Semi-Beginner $100 Synth?

[zenophilix]

Synthmaster is good but it always seemed kind of buggy on my system. One huge deciding factor for me when buying a new profuct is how stable it is.

I don't care if it can even make me coffee, if it crashes on a regilar basis or seems unoptimized for what it does, them i'll skip it.

Ymmv

Only had one instance of crashing with the demo, when I tried to load about 20 MIDI clips from my computer. Oops. Other then that, it's been fine. Maybe the full version will be terrible, maybe I'm just lucky in that concern.

[lolilol1975]

Hello, coming late to the party but o thought I could give some input as I own Spire, Dune2 and SM and they happen to be my 3 main synths.

Although I don't do EDM, my feeling is sound wise Spire has the sound that is best adapted for that style, and if you are to sell your music, it's the one that can produce sounds that cuts through the most easily, and probably catch ear best. It also has the most presets by far. It's deeper than you think at first and the right amount of features.

D2 is the one with the least number of presets, I don't know why. But it's presets are nice and inspiring. It sounds great, but personally don't fancy its interface that much. Make sure you test it thoroughly to see if it fits your style. It is best for making layered sounds as you can layer up to 10 sounds, allowing rich, complex presets but you can do the same with your DAW and several tracks more easily I think.
The oscillators are good but the filters and effects are okayish in my opinion. I also miss the possibility to import wav files for the oscillators. Unfortunately, contrarily to the other two, I don't see any desire to improve it by the author, unless for a new paid version.

Synthmaster is the most versatile. Some people can't get past the interface. I find it intuitive, contrarily to most, but not resizable. It has a wide range of sources, great filter section, more envelopes than you'll need, okay FX. It comes with 3000 presets, which is nice, but not that many dedicated to EDM so you'll have to make your own, which is fun. Plus many presets are uninspiring. The online library is a nice feature although not that many people have uploaded their presets. My experience is it's the least stable of the three especially in the latest version. The version 2.7 was pretty stable but version 2.8 isn't so stable for me. It also sounds great but I think the sound doesn't cut through quite as well as the two others, although I think it has improved with the latest additions. Still, it doesn't catch the ear as easily, I think. It's also the cheapest of the three.

So for your needs, I would probably recommend Spire in the marketplace the best, and I would get SM as a second choice later to supplement it (maybe when v3 comes out ?). If you can't get Spire at aa good price, get SM.

I haven't tried the othe cited synths but some come with rather annoying copy protections contrarily to the 3 above, and for that I would consider them second choice.

Finally, if you are on PC, download Sonigen modular. It's extremely capable, sounds great, has nice presets, and is free.

[zenophilix]

Hello, coming late to the party but o thought I could give some input as I own Spire, Dune2 and SM and they happen to be my 3 main synths.

Although I don't do EDM, my feeling is sound wise Spire has the sound that is best adapted for that style, and if you are to sell your music, it's the one that can produce sounds that cuts through the most easily, and probably catch ear best. It also has the most presets by far. It's deeper than you think at first and the right amount of features.

D2 is the one with the least number of presets, I don't know why. But it's presets are nice and inspiring. It sounds great, but personally don't fancy its interface that much. Make sure you test it thoroughly to see if it fits your style. It is best for making layered sounds as you can layer up to 10 sounds, allowing rich, complex presets but you can do the same with your DAW and several tracks more easily I think.
The oscillators are good but the filters and effects are okayish in my opinion. I also miss the possibility to import wav files for the oscillators. Unfortunately, contrarily to the other two, I don't see any desire to improve it by the author, unless for a new paid version.

Synthmaster is the most versatile. Some people can't get past the interface. I find it intuitive, contrarily to most, but not resizable. It has a wide range of sources, great filter section, more envelopes than you'll need, okay FX. It comes with 3000 presets, which is nice, but not that many dedicated to EDM so you'll have to make your own, which is fun. Plus many presets are uninspiring. The online library is a nice feature although not that many people have uploaded their presets. My experience is it's the least stable of the three especially in the latest version. The version 2.7 was pretty stable but version 2.8 isn't so stable for me. It also sounds great but I think the sound doesn't cut through quite as well as the two others, although I think it has improved with the latest additions. Still, it doesn't catch the ear as easily, I think. It's also the cheapest of the three.

