Zebra3 Info

[goleat]

Is there the possibility that present some "concept" of what will be zebra3 at NAMM?

[Urs]

Is there the possibility that present some "concept" of what will be zebra3 at NAMM?

Our NAMM booth is run by our distribution partner... there'll be people who know our stuff inside out, but they'll only showcase released products.

My biggest "open ends" about Zebra3 are the quality of filters and the concepts of wave/envelope editing. We've done steps in the right direction (ModMap editors, Hive filters), but we haven't gone the full way.

I will spend the coming months researching some filter stuff that I had always on my mind. In the past few days I rewrote the foundation of the Synthex filter in Assembly, which delivers beyond-Diva-quality at a tad more CPU than Zebra's XMF filter. But that's for a mono implementation whereas the XMF needs 4 filters at once. I'm sure it'll be put to good use, but it can't yet replace the XMF.

That said, I'm toying with the idea of adding an "exotic filters" module. This might hold a set of analogue modeled filter circuits that are not commonly found in analogue gear. Which then - unlike the XMF - could be based on the modeling technology I'm just exploring.

I think in a few weeks we'll present some of the filter research, it might even end up in a funky little product.

On the side lines, we're toying with the idea of on-the-fly compilation on the user's machine in order to exhaust the benefits of newer CPUs while staying compatible to older ones. And also, there would be a tiny (!) chance that Zebra3 could have inter-module feedback.

So there's a lot going on. Many of the concepts needed for Z3 are explored in our other products, but filters, editors and possible optimizations are not. This is what we'll be concentrating on.

[Terrafractyl]

And also, there would be a tiny (!) chance that Zebra3 could have inter-module feedback.

Keeping my fingers crossed for this!!

but really, it all sounds amazing(As one has come to expect!)

can't wait

[MorpherX]

Nice to see that something is going on with Zebra 3.

My greatest wish for Zebra 3 is a much much better quality of base waveforms and wavetables.

In Zebra2/ZebraHZ there are only 128-sample single cycles in a 8 or 6 bit quality. If you switch off all filters and effects and listen to the pure waveform then this is a terrible expirience. They sound very weak and thin as if Zebra would be a Casio 1 toy.

[bmrzycki]

In Zebra2/ZebraHZ there are only 128-sample single cycles in a 8 or 6 bit quality. If you switch off all filters and effects and listen to the pure waveform then this is a terrible expirience. They sound very weak and thin as if Zebra would be a Casio 1 toy.

I'm not sure where you're getting your information from. The only 128 limit I'm aware of is the number of partials in *blend modes. In my opinion the Z2 oscillators some of the best in software when it comes to low aliasing, flexibility, and overall sound quality. I'm not even sure what your 8 or 6 bit quality comment refers to.

[Echoes in the Attic]

Whatver happens to Zebra 3 I just hope it doesn't lose it's versatile arp. It's one of the few software arpeggiators that actually has all the features a sequenced arp should have:
-Programmable steps (Adjustable length is nice too)
-Tie/glide
-Swing

It's crazy how few synths actually provide these basics. They often have 2 out of 3 (like programmable steps and swing but not tie/glide, or programmable with tie/glide but no swing, or sometimes tie is just a note lengthener not a glide, or sometimes synths just have a programmable sequencer with swing and glide, but it doesn't arpeggiate! ie.Bazille).

Please don't "improve" the arp by removing these features!

Also, I hope Zebra does stay in a reasonable cpu zone. For me it's the u-he sound without costing all your cpu, which I find important for the polyphonic stuff.

[aMUSEd]

In Zebra2/ZebraHZ there are only 128-sample single cycles in a 8 or 6 bit quality. If you switch off all filters and effects and listen to the pure waveform then this is a terrible expirience. They sound very weak and thin as if Zebra would be a Casio 1 toy.

Nope - Zebralette is basically just 1 osc without filters and fx - it sounds amazing for what it is - I mean what other developer would feel confident enough to release a 1 osc synth with no filters or fx?

