Can the Mopho do tight punchy basslines?

[zerocrossing]

I've got a MoPho and I love it. However, I fell in love with it from listening to the demo tracks here:

http://www.davesmithinstruments.com/pro ... _audio.php

I think that's a pretty accurate representation of what it'll sound like in your studio. Actually, when I got it hope I thought it sounded a little bit better. I'm not sure what you mean by "tight" bass line though, as i don't consider any analog synth "tight." When I'm going for what I think of as a tight bass line I'm more likely to find it in an FM synth and for that I'll go to Toxic, Sytrus or Octopus. We could be thinking of something very different though.

The MoPho does have a filter that people might consider midrangey. I think it's got a great tough little tone that can be smooth, but would be happier being on the rude side. Crank that feedback up and let the fun begin! I liked it so much I ended up getting a Prophet '08 rack and, while not the same thing, it has a nice little place in my studio.

[fas1piano]

Samples don't do the synths justice. The fun happens because every note sounds different and you can tweak it to fit the application.

so all those drum'n'bass bass lines from early kruder & dorfmeister to recent noisia are not "fun" then, because they use samples? (yes, they do use filters and LFOs, samplers today have that).

you have a very particular way to put things...why can't you see that whatever works for anybody, they should use. most of the time people can't even tell how a killer bass line has been made. "yes that's fm bass; exactly, a microwave; like i said, that's what analog sounds like..."and so on.

[living sounds]

so all those drum'n'bass bass lines from early kruder & dorfmeister to recent noisia are not "fun" then, because they use samples? (yes, they do use filters and LFOs, samplers today have that).

you have a very particular way to put things...why can't you see that whatever works for anybody, they should use. most of the time people can't even tell how a killer bass line has been made. "yes that's fm bass; exactly, a microwave; like i said, that's what analog sounds like..."and so on.

Samples are a good thing in many occasions, and processing things further through a hardware sampler's converters and using the internal filters, envelopes etc. can be great (like on all the dnb tracks in the 90s), but that wasn't the point here. The op asked about a hardware synth, and a sampler won't replace that. Especially not samples with the filters and envelopes in something like kontakt, I'd use an old Roland sampler or EMU sampler any day over the NI plugin. None of these can get anywhere near the raw power of an SH-2, Mini or whatever. Don't compare apples with oranges. For a pspytrance sequence like the one in the examples a sampler wouldn't be any good, you need need PWM for this, and it only happens with a real oscillator.

[zerocrossing]

Samples don't do the synths justice. The fun happens because every note sounds different and you can tweak it to fit the application.

so all those drum'n'bass bass lines from early kruder & dorfmeister to recent noisia are not "fun" then, because they use samples? (yes, they do use filters and LFOs, samplers today have that).

you have a very particular way to put things...why can't you see that whatever works for anybody, they should use. most of the time people can't even tell how a killer bass line has been made. "yes that's fm bass; exactly, a microwave; like i said, that's what analog sounds like..."and so on.

Living Sounds loves to sh!t on anyone's software suggestions no matter what. I was intrigued to find out that one of the electronica acts I love, Mouse On Mars, mostly samples every sound they use. It's not surprising considering their sound, but that's the point. They make it work. That's the point of all music really. Every instrument, electronic or not, has what some consider "limitations" but I consider them "characteristics." Living Sounds feels like people should only use instruments with characteristics that he deems acceptable. I could care less, I'm only concerned about the music.

So, I'm not a sampling guy that much but I've got a few Kontakt instruments that are beautiful. I love the sounds you can get from Omnisphere, Alchemy and and Dimension Pro, though they're not pure samplers. Roland or E-MU sampler? Please. If you want a crunchy digital sound get Morgana or put Timemachine after Kontakt. (http://www.jeroenbreebaart.com/). Old hardware samplers are akin to using a Model T. Kind of fun to see on on the road on the weekend but if you had to commute to work in one you'd shoot yourself in the face.

[living sounds]

Living Sounds loves to sh!t on anyone's software suggestions no matter what. I was intrigued to find out that one of the electronica acts I love, Mouse On Mars, mostly samples every sound they use. It's not surprising considering their sound, but that's the point. They make it work. That's the point of all music really. Every instrument, electronic or not, has what some consider "limitations" but I consider them "characteristics." Living Sounds feels like people should only use instruments with characteristics that he deems acceptable. I could care less, I'm only concerned about the music.

So, I'm not a sampling guy that much but I've got a few Kontakt instruments that are beautiful. I love the sounds you can get from Omnisphere, Alchemy and and Dimension Pro, though they're not pure samplers. Roland or E-MU sampler? Please. If you want a crunchy digital sound get Morgana or put Timemachine after Kontakt. (http://www.jeroenbreebaart.com/). Old hardware samplers are akin to using a Model T. Kind of fun to see on on the road on the weekend but if you had to commute to work in one you'd shoot yourself in the face.

Samples won't help the OP to achieve the sound he's after, that's the point here. You can fool around all day with samplers trying to recreate the sound or you just get a hardware synth and make music with it.

As for the old samplers, no, the sound engines of most of them haven't been recreated by any soft instrument. I don't know if you did the comparison, I know I did, the filters in the Roland EMU samplers sound great, the envelopes can be really punchy, Kontakt won't do that. Unfortunately, as it is indeed a PITA to use these dinosaurs.

[zerocrossing]

Samples won't help the OP to achieve the sound he's after, that's the point here.

How do you know what the OP is after?

[living sounds]

Samples won't help the OP to achieve the sound he's after, that's the point here.

How do you know what the OP is after?