So for your needs, I think Spire in the marketplace is the best, and I would get SM as a second choice later to supplement it (maybe when v3 comes out ?). If you can't get Spire at aa good price, get SM.

I haven't tried the othe cited synths but some come with rather annoying copy protections contrarily to the 3 above, and for that I would consider them second choice.

Finally, if you are on PC, download Sonigen modular. It's extremely capable, sounds great, has nice presets, and is free.

Sigh.

Firstly, I've already decided on Synthmaster.(though I appreciate the opinion on synthmaster, further reinforces the fact that it will be the best for my needs)
Secondly, I fail to understand why Spire is a better choice than Synthmaster, taking into consideration my actual needs which I wrote in this topic, saying I'm looking for a versatile synth.

I'm buying Synthmaster today, and I won't require any further guidance. Thanks to everyone who helped me decide. I will be leaving this thread open so that anyone else trying to make the same decision as me can reuse this one instead of making a million duplicates.

If you have any other suggestions, I'll check them out before I buy SM, but chances are I wont reply, as I've made my decision.

Cheers. (I promise I'm full british.... )

[chk071]

To add some more confusion: I think that "versatility" as the deciding factor is a mistake. If you take a look around here, there's really few, i mean, really, few, like 1 out of a thousand, who use only one synth for everything. I do understand that you believe that with your kind of budget, you need one synth, which really does much, but, don't be mistaken, if you're new to synthesis all that, a very capable, do it all synth, like Synthmaster, which also doesn't have the easiest of all GUI's, might prove kind of counter productive. Also, i'm always surprised about the capability of even a pretty simple synth like Sylenth1 for example. There's really a lot it can already do. So, it's a question if one really needs a "end all" power machine of a synth, in order to make music. It highly depends on the kind of music too, and your approach to it.

Briefly said, i would think about what you want to achieve, and what your focus will be. And i wouldn't make the mistake to make versatility the deciding factor, and don't care about sound for example. After all, you will have to live, work, and like the instrument you are buying, and if you only buy it, because it can do a lot, then you might be surprised to find yourself always lacking a certian something from the sound, if it's not to your liking. For me, sound would be the first of all considerations, everything else is secondary. Imagine someone buys a drum kit, with loads of cymbals, and loads of drums, but it doesn't sound good to his ears. What use are the loads of cymbals and drums then? But if you demo, or you already demo'd Synthmaster, and think that you like it, then go ahead. All i can say is that sound should be the first thing to consider, and the rest can be considered after that.

[zenophilix]

To add some more confusion: I think that "versatility" as the deciding factor is a mistake. If you take a look around here, there's really few, i mean, really, few, like 1 out of a thousand, who use only one synth for everything. I do understand that you believe that with your kind of budget, you need one synth, which really does much, but, don't be mistaken, if you're new to synthesis all that, a very capable, do it all synth, like Synthmaster, which also doesn't have the easiest of all GUI's, might prove kind of counter productive. Also, i'm always surprised about the capability of even a pretty simple synth like Sylenth1 for example. There's really a lot it can already do. So, it's a question if one really needs a "end all" power machine of a synth, in order to make music. It highly depends on the kind of music too, and your approach to it.

Briefly said, i would think about what you want to achieve, and what your focus will be. And i wouldn't make the mistake to make versatility the deciding factor, and don't care about sound for example. After all, you will have to live, work, and like the instrument you are buying, and if you only buy it, because it can do a lot, then you might be surprised to find yourself always lacking a certian something from the sound, if it's not to your liking. For me, sound would be the first of all considerations, everything else is secondary. Imagine someone buys a drum kit, with loads of cymbals, and loads of drums, but it doesn't sound good to his ears. What use are the loads of cymbals and drums then? But if you demo, or you already demo'd Synthmaster, and think that you like it, then go ahead. All i can say is that sound should be the first thing to consider, and the rest can be considered after that.

