KVR Audio

eXode · Post by **eXode** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 6:32 am

Propellerhead have released their polysonic synthesizer for the iPad.

Thor Polysonic Synthesizer By Propellerhead Software AB

Description
Thor for iPad puts the mighty Thor synthesizer at your fingertips. Reason's legendary flagship synth delivers a thunderous sound, god-like sound sculpting capabilities and an innovative, lighting-fast keyboard designed for iPad. Thor is a synthesis playground, a flexible sonic workhorse, but above all, an expressive musical instrument for the iPad.

Thor highlights
• Play Reason's Thor Polysonic Synthesizer on the iPad.
• Load any of the 1000+ expertly crafted synth patches, or create your own from scratch.
• Create your sounds using a palette of multiple oscillator and filter types.
• Play Thor using an expressive touch interface keyboard with aftertouch and strumming.
• Collapse the keyboard to a key and scale of your choice, just like in Figure.
• Move your favourite patches from the iPad to your computer and use them with Thor in Reason

Thor sounds like no synthesizer you've ever heard before - and every single one of them. Where other synths use one specific form of synthesis and one single filter, the Thor polysonic synthesizer features six different oscillator types and four unique filters. What does this give you? Simply the most powerful synth ever created; an unstoppable monster of a sound generator that utilizes synthesizer technology from the last 40 years.

On the iPad, Thor comes with a specially designed interface that's optimized for touch control and the iPad screen. Cleverly designed panels expand and fold at the touch of a button to hide or reveal oscillators, filters, envelopes and more.

The app is divided into three main screens: Keyboard, Knobs and Routing.

Keyboard mode features:
• Piano keyboard with transpose and range control
• Modulation and pitch bend controls
• Assist function lets you select key and scale to highlight chord notes or to collapse the keyboard to only show the chord notes of the selected scale.
• Strum function lets you play arpeggios by holding a chord while strumming across the strum control.
• Two assignable knobs and buttons acts like performance controls
• Settings for polyphony and portamento

Knobs mode features:
• Access to all of Thor's synthesis features
• Three oscillator slots for Thor's six oscillator types: Analog, Wavetable, FM Pair, PhaseMod, Multi Osc and Noise
• Three filter slots for for Thor's four filter types: Low Pass Ladder, State Variable, Comb and Formant
• Three envelopes
• Dual LFOs
• Delay and Chorus
• The Knobs screen is divided into panels that expand and collapse at the touch of a button
• Miniature keyboard to audition your sounds as you are working on them

Routing features
• Comprehensive but easy to use routing matrix lets you create complex modulation and signal flow setups
• Step sequencer with 16-steps and six channels: Note, Velocity, Gate length, Step duration, Curve 1, Curve 2

General App features:
• Patch compatible with Thor in Reason on your computer
• Move patches to and from your iPad using iTunes or Dropbox
• Sound bank with more than 1000 Thor patches from leading artists & sound designers (Kill the Noise, Richard Devine, Chris Petti and many more)
• Gorgeous retina display interface
• MIDI in - play Thor from an external MIDI source or from another app on the same iPad
• Audiobus compatible - stream audio from Thor to another audio app on the same iPad
• Audio in background option lets Thor keep playing in the background when working with other apps.

Note: We recommend using Thor for iPad with iPad 2 or later.

Ghostwave · Post by **Ghostwave** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 6:57 am

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 58#5394158

eXode · Post by **eXode** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 7:04 am

Typical. I searched for Thor and by some reason I didn't get that result, also I saw that Waldorf Nave was posted about in this forum. Ah well. :)

Ghostwave · Post by **Ghostwave** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 7:10 am

eXode wrote:Typical. I searched for Thor and by some reason I didn't get that result, also I saw that Waldorf Nave was posted about in this forum. Ah well.

No problem. And you posting in the instrument section was relevant since Thor for iPad is completely compatible with Reason's Thor.
I'm glad it's getting a second life because with all those REs, this great synth isn't talked about as much as it used to.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 8:19 am

Ghostwave wrote:Thor for iPad is completely compatible with Reason's Thor.

The price is not quite compatible though, ipad users is getting it for less than £11

If the iPad synth is quite like the one in Reason, why the huge price differenc

Sooner or later if not already happened, I expect there will appear a bridge meaning iPad users can hook up their iPad to their Mac or PC and use the instrument in their favourite DAW there.

If that happens, whose gonna pay $100+ for VST/AU instruments anymore?

core · Post by **core** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 8:37 am

Numanoid wrote:
Ghostwave wrote:Thor for iPad is completely compatible with Reason's Thor.
The price is not quite compatible though, ipad users is getting it for less than £11

If the iPad synth is quite like the one in Reason, why the huge price differenc

Sooner or later if not already happened, I expect there will appear a bridge meaning iPad users can hook up their iPad to their Mac or PC and use the instrument in their favourite DAW there.

If that happens, whose gonna pay $100+ for VST/AU instruments anymore?

