Is komplete 11 worth getting?

[shidostrife]

The value of komplete really depends on how much you use it. I got my komplete 11 by lurking the secondhand market and got it for around half the new price, I think it's worth more than that but I definitely won't pay full price for it.

I use many of the Kontakt libraries in all my projects and sometimes the individual synths too, but I never use Reaktor. The synths might be powerful, but I'm more of a preset guy, so having a bunch of different synths doesn't really add value for me. The real values for me are the full version of Kontakt, the Kontakt libraries (especially the drums) and the effects (which many people forget), and for those, it's definitely worth the price I paid. If you think you'll the synths a lot, it might even worth more for you.

You're missing out. There are some really great synths in Reaktor. Use Komplete Kontrol to access the presets without having to futz with Reaktor.

Yeah, I totally have to try it, I remember when I first got it I loaded a reaktor instrument, messed with some knobs, and it stopped outputting sound. Closed it immediately and never opened again. Maybe I'll retry during this winter break.

[ghettosynth]

The value of komplete really depends on how much you use it. I got my komplete 11 by lurking the secondhand market and got it for around half the new price, I think it's worth more than that but I definitely won't pay full price for it.

I use many of the Kontakt libraries in all my projects and sometimes the individual synths too, but I never use Reaktor. The synths might be powerful, but I'm more of a preset guy, so having a bunch of different synths doesn't really add value for me. The real values for me are the full version of Kontakt, the Kontakt libraries (especially the drums) and the effects (which many people forget), and for those, it's definitely worth the price I paid. If you think you'll the synths a lot, it might even worth more for you.

You're missing out. There are some really great synths in Reaktor. Use Komplete Kontrol to access the presets without having to futz with Reaktor.

Yeah, I totally have to try it, I remember when I first got it I loaded a reaktor instrument, messed with some knobs, and it stopped outputting sound. Closed it immediately and never opened again. Maybe I'll retry during this winter break.

Komplete Kontrol is a little slow, but, it hides that detail from you. You will discover some really cool presets and over time you might find that it's worth it to play more with Reaktor proper. Even if you don't, you really don't want to miss out on some of the presets in there, especially in some of the newer Reaktor ensembles.

[Michael L]

Because "occasionally," dont get Komplete if you have Inkomplete time

[3ptguitarist]

Thanks guys for the advice. I'll give it some more thought

[sjm]

I think if you are just starting out, your primary concern should be learning the basics of music making. You've not really said what music you're making and what your level of musicianship is. Komplete's value to you will depend on those factors too.

To get the most out of Komplete, I'd say you want to be past the initial beginner stage and have a bit of an idea what you are doing. You don't need to spend 100s of bucks to learn the basics of synthesis, arrangement, composition and how to use your DAW. You can do all that with what you already have. If you haven't already got to that stage, I wouldn't go for Komplete yet unless money is no concern to you. But then you wouldn't be asking this question.

Once you've got to a certain skill level, you will be in a much better position to know whether Komplete will offer you value. If you want to use sample libraries, you will want Kontakt at some point. Add just one more synth to your wishlist, and you might as well get Komplete for the same price or less. It definitely pays to wait for the half price sales.

Komplete has a lot of stuff in it, and I've ended up using a lot of things that were not my motivation for buying it. I've used the compressors a lot, for example. Replika is pretty nice. Neither of these was originally on my radar. The fact that it covers so many bases means that between what's in Komplete and the stock plugins in your DAW, you probably have 95% of what you will ever need. So it's a good early purchase to make.

That might seem to contradict what I first said about Komplete not being the best choice for a complete beginner. But I would say that any significant purchase beyond a DAW is unnecessary for the beginner. It's once you get to that point where investing a significant amount makes sense to you that Komplete is a good buy. I only had a few synths and more esoteric FX (e.g. Glitch 2) that I had paid for prior to buying Komplete. With almost all my bases now covered, I have very little need or desire to buy anything else.

[3ptguitarist]

I think if you are just starting out, your primary concern should be learning the basics of music making. You've not really said what music you're making and what your level of musicianship is. Komplete's value to you will depend on those factors too.

