Tone2 Electra 2

[JoghurtDerLetzte]

hi leutz,
i would like to buy the electra2 completely - prefered use as VSTi

somebody wrote - without notice of the samplerates the wavetables are mono only.

=> make 2-ch up to 5-ch soundmix could work...
=> meaning preserve 2-ch in recorder open 2 instrument-editors (electra)
=> loading one wavetable (converted before) , paramizing and save file as patch
=> open the second instance of instrument-editor (electra) loading patch saved before
=> paramizing this too for diff (stereo-effect) and save it as patch also...
ok, now i have a stereo-instrumented line for my midi parts.

my questions :

Q: can i put one wavetable file (the same) in instruments/osc wavetableslot
[ instr.1 instr.2 or osc1 osc2 ] and let the patch parameter work on it,
they adjusted/loaded before without overwriting the wavefile self?
or the loadings of wavefiles integrated in the patchfiles?

Q: where is a source to get instruction-sets , tables, or other info [guides,tutorials]
to programming electra with midi-codes?

thx a lot

[producerspot]

I had the chance to test Electra 2 and write a more detailed review about this synth. You can read it here: Electra 2 Review

[kuzami]

Just bought this one, but haven't tested it enough yet.

[xx JPRacer xx]

I had the chance to test Electra 2 and write a more detailed review about this synth. You can read it here: Electra 2 Review

Very nice review, thanks!

[JoghurtDerLetzte]

hi,

nice review you made ...

i bought this one complete ... ok
so much presets in this package!
but - i have a problem with :

1.) i have
Magix Musikmaker 2014 Premium
Magix Samplitude 2014 - yes i know - somebody have a meaning about Magix
Comp amd-6-core black-edition

a)
the electra2 VST seen and loaded in Samplitude and function well
if some plugs (VITA Instruments) added the playback go to shop / hack
- maybe the sample mem to low - ok - but works

the firebird2 VST doesnt seen and never loaded in Samplitude

b)
the electra2 VST are seen but doesnt loaded in MusicMaker
the Firebird2 VST seen and loaded in MusicMaker and works well
if some more Instruments loaded Firebird2 works well too
and the other too

c)
nemesis and saurus - testversions worked on MusicMaker well too
(doesnt tested with Samplitude)

what´s happend?
-- all the folder correctly adjusted and dll´s copied in
the standalone electra2 works well too
bu i have no chance apply electra2 correctly and completely...in
MusicMaker and/or Samplitude

You have a idea ?

i install a new soundcard (SoundBlaster Z) now, because i have only a onboard-sound-device
hope so have better conditions.

but it must work - or not?

thx a so much for answer helpfully!

[planetearth]

hi,

nice review you made ...

i bought this one complete ... ok
so much presets in this package!
but - i have a problem with :

1.) i have
Magix Musikmaker 2014 Premium
Magix Samplitude 2014 - yes i know - somebody have a meaning about Magix
Comp amd-6-core black-edition

a)
the electra2 VST seen and loaded in Samplitude and function well
if some plugs (VITA Instruments) added the playback go to shop / hack
- maybe the sample mem to low - ok - but works

the firebird2 VST doesnt seen and never loaded in Samplitude

b)
the electra2 VST are seen but doesnt loaded in MusicMaker
the Firebird2 VST seen and loaded in MusicMaker and works well
if some more Instruments loaded Firebird2 works well too
and the other too

c)
nemesis and saurus - testversions worked on MusicMaker well too
(doesnt tested with Samplitude)

what´s happend?
-- all the folder correctly adjusted and dll´s copied in
the standalone electra2 works well too
bu i have no chance apply electra2 correctly and completely...in
MusicMaker and/or Samplitude

You have a idea ?

i install a new soundcard (SoundBlaster Z) now, because i have only a onboard-sound-device
hope so have better conditions.

but it must work - or not?

thx a so much for answer helpfully!

Firebird 2.1 is the latest version, and it was just updated in the past couple of weeks. You should make sure you're using that. Also, keep in mind that it's an older VST, and it's only 32-bit.

A SoundBlaster card will not give you good results. SoundBlaster cards are not made for multi-track recording and playback of digital audio. The SoundBlaster card is not part of the problem you're having with Firebird, however. If the latest version of Firebird doesn't work for you, you should contact Tone2 directly. They'll be able to help you.

