http-//www.divshare.com/download/4900939-f9d.webloc

The only thing that isn't created with Zebra is the reverb, wich was created with Logic-native reverb effects.

I hope this will convince you, cheers.

Al Kamala

bh9090 · Post by **bh9090** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:07 pm

I'd love to hear that piano patch but I can't get the link to work..

bmrzycki · Post by **bmrzycki** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:50 pm

bh9090 wrote:I'd love to hear that piano patch but I can't get the link to work..

Try http://www.divshare.com/download/4900939-f9d

Cheers!

spritex · Post by **spritex** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:55 pm

Al.Kamala wrote:Fr

You don't believe me? Maybe it seems to beautyfull... Well do you know any synth that can emulate a realistic piano?
Zebra can do that... and much more: saxophones, trumpets, harmonicas... the list is simply endless.

Err, Zebra is very powerful but it's not magic! The sound example didn't sound like a convincing acoustic piano. Some kind of electric piano maybe...

liars&ashes · Post by **liars&ashes** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 9:27 pm

----The higher end sounds alright in some ways, but the low end sounds plunky and thin. Overall, probably alright to play/practice with, but I'd never use that in a finished piece if I wanted people to think "I hear a piano" ha-ha.

Jeff

u-he

KVR Audio

Can Zebra replace these 3 synths?