To get the most out of Komplete, I'd say you want to be past the initial beginner stage and have a bit of an idea what you are doing. You don't need to spend 100s of bucks to learn the basics of synthesis, arrangement, composition and how to use your DAW. You can do all that with what you already have. If you haven't already got to that stage, I wouldn't go for Komplete yet unless money is no concern to you. But then you wouldn't be asking this question.

Once you've got to a certain skill level, you will be in a much better position to know whether Komplete will offer you value. If you want to use sample libraries, you will want Kontakt at some point. Add just one more synth to your wishlist, and you might as well get Komplete for the same price or less. It definitely pays to wait for the half price sales.

Komplete has a lot of stuff in it, and I've ended up using a lot of things that were not my motivation for buying it. I've used the compressors a lot, for example. Replika is pretty nice. Neither of these was originally on my radar. The fact that it covers so many bases means that between what's in Komplete and the stock plugins in your DAW, you probably have 95% of what you will ever need. So it's a good early purchase to make.

That might seem to contradict what I first said about Komplete not being the best choice for a complete beginner. But I would say that any significant purchase beyond a DAW is unnecessary for the beginner. It's once you get to that point where investing a significant amount makes sense to you that Komplete is a good buy. I only had a few synths and more esoteric FX (e.g. Glitch 2) that I had paid for prior to buying Komplete. With almost all my bases now covered, I have very little need or desire to buy anything else.

I'm into progressive rock/metal, soft piano, and some new age type songs and maybe some hip-hop beats. So I'm into wanting a variety of sounds for my music.

I'm probably a beginner to intermediate for my level of musicianship. I've been into music for over a decade, though the past decade I haven't been too into it.

I'll think about it more. I want to be able to get good loud and thick sounds from synths and other software instruments and I think komplete might offer that compared to the instruments I currently have.

[wagtunes]

I think if you are just starting out, your primary concern should be learning the basics of music making. You've not really said what music you're making and what your level of musicianship is. Komplete's value to you will depend on those factors too.

To get the most out of Komplete, I'd say you want to be past the initial beginner stage and have a bit of an idea what you are doing. You don't need to spend 100s of bucks to learn the basics of synthesis, arrangement, composition and how to use your DAW. You can do all that with what you already have. If you haven't already got to that stage, I wouldn't go for Komplete yet unless money is no concern to you. But then you wouldn't be asking this question.

Once you've got to a certain skill level, you will be in a much better position to know whether Komplete will offer you value. If you want to use sample libraries, you will want Kontakt at some point. Add just one more synth to your wishlist, and you might as well get Komplete for the same price or less. It definitely pays to wait for the half price sales.

Komplete has a lot of stuff in it, and I've ended up using a lot of things that were not my motivation for buying it. I've used the compressors a lot, for example. Replika is pretty nice. Neither of these was originally on my radar. The fact that it covers so many bases means that between what's in Komplete and the stock plugins in your DAW, you probably have 95% of what you will ever need. So it's a good early purchase to make.

That might seem to contradict what I first said about Komplete not being the best choice for a complete beginner. But I would say that any significant purchase beyond a DAW is unnecessary for the beginner. It's once you get to that point where investing a significant amount makes sense to you that Komplete is a good buy. I only had a few synths and more esoteric FX (e.g. Glitch 2) that I had paid for prior to buying Komplete. With almost all my bases now covered, I have very little need or desire to buy anything else.

I'm into progressive rock/metal, soft piano, and some new age type songs and maybe some hip-hop beats. So I'm into wanting a variety of sounds for my music.

I'm probably a beginner to intermediate for my level of musicianship. I've been into music for over a decade, though the past decade I haven't been too into it.

I'll think about it more. I want to be able to get good loud and thick sounds from synths and other software instruments and I think komplete might offer that compared to the instruments I currently have.

If basically what you're asking is if Komplete's instruments sound better than what you have with your stock plugins, yes. Much better.

[sjm]

I'm into progressive rock/metal, soft piano, and some new age type songs and maybe some hip-hop beats. So I'm into wanting a variety of sounds for my music.

I'd say the more varied your musical interests are, the more you get from something like Komplete. Kontakt is good to have if you're into "real" instruments and want to emulate a band but don't have/play all the instruments. Absynth is a very interesting synth that I always get a bit lost in when using but does some amazing soundscape stuff.

I'm probably a beginner to intermediate for my level of musicianship. I've been into music for over a decade, though the past decade I haven't been too into it.