Steve

[JoghurtDerLetzte]

thx steve,

i´ve contact with tone2 - waiting for answer.
the Firebird 2.1 are the "+" - version?

steve, the firebird doesnt the prob really -
the wonderful electra2 wouldnt suck -
do you know a application (maybee for free) can check the VSTs ?

yes, the soundcard i have maybe not the thing - but better as nothing...
a tip for?
if i have more info about results probally, i turn back here...make short report.

thx & cu

[planetearth]

thx steve,

i´ve contact with tone2 - waiting for answer.
the Firebird 2.1 are the "+" - version?

steve, the firebird doesnt the prob really -
the wonderful electra2 wouldnt suck -
do you know a application (maybee for free) can check the VSTs ?

yes, the soundcard i have maybe not the thing - but better as nothing...
a tip for?
if i have more info about results probally, i turn back here...make short report.

thx & cu

The latest version of FireBird (2.1) is from May, 2014. If you download the one on Tone2's website today, just make sure you don't install the trial versions of the other synths (if you don't want them). The synths sound great, but they won't help you troubleshoot this problem.

What kind of hardware do you have--which processor are you using and how much memory do you have on your computer? And which version of Windows are you using?

I do think the problem is still with your SoundBlaster card. It can't handle the audio demands of Electra2 and another synth at the same time. SoundBlaster doesn't use ASIO drivers; you're either using MME drivers or WDM drivers for the audio, and neither of those will work very well--especially the MME drivers. If you're using WDM drivers, you'll need to change your buffer settings to see what works best.

An audio device that uses ASIO drivers would work best here, I think. You can get a good USB-based audio device (with ASIO drivers) for around $129 (USD). You would then disable the SoundBlaster card.

Steve

[JoghurtDerLetzte]

hi steve,

thx a lot for your answers helpfully...

1.)
especially for MusicMaker was the BitRange the Prob ( i used the 64bit-engine on 32bit Appli )
i installed new 32bit - dll in different but accessible folder - initalize - and it works now !
and it works fine, no clutter, lags and so on - the audio-renderer works fine too...

2.)
the firebird2 (free) is 32-bit and cant work on 64-bit Samplitude...

in MusicMaker they will work together now - also in redundant calls !

3.)
soundcard soundblaster Z - works too - with ASIO it´s a prob, asio4all too, magix-asio a bit smaller
only in samplitude 2014 64bit - why ? - dont know



have fun & good sound on devices
cu

(at the point here :thx Bastiaan Noord & Markus Krause from tone2 for outstanding support)

[zerocrossing]

I've had Electra2 on my list for a while, but I'm having a hard time finding out some info. There's nothing in the demo manual about importing wavetables. Is it possible or do you have to buy the expansion from Tone2? Also, if it is possible, what format would I want, like say I was buying the Galbanum Architecture Waveforms 2010, which are on half price sale at the moment. Would 32 bit wave be the ticket?

http://www.galbanum.com/shop/product_in ... ucts_id=78

[Ingonator]

I've had Electra2 on my list for a while, but I'm having a hard time finding out some info. There's nothing in the demo manual about importing wavetables. Is it possible or do you have to buy the expansion from Tone2? Also, if it is possible, what format would I want, like say I was buying the Galbanum Architecture Waveforms 2010, which are on half price sale at the moment. Would 32 bit wave be the ticket?

http://www.galbanum.com/shop/product_in ... ucts_id=78

Actually the name "wavetable" used in the old ElectraX was msileading as the resynthesis feature was not not creating an actual wavetable as in e.g. the PPG Wave. It is more like waveform morphing based on single waveform) while the "PW" knob will change the symmetry of the waveform which could lead to interesting results. in Electra 2 this was renamed to "Custom Wave".

The "VA" wavforms are renamed to "wavetable" now and actually those seem to be real wavetables (most of them).

Concerning the Galbanum waveforms Electra 2 seems to be able to load the 24-bit (+ 16-bit) waveforms but t not the 32-bit ones. You could also purchase a second format löike 24-bit which currently seems to cost additional 10 $.
As long as you have an audio editor software like e.g. Wavelab or the cheaper Wavelab Elements (i got the Elements 7 version) thsi also doesn't reall matter as this could do batch conversions of the format.

If you also want to work with your own samples and waveforms such editor is usually necessary anyway.

The most compatible format still seems to be 16-bit of course and for most cases this should be enough.


PS:
I purchased the Galbanmum waveform a while ago but tried to rely on my own (e.g. done with DNR Wave Designer) as for commercial use you would have to pay license fees for those waveforms. This would also include doing factory patches for a new synth where either you or the developer of the synth would have to pay the fees.

