Native Instruments Massive X Synth - Sequel to Massive (Out Now!)

[wagtunes]

Somebody should invent nerdstep, geekstep or dorkstep though some would say I have those genres pretty well covered.

[chk071]

[spunkmuffin]

Somebody should invent nerdstep, geekstep or dorkstep though some would say I have those genres pretty well covered.

Wagstep?

Massive is the most overrated VST of all time. It’s super tinnie and digital sounding. Pretty much only useful for making ambient music for film because of how thin and unremarkable it is.

Monty Python - Woody and Tinny Words

Mmmm tinny

[liv]

In any case, I would say that Leap into the void shows very well what Massive can do, while absolutely not sounding "thin" or "mediocre".

Thanks.
All credits to Mike Daliot.

[vurt]

nerdstep,

idm?

[jancivil]

I wasn't initially attracted to Massive due to the prevalence of notions to do with genre. I demoed it, and liked it.

It's capable of a number of things. I remember well this patch by Antonio Blanca which was just fantastic, which got me more involved in it.
I like the new UI. I wonder what the upgrade price will be.

[EnGee]

I didn't like the original when released. I thought it was harsh, but 5 years or so ago I changed my mind as I found it a great sounding synth. I suspect two reasons. Either because I had bad cheap headphones and speakers back in the day or my ears (due to aging) became less sensitive!

Anyway, I still like it and find it together with Largo better sounding than most new wavetable synths. However, I find Reaktor beat it in the detailed sound, but not from a wavetable synth, rather from synths like Razor or Kontour. The amazing blocks however have raised that quality level IMO. There are amazing oscillators and filters and there is no shortage for modulators and envelopes. I really hope that Massive X has the same quality and takes advantage of the several great kinds of filters that are already there. Otherwise, just the Monark filter won't cut it for me.

[EvilDragon]

Don't worry there won't be just one or two filter types in there.

[vurt]

21million!

[EnGee]

Don't worry there won't be just one or two filter types in there.

I'm not worried as I haven't bought it yet but IMO it should include the same level of SKF, Paul, Morph ...etc filters, otherwise what's the advantage if you already have Reaktor? I want the same or above level with polyphony. It is not the same old good Massive with additional things, so?
(below is a small taste of what I mean):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mu1Me8fqFA

[EvilDragon]

There will be a nice variety of different modules, all very high quality DSP. I wouldn't expect copies of Reaktor Blocks, though. That's what Reaktor Blocks are for.

[EnGee]

Great then! Let's wait and see

[chk071]

@EnGee: I think some people really want a standalone product. Reaktor is rather for geeks. It's not for the mass really. Massive is much more appealing to a broader audience. You might be able to do everything you do in Massive X in Reaktor, but, that holds true for almost every other product out there as well.

[BONES]

Those who are suckers, will be milked.

Unless, of course, it actually delivers, in which case they'll be fine. When you have established a brand as strong as Massive, you'd be crazy not to leverage it.

Massive is the most overrated VST of all time. It’s super tinnie and digital sounding. Pretty much only useful for making ambient music for film because of how thin and unremarkable it is.

Up to a point, sure. Today there are much better synths around but it's been with us for a while, so you need to look at it with that in mind. What I use it for are glitchy, sequenced things and it does those extremely well. But it is definitely very "digital" sounding and doesn't do many things as well as the competition. But sometimes "digital" is just what you want so it's not necessarily a problem, just a fact.

The funny thing is,that even though they are the "Future of Sound",I am finding less relevance in their newer products these days...

I'm sort of the opposite - if you'd suggested to me this time last year that I'd be using any NI product today I'd have laughed in your face. Quite literally. I always thought of them as way overpriced and not having a lot to justify it. Then I discovered the software bundles they offer with their hardware. I bought a Machine Mikro for under US$300 and it completely changed my mind, to the point that I could envisage us becoming an NI-powered band. That didn't last, of course, reality set in after a while, but Battery has replaced Orion's native drums for me and most of our new songs use something or other from their range, or something like Substance that requires Kontakt. But the real gem for us has been the sampled drums and stuff. They have had a measurable effect on the sound quality we are able to deliver in our mastered songs now, compared to a year ago.

A few months later, along comes TRK-01 and I am bowled over at how good it sounds and how amazing and innovative it's workflow is (once you get used to it). If TRK-01 isn't the "future", I am going to be very disappointed because I absolutely love it and it's all NI.

The 3 dark horizontal bands on the UI have a lot of knobs and stuff on them, but they are such a contrast with the white/beige sections that it doesn't look cluttered. I think the UI is really clever. It crams in heaps of functions & modulation without looking messy.

You don't think that looks messy? We'll have to agree to disagree because it looks like a dog's breakfast to me. e.g. Why does the LFO waveform selector need to take up so much space? And there is far too much contrast between the light and dark backgrounds, using it in a dark environment could be challenging.

In any case, I would say that Leap into the void shows very well what Massive can do, while absolutely not sounding "thing" or "mediocre".

What is "Leap Into the Void"? The things that appear on YouTube are hardly a tour-de-force.

[EnGee]

@chk071:
Well, I'm not a geek, so I want this ease of use

Seriously, the main advantage for me is the polyphony. Although I found yesterday a block to address this (monoToPloy) but I haven't tried it yet. Anyway, I know it is much more convenient to just load a polyphonic synth for me than keep busy connecting those blocks (although I'm considering to invest in learning to make my synths from Reaktor blocks).

Well, it is always great to be spoiled with choices after so many years fastening

Oh, I think I found a video about monoToPlay blocks, but it seems they are just modified existing blocks, anyway, I'll watch it now!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0oCMD1Ldck