KVR Audio

Lotuzia · Post by **Lotuzia** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:04 pm

A capable sampler would serve you best, like Kontakt or Mach V 3, but its way out your price range, so some synths like Alchemy or NI ABsynth if you can find them second hand.

Now any capable synth can make some ambient things :

Here are a few examples from our last synth Oxium :

Woman Dreams

Only Oxium, not a single EQ, no compressor, no daw automation, no nothing except a bit of reverb on some instruments.

or this :

BP Shift Pad

More about Oxium here ( Current intro price is only 69€ )

LtZ

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:21 pm

KarmaFX modular is currently $72. Worth checking out the demo.

Trakstar · Post by **Trakstar** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:28 pm

whyterabbyt wrote:KarmaFX modular is currently $72. Worth checking out the demo.

Ive just been thinking about the new Oxium synth for 69 euro's , the demo sounds certainly make it a tempting offer and Im gonna give the demo a good working.
Wondering if you have tried this??

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:43 pm

Trakstar wrote:
whyterabbyt wrote:KarmaFX modular is currently $72. Worth checking out the demo.
Ive just been thinking about the new Oxium synth for 69 euro's , the demo sounds certainly make it a tempting offer and Im gonna give the demo a good working.
Wondering if you have tried this??

Oxium? No, not tried that. looks like an interesting modernisation of the classic subtractive thing, but Ive got a pretty hefty accumulation of synths already, and that territory is already well covered for me, so at the moment Im not even looking at anything new unless its modular and/or processes samples.

jsp1979 · Post by **jsp1979** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:46 pm

Some thoughts:
1. If you can save a bit longer, then I really think Alchemy is golden for that type of music. Keep an eye on the marketplace. You can see used copies being sold for $125-$150 range with a little patience.

2. The earlier suggestion of the Korg Wavestation is an interesting one. It's likely only going to be 32-bit so that might be an issue. The sounds have aged quite well (IMHO) and would work well in a downtempo context.

3. Have you considered Wusikstation? It's easy to use and has a TON of sounds. It would be worth trying the demo to see how you like it. It also has Wavesequencing (like the Wavestation). It's currently on sale for $66.

http://www.wusik.com/ww/purchase

As a side note, when I think of downtempo/chillout music (which I like), I think of how the effects and the production are at least as important or even more important than the sounds you're using. You might could get by with some great free synths (like Synth1 or Tyrell) plus $100 worth of effects (like Valhalla Room and ValhallaUberMod) to change them into otherworldly sounds. See http://www.valhalladsp.com/

monojoke · Post by **monojoke** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 1:55 pm

Synthmaster is very good.

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:01 pm

The OP should also make sure he doesnt overlook some of the free stuff available, like Tyrell and Plex2, and consider jsp1979's suggestion that you might find investing in good effects to be a valid alternative.

satYatunes · Post by **satYatunes** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:05 pm

Whatever synth you buy, make sure you have a very good Reverb. It's quite essential for new age/chill out/ambient type of music.

Resonator63 · Post by **Resonator63** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:11 pm

Alchemy if you spend a bit more or Synthmaster is currently $99 give the demo a try it's very good.

V'ger · Post by **V'ger** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:40 pm

ZynAddSubFX is great for new age with top pads, strings, bells etc. It's also unbelievably cheap.

satYatunes · Post by **satYatunes** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:52 pm

Albino is a great choice for this type of music.. especially the smooth pads. Look out for a used one in MP.. may find it within 100 or little bit more.

george · Post by **george** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:55 pm

Also, Discovery

$99

http://www.discodsp.com/discovery/

SLiC · Post by **SLiC** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 3:01 pm

http://www.store.cakewalk.com/b2cus/Pro ... DM1.50-30E

Cant go wrong, 7 Gig of samples from new age to real instruments with great synth capability. Very overlooked! 99USD

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/DimensionPro/

BERFAB · Post by **BERFAB** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 3:05 pm

cyphersuit wrote:i wouldn't go with zeta 2 (bugs and overall more trancy sounding)

Couldn't disagree more. Tarnce is about as far from my oeuvre as you can get, and Zeta fits in every one of my mixes somewhere. Tons of presets and online freebies in every genre, and very easy to tweak.

I've run Zeta v. 1 on 3 different Windows OS systems and it has always been rock solid. While it is true that the first release of Zeta 2 sucked (sorry, but it did)the current release is, happily, rock solid and even easier to use with the organized browser system (I'm on Win 7 x64 running Cubase 6.5).

Plus, I'm pretty sure that if you can find one of the freebie/magware offers for Zeta 1 that's floating around, you can upgrade to version 2 for just $50 USD.

Cheers
-B

himalaya · Post by **himalaya** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 3:35 pm

rm1232002 wrote:My main genre is New Age

In one of my music 'alter egos' I also make New Age music.

What I'd say is stay away from pure VA synths.

From your list I'd immediately choose Tassman and/or SynthMaster. Tassman will give you all manner of real and semi-real hybrid sounds well suited to the New Age genre. The cons of Tassman is it's clunky user interface and disjointed preset/performance browser experience which takes getting used to if you are not familiar with the way AAS does preset browsers. But Tassman can provide everything you'd need from string plucks, flutes, drums, percussion, to ambiances, not to mention strong synth sounds. Check out Harm Visser patches to hear what can be made in Tassman. His stuff is perfect for New Age noodles.

SynthMaster will also provide lots of suitable sounds. I haven't used it in a long while but with people like BigTone involved in the presets you will have lots of great sounds at your disposal. In a way SynthMaster is much better at long evolving sounds than Tassman (Tassman doesn't have multi-segment envelopes). SynthMaster synth engines will keep you occupied for a very long time. Deep and powerful. Thinking about it, it might be better than Tassman in the long run...add a suitable sample based instrument like Halion Sonic or Kontakt further down the line and expand your sound set with more 'real' sounds.

The previously mentioned Wusiktation is also a nice choice especially with the Artvera New Age expansion presets.

Get Radian by Xoxos. A superb drum/percussion synth. Lots of cool ethno percussion sounds.

Here's a few free Krakli synths which I have found to be very useful as well:
1. Richman2 or Richamn XL - this will give you lots of cool plucks and resonant hybrid sounds.
2. StringZ - this is one of those real gems of synth world. Just get it. It's perfect at adding very real, mysterious, otherworldly, new age tone.
3. S3B - very interesting pads. Extremely easy to use.

More synths/sample based instruments which I use all the time in my New Age tracks: Alchemy, East West RA, AAS String Studio, Sonic Synth2 (it has very usable guitars surprisingly) and the new kid on the block Padshop Pro, which is extremely lush.

Suggest the best soft synth I can get for $100! (Updated with new questions)