Are You Happy With Your Arsenal?

[Vintage73]

Yup, that time again!

First off, I need to say that I'm not looking to buy any more Instruments, other than maybe Reaktor and Scarby MM Bass or OTS Cherry Bass, so I'm not fishing for ideas for instruments to buy. I have what I have, and I'm extremely happy with what I have.

What are your favorites?

Me:

Zebra2 (I sold my Alchemy for it!)
Alchemy (finally bought it again!)
Padshop
Retrologue

I have a few others that I use (like OTS Jaco and SD2), but those are my favorites of what I have, and I don't feel the need to buy any new instruments. Not even Omnisphere. (Actually, Trilian kinda turmed me off of Spectrasonics. I thought it would be much more complete bass guitar-wise (any-interval slides and a better 8-string).)

Please don't shoot me.

I'm including Softsynths and Sample Libraries in this.

[ras.s]

I was really impressed with the Arturia Minimoog I got on the giveaway.. So after that I thought of creating a template for my DAW with good instruments I can just start jamming with right away, here's what I loaded up:

Drumsection: IL Drumaxx, Cakewalk Session drummer 2, percussion soundfont.
Bass duties: Arturia Minimoog
Keys: AM VL122 (organ), Tascam CVpiano
Strings: WOK Cromina, xoxos piamo
Synths: UHE Tyrell, Kv331 Synthmaster

Then there's a couple of Guitar Rig LEs on top of some of them for amping. I've started a few projects with this setup and I think I've got a quite nice sound assembled together with these (and the whole lot I got aswell). If I get some money next week, I'll try and grab that IL Sakura, but won't mind if I don't get it, I'm quite satisfied soundwise. Though if some new NI B4 (don't have it) comes around the corner, I might be interested .. Gotta love sounds. And never too many free instruments!

[bluedad]

If I can't make music with what I've got, a new synth or fx isn't going to help.
my favs
reaktor
Zebra2
Alchemy
and still digging on xphrase

[highkoo]

Well I doubt anyone wants to hear my same ol favorites but, Ive been 'content' for a few years. Both with the tools available, and with their cost, and the cost of the required hardware.
Now I only buy weird stuff usually... I dont get every bread n butter monster synth anymore. I will always be a sucker for the new oddball effect though.

I think it is as much to do with the advance of cheap technology as it is just the effect of time spent doing it.
For example, it took a lOoooong time to find the few drum libraries that are 'it' for me, even though they are not necessarily new libraries.
I used to hunt drum samples for hours and hours. Bought piles of boring standard libraries. Now, its AlienDrumRobots, DrivenMachine, Sonic Couture, D16, and rarely anything else.
Same with any samples. I have tons of the big room FX stuff from Vengeance, etc, but over the years realized that they are generally just too big. I learned that quickly with their drums, but it took a while of working to 'tone down' every single effect from them in my mixes. I buy more selectively there, and Im much more DIY about that part of the sound. I use a stock of simpler sounds and work them myself with effects.

Drum Synths/Samplers too. Theres a bunch and they have drastically different workflows. I tried many before realizing that most were not what I wanted.

A big thing also is that it takes many people a long time to even know what kind of sound they want, let alone the time to then find the right tool, or even to identify what tool gives that sound.
Its a fairly modern problem.
Like reverb. There are a hundred of them. Even after owning a few, getting to the point where I even had an opinion on which I wanted to use when took a while.
Now I will usually know if a to-be-released synth is something I will dig. Or, if its something I will dig more than what I already have and know. Im not just excited by the 'newness' alone like I was.

And its good.
I dont feel less 'into it'. More if anything. I just dont often have the 'if only...' in my head when making music now. Unlimited possibilities are right there laid out in front of me. So many of the things that were an 'If' became an 'Are', and theyre installed.

[Sendy]

Completely happy with what I have and still I buy more, I just love synths and softsynths! In fact, when I write music, I'm kinda flitting from synth to synth like a bee on to flowers a lot of the time, which can lead to procrastination, but it also means every track I write has a random smattering of synths which helps to keep things fresh.

I consider the price of a synth often worth it just for the pure fun of using it. Even if I never use it in a track but spend 10 hours messing with it over the course of a month it seems money well spent - I don't drink or eat out or have any other vices apart from computers on which to run the things

I'm also aware of the importance of learning what you have thoroughly, but the thing is, the majority of synths share a vast amount of properties, so each new synth you have to learn requires less new stuff to learn - dependant on what the synth is of course! It took me longer to learn Gladiator and I still haven't mastered it, wheras something like Diva or Zebra is just an extension of my will by now.