[syntheticillusion]

I've had Electra2 on my list for a while, but I'm having a hard time finding out some info. There's nothing in the demo manual about importing wavetables. Is it possible or do you have to buy the expansion from Tone2? Also, if it is possible, what format would I want, like say I was buying the Galbanum Architecture Waveforms 2010, which are on half price sale at the moment. Would 32 bit wave be the ticket?

http://www.galbanum.com/shop/product_in ... ucts_id=78

Actually the name "wavetable" used in the old ElectraX was msileading as the resynthesis feature was not not creating an actual wavetable as in e.g. the PPG Wave. It is more like waveform morphing based on single waveform) while the "PW" knob will change the symmetry of the waveform which could lead to interesting results. in Electra 2 this was renamed to "Custom Wave".

The "VA" wavforms are renamed to "wavetable" now and actually those seem to be real wavetables (most of them).

Concerning the Galbanum waveforms Electra 2 seems to e able to load the 24-bit waveforms but t not the 32-bit ones.
As long as you have an audio editor software like e.g. Wavelab or the cheaper Wavelab Elements (i got the Elements 7 version) thsi also doesn't reall matter as this could do batch conversions of the format.

If you also want to work with your own samples and waveforms such editor is usually necessary anyway.

The most compatible format still seems to be 16-bit of course and for most cases this should be enough.


PS:
I purchased the Galbanmum waveform a while ago but tried to rely on my own (e.g. done with DNR Wave Designer) as for commercial use you would have to pay license fees for those waveforms. This would also include doing factory patches for a new synth where either you or the developer of the synth would have to pay the fees.

Ingo I have Wavelab 8.5 LE, is it possible to to do this kind of editing in the LE version of Wavelab, because for mastering I use Harrison Mixbus 2.5 and I got Wavelab for free during
it's promotion where you get a serial for your steinberg key, ?

[Ingonator]

Ingo I have Wavelab 8.5 LE, is it possible to to do this kind of editing in the LE version of Wavelab, because for mastering I use Harrison Mixbus 2.5 and I got Wavelab for free during
it's promotion where you get a serial for your steinberg key, ?

No clue about the LE version. I got Wavelab Elements 7 and the Elements version is already a lot cheaper (around 20% of the full version) than the full Wavelab which is very expensive.

The Batch conversion is found in the Extras menu, here is a screenshot:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/532 ... on%201.png


This is from the german language version. The corresponding drop-down menu entry is marked with red color. Below you see how the new window for the batch conversion looks.
In the lower part you could set the format and the destination folder and and the upper part with the +/- symbols you could add the files for conversion.

For single waveforms the Audio properties could be changed (at least in the Elements version) with the last entry in the edit menu. This is useful if you have to edit the waveform further besides format conversion.

[zerocrossing]

Hm, interesting. I noticed that the folder containing Electrax2's waveforms is filled with single cycle 16 bit waveforms. Not quite what I was expecting, though to be honest I've only just started to mess with importing custom waveforms. I've drawn my own in Zebra, but other than that I've just stuck with what's supplied. I guess I was expecting a single file containing all the waveforms per wavetable with a way to index each waveform... kind of like how I'd make an image map. (a way of combining a lot of smaller images in one file to save memory in games where file sizes need to be a power of 2) Maybe Electra 2 isn't the tool for this? I do think the engine sounds very good though. Could it be doing resynthesis on each waveform?

As for licensing issues, I'm not too worried. I'm not interested in doing commercial preset packs, just experimenting in my little studio. I do find the concept of copywriting waveforms to be kind of suspect though. "I own this harmonic spectra!" seems a bit dubious, no? Another thing I've been doing, with some success, is bringing waveforms that came with Waveframe, a "Fizmo" (not really) instrument for Live, into Serum.

Anyway, it's a bit annoying that Tone2 does not have any documentation in the manual for bringing in waveforms for a custom wavetable. I know, they want you to buy their expansion packs, but to be frank they're kind of expensive especially if you plan on doing your own presets. Maybe I should to a WTB in the marketplace and see if I can find someone selling it with an expansion or two. I wonder how many people are totally put off to Tone2 by these type of shenanigans. When I think about the value that the similarly priced Zebra is, considering all it's updates over the years, Tone2 looks kind of bad.

[Frantz]

My recollection is that Electra2 only allows you to import custom waveforms for sample playback or resynthesis. In both cases, you can use Electra2's filters and effects. I found it quick and easy and got good results. The only annoyance is that Electra is fussy about the WAV format and so I had to do conversion in Audacity (which was pretty easy).

My understanding is that the waveforms that you import must be mono and single cycle. While Electra2 does have classic Waldorf style wavetables, I am not aware of support for importing custom wavetables.