Well if you've already got the basic chops, and know your way around your DAW enough to make some songs, you're probably at the point where Komplete is worth considering.

[el-bo (formerly ebow)]

I think if you are just starting out, your primary concern should be learning the basics of music making. You've not really said what music you're making and what your level of musicianship is. Komplete's value to you will depend on those factors too.

To get the most out of Komplete, I'd say you want to be past the initial beginner stage and have a bit of an idea what you are doing. You don't need to spend 100s of bucks to learn the basics of synthesis, arrangement, composition and how to use your DAW. You can do all that with what you already have. If you haven't already got to that stage, I wouldn't go for Komplete yet unless money is no concern to you. But then you wouldn't be asking this question.

Once you've got to a certain skill level, you will be in a much better position to know whether Komplete will offer you value. If you want to use sample libraries, you will want Kontakt at some point. Add just one more synth to your wishlist, and you might as well get Komplete for the same price or less. It definitely pays to wait for the half price sales.

Komplete has a lot of stuff in it, and I've ended up using a lot of things that were not my motivation for buying it. I've used the compressors a lot, for example. Replika is pretty nice. Neither of these was originally on my radar. The fact that it covers so many bases means that between what's in Komplete and the stock plugins in your DAW, you probably have 95% of what you will ever need. So it's a good early purchase to make.

That might seem to contradict what I first said about Komplete not being the best choice for a complete beginner. But I would say that any significant purchase beyond a DAW is unnecessary for the beginner. It's once you get to that point where investing a significant amount makes sense to you that Komplete is a good buy. I only had a few synths and more esoteric FX (e.g. Glitch 2) that I had paid for prior to buying Komplete. With almost all my bases now covered, I have very little need or desire to buy anything else.

I'm into progressive rock/metal, soft piano, and some new age type songs and maybe some hip-hop beats. So I'm into wanting a variety of sounds for my music.

I'm probably a beginner to intermediate for my level of musicianship. I've been into music for over a decade, though the past decade I haven't been too into it.

I'll think about it more. I want to be able to get good loud and thick sounds from synths and other software instruments and I think komplete might offer that compared to the instruments I currently have.

If basically what you're asking is if Komplete's instruments sound better than what you have with your stock plugins, yes. Much better.

He also has Dune and Z3ta Cm versions.

And he is looking for loud, thick sounds. Thickness is something that can come from synth architecture, but both these qualities are often more to do with layering, effects, and mixing.

You can have the best bass synth in the world, but many people will still default to mixing, matching, and layering three common elements to get a good thick bass sound.

This is a problem that needs no money thrown at it; at least, not until the op is sure of what his current gear cannot do.

[Daags]

Yeah, I totally have to try it, I remember when I first got it I loaded a reaktor instrument, messed with some knobs, and it stopped outputting sound. Closed it immediately and never opened again. Maybe I'll retry during this winter break.

sounds like you hit a CPU overload .... Reaktor will turn itself off if its CPU use peaks too high - which naturally results in stopping the audio output. Keep an eye on the top-right corner, that's where the on/off switch is. In Reaktor 5, it turns red when it is off. Right beside the on/off switch you can see the audio sample rate that Reaktor is operating at. For heavy patches that keep CPU spiking and switching off, you can change to a lower/slightly-lower sample rate (independent of the DAW's) in order to use less CPU and keep running.

that would be my first guess as to what you experienced.

of course you can also adjust your buffer settings in your DAW to mitigate CPU demands, but I'll assume you know that already.

Reaktor definitely deserves a second, and even a third shot ...

[imrae]

I would recommend you learn how to make the synths you have "loud and thick". Maybe the NI synths you looked at had more finished-sounding presets - but that isn't always what you want in the mix.

Komplete is a good package, but it won't help you learn. The magware and DAW stuff is good enough to get a feel for what your priorities are and what kind of thing you want next.

[shidostrife]

Komplete Kontrol is a little slow, but, it hides that detail from you. You will discover some really cool presets and over time you might find that it's worth it to play more with Reaktor proper. Even if you don't, you really don't want to miss out on some of the presets in there, especially in some of the newer Reaktor ensembles.