I appreciate the advice(though saying something is an opinion, then saying that's what I should do is a bit contradictory), and I understand the point you're making, but I honestly can't afford multiple synths yet. Having said that, however, I'm able to get SM with the educational discount, and I have a coupon from using the demo, so if I can find something good as a companion to Synthmaster in the $40 bracket, then I'll do that, but for now what I need is a solid swiss army knife. Something that can produce a wide variety of sounds for a wide variety of genres, and do it damn well in the process. That's basically what Synthmaster is for me, I like it because it's extremely good at a number of styles of music. Spire is great for EDM, I agree, but EDM was never my main focus. I like to juggle different genres, otherwise I start to stagnate artistically. I have a highly alternative approach to my music, and Spire simply doesn't cut it for a go-to synth. In the future, I'd definitely like to pick up Dune II, Spire, Sylenth, Massive, Zebra, but that's hardly a realistic thing to be thinking about at this early stage in my artistic career. I've demoed all of the synths mentioned in this thread extensively, and Synthmaster is the clear winner for what I'm doing. I've demoed Synthmaster extensively over the last month, and mentioned it already.(though nobody really reads those posts)

Hope that clears some things up.


Oh, and as a footnote, I've grown to love the way Synthmaster is laid out, it just makes so much sense.

As another footnote, I plane to get the next issue of CM magazine with Bazille CM, so the simplified synths that come with that should also help. Plus, may be more effective than finding a $40 SM companion.

As a reference, the following is what I've demoed(I'll put this in the OP for anyone who might have the same question I did):
Lennard Sylenth1
u-he Hive
u-he Zebra 2
Reveal Sound Spire
Synapse Dune II
Cakewalk Z3TA+ II
Rob Papen Predator
BeepStreets Sunrizer
NI Razor
NI Monark
MuLabs MUX
AIR Hybrid 3

[lolilol1975]

Right, from your first post, I assumed you were mainly interested in EDM and dub step. That's why I recommended Spire as your first synth. If you are multi genres, it makes sense to choose something like SM.

And as I wrote don't overlook the free Sonigen Modular.

[recursive one]

Actually, Synthamster 2.8 has much imporved overall sound, compared to the previous verisons. The new envelopes and filters are top class. Still, the UI is kinda clumsy and counter-intuitie at times and the factory presets are mixed bag ( I guess, it may matter for a [semi]beginner), but the sound is now to be taken seriously.

[zenophilix]

Actually, Synthamster 2.8 has much imporved overall sound, compared to the previous verisons. The new envelopes and filters are top class. Still, the UI is kinda clumsy and counter-intuitie at times and the factory presets are mixed bag ( I guess, it may matter for a [semi]beginner), but the sound is now to be taken seriously.

EDM and Dubstep being first on the list doesn't necessarily mean I'm mainly interested in those, just that I thought of them first.

Actually, Synthamster 2.8 has much imporved overall sound, compared to the previous verisons. The new envelopes and filters are top class. Still, the UI is kinda clumsy and counter-intuitie at times and the factory presets are mixed bag ( I guess, it may matter for a [semi]beginner), but the sound is now to be taken seriously.

Oh, and as a footnote, I've grown to love the way Synthmaster is laid out, it just makes so much sense.

[zenophilix]

Quick update, got a copy of Synthmaster yesterday after further financial complications(I'm done with paypal). Qualified for the academic discount+coupon code from the demo brought it to $44.25, which is mindblowingly cheap for what it is. Safe to say I'm enjoying myself.

[EnGee]

Excellent choice. Yesterday I spent it with Synthmaster doing some bass/lead sounds using the new analog filters. Amazing results in few minutes

[zenophilix]

Excellent choice. Yesterday I spent it with Synthmaster doing some bass/lead sounds using the new analog filters. Amazing results in few minutes

Thanks. Yeah, the new filters are a lot of fun. Now all it needs is color coded envelopes for more intuitive drag+drop and draw-able, Dune2 style MSEGs and it'll be perfect.