You could argue I'm never going to get right into the corners and discover every unique way I could combine my plugins with eachother, and push them to their limit, but I tackle that side of things by having different levels of dedication to different synths. Some of them I've gotten sounds out of that I don't think were even intended by the authors, and on the other hand, a couple of synths I have purely because they have iconic presets I like to use or mess around with.

[IrionDaRonin]

I think i just need a Zebra someday and i will be pleased.

I'm even trying to narrow down all my actual stuff, to use only what i need. Too much stuff.

Have a good day

[rob_lee]

"I'm happy with what I have. I don't need anything else"

[ew]

If I can't make music with what I've got, a new synth or fx isn't going to help.

Gary speaks truth. However, I'll still pick up things that look interesting

My favorites haven't changed that much over the last few years:

Reaktor
Absynth
Tera
Poseidon
Alchemy
Maschine
DCAM:SynthSquad

and of course, Kore as my router/chainer.

Newer ones I really like include the PPG 3V and Arturia's SEM. I used to use Komplexer a lot, but nowdays I usually use the hardware equivalent; my Blofeld and my modular probably get used more than anything besides Reaktor and Absynth these days.

and still digging on xphrase

Thanks for reminding me, Gary- I've got to borrow a friend's old external CD drive. My CD drive doesn't read the Xphraze install disc's copy protection and it aborts the install because of it. Using an older CD drive, it installs fine

ew

[fisherKing]

'fish' would have been my second choice answer. i live & die by:

sylenth1
electraX
zebra
cyclop
dune
addictive drums

also:
corona
synthmaster

i know that, if i can't make great music with the above tools, it's me, not the tools. but am always keeping my eyes open (and my ears open) for something new (i.e. i JUST added cyclop).
put me on a desert island (no, not really!) and i will work with just 2 of those plugs...)

[foosnark]

Right now the lack is with me, not my gear. I threw myself off electronic music for a while and need to just spend a lot of time noodling, erm, researching, to get back where I can make things I want to listen to ever again.

[mellotronaut]

when i want to buy something, i usually sell something before. i'm quite happy with what i have. sometimes there are tempting offers though like the ETCH no brainer or the new Arturia prices (SEM looks interesting).

[Arrested Developer]

Well, my problem isn't stuff i don't own, but rather two aspects that are related to gear i already have:

- First, the next (bigger) buy has to be a PC with at least 64 GB of Ram.
I have the VSL-Cube; the LA-Scoring Strings and several EastWest-Libraries...
At the moment, with 8 GB of Ram it's always making decisions, which sounds & articulations to use...
So an additional PC run with Vienna Ensemble could at least quadruplicate the value of those wonderful libs...

- Second, I wish to have more time to explore some softsynths: I recently bought NI's-Komplete; and i think it would be great to spend some premium time with tools like Reaktor, Kontakt and others.

(then again, I spent much time in exploring Zebra 2, and this was a great investment of time, since it's phantastic.
I'm also very happy with Diva, which is very easy to tweak and with Omnisphere, which provides instant High-End)


It is possible that sooner or later i'll switch to Cubase, since they seem to care about musicians needs, while Logic seems to stagnate...

[breakmixer]

Kontakt 4(Third party libraries)
Poise(Twinned with my MPD16)
Halion 3/4(My own samples)
Alchemy

Couldn't be without these VST instruments

Always interested in new stuff, don't buy so much anymore though - mainly effects(no brainers) if I do/couple of analog hardware synths recently...

[djanthonyw]

I spent A LOT of time narrowing down and getting rid of things to only keep what I use. I can say that I'm really happy with what I have. I think the only thing I would even consider purchasing would be a great all around rompler plugin since the only one that I truly think is good is Hypersonic.. but that one requires a dongle.

[zerocrossing]

There should have been an option "I'm happy with my current arsenal and I'll still get something if I like it."

I've clearly got more than enough instruments and effects, both hardware and software, to keep me busy and happy for the rest of my life, but yet when I demo a new synth or effect that makes me happy, I feel compelled to get it.

I will say though that I'm far pickier than I used to be. I should probably go though my vsts and get rid of a lot of it. It's hard when that's work and they don't take up any physical space.