KVR Audio

kevvvvv · Post by **kevvvvv** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:58 pm

Not used scaler, and can't tell from the spec.

Your feedback welcome.

kevvvvvv

Ranoka · Post by **Ranoka** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 4:55 pm

The great thing about Plugin Boutique is they make a lot of in-depth videos on their YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVMkssoqyHM

They've also added quite a lot of features in the 1.5 and 1.6 version.

They also both have demos so you can check how they integrate with your DAW before choosing.
Cthulhu seems to focus on Arps, I don't think Scaler does arps (might be wrong).

kevvvvv · Post by **kevvvvv** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:23 pm

Do you use Scaler much?

I'm too keen on buying gadgets that seemed like good idea at the time

antic604 · Post by **antic604** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:31 pm

kevvvvv wrote: ↑Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:23 pmI'm too keen on buying gadgets that seemed like good idea at the time

You have Harmonic Editing now in S1 v4, so I'd say you might not get as much use from it.

kevvvvv · Post by **kevvvvv** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:46 pm

Great answer antic. Thanks for your insight.

I've been working wonders with S1's Chord Track feature.

eg, play a chord sequence, then repeat it, but modulated in different interesting ways, and so on.

This side of computer music in general is so exciting

Richard deHove · Post by **Richard deHove** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:58 pm

I use both. I think Scaler is better if you want to quickly arrange a chord progression from a fragment of an idea. On the other hand Cthulu allows you to import a MIDI file and automatically convert that to chords across the keyboard. I like the way it can then automatically fill in blank spaces with chords. Scaler's detect function is fantastic for progressing an idea.

Arp-wise Cthulu is the clear winner. The arp in Scaler is really just to demo chords. Cthulu's arp is comprehensive although I actually rarely use it. I much prefer to leave that to third-party arps. Meh.

Again though Scaler has the advantage of being able to play a selected range of chords in one zone, then a locked scale of single notes in the other. That's a lot of useful functionality.

So there's definitely overlap between the apps but surprisingly not that much. Depends how you prefer to work.

kevvvvv · Post by **kevvvvv** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 8:26 pm

cheers everyone richard, antic, ranoka for being so helpful

will have a try of the Scaler demo.

kevvvvv

Ranoka · Post by **Ranoka** » Mon Dec 17, 2018 9:25 pm

To be honest I got Scaler in the recent PB sale, haven't spent a lot of time with it yet, I intend to spend some time with it tonight

I like that I can play midi and detect which keys are closest, and choose one based on the STYLE descriptions (like Serious, Sad, Emotional, Sentimental). And then test out some chords to go with that key and drag them out to midi in your DAW. I'm sure there's a lot more advanced stuff it offers as well!

There's also scale lock that I'm playing with. You can set it to white keys only - so you can record your music with the white notes in C Major, and then audition different scales to see how it will sound! It also adjusts the root note when you have the White Keys Only for the Scale Lock enabled.

mtelesha · Post by **mtelesha** » Tue Dec 18, 2018 4:08 am

I use Scaler for playing keyboard. I love the way I get feedback (Tells me what chord I am playing) on what I am playing (Been playing forever but man sometimes I can't get it straight so scaler helps me with my chords. So when I try the various voicings I get a quick idea of what a flat 5th will sound with a 9th for instance.

I kind of wish it would tell you what the passing chords would have been for the chord but maybe they will do this later.

AdvancedFollower · Post by **AdvancedFollower** » Tue Dec 18, 2018 11:40 am

I use Scaler more than the built-in chord features in Studio One. It's great for helping you come up with new ideas by making suggestions for how to proceed with your chord progression, but it isn't "cheating" either. I feel like it actually teaches you about music theory, like having a music teacher sitting next to you giving hints.

I tried the demos of Cthulhu and InstaChord but neither really worked for me. It all depends on your workflow, so try out the demos and see if any of them make sense in your workflow.

I also use Captain Chords a bit, but that's more of a "song starter" or "proto-arranger" for me. It's something I occasionally put on a blank DAW project to get me started, but then delete after 15 minutes, once I have some ideas.

highkoo · Post by **highkoo** » Wed Dec 19, 2018 9:04 pm

I use them both a lot, for entirely completely different reasons.
Cthulhu is the arp king. Tops no doubt. Anything arp, go there.
Scaler is a chord-player, basically. But, it is imo the best solution in this area ever, by far.

If you want fancy arps to go along with your chord progressions, Chthulhu for sure.
If you want to create chord progressions over your drum tracks, Scaler is the craziest thing ever.
Best featured, best workflow, best development.

The overlap is that Chthulhu can be used to create chord progressions and link them to a vsti, just like Scaler. But for that use alone Scaler is absolutely a better choice.

Is Scaler like Cthulu?