bx_oberhausen from Plugin Alliance has landed

[kmonkey]

This is amazing technology. Can we pay above the list price if we want the plugin now?

[ew]

Since you had the originals, I would like to pose a question: They could be programmed as slight variations of each other or as completely different sounds. How was polyphony managed? Let's say that we would want to have half of the modules in an EVS to produce a percussive sound and another half of them to produce a sustained sound. Could we do that? How would they play?

You could program them either way; the SEM panels were the main programming interface. As far as managing polyphony went, you had your choice of voice modes. My favorite was rotate, where it would rotate through each voice in order.

ew

[ew]

The Four-Voice and Eight-Voice had an optional programmer module, but all that did was save the states of the individual SEMs so you could call them up at the flick of a switch.

Curious. What was the set of module controls used for then? To me it looks like they would be used to control either 1 single or multiple modules depending on the position of the switches below, you know, like an 'override' to the controls on the modules themselves. (Which would go back to their respective actual values when used/turned again, like other programmable synths.) Thats not how it works?



Image from http://www.siliconbreakdown.com/ob3.html

That's how they were supposed to work in theory, and I've played a couple where the programmer worked as intended. However, most of the ones I've played didn't - hence my description.

ew

[chk071]

This is amazing technology. Can we pay above the list price if we want the plugin now?

Depends whether you pay in nature or not.

[fmr]

Since you had the originals, I would like to pose a question: They could be programmed as slight variations of each other or as completely different sounds. How was polyphony managed? Let's say that we would want to have half of the modules in an EVS to produce a percussive sound and another half of them to produce a sustained sound. Could we do that? How would they play?

You could program them either way; the SEM panels were the main programming interface. As far as managing polyphony went, you had your choice of voice modes. My favorite was rotate, where it would rotate through each voice in order.

ew

This mean that we could allocate the modules in an EVS as if they were two FVS, and have each group with its own setting? That's what I was wanting to know, and something that, in software, we could only achieve if we had individual panels for each of the eight voices (which we currently can only achieve - sort of - with the Arturia emulation)

[ew]

Since you had the originals, I would like to pose a question: They could be programmed as slight variations of each other or as completely different sounds. How was polyphony managed? Let's say that we would want to have half of the modules in an EVS to produce a percussive sound and another half of them to produce a sustained sound. Could we do that? How would they play?

You could program them either way; the SEM panels were the main programming interface. As far as managing polyphony went, you had your choice of voice modes. My favorite was rotate, where it would rotate through each voice in order.

ew

This mean that we could allocate the modules in an EVS as if they were two FVS, and have each group with its own setting? That's what I was wanting to know, and something that, in software, we could only achieve if we had individual panels for each of the eight voices (which we currently can only achieve - sort of - with the Arturia emulation)

Sort of, but not really. There weren't anything like actual splits, if that's what you're asking.

ew

[ENV1]

That's how they were supposed to work in theory, and I've played a couple where the programmer worked as intended. However, most of the ones I've played didn't - hence my description.

I see.

Thanks for clearing that up.

[klinik]

This mean that we could allocate the modules in an EVS as if they were two FVS, and have each group with its own setting? That's what I was wanting to know, and something that, in software, we could only achieve if we had individual panels for each of the eight voices (which we currently can only achieve - sort of - with the Arturia emulation)

Sort of, bu not really. There weren't anything like actual splits, if that's what you're asking.

ew

I had mine moded so I could disengage one of the sems from the asign in the programmer and control that voive thru independent CV. That way ie. I coud have a bass + 3 note chord.

Sold mine in 2011, still miss it. Have arturia and is not a bad emulation but lacks the soul. Repro-5 ITOH captured the soul for the prophet5 (that I sold in 2011 too). Need to try the BX emulation but if there is no different panel or “patch” for each voice then it lacks half of the fun an one of the features that makes the FVS So special.

[v1o]

Plugin Alliance’s Thorn has a similar list price at $199. I’m sure that’s good sign that this isn’t a throwaway $29 piece of software.

[zerocrossing]

I had a go with it today...

Sounds good. Great... no. But very good. I have no SEM to compare it to, but I do have an ATC-X with a SEM filter, and I was surprised at how different the resonance range seemed to be. My ATC can still get pretty resonant, almost in the self resonant range. Second thing I noticed was how good my ATC’s VCOs sound, all sweet and beaty against each other. I had to mess with fine tuning to get that kind of effect on the software. To me they sounded more like DCOs in that respect.

Right off the bat, I’m annoyed that there’s no mixer. WHY IS THERE NO MIXER ON THIS DESIGN! More importantly, why propagate it? Put in an osc mixer, and if you really want to make me happy, make it so that you can overdrive the filter behind a point. Put some sort of display to let the user know it’s happening. Again, that’s me. I’m the guy who wants the spirit of the hardware but not a 1:1 copy. (Which this isn’t anyway...)

The presets are mostly horrible. Not really an issue... but eech. I mean... the FM in some of those horn sounds was wrong sounding. That said, what it really needs is a third envelope to damp that FM amount down so it’s just at the attack of the horn, and that’s not happening on this synth. Yes, it can happen on my ATC. (OK, well it doesn’t do FM, but it does have cross mod) I guess I have the SEM filter in my Pro 2 as well, which will do FM (both linear and non linear), but I didn’t go there.

The effects... I’m not sure what the hubbub is all about. I mean, they seem fine for built in effects. They’re not RePro level, but let’s face it, RePro is an outlier there. Most synths just don’t have great built in effects. I’m happy they’re there, though. Nice for when all you want is a hint of reverb or a delay. I didn’t experiment too much with the distortion.

The mod matrix is fine, nothing special there. So stupid you have to turn on a slot. If I’ve got a source and destination and amount is more than zero, just turn on. Mod slot amounts are not available destinations. Boo. Oh, and why not make your synth accept both channel and polyphonic aftertouch? Come on, people!

I do think it sounds better than Arturia’s SEM V. Like so many of the Arturia stuff, it just sounds a bit dull to me. The BX had an overall wider sound to me, like the emulation just had more detail and spectrum range. That said, it didn’t seem like I could open up the filter all the way without modulation. I had a good time playing with the demo, but I’m not eager to get my credit card out.

So... maybe if this went on sale or came up used, but for $179... I’m with the people who say that that’s too much. I got RePro for $99, which is a bargain and a half, but also I’d say it was an overall better emulation and where it strayed from the original it did in very interesting ways.

[ATS]

I do not really feel tempted by this one at all. It sounds pretty good though.

[db3]

Whoop heavy hitter price ($99) and April voucher make a no brainer

[sqigls]

$74 is a "no-brainer"?

[db3]

$74 is a "no-brainer"?

No, but $24 is

[sqigls]

you obviously hit a bit harder than me