Apps have a different market. Prices just tend to be lower. Maybe it will trigger a price reduction for similar/identical plug-in counterparts, but not necessarily.

It's kind of like how you can buy your music on CD or as a download. Same music, different medium, different price. Sure, there's a difference in manufacturing costs, but I think it's more the works of the market that make the price.

eXode · Post by **eXode** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:07 am

Numanoid wrote:
Ghostwave wrote:Thor for iPad is completely compatible with Reason's Thor.
The price is not quite compatible though, ipad users is getting it for less than £11 :-o

If the iPad synth is quite like the one in Reason, why the huge price differenc

Sooner or later if not already happened, I expect there will appear a bridge meaning iPad users can hook up their iPad to their Mac or PC and use the instrument in their favourite DAW there.

If that happens, whose gonna pay $100+ for VST/AU instruments anymore?

OTOH how are you going to value Thor among all the other devices that Reason comes with, not to mention Reason itself. Thor on a computer is currently part of a package and you can't purchase it on it's own, therefore it's difficult to weigh it's "value". I think iPad users can rejoice instead that they can now get a hold of this fantastic synth at a premium price. :)

I don't think you have asked an unvalid question btw, it's just that it would be simpler to answer if you could have bought Thor on it's own. :)

Wormhelmet · Post by **Wormhelmet** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:16 am

At any rate, I've never used Reason, but now have Thor on my iPad. Really a great synth. Kind of piqued my curiosity about Reason now. iPad synths are definitely part of my workflow. The sound of this one, Nave, iMS20, iMini, Alchemy Mobile, and a whole lot of other ones, is just amazing. All of them are great deals.

eXode · Post by **eXode** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 12:05 pm

Wormhelmet wrote:At any rate, I've never used Reason, but now have Thor on my iPad. Really a great synth. Kind of piqued my curiosity about Reason now. iPad synths are definitely part of my workflow. The sound of this one, Nave, iMS20, iMini, Alchemy Mobile, and a whole lot of other ones, is just amazing. All of them are great deals.

Great to hear that you are enjoying Thor.

One of the many rewarding things about Thor is that it's so deep. I've been using it since Reason 4 and even though it's fairly simple to start with, it's increadibly deep and flexible through the mod matrix in that you can program i.e. feedback loops, and also tap a signal out of the filters, shaper, amp, etc, and use that as a source for modulation, i.e. FM of oscillators, LFO rates etc. You can use the Button as a constant to drive the LFO1 up to audio rate or reversed, pushing one of the OSC's down to LFO rates.

Some people have also complained that the envelopes are too sluggish, but again you can use recursive modulation to have an envelope modulate it's own stages and thus making it snappier (i.e. Filter Env can modulate it's own Attack, Decay, and Release stage), or slower for that matter.

A lot of fun to be had for tweakers. :)

Wormhelmet · Post by **Wormhelmet** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 12:14 pm

As a bonus, if you want to see how to get deep with it programming, there is a $9.99 app titled "Reason's Thor: Master of all Synths" by GW Childs in MacBook Pro Video format all about programming Thor

Don't know about "Master of all Synths", but it is pretty flexible for sound and there are a ton of presets that show off how flexible it is.

Wormhelmet · Post by **Wormhelmet** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 12:36 pm

eXode wrote:
Numanoid wrote:
Ghostwave wrote:Thor for iPad is completely compatible with Reason's Thor.
The price is not quite compatible though, ipad users is getting it for less than £11

If the iPad synth is quite like the one in Reason, why the huge price differenc

Sooner or later if not already happened, I expect there will appear a bridge meaning iPad users can hook up their iPad to their Mac or PC and use the instrument in their favourite DAW there.

If that happens, whose gonna pay $100+ for VST/AU instruments anymore?
OTOH how are you going to value Thor among all the other devices that Reason comes with, not to mention Reason itself. Thor on a computer is currently part of a package and you can't purchase it on it's own, therefore it's difficult to weigh it's "value". I think iPad users can rejoice instead that they can now get a hold of this fantastic synth at a premium price.

I don't think you have asked an unvalid question btw, it's just that it would be simpler to answer if you could have bought Thor on it's own.

Given that Thor is just one out of all the instruments in Reason, it might have been a good way to generate more interest in Reason. I know this is the first time I was interested in seeing a price for Reason. Found a place right away that had it for $340. Now that's pretty good for a complete system.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Tue Jul 30, 2013 7:11 pm

Now that I have upgraded from Reason Essentials to the full Reason and have got access to Thor, I'm sad to say I doesn't blow me away.

For example, this Refill aint of Diva quality, so either the Moog Foundation can't tweak, or something is lacking in Thor...

http://www.propellerheads.se/news/newsp ... foundation

I think the synths in Reason are due for a much needed upgrade.

Subtractor sounds really weak for something that on paper should be able to take on Monark soundwise.

Thor for iPad!