computer music mag's top 10 synths...

[AstralExistence]

This is why I don't buy CM any more. CM are boring middle of the road crowd pleasers. They're like the Women's Own of music production.

they really are. im sick of computer musics cushy reviews. seriously every synth that comes out is given a good rating. wavformless is my favorite site to get honest reviews. and sylenth1 number 2? i read a while back that somebody claimed to know why sylenth1 hasn't been updated. its because leonard lost the code. not sure how true this is, but it sure would explain a lot.

[Oktipus]

as soon as you use something like "Best" as a qualifier, you're screwed as far as objectivity.

so take it as it is.

It is not serious, it is not even based on selling data or similar quantifications. You cannot classify something basing your judgement on taste. I remember another stupid "best daw" classification made by musicradar... at least that one, even if stupid, too, was based on fanboys votes... infact FL studio was nr.1

....and Reaper was #1 DAW the year before they picked FL Studio in their top 10 list. They'll probably make Bitwig Studio #1 if it ever gets released

reaper best daw?

Yeah but were talking about a magazine that does articles on Avicii's home studio. Seriously, like a kid who has two songs to his name.

All those magazines cater to dreamers who think some magic piece of gear is going to catapult them from the bedroom into stardom. I used to read all the guitar magazines when I was a kid and dream about all the gear. They always have "top" lists. Once I started playing professionally and touring, I learned about gear from other musicians. Now I read musicradar for a good giggle.

[fisherKing]

stupid, useless AU... once on vst boxes you could read "for mac and pc": soft instruments were made firstly for the mac, because they were professional machines for musicians. Nowadays developers make synths for pc/vst (you can find at least 80% plugins more on PC) and often forget the (useless) mac's AU. Let alone 64 bit updates (see sylenth1, AAS instruments etc.). Pros are sayng "bye bye" to apple, that's it.

you're always going on about AU's. what's the problem? they run beautifully on my mac; all of them. and many pros use macs. do some research.

S1 is the last 32bit holdout (at least for me)...so it goes.

the whole mac vs pc thing is INSANELY tired already, and deserves a

[myrna]

stupid, useless AU... once on vst boxes you could read "for mac and pc": soft instruments were made firstly for the mac, because they were professional machines for musicians. Nowadays developers make synths for pc/vst (you can find at least 80% plugins more on PC) and often forget the (useless) mac's AU. Let alone 64 bit updates (see sylenth1, AAS instruments etc.). Pros are sayng "bye bye" to apple, that's it.

you're always going on about AU's. what's the problem? they run beautifully on my mac; all of them. and many pros use macs. do some research.

S1 is the last 32bit holdout (at least for me)...so it goes.

the whole mac vs pc thing is INSANELY tired already, and deserves a

the problem: i am on mac and when I see people playing 64 bit vst instruments on PC (while my "think different" useless AU versions are 32 bit) I realize things have changed and now the pros choose PC. The mac world nowadays is for families, i-cheesy products etc. Just this. Once was different: soft synths and DAWS were made "for mac and PC" not "for PC and mac". But t was 10-15 years ago...Nothing against happy cheesy families, of course

[fisherKing]

the problem: i am on mac and when I see people playing 64 bit vst instruments on PC (while my "think different" useless AU versions are 32 bit) I realize things have changed and now the pros choose PC. The mac world nowadays is for families, i-cheesy products etc. Just this. Once was different: soft synths and DAWS were made "for mac and PC" not "for PC and mac". But t was 10-15 years ago...

which plugs do you use that are still 32bit? (seriously, please answer that).

you really need to get over this: lots of pros use macs. some use pcs. what matters, at the end of the day, is the WORK they do...the MUSIC. i work in several studios in nyc; all (or mostly) macs. and every MAJOR daw and plugin is there for the mac. if it doesn't exist on os x, then that's life. there's always another plugin.

10-15 YEARS ago? LOL...

[hibidy]

this is starting to feel more like the old kvr every day

Oh, @ list:

I have 3 of the 10.

[myrna]

the problem: i am on mac and when I see people playing 64 bit vst instruments on PC (while my "think different" useless AU versions are 32 bit) I realize things have changed and now the pros choose PC. The mac world nowadays is for families, i-cheesy products etc. Just this. Once was different: soft synths and DAWS were made "for mac and PC" not "for PC and mac". But t was 10-15 years ago...

which plugs do you use that are still 32bit? (seriously, please answer that).

you really need to get over this: lots of pros use macs. some use pcs. what matters, at the end of the day, is the WORK they do...the MUSIC. i work in several studios in nyc; all (or mostly) macs. and every MAJOR daw and plugin is there for the mac. if it doesn't exist on os x, then that's life. there's always another plugin.

