Does anyone NOT like Diva?

[AKJ]

warm is not eq' driven.....even if I, inadequately defined it in terms of frequencies..... but clearly I think you are purposely trying to be ridiculous in your argument.

so what is it then?

edit: now you are denying that it is something defined in term of frequencies because you realize that an eq obviously could create warmness easily if it were the case.

[munchkin]

I think all you need to do is notice the constant steady stream of chatter about Diva to know it's the bomb, as the kids say. Now, notice it's newest competitor Saurus. Months of pages and pages and pages sparked by a "win the software" contest. Very clever marketing, but a few days after the release the talk about it has totally dried up. On GearSlutz, a site that focuses on hardware and analog synths, Diva is constantly mentioned to the point where people complain about it. I'm pretty sure there were about 6 posts about Saurus. Now, other synths get mentioned here and around too, but there's a reason Diva garners so much attention. It's excellent. Also, shut off your targeting computer and trust your feelings. What do you feel about it?

I own some pretty good hardware analog synths and getting Diva was a no brainer. It's not my only virtual analog, but it's one of my favorites. Put it up against DCAM, Sawer, Poly-ana... those are the ones that come to mind. See what you think.

Completely agree that DIVA has a very authentic and voluptuous sound. And the intro price was very good. The full price is also excellent compared to the cost of other synths out there. If someone wants a synth to cover the VA category of sounds then DIVA does that very well. I also like to think I'm down with the kids but if any of them 'disses' this synth then it will be tears before bedtime!

[zvenx]

warm is not eq' driven.....even if I, inadequately defined it in terms of frequencies..... but clearly I think you are purposely trying to be ridiculous in your argument.

so what is it then?

edit: now you are denying that it is something defined in term of frequencies because you realize that an eq obviously could create warmness easily if it were the case.

no I am not denying it...... I am saying I emphasis on I inadequately defined it in terms of frequencies. For instance macmurphy's post http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 85#4912685 does a better job than I did..... but it does include frequencies in the 'definition'

rsp

[AKJ]

so what is the adequat definition?

[standalone]

I think the majority of EDM producers will get wet ears when they hear Arksun's demos:

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 82#4912582

I know Arksun is a great sound designer, but that's nothing new, and nothing that cannot be achieved in other synths.

Nobody said that Diva does something new, only that it does it a lot better.

[AKJ]

in your response you are missing the second part of the comment: "and nothing that cannot be achieved in other synths". This is exactly my impression.

edit: as I said: I cannot hear that it is any better than other of the good VAs. Maybe, it is just me. But I am only willing to change my mind on the basis of a proof (be it a blind test or physical measurement which is able to show a significant difference)

[LeVzi]

I think the majority of EDM producers will get wet ears when they hear Arksun's demos:

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 82#4912582

I know Arksun is a great sound designer, but that's nothing new, and nothing that cannot be achieved in other synths.

Nobody said that Diva does something new, only that it does it a lot better.

In your opinion.

[standalone]

btw, I will reveal now my secret weapons in order to achieve that special touch-sound in synths:

a) Unstable by de la mancha: http://www.delamancha.co.uk/unstable.htm
(not really about warmness, but really cool for pitch instability fx if you like it lofi - which I do at times)

b) Metallurgy by ugo: http://www.ugoaudio.com/plug-ins/metallurgy
this is really such a wonderful tool for any sound designer. A real must.

cheers, akj

You like Synthedit-powered lo-fi? Nice, staying away from Diva is the right decision then. Can we all move on?

[hakey]

so what is it then?

Just because a descriptive term can't be tied down to a precise definition doesn't mean to say that the term has no meaning or utility.

The word blue had a useful meaning long before it could be defined as the qualia perceived upon excitation of the retina by electromagnetic waves of a certain frequency.

[standalone]

I think the majority of EDM producers will get wet ears when they hear Arksun's demos:

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 82#4912582

I know Arksun is a great sound designer, but that's nothing new, and nothing that cannot be achieved in other synths.

Nobody said that Diva does something new, only that it does it a lot better.

In your opinion.

Yes, my opinion is that somebody said that Diva does nothing new but that it does it a lot better.

[GruvSyco]

I think the majority of EDM producers will get wet ears when they hear Arksun's demos:

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 82#4912582

Yeah, someone should let Arksun as well as Plughugger, Rob Lee, Aiyn and Kriminal know that Diva is not for EDM sounds.

[AKJ]

so what is it then?

Just because a descriptive term can't be tied down to a precise definition doesn't mean to say that the term has no meaning or utility.

The word blue had a useful meaning long before it could be defined as the qualia perceived upon excitation of the retina by electromagnetic waves of a certain frequency.

that's not a good example. If we were talking about heat in the domain of temperature you would be right. here, as in your example, the term was used in past times while not having an exact definition in term of natural science. In the case of our discussion, the term "warm" is used metaphorically (that is: shifted from one domain to another) - and in a way which does not mean anything to me. So I would be interested to know what it actually refers to. It is right, I do have the suspicion that it actually means nothing but I am open to be proven wrong.

[Urs]

warm is not eq' driven.....even if I, inadequately defined it in terms of frequencies..... but clearly I think you are purposely trying to be ridiculous in your argument.

so what is it then?

edit: now you are denying that it is something defined in term of frequencies because you realize that an eq obviously could create warmness easily if it were the case.

I used to be an analogue agnostic just because I always found it was just hype by those who had spent a lot of money on a lot of bullshit propaganda. I was sure that the Virus was the shitz and schnitzel, only that it was a bit too aggressive for my taste, and thus I got into building synths from there.

One day I attended a test of two 7000€ Neve prototype EQs. It wasn't easy to describe but it was obvious that any material sent through these just sounded better than without, even if the EQ was left in its neutral position.

What it meant to me was, the subjective perception of "better" or "warmer" whatsoever was related to whatever those EQs did when they actually shouldn't do anything. The answer was simple: Non-linear behavior of transformers and whatever else active elements were present. Not just one single distortion, but an array of just the right transfer curves, carefully selected to create that extra sheen.

Now, despite all the hahoo of Diva's zero-delay-feedback filters, the main source of Diva's sound - which is also present when the resonance is not turned up - is an array of non-linear elements throughout the signal path. It creates a caboodle of intermodulation distortion that's carefully laid out over the spectrum. It matches the nonlinear behavior of its analogue counterparts pretty closely, and it's the main reason for Diva's CPU hunger. Because there are plentiful of distortion units, we needed to upsample and downsample each single module to avoid excessive aliasing. This in my opinion resembles what had happened with that Neve EQ.

That is what it is. Carefully laid out nonlinear elements.

[Sampleconstruct]

Some find substractive synthesis boring and therefore neglect Diva (like myself) and some find it interesting and inspiring, the latter like Diva because she does that very well, that's about it, no matter how many pages this thread might reach.

[pdxindy]

Not everyone is an EDM producer

A little objectivity wouldn't go amiss at times.

You should probably listen to your own advice vested interests don't really make for objective opinions.

(well opinions aren't really objective are they?)

But I am speaking strictly as a producer,

No you are not... you are speaking for all other producers and saying what they all (or majority) like. And once you are speaking for everyone else, then that is when you are spinning a pile of manipulative crap.