Thanks, I'll try this

sounds like you hit a CPU overload .... Reaktor will turn itself off if its CPU use peaks too high - which naturally results in stopping the audio output. Keep an eye on the top-right corner, that's where the on/off switch is. In Reaktor 5, it turns red when it is off. Right beside the on/off switch you can see the audio sample rate that Reaktor is operating at. For heavy patches that keep CPU spiking and switching off, you can change to a lower/slightly-lower sample rate (independent of the DAW's) in order to use less CPU and keep running.

that would be my first guess as to what you experienced.

of course you can also adjust your buffer settings in your DAW to mitigate CPU demands, but I'll assume you know that already.

Reaktor definitely deserves a second, and even a third shot ...

ooh, this is new for me. Thanks, will keep that in mind when I try it again

[jancivil]

TL;DR

So it's a good early purchase to make.

That might seem to contradict what I first said about Komplete not being the best choice for a complete beginner. But I would say that any significant purchase beyond a DAW is unnecessary for the beginner. It's once you get to that point where investing a significant amount makes sense to you that Komplete is a good buy.

I'm into progressive rock/metal, soft piano, and some [...] So I'm into wanting a variety of sounds for my music.

I'm probably a beginner to intermediate for my level of musicianship.
[...] I want to be able to get good loud and thick sounds from synths and other software instruments and I think komplete might offer that compared to the instruments I currently have.

If basically what you're asking is if Komplete's instruments sound better than what you have with your stock plugins, yes. Much better.

He also has Dune and Z3ta Cm versions.

And he is looking for loud, thick sounds. Thickness is something that can come from synth architecture, but both these qualities are often more to do with layering, effects, and mixing.

You can have the best bass synth in the world, but many people will still default to mixing, matching, and layering three common elements to get a good thick bass sound.

First, I think at this kinda sort intermediary level, Komplete being the bang for the buck what it is is probably a good choice - if one is not going to miss meals behind the purchase.

I don't go for the thinking that the way to a large sound is through layering. I think it carries the hazard of more = less, tbh. I think the better advice is to learn to get a sound together from as little as possible. I've used like 4 basses in tracks but I'm an idiot like that. Bass is one track if you aren't. This is 'electronic music' or even EDM type of thinking which I just don't share. There is no sign Mr 3pt is that. Do you get Monark in teh Komplete? You have a sure, solid bass synth tone. And a *good* basis for subtractive synthesis thinking/learning. If you want 'bass guitar', isn't there some Scarbee products in the thing? So maybe "thicker" means trotting out the compressors in it. And learning to mix. I know there's those things in it.

And the thing of having a lot of things you don't know about is, if one is curious here's a big playground. A great learning opportunity is here if you're thinking about buying and it's budgetable.

Sorry, I don't know anything about 'Dune... CM versions'.

[glokraw]

I currently have an old sonar x3 studio that comes with a bunch of instruments like zeta+ 1.5, dimension le, etc. I also have Dune CM that came with a computer music magazine I bought a while ago.

z3ta 1.5 also provides a fine multi-fx plugin, with lots of distortion
and chorus options to fatten sounds, and a barrel of presets
as used in Cakewalk synth sounds, finding and studying the ones
that work on other instruments, is a good use of time.

Also on your CM disc, you'll find CM Fuzz, a re-skinned Camel Audio plugin that has distortion, compression and filter, with a randomizer, which is great for subtle or massive fattening, and a good scratchpad to test the relationships of filter, compressor and distortion. Other fine
plugins will be on the disc, for bass, organ and various effects.

As for Komplete, buy it at half-price, and while you wait,
you might find Reaktor second-hand in the marketplace forum,
which might qualify you for a discount upgrade price later,
and has plenty of really great 'user library' ensembles.
Hundreds of them...

IK Multimedia have free versions of Sampletank 3, Syntronik, and Amplitube. Might as well partake in them, lots of good content
and capabilities.

There's no race, we can't master everything at once.
Musicianship, quality song writing, and an ear for mixing,
are the hard parts. Buying stuff is easy.
Cheers

[realmarco]

i'd say getting komplete is good way of getting pretty much everything you could possibly need

for most Music Genres..i'd suggest waiting for either Christmass or Summer Sales. i got Komplete 10 and then 11 upgrade during those times

otherwise its a a bit too expensive for my taste