10-15 YEARS ago? LOL...

Sylenth1
Tassman
String Studio S1
Ultra Analog VA1
Strum Acoustic

Nice synths, but why 32 bit AU, when 64 bit VST are out since about 2010? The answer: there is no market for mac anymore (otherwise, they'd have done first 64 bit for mac, then for PC).

10-12 years ago everyone who wanted to play music was on mac, studios included. Not nowadays, i guess it is the "i-crap" mania. See macpro production: stuck and perhaps discontinued in a year or two...

[ghettosynth]

I have 3 of the 10.

So you will only sound 30% the same as everybody else! Sylenth must have come out at just the right time or something. What does that thing have that it's always all over CM magazine?

[hibidy]

I have 3 of the 10.

So you will only sound 30% the same as everybody else! Sylenth must have come out at just the right time or something. What does that thing have that it's always all over CM magazine?

I know!

[trimph1]

the problem: i am on mac and when I see people playing 64 bit vst instruments on PC (while my "think different" useless AU versions are 32 bit) I realize things have changed and now the pros choose PC. The mac world nowadays is for families, i-cheesy products etc. Just this. Once was different: soft synths and DAWS were made "for mac and PC" not "for PC and mac". But t was 10-15 years ago...

which plugs do you use that are still 32bit? (seriously, please answer that).

you really need to get over this: lots of pros use macs. some use pcs. what matters, at the end of the day, is the WORK they do...the MUSIC. i work in several studios in nyc; all (or mostly) macs. and every MAJOR daw and plugin is there for the mac. if it doesn't exist on os x, then that's life. there's always another plugin.

10-15 YEARS ago? LOL...

Sylenth1
Tassman
String Studio S1
Ultra Analog VA1
Strum Acoustic

Nice synths, but why 32 bit AU, when 64 bit VST are out since about 2010? The answer: there is no market for mac anymore (otherwise, they'd have done first 64 bit for mac, then for PC).

10-12 years ago everyone who wanted to play music was on mac, studios included. Not nowadays, i guess it is the "i-crap" mania. See macpro production: stuck and perhaps discontinued in a year or two...

I see the eternal waaaah!! about AU is here as well.

Seriously, get over yourself.....

[trimph1]

I'm not too worried about Top 10 lists in CM or any other mag..I just go with whatever works ...for me.

[munchkin]

This is why I don't buy CM any more. CM are boring middle of the road crowd pleasers. They're like the Women's Own of music production.

they really are. im sick of computer musics cushy reviews. seriously every synth that comes out is given a good rating. wavformless is my favorite site to get honest reviews. and sylenth1 number 2? i read a while back that somebody claimed to know why sylenth1 hasn't been updated. its because leonard lost the code. not sure how true this is, but it sure would explain a lot.

Interesting website. At least I learnt something new from this thread. As for sylenth...well each to their own...

Totally agree with the XILS Lab vote. They make some cracking synths that should be at the top of any list.

[quantum7]

I will never again read an issue of CM after seeing that list. Massive, Sylenth1, and FM8 all ahead of Alchemy? Sylenth1 ahead of both Zebra and Diva? You've GOT to be kidding me! It looks lie CM is catering to the teenage bedroom Dubstep composer crowd.

[machinesworking]

Sylenth1
Tassman
String Studio S1
Ultra Analog VA1
Strum Acoustic

Nice synths, but why 32 bit AU, when 64 bit VST are out since about 2010? The answer: there is no market for mac anymore (otherwise, they'd have done first 64 bit for mac, then for PC).

10-12 years ago everyone who wanted to play music was on mac, studios included. Not nowadays, i guess it is the "i-crap" mania. See macpro production: stuck and perhaps discontinued in a year or two...

Sonar on PC was the first DAW to have a 64 bit beta version available to developers, Logic 64 bit came out years later.

AAS make 4 out of the 5 synths you mention. That's two developers that haven't made 64 bit AU's yet.

of the 91 plug ins in my components folder only two developers have plug ins that aren't 64 bit yet: The Sound Guy, and AAS. The Sound Guy doesn't have a 64 bit Windows VST version either. So, only AAS on my system......
Really? I mean Really??


BTW I own Live 8 Suite, and the 64 bit beta version has all the native Live AAS instruments working, so native AU 64 bit AAS plug ins are right around the corner.

[rj0]

On a side note (actually sort of literally), the "My Favourite Synths" (Artists' favorites) sidebars in the magazine tell a rather different story from the Top 10.