[david.beholder]

On the side lines, we're toying with the idea of on-the-fly compilation on the user's machine in order to exhaust the benefits of newer CPUs while staying compatible to older ones. And also, there would be a tiny (!) chance that Zebra3 could have inter-module feedback.

Put it in Diva

[Urs]

On the side lines, we're toying with the idea of on-the-fly compilation on the user's machine in order to exhaust the benefits of newer CPUs while staying compatible to older ones. And also, there would be a tiny (!) chance that Zebra3 could have inter-module feedback.

Put it in Diva

That too

Mind you, I've spent an enormous amount of time, if not years, crunching filter maths. The filter we're working on currently (see RePro-1 thread) is a slightly more complex model than what we have in Diva and uses about half the CPU in Divine mode. Hand written assembly language still beats any compiler by a mile. I hope to be able to apply this knowledge onto Diva filters as well, as tedious as the task may be. It works in 64 bit mode only though, but our recent customer survey shows that about 90% of the people are on 64 bit now anyway.

[AnalogGuy1]

on-the-fly compilation on the user's machine

On-the-fly compilation of a snippet to rapidly generate changing filter coefficients (I get that) or on-the-fly compilation to create a virtual mini-synth that leaves out all the unused modules and optimizes what is present (utterly insane)?!?

[david.beholder]

Put it in Diva

That too

Mind you, I've spent an enormous amount of time, if not years, crunching filter maths. The filter we're working on currently (see RePro-1 thread) is a slightly more complex model than what we have in Diva and uses about half the CPU in Divine mode. Hand written assembly language still beats any compiler by a mile. I hope to be able to apply this knowledge onto Diva filters as well, as tedious as the task may be. It works in 64 bit mode only though, but our recent customer survey shows that about 90% of the people are on 64 bit now anyway.

My congratulations, I remember we were talking about it around half of a year ago. And now it's here. Wow!

64 bit-only would bonus in 2016 it's all good, less files, less support and it gonna push some guys to upgrade to newer CPUs and reduce amount of complainers -- and it's especially funny on gearslutz when someone with 20k in hw synths is complaining that his 5 y/o CPU doesn't work well with newer plugins/daws/etc.

I hope RePro-1 filter would join Diva too. How would it work economically tho?

Also what is Superbooth?

[Urs]

on-the-fly compilation on the user's machine

On-the-fly compilation of a snippet to rapidly generate changing filter coefficients (I get that) or on-the-fly compilation to create a virtual mini-synth that leaves out all the unused modules and optimizes what is present (utterly insane)?!?

Utterly insane, provided that it's doable.

[EvilDragon]

Also what is Superbooth?

Musikmesse?

[Urs]

My congratulations, I remember we were talking about it around half of a year ago. And now it's here. Wow!

"Now" would be overstating it... but yeah, it's coming along

64 bit-only would bonus in 2016 it's all good, less files, less support and it gonna push some guys to upgrade to newer CPUs and reduce amount of complainers -- and it's especially funny on gearslutz when someone with 20k in hw synths is complaining that his 5 y/o CPU doesn't work well with newer plugins/daws/etc.

I hope RePro-1 filter would join Diva too. How would it work economically tho?

Diva might get the alternative implementation which was famously built into the Synthex. Nothing set in stone tho.

Also what is Superbooth?

It's a new synth-specific trade show happening in Berlin for the first time:

https://www.superbooth.com/en/landing.html

We're all very excited about it, and our booth is next to the Absinthe bar.

[Cyoon]

it's an electronic music tradeshow happening in berlin organised by schneidersbuero.

wich is related to Schneidersladen, a specialised music store for Analog Synths and all that stuff in Berlin.

http://www.schneidersbuero.de
http://www.schneidersladen.de/en/
https://www.superbooth.com/en/

edit: too late..Urs was faster