Just listen to his youtube link.

[zerocrossing]

Yea, I guess having a Mac Pro helps, but the individual synths aren't really bad on CPU at all. Especially Strobe.

I agree, but I was stunned at how many of the Fusor patches killed my 2.5 gighz quad core machine even when just playing a single note. What the hell are they using that'll play those?

[zerocrossing]

Samples won't help the OP to achieve the sound he's after, that's the point here.

How do you know what the OP is after?

Just listen to his youtube link.

Yeah, I did as well. I also listened to his soundclick page and it seems to me that he could easily use a sampler to good effect in his music... he probably does. I'm not saying he should, or shouldn't have an analog synth as well but it's a personal choice depending on how he'd like to work.

[living sounds]

Yeah, I did as well. I also listened to his soundclick page and it seems to me that he could easily use a sampler to good effect in his music... he probably does. I'm not saying he should, or shouldn't have an analog synth as well but it's a personal choice depending on how he'd like to work.

"Personal choice" blabla, just admit you were wrong attacking me and that's that.

[fas1piano]

the bass line i hear in the infected mushrooms clip can be done with a gazillion synths or samplers. yes, you need fairly punchy (exponential) envelope and then have a lowpass filter slowly open up.

making this style of music is about knowing goa trance (sorry, i don't), having some original theme, good pop songwriting, getting the sequences right and having the right taste for sounds, finally, great mixing...the brand of bass line synth (!) and its vintage is the last thing to worry about. really.

so, if you like what the mopho does - meaning the fiter sound and the envelopes and if you think you can get on with the way to program it, get it. don't worry about bad youtube clips, they are there for any instrument ever invented. don't know what makes people film this stuff.

if you prefer an expensive (for the feature set, there are more expensive instruments in this world!) vintage synth and want to team it up with a midi retrofit - go for it.

i personally would use something like ace zebra or even sylenth (or synth squad, but i don't have it). these are totally different ways to make musik - i like to have a nice clean room, not an old-equipment-warehouse. but you night love just that.

the notion that it's only "about the sound" is just silly. it's about how you want to make music. so it's up to you to decide. you can get the sound - or an approximate - from lots of sources.

[living sounds]

the bass line i hear in the infected mushrooms clip can be done with a gazillion synths or samplers. yes, you need fairly punchy (exponential) envelope and then have a lowpass filter slowly open up.

making this style of music is about knowing goa trance (sorry, i don't), having some original theme, good pop songwriting, getting the sequences right and having the right taste for sounds, finally, great mixing...the brand of bass line synth (!) and its vintage is the last thing to worry about. really.

so, if you like what the mopho does - meaning the fiter sound and the envelopes and if you think you can get on with the way to program it, get it. don't worry about bad youtube clips, they are there for any instrument ever invented. don't know what makes people film this stuff.

if you prefer an expensive (for the feature set, there are more expensive instruments in this world!) vintage synth and want to team it up with a midi retrofit - go for it.

i personally would use something like ace zebra or even sylenth (or synth squad, but i don't have it). these are totally different ways to make musik - i like to have a nice clean room, not an old-equipment-warehouse. but you night love just that.

the notion that it's only "about the sound" is just silly. it's about how you want to make music. so it's up to you to decide. you can get the sound - or an approximate - from lots of sources.

Well, then recreate it without the "old-equipment-warehouse". Just do it. And yes, it is very much about the sound, it's music, after all. The OP wouldn't ask for an analog hardware synth if he wasn't convinced it would get him closer to the sound he wants.

I listen to and produce a lot of psytrance, and while this is actually one of the few genres where great albums have been made entirely with software, there are also big advantages to a nice hardware synth. Things you cannot do with a softsynth. But not so much with a Mopho IMO.

[fas1piano]

Well, then recreate it without the "old-equipment-warehouse". Just do it.

so you can tell me there is terrible "harsh upper midrange" and loads of other "plugin artefacts"?
could be fun, but examples then would need to come from someone who is known for having lots of old roland synths. not me.

but more seriously: it's up to anybody to assess for himself if he is in a league where gear brands and models matter that much for his creative output. it's good to have some grasp of reality where the real challenges are. (i said "he" because girls don't seem to suffer that bad from G.A.S. and distorted reality. that's why they're not here )

[living sounds]

Well, then recreate it without the "old-equipment-warehouse". Just do it.

so you can tell me there is terrible "harsh upper midrange" and loads of other "plugin artefacts"?
could be fun, but examples then would need to come from someone who is known for having lots of old roland synths. not me.

[/quote]

The problem lies more with the balls and texture of the sound and the punchyness of the envelope and filter. That's what these small old Roland synths are especially good at.

But why would you need one to make the examples if you think you can do it with almost any sample or softsynth?

[MadPsyance]

Yeah, I did as well. I also listened to his soundclick page and it seems to me that he could easily use a sampler to good effect in his music... he probably does. I'm not saying he should, or shouldn't have an analog synth as well but it's a personal choice depending on how he'd like to work.

Lol, that music is old although shamefully it's some of the last stuff I actually have "finished"(other than a few random one synth only submissions).

Actually I don't plan on making psytrance, and if I did I would probably use softsynths for the basslines anyway..or maybe not..that was probably a bad example of the sound I'm looking for...I think I just wanted to be reassured that the mopho can create more than fuzzy "phat" sounds.
If you listen to the bass examples here: http://www.davesmithinstruments.com/pro ... _audio.php it seems like all the basslines have that fuzz to them...I just wondered if it could do something more clean sounding. Should I mention again that real analog is WAY out of my area